The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) expressed its condolences over the reported death of an American citizen of Filipino descent who was among those killed in recent armed encounters in Toboso, Negros Occidental.
"While full identification and circumstances remain subject to proper verification, we recognize the profound grief that accompanies such loss—especially when it involves a life cut short far from home and under circumstances of armed conflict," Undersecretary Ernesto Torres Jr., NTF-ELCAC executive director, said in a statement on Friday, April 24.
Initial information reaching authorities indicates that the 40-year-old individual was from California and was reportedly linked to Anakbayan-USA, a matter that must likewise be established through proper verification, he said.
"If confirmed, this raises serious questions about the pathways through which individuals—particularly those in the Filipino diaspora—are drawn into situations of armed confrontation," Torres said.
"Let us be clear: we do not celebrate the loss of Filipino lives—nor of any life. Every death is a tragedy. But we must also confront the difficult truth that this incident lays bare," he added.
Torres said when individuals—whether Filipino or foreign-born—are drawn into armed struggle, the outcome is almost always the same: violence, loss, and shattered futures.
He noted that a clash between the 79th Infantry Battalion and the New People's Army led to the deaths in Toboso.
"The reported presence of a foreign national raises a deeper concern that we can no longer ignore: the reach of recruitment, ideological influence, and what we have described as terror-grooming—processes that cross borders and prey on vulnerability," Torres said.
"The loss of life in Toboso is a solemn reminder: armed struggle does not liberate—it consumes. And no cause is worth the life of a son or daughter taken too soon," he added.*
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