Five rebels, including ‘Ka’ Roger Rosal’s daughter, die in Palawan clash with elite Marine soldiers

AN elite unit of the Philippine Marines clashed briefly with suspected communist rebels in Palawan on Thursday, killing a daughter of the late Communist Party of the Philippines-new People’s Army spokesman Gregorio “Ka Roger” Rosal, along with four other rebels, one of them, the head of the group’s military unit in Southern Tagalog.

Andrea Rosal, whom the military said was the deputy secretary of the rebels’ Southern Tagalog Regional Party Committee (STRPC), was killed during a firefight with members of the Marines’ Special Operations Force under the Marine Battalion Landing Team-4, according to Brig. Gen. Nestor Herico, commander of the 3rd Marine Brigade.

The clash occurred at around 5:53 a.m. after members of the Marine unit which was among the crack military teams sent to liberate Marawi City from the Islamic State, raided the guerilla base of the NPA operating in Palawan following a report from civilians about the massing of armed men.

“The firefight was very brief. These are the Special Operations Force of the Philippine Marines Corps, this is the Force Reconnaissance Group. It will not fire a shot unless it will hit. So I can assume, they just fired five shots, and they also hit five. That’s how good they are,” Herico said of the unit involved in the operation.

“A war will not last with these people, they are the warriors of Marawi, Force Recon Group,” he added.

Rosal, whom Herico said was known with her alias as “Naya,” was freed by a court in Pasig City in 2014 after she was arrested in Caloocan City along with another alleged rebel and charged with cases that include abduction and murder and for being an alleged official of the armed underground movement.

At the time of her arrest, Rosal was eight months pregnant and her unborn died while she was in jail. She was also the daughter of Ka Roger, the popular and charismatic spokesman of the communist movement before he died in 2011 in a guerilla base in Northern Luzon. Her mother, Rosario Dumanais, a rebel commander in Southern Tagalog, died years ago in a firefight with soldiers.

Herico said that during the brief clash in Sitio Kabuyuan, Barangay Mainit, Brookes Point, Palawan, four other rebels were also killed, including Bonifacio Magramo, alias Boywan, secretary of the regional military Unit 4A of the STRPC.

A Marine personnel also died during the battle after he was shot while chasing a fleeing rebel.

FILIPINO fruit producers in Mindanao would now be able to ship their harvest directly to Luzon and the Visayas daily amid the Covid-19 pandemic following the signing of a marketing agreement between the government and the private sector.

In a news statement, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said its Field Office in Region 11 has signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with the Durian Industry Association of Davao City (DIADC) and John Gold Cargo

Forwarder for the initiative.

“The effort aims to facilitate the movement of fruits and help local farmers bring their produce to major markets, provide a stable source of income, and reduce losses in the middle of the ongoing pandemic,” it said on Thursday.

Under the MOA, the DA said the three shippers will transport 15 metric tons (MT) of fruits from Davao to Manila at P35 per kilogram daily from September 1 to October 1.

The DA added that there will be no “off-loading provided that the products will reach the airport before the cut-off time.”

The first shipment of fruits under the agreement arrived at Ninoy Aquino International Airport last September 1, according to the DA.

“We can call this the durian flight,” Agriculture Undersecretary for Regulations and Infrastructure Zamzamin Ampatuan said as he noted that the bulk of the initial fruit shipment contains durian.

Ampatuan explained that the flights are solely dedicated to the cargoes unlike in previous arrangements wherein cargo shipments go with passenger flights.

“That’s why we are excited about this because it is an opportunity that will benefit the farmers, producers and traders. We can serve the market and widen the opportunity for farmers to sell their produce with lower cost for cargo,” he added.

Agriculture Undersecretary for High-value Crops and Rural Credit Evelyn Laviña said that the unloading of the first shipment of fruits will hopefully encourage the involvement of more producers, consolidators and shippers in using air cargo to transport agricultural commodities.

“There will be more like this not only in domestic f lights but eventually our products will reach international markets,” Ampatuan said.

The DA noted that the agreement is a huge step in ensuring smooth flow of goods during the Covid-19 pandemic since the health crisis has restricted movement of farm and fishery commodities.

“The DA also partnered with the Department of the Interior and Local Government and the Department of

Trade and Industry to ensure smooth and unhampered movement in the food value chain,” it added.

The DA noted that the Department of Transportation also issued an order in June for domestic shipping lines “to allot at least 12 percent of the vessel’s cargo space per trip for agricultural and food products.”