The Fausto massacre or the Himamaylan massacre is a killing of a peasant family in Himamaylan City, Negros Occidental on June 14, 2023. [1]
The massacre was part of a series of killings carried out in the Negros provinces against labelled Communists and their sympathizers, and follows the similarly motivated Escalante massacre of 1985.
Negros-based rights groups have previously reported that the Fausto family had been previously subjected to human rights violations of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), including red-tagging and assault. They were known to have participated and involved themselves among peasant activist organizations in the province. Other previous alleged harassment against the family included break-ins and robbery of cash and livestock. [2]
Heads of the family Roly and Emelda were members of the Baclayan, Bito, Cabagal Farmers and Farmworkers Association (BABICAFA). [3] Because of their participation, Roly was said to have been coerced by the AFP to act as a guide for soldiers against the New People's Army (NPA) and was even tortured in order to forcefully admit that he was also a rebel. [3]
The massacre happened on the night of June 14, 2023. Unidentified men raided a hut in Sitio Buenavista, Himamaylan City, Negros Occidental. The next morning, the dead bodies of the Fausto family were found by their neighbors. They were the bodies of Roly Fausto, 55, wife Emelda, 50, and their children Ben, 15, and Ravin, 12. There were reports that the skull and left leg of Emelda were shattered. [3] Roly's body was found 50 meters from the hut. [4]
Human rights groups Karapatan and International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines have pointed out the AFP as responsible for the massacre, denouncing claims by the AFP that it was the NPA as the one responsible, citing associated previous reports of previous killings and harassment by the 94th Infantry Battalion of the AFP in the province. [2]
Karapatan has denounced the plans of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict to file charges against those who condemned the massacre and said that these actions hinder independent fact-finding missions while police and state probes were ongoing. [2]
The AFP said that the NPA killed the family because they helped the military. However, kin and supporters denied the government claim that they were military assets. [4]
The Makabayan Bloc has forwarded a House resolution to investigate the matter, citing continued human rights abuses and violations of international humanitarian law by the military. Alliance of Concerned Teachers Representative Antonio Tinio asked, “Where can victims turn to when it is the government itself violating their human rights?” [5]