Thousands pay tribute to Fr. Fausto Tentorio, PIME, Oct. 25, 2011

A caravan and march to Kidapawan City:

Thousands pay tribute to Fr. Fausto Tentorio, PIME

Kidapawan City

October 25, 2011

■ The killing of Fr. Tentorio, 54th victim of EJK in the time of Aquino III


Thousands of people from the Davao region in more than 40 vehicles including buses traveled from Davao City to Kidapawan City in the people's caravan to demand justice for the brutal killing of Fr Fausto Tentorio. The protesters stopped and conducted a protest at the headquarters of the 57th IB in Makilala City and then started a march protest from the entrance of Kidapawan City to the cathedral where Fr Pops' funeral mass was held
		More than 15,000 people including the friends and relatives of slain Italian priest Fr Fausto Tentorio, supporters, Lumads, farmers, church people, human rights advocates and youth joined the funeral march in Kidapawan City and to demand justice for the brutal daylight murder of Fr Pops. Different groups point at the AFP and Aquino administration through its implementation of counter-insurgency plan called Oplan Bayanihan as the culprits on the killing. Fr Pops is the 54th victim of EJKs in the country under the US-Aquino regime.

All photos and captions by Karlos Manlupig


x Fr. Fausto “Pops” Tentorio: Beloved Servant of the Masses Siegfred Red Secretary CPP Southern Mindanao (Regional Committee) October 25, 2011 http://philippinerevolution.net/statements/fr-fausto-pops-tentorio-beloved-servant-of-the-masses To the assassins whose bullets felled him, to the fascist AFP that wanted his head, and to the current oppressive Aquino regime, whose policy is to justify exploitation and intensify oppression, Fr. Fausto “Pops” Tentorio’s death was yet another crime. To the masses, to all peace-loving advocates, to the revolutionary movement, his was a death of a martyr, a beloved servant of the masses. For Tatay Pops, the masses, and the masses alone are the creators of history. He so understood that the masses whom he served are the true heroes, not himself. He was, to many friends and colleagues, that candid, hardworking missionary in Arakan who runs a parish, runs pre-schools in pre-dominantly Lumad villages, who oversees a Notre dame highschool, and who, every Sunday, gives brief but profound homilies that affected people’s lives. Production and livelihood, health, education and literacy—things which are dear to the masses—these pre-occupied the thoughts of Tatay Pops. For him, no time should be wasted, his talent, skills, and drive were all devoted to better the lives of the peasants and Lumads and to advance the revolutionary struggle. He cautioned colleagues from staying in convent and instead focus their time in the areas. He understood sacrifice, but he never uttered the word. To an exhausted colleague, he would dearly say that the fatigue would pass if you’re happy with your work with the people. He lived simply, not the one to pamper himself and even to his colleagues; he did not go beyond what was needed. He was not miserly for he was generous but his generosity was always for the people, for the organizations that he helped serve, and not for personal and individual whims. This, because he learned from the masses. He was transformed from being an adventurous 27-year old Italian newly ordained priest who came to the Philippines who never looked back. Coming from a working class family in Italy, he saw the vast oppression and poverty in our country during the Marcos dictatorship. In the first few decades, he understood what was explicit, that peasants and Lumads need support to raise their livelihoods and incomes. He sought to make his missionary life solely devoted in the welfare of the masses. And so he raised funds in Italy, from friends and associates in his congregation, to secure pigs, water buffaloes and farming tools. Yet the inherent failures of the dole-out system and the tendency of commandism, instead of painstaking work with the masses, caught up with him. He became frustrated when he saw beneficiaries slaughtering the animals for food instead of maintaining these for livelihood. He realized that it was not enough to just give stuff to the people while they are poor and exploited. In integrating with the masses, in practicing criticism and self-criticism, it taught him a valuable lesson: the genuine meaning of mass line, that is to solve the problems of the masses is to raise their consciousness and alongside with them, solve the practical problems of their daily lives. He helped educate the people, and struggle to increase production, fight against usury and high land rent. And he saw the masses cooperate, strengthen organizations, unite and struggle against incursions in ancestral lands and militarization. He saw that politics was the lifeblood of the economic work of the people. He himself studied and understood the contradictions of Philippine society. He saw the preponderance