Capiz village chief gunned down

The chairperson of a barangay in Capiz previously raided by government forces died after being shot by still unidentified assailants in Calinog, Iloilo.

Killed was Julie Catamin, village chief of Barangay Roosevelt, Tapaz town, according to a report from the Western Visayas regional police.

Catamin, 49, was riding his motorcycle in Barangay Malitbog Centro on Sunday morning, when shot by two persons on another motorcycle.

The assailants, both said to be wearing helmets, fled towards another part of Calinog after the attack.

Police later found four empty shells of a caliber .45 pistol at the crime scene.

Following Catamin’s death, authorities and other groups traded accusations that it was either state forces or the New People’s Army that killed the barangay leader.

PCapt. Genesis Roque, Calinog Police chief, said there is a possibility that the New People’s Army’s Special Partisan Unit was behind the killing, as the victim has been receiving death threats from the rebels.

The regional police command, in a statement, said Catamin has been an active supporter of the government’s program to end communist insurgency and even had a role in declaring the Communist Party of the Philippines as persona non-grata in Roosevelt in September 2020.

The Philippine Army’s 301st Brigade likewise issued a similar statement and called Catamin a “peace advocate” and “ally.”

Women’s group Garbriela, for its part, said Catamin was “red-tagged” after seeking help from militant groups and other government agencies.

Following Catamin’s death, authorities and other groups traded accusations that it was either state forces or the New People’s Army that killed the barangay leader

Human rights watchdog Karapatan, meanwhile, noted that Catamin started seeking assistance after claiming that some of the firearms and ammunition supposedly recovered from people arrested in a recent raid in Barangay Roosevelt were planted.

Days before being killed, Catamin was called to an Army camp in Calinog and was warned that events similar to the raid could happen again, Karapatan said.

PHOTOGRAPHS COURTESY OF SBG Kuya Bong visits Dagupan. More than 3,000 jeepney operators and drivers in Dagupan City were the lucky recipients of meals, food packs, masks, face shields and vitamins distributed by Senator Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go and his staff at the Dagupan City National High School recently. Select beneficiaries were also given tablets so their children could participate in the blended learning being implemented in schools, while several others also received bicycles to help in their daily commute to and from work amid the still limited public transportation options amid the coronavirus disease pandemic. While there, the lawmaker also reminded the residents that they may also avail of medical assistance from the nearest Malasakit Center located at the Region 1 Medical Center. Go’s team likewise extended assistance to more than a thousand market vendors, boat drivers and operators in the same city.