Organizations protest hacienda massacre that killed 9 workers 

The spot were the hacienda workers were attacked by gunmen. (Photo: ABS-CBN News)
The spot were the hacienda workers were attacked by gunmen. (Photo: ABS-CBN News)

Several organizations today protested the deaths of the nine sugar plantation workers who were killed over the weekend while occupying land in a hacienda in Sagay, Negros Occidental.

Photos and videos of the picketers protesting outside the regional office of the Department of Agrarian Reform were shared by the National Federation of Sugar Workers (NFSW) on Facebook earlier today.

With signs and banners, they called for justice for the nine victims and for proper land reform.

The nine workers who were members of the NFSW were killed by at least four gunmen on Saturday night, ABS-CBN News reported.

According to The Philippine Star, the massacre happened at around 9:30pm while the victims were having dinner inside a makeshift tent. Among those killed were two minors and three women.

They sustained multiple gunshot wounds and burns. Empty bullets and firearms were found near the crime scene, including one in the possession of one of the victims, ABS-CBN News reported.

However, the NFSW denies this and alleged that the police planted the gun, another ABS-CBN report states.

Sagay police chief, Chief Insp. Roberto Mansueto said the incident could have been caused by a conflict between the farmers and plantation owner.

NFSW Chairman Rolando Rillo told ABS-CBN News, that the land dispute has been going on for about a decade.

In a statement from the NFSW yesterday, it said that the workers were occupying the idle private land inside Hacienda Nene in the town’s Barangay (Village) Bulanon as part of their campaign for “genuine” agrarian reform.

The NFSW also called out the Duterte administration for making it a “state policy to intimidate, harass, arrest, and even kill activists and critics instead of answering their legitimate demands.”

It said that 45 peasant leaders have been killed in Negros since President Rodrigo Duterte rose to power.

The Malacañang Palace, meanwhile, has spoken out against the killings.

Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said in a statement last night that they condemn the killings in “the strongest possible terms.”

“The Palace is deeply perturbed to learn about the incident and the Philippine National Police (PNP) has already been ordered to conduct a thorough and impartial investigation on this dastardly act,” he said.



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