of political life and its importance to the people. He saw the ultimate people’s struggle as an imminent part in the full salvation of the people. In his sermons, he guided peasants and the masses towards the kind of deliverance by embracing the national democratic struggle, that they themselves and they alone could thwart the system that has long marginalized them, thwart the yoke of poverty, landlessness and exploitation they bore. He was the unassuming missionary, who was friends with the Church hierarchy—that did not always believe in the same convictions. Though he was never silent with his political beliefs towards his colleagues in the Church, he was low-key, in the sense that he was not the one to lead in high-profile political events, he preferred to stay on the ground and reach out to people, to schoolchildren, to Lumads. And by transforming himself into a consummate selfless missionary, he became fearless, courageous, unafraid with death, if death was to be a consequence of his being a modern day prophet and a shepherd—steering his flock to take the path of people’s struggle and attain liberation. He was courageous and resisted having a driver or an assistant. He was persevering in the face of the many hostile attempts against his life. He even ventured to expand his work outside Arakan and North Cotabato and help other Lumads in the region. He never swayed from the commitment to serve the masses, working around the boundaries, if not limitations, of his being a foreign missionary. For if there is one thing that feared Tatay Pops the most, it was to be uprooted from the masses, to be deported and returned back home. The thought of being reprimanded by his superiors at the PIME and the Catholic Church hierarchy, and to suddenly be blacklisted by the reactionary immigration authorities, this constituted to what could be his only fear in life. He was, after all, the simple missionary who lived like the masses. His words and deeds served to defend the interest of the masses. His actions sought to unite the people against the evils of our time-imperialism, bureaucrat capitalism and feudalism. And so his death is unbearable to the people whom he served, to the masses who have etched him in their hearts. The Communist Party of the Philippines and the revolutionary movement mourn his death and pay tribute to his profound life, a life well-spent in the service of the people. He was an Italian who became a great Filipino- a communist, an internationalist, who devoted more than half of his life to serve the interest of the poor Filipino masses and make the cause of the Filipino people as his own. The Oplan Bayanihan of the US-Aquino Regime has made him a victim, a martyr, a symbol of the political repression of the decaying system in the country. His death has exposed the ferocity of the AFP and the Aquino regime; without compunction, it took the life of a missionary, a civilian. His killing unmasked the viciousness of the Oplan Bayanihan which employs political killing as a continuing and explicit policy of the Aquino government for counterrevolution, less than a year after it was implemented. The 6th ID-Eastern Mindanao Command of the AFP carries the blood debt for Fr. Pops. And as we express our grief as he is laid to rest, the revolutionary forces vow to bring revolutionary justice for Fr. Pops. The people’s army is ever poised to inflict blows against the enemy who have martyred Fr. Pops. As we grieve, we express our determination to struggle resolutely in crushing the enemies that have felled him and attain a society free from exploitation and oppression. Philippine Daily Inquirer, Oct. 26, 2011, page 14:




	Relatives of Fr Pops










MY PERSONAL REFLECTION ON "A TRIBUTE by SOUTHERN MINDANAO REGIONAL PARTY COMMITTEE-CPP" Both Government/Church and the NPA/NDF praise Fr. Fausto's service to the People. Both claim to own him and his service to the people. They all converge and meet and support Pop's movement. This is a sign of a possible direction for the peace process. All who support Pop's movement can join in the on-going movement " Sowing the Seeds of Peace". A long road to Peace... We can walk together in Pop's spirit... During the vigil and the funeral many church and Government leaders joined in prayer inside the Church. Many more people joined the march outside the church. Fr. Pops welcomes both. If he could walk, he would join the crowd of demonstrators...	In Pop's name please do not allow anyone to disturb or stop Pop's popular movement. Don't provoke the wrath of the PDOMES ( Poor- Deprived,Oppressed,Marginalized,Exploited and Struggling People) but join them in sowing seeds of Peace. Fr. Peter Geremia, PIME Sowing the Seeds of Peace is a Mindanao wide peace movement that supports the GPH-MILF and GPH- NDF peace talks. -- visit our blog: www.ejusticeandpeace.blogspot.com follow us on twitter: www.twitter.com/4justicenpeace and on facebook: www.facebook.com/ejusticeandpeace

