The four members of the Fausto family who were massacred in Sitio Kangkiling, Barangay Buenavista, Himamaylan City, were buried at the Barangay Aguisan Public Cemetery on Sunday, June 18.
San Carlos Bishop Gerardo Alminaza condemned the killing of the Fausto family and blamed it on the “escalating militarization” under the current administration.
Alminaza, in a statement Sunday, said the Diocese of San Carlos mourns the death of Rolly Fausto, his wife Emilda, and their minor sons, Ben and Ruben, on June 14, allegedly perpetrated by the 94th Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army, as reported by the human rights group September 21 Movement.
“The ‘whole-of-nation approach’ advocated by the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) has led to the weaponization of ‘red-tagging’, armed harassment, and senseless killings,” Alminaza said.
The Philippine Army earlier denied the allegations that government soldiers were responsible for the death of four members of the Fausto family.
The 303rd Infrantry Brigade in a statement on June 15 said it was a “baseless accusations of the New People’s Army.
The Army assured the public of their commitment to uncover the truth behind the incident and in bringing the perpetrators to justice, their statement added.
Alminaza urged the public to stand with him in the fight against injustice and the pursuit of a just and lasting peace across all sectors.*