	RMP Statement on the Killing of Fr. Fausto Tentorio “Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit. The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep." (John 10: 1-2) We are saddened of the news that came to our attention early Monday morning of October 17, 2011 that a shepherd of the people Fr. Fausto Tentorio, PIME was murdered in his convent in Arakan Valley Cotabato . He was killed by assailants who entered the convent and shot him on the head, chest and waist sustaining ten (10) bullet wounds with only three (3) bullets exited his body instantly killing him. It is very clear that the priest's murder was pre-meditated as there was already a threat on his life by the paramilitary group under the jurisdiction of the 73rd IB, eight (8) years ago due to his love for the Lumads, particularly in organizing them to have their voice heard the, TINANANON- KULAMANON LUMADNONG PANAGHIUSA (TIKULPA). We, the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines (RMP) condemn in the strongest possible terms the killing of Fr. Fausto Tentorio, PIME an RMP member and a foreign missionary priest of Cotabato, Southern Mindanao. His killing is a clear disrespect for his right to life and liberty. It is an injustice to his mission to proclaim and live out the gospel. As an RMP member he was very active in his support, encourage, and push forward initiatives working for the promotion of the human rights of the poor farmers and indigenous people of Arakan Valley. He took up the defense of the poor and the oppressed against every form of social injustice. What happened to him is a clear manifestation of silencing his prophetic voice in defending the rights of the rural poor in the countryside. We denounce the extra-judicial killings that is still happening and we demand justice for Fr. Fausto Tentorio. We believe that we can only have authentic and lasting peace if we have respect for human dignity, justice and freedom. RMP does not tolerate any form of repression especially through extrajudicial killings. The right to life is a gift from God for everybody; no one has the right to take it. The wheel of justice is the proper venue for resolution of any case. We therefore call on the proper authorities to conduct a thorough and speedy investigation on the killing of Fr. Fausto Tentorio and bring into the bar of justice the ones responsible. He was a good shepherd to God’s flock and could have journeyed long to help the rural poor. We extend forth our sincerest and deepest sympathy to the PIME family of Fr. Fausto Tentorio. JUSTICE for Fr. Fausto Tentorio ! Reference: Sr. M. Francis Añover,RSM National Coordinator cc: AMRSP, MPs, Inquirer, GMA news, ABS-CBN, RSM @ UN Mercy Global Concern, RMP regional coordinators , Bulatlat, etc.






AT GROUND LEVEL By Satur C. Ocampo (The Philippine Star) Updated October 29, 2011 12:00 AM Comments (3) http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=742390&publicationSubCategoryId=64 This week I was in Kidapawan City to attend the wake and funeral of Fr. Fausto Tentorio, the now-famous martyred Italian missionary about whom I wrote last week. I stayed a day longer to visit another wake in Arakan town, Fr. Tentorio’s parish, where he was shot dead by a lone gunman in the early morning of Oct. 17. The wake in Arakan was for Ramon Batoy, 35, a poor peasant in Sitio Upper Lumbo, Barangay Kabalantian. He was killed by soldiers of the 10th Special Forces Company in front of his house early morning of Oct. 20 — three days after Fr. Tentorio’s slaying. (The military claims that Badoy was a member of the NPA. His wife Gina and his parents vehemently deny such claim. They attest, in sworn statements given to the Public Attorney’s Office in Kidapawan, that Ramon was a tenant-farmer of the mayor of nearby Antipas town and an active member of Bantay Katubigan and Bantay Kalikasan of Mt. Sinaka in Arakan. (Batoy had refused to allow the soldiers to search his house; he demanded a search warrant. Thereupon a soldier pummeled him with his rifle’s butt. Instinctively, Batoy drew his bolo and hacked the soldier’s neck. Firing rapidly, three other soldiers shot Batoy dead, then strafed his house and seven adjacent dwellings.) I wish to share my impressions on these two wakes. Also I’ll try to show the relationship between the two men, and the conditions that most probably link these two killings in Arakan — both crying out for justice. Fr. Tentorio’s body was first laid in state inside the modestly-built Arakan parish church. Later moved to the Our Lady Mediatrix Cathedral in Kidapawan, the wake was brightly illuminated, floral offerings abounded. The tri-media covered it. People from all walks of life came in droves to pay their respects. Many wept openly. Tributes to Fr. Tentorio also came in cascades: from Pope Benedict XVI, from various religious associations (Catholic and Protestant), newspaper editorials and columns, people’s organizations and NGOs, the MILF, and the CPP-NPA/NDFP’s Southern Mindanao Region. In contrast, Ramon Batoy’s wake at a small wooden shed beside the highway was pitiful. The place could hardly pass for a funeral parlor. Coffins in various stages of completion were piled up against the walls. A lone electric bulb provided light. No flowers, just candles. Only his family and other relatives stood vigil. They were joined later by members of people’s organizations from all over Mindanao, who had come for Fr. Tentorio’s wake and burial. But Fr. Peter Geremia, also from Italy’s Pontifical Institute of Foreign Missions, devoted equal attention to the two wakes. At both, he led prayers for the departed and blessed the remains with holy water. He also looked after Batoy’s family, temporarily housed at the Arakan parish office.	Fr. Geremia knew that Fr. Tentorio had closely associated and worked with Batoy and other poor peasants in Arakan, members of the Lumad and peasant organizations the slain priest had helped organize and maintain: the Tikulpa (Tinananon-Kulamanon Lumadnong Panaghuisa) and the APPO (Association of Progressive Peasant Organizations). Through the Tribal Filipino Program Center for Development, Inc., Fr. Tentorio helped provide education, livelihood, health programs and agricultural development in the upland communities. Two of Badoy’s four children (a fifth is expected in March) were his scholars. In his last will, read by Kidapawan Bishop Romulo dela Cruz at the Mass before the funeral, Fr. Tentorio immortalized his bond with the Lumads and other people he served and worked with in these words (translated from the original in Bisaya): “Your dreams are my dreams, your struggles are my struggles, you and I are partners in building God’s kingdom.” Thus, it can be said that the Italian priest and the dirt-poor Filipino farmer shared their dreams and struggles. They shared a life fired by such dreams and struggles. Both actively opposed the militarization of Cotabato’s beautiful Arakan Valley. For a long time, Fr. Tentorio had been most critical of how the AFP conducted their counterinsurgency campaigns, arguing passionately that these were “against the people’s aspirations.” This is one angle that an impartial investigation of the Tentorio killing must look into. There was a very plausible motive: silence the priest who protested too much — and he was credible. Moreover, the military’s actions against Batoy, which led to his killing, may have had to do with their plan to “neutralize” Tikulpa and APPO as effective organizations which they accuse of having links with the NPA. Thus, it can be said that Fr. Tentorio and Batoy also shared death by the gun, although the latter’s killing might not have been as carefully planned. The convenors of the Justice for Fr. Fausto “Pops” Tentorio Movement — a Catholic archbishop, three Protestant bishops, two priests, four nuns, a lawyer, and a parish leader — think so too. In its declaration of objectives, the movement is demanding the following: 1) accountability from the Aquino government; and 2) end to “Oplan Bayanihan,” P-Noy’s counterinsurgency plan which it regards as merely the continuation of Gloria Arroyo’s “Oplan Bantay Laya.” Fr. Tentorio was already the 54th victim of extrajudicial killing under this administration.


	x Tribute to Fr Fausto Tentorio, the People’s Martyr Ka Efren Spokesperson NDF-Far South Mindanao October 20, 2011 http://philippinerevolution.net/statements/tribute-to-fr-fausto-tentorio-the-people-s-martyr The National Democratic Front–FarSouth Mindanao Region salutes the people’s martyr Fr. Fausto “Pops” Tentorio who was mercilessly gunned down in his convent in Arakan on October 17, 2011. We pay our highest tribute to this quintessential progressive who served the people selflessly and wholeheartedly for the greater part of his adult life in the many remote places of Mindanao, Southern Philippines. We are one with the farmers and lumads and the entire people of Mindanao in our grief for this person who laid down his life serving the poor and marginalized. In whatever way he can, for more than three decades, Fr Pops did everything he can to serve the poorest and most neglected communities. Through his literacy, health, peasant organizing and scholarship programs, he touched the lives of thousands of farmers and lumads. Most importantly he gave hope to so many by teaching them to stand up and fight for their rights. Fr. Pops became the model of all those he worked with– from his staff, to the community organizers and mass leaders who constantly looked up to him for guidance and inspiration. He lived simply. His undaunted optimism and patently good humor helped to sustain all the programs he initiated even during the most trying times, including an attempt on his life in 2003 by lumad paramilitary fanatics under the employ of the 73rd IB. His outstanding concern for the rural poor plus his advocacies for the environment and against large-scale mining and the encroachment of agribusiness plantations earned for Fr Pops the ire of the military who branded him as an NPA supporter and a Communist. He was constantly under surveillance. As a matter of fact, his convent was raided by elements of the 68th IB sometime in 2006 which prodded him to file a complaint with the local government unit of Arakan. Fr. Fausto Tentorio’s murder is the most recent of the state-sponsored extra judicial killings which have eroded and mocked the nation’s justice system– where military death squads roam the streets freely and are never made accountable for their acts. This at a time when the AFP claims to “have respect for human rights and humanitarian laws” under Oplan Bayanihan. Hypocrisy adds insult to injury. Fr. Pop’s untimely death strengthens our resolve to live and fight for the noble cause of peace, justice and freedom. The revolutionary movement shall not rest until justice is fully served and his death is vindicated. The people will never forget you, Fr. Pops. You will always be our hope and inspiration in this long and protracted struggle for national democracy.











x PRESS STATEMENT OCTOBER 22, 2011 KABATAANG MAKABAYAN Likens Fr. Pops to Internationalist Norman Bethune Official Statement of Kabataang Makabayan Southern Mindanao Region Land for the tillers. This is the principle of Fr. Fausto Tentorio, fondly called Fr. Pops by the people he selflessly served. In his three decades of missionary work in the Philippines, he was able to establish various programs on education, health and other social services for the Lumads and the peasants in Arakan, Valley, North Cotabato. Fr. Pops was consistent and steadfast in serving the Lumads in Arakan. He had helped put up 80 day care centers reaching municipalities of Tulunan, Antipas, Makilala, Mlang and the rest of North Cotabato. Most of the students are Lumads and peasants. In actively helping the Lumads and the peasants, Fr. Pops did not only give support to them, he gave them education and helped them voice out their continuing struggle for their ancestral domain. He is clearly a threat and an enemy to the eyes of the government and its Armed Forces as he stood firmly in opposition of the state’s anti-people programs and policies. After continued harassments and countless threats to his life as consequences of his undying advocacies for the Lumads, peasants and progressive groups, Fr. Pops was killed last October 17. The culprits were no other than the fascist executioners under the Armed Forces of the Philippines operating in Arakan, North Cotabato. Fr. Pops is the 54th victim of the US-Aquino administration’s counter-insurgency program – the Oplan Bayanihan that continues to target those critical to the government including church leaders like Fr. Pops. Fr. Pop’s three decades of unwavering struggle for the rights of the oppressed was finished with only ten bullets of the fascist military agents. Let this brutal killing reminds us of the life he has offered to the masses. In the same way that we are reminded of the life and struggle of another internationalist Norman Bethune, a Canadian physician who served the Chinese in the course of their revolution. Bethune was a member of the Communist Party of the United States of America. He was not discouraged by the long distance of stride just to help in the defensive war against Imperial Japan. Bethune died a martyr serving the Chinese people. The spirit of Norman Bethune is the life that Fr. Pops showed us – a life of an internationalist with a selfless and wholehearted service to the people and their struggle for genuine democracy and liberation. The life that Fr. Pops offered to the indigenous peoples and Filipino peasants challenges the church people and the youth today. An Italian missionary never doubted to serve the Filipino masses. The church people’s active engagement in the struggle of the oppressed is the living legacy of Fr. Pops. Service to God does not end within the walls of the churches. Service to God involves a commitment in serving, loving and upholding the rights and welfare of the least of His people. The spirit of internationalism showed by Fr. Pops is worthy of emulation.Kabataang Makabayan will strengthen the call to serve the people, to take on the highest form serving the oppressed– to join the New People’s Army! Justice for Fr. Pops! Youth, serve the people! Join the New People’s Army! ###











	x CBCP Statement on the killing of Fr. Fausto Tentorio, PIME ON this World Mission Sunday, October 23, 2011, we acknowledge our great indebtedness to all foreign missionaries. They are friends of our people. In great sacrifice they have strengthened our faith and assisted the poor and the needy. We pray for them today. We pray for Fr. Fausto Tentorio, PIME, a missionary for more than 30 years. His brutal murder outside the parish rectory in Arakan, Diocese of Kidapawan has shocked everyone. We condemn and denounce in the strongest possible terms the heinous and monstrous crime against the life of Fr. Fausto. Simple and humble in life, Fr. Fausto was deeply esteemed by the indigenous peoples whose cultural and territorial rights he promoted and defended. He was deeply loved by the people whose spiritual welfare he looked after. How long will evil men continue to plot against those who courageously protest against the sufferings of the poor and the degradation of God’s creation? How long shall they continue to snuff out the lives of those who dare to speak against injustices and imbalances in our society? How long will they continue to roam around freely without being brought to justice? The government must act decisively and swiftly. It must investigate thoroughly every angle of the murder of Fr. Fausto. It cannot simply point at the usual scapegoats. We express our deep sympathy with the missionary community of the PIME, to the Bishop, clergy, religious, and laity of the Diocese of Kidapawan and to Fr. Fausto’s relatives in Italy. Our grieving with them goes beyond words. Fr. Fausto strove throughout his priestly and missionary life to walk humbly, act justly, and love the Lord and his people passionately. May Mary our Blessed Mother lead him to the fullness of life given by Jesus her Divine Son. +NEREO P. ODCHIMAR, D.D. Bishop of Tandag President, Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines October 23, 2011 Tension was felt when the local police carrying high-powered rifles tried to break the occupation of the highway.







		Soldiers from the 57th IB repair the Oplan Bayanihan billboard at the entrance of their headquarters in Makilala, North Cotabato after Lumads and peasants defaced it to show their anger on the killings of Fr Pops and peasant Ramon Batoy in Arakan.

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x The death of Fr. Fausto Tentorio, PIME ON behalf of Most Rev. Nereo P. Odchimar, President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, we express our sadness and dismay over the killing of Rev. Fr. Fausto Tentorio PIME. We convey our heartfelt condolences to the family of Fr. Tentorio, the PIME community and the Diocese of Kidapawan, particularly those communities he has so dearly loved and served. We join everyone’s prayer for the eternal rest of this very kind soul in the love of God. We are also one with the many concerned individuals and groups in calling on the relevant agencies of government to attend to this incident speedily. We earnestly ask that, together with the efforts to identify and arrest the ones behind that act, necessary safety measures be accorded to all Church workers, especially the missionaries who have left their country to serve our people. We pray that the love of God and our yearning for true peace and development sustain us in every work that we do, just as Fr. Tentorio and many other martyrs of the faith exemplified for all of us. May the merciful God always guide us. MSGR. JUANITO S. FIGURA Secretary General, CBCP October 18, 2011 ------------------------------------------------------ When will the killings stop? THE Church has offered once again another precious life in its service to God’s people and the poor. The CBCP-National Secretariat for Social Action, Justice and Peace expresses deep anguish and condemnation over the horrific murder of Fr. Fausto Tentorio. He was shot eight times by an assassin as he was getting into his pick-up truck parked at the Mother of Perpetual Help Church compound in Arakan, North Cotabato. Fr. Pops was a staunch advocate against mining and other extractive operations that threaten the indigenous people. He had been an inspiration to his parishioners as wells as the lumads who have been opposing activities that are harmful to the environment. We join Fr. Pops’ brothers at the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (PIME), the Diocese of Kidapawan, and the hundreds of human rights activists that demand justice for our slain priest. No peace workers and human rights defenders should ever live in fear or shed blood because of what they believe in and what they stand for. Fr. Pops’ murder reveals a culture of impunity that has prevailed in our society because of the lack of protection and justice that our government affords to human rights defenders. Beyond the usual expressions of “condolences” and “condemnation”, the government and state authorities have not really done anything that will reverse the trend of senseless killings in the country. But the victims, their families and friends don’t need these futile words. Rather, we desire to see these killings stop than be consoled by the platitudes they give in exchange of our grief. +BRODERICK S. PABILLO, D.D. Director National Secretariat for Social Action


		Tribal leaders whom Fr Pops served wholeheartedly went down from their tribal communities to join thousands of people in demanding justice for Fr Pops.

		Thousands of protesters occupied the Kidapawan City-Davao City highway in front of the Bishop's Palace where Fr Pops was buried to express their rage against the brutal murder. Traffic was paralyzed temporari




Fr Pops was buried beside the fellow Italian priest Fr Tullio Favali who was brutally murdered by anti-communist paramilitaries 26 years ago	Government forces in full battle gear were very visible during the funeral march.

		x Tatay Pops is a victim of Aquino regime's Oplan Bayanihan--CPP Communist Party of the Philippines October 19, 2011 http://philippinerevolution.net/statements/tatay-pops-is-a-victim-of-aquino-regime-s-oplan-bayanihan-cpp The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) today condemned “in the strongest possible terms” the brutal killing of Father Fausto Tentorio in Arakan Valley, North Cotabato on Monday by gunmen believed to belong to a paramilitary unit under the Philippine Army’s 73rd Infantry Battalion. “The revolutionary forces extend their condolences to the family of Father Tenorio and to the people of Arakan who he selflessly served,” said the CPP. “Father Tentorio, endearly referred to as Tatay Pops, is the latest victim of the continuing war of suppression of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) now named Oplan Bayanihan which targets people actively engaged in mass struggles or supportive of people’s cause-oriented movements,” said the CPP. Father Tentorio was an Italian priest who headed the Mother of Perpetual Help Parish in Arakan, Cotabato. A member of the Pontifical Institute of Foreign Missions (PIME), he actively defended the rights of the minority Manobo people and their struggle to claim their ancestral land. He was vocal against the activities in Kulaman Valley of foreign mining companies engaged in the extraction of nickel, cobalt and chromium. In 2003, he was threatened by armed men belonging to the Bagani Command, a paramilitary group organized by the Philippine Army to stop local residents from supporting and joining the New People’s Army (NPA). “The campaign of extrajudicial killings continues under the Aquino regime,” said the CPP. “Aquino has given full rein to his military and police forces to unleash an all-out war of suppression against the people’s mass struggles and armed revolution.” “Among the principal targets of the Aquino regime’s war of suppression are people actively opposed to mining operations,” said the CPP. “In line with its campaign to entice foreign mining companies to invest in mining and plunder the country’s remaining mineral resources, the Aquino regime aims to silence opposition and suppress the resistance of local residents.” --------------------------------------- Press Statement 24 October 2011 NDFP-MINDANAO CONDEMNS THE EXTRA-JUDICIAL KILLING OF FR. FAUSTO TENTORIO The National Democratic Front of the Philippines in Mindanao (NDFP-Mindanao) condemns in the strongest terms possible the gruesome killing of Italian Catholic priest Fr. Fausto Tentorio. We sympathize with family, friends, and the people of Arakan, North Cotabato, especially with poor peasants and agricultural-workers whom Fr. “Pops,” as he was fondly called, served as a foreign missionary until his death. Fr. Tentorio was a true friend of the Filipino people. He understood the plight of poor Filipinos, and his concern for poor peasants and Lumads in Arakan town at North Cotabato led him to initiate livelihood and education projects for them. He stood side by side with peasants and Lumads to defend the Arakan Valley Complex from the entry of destructive mining operations threatening to wipe out both the people’s livelihood and the abundant natural resources in the area. As a staunch anti-mining proponent, he helped organize anti-mining campaigns, which strengthened the resolve of local communities to block big mining corporations from plundering the Arakan Valley complex. This has elicited the ire of big mining businesses that wanted desperately to gain access to Arakan Valley, but prevented by the resistance of the local masses Without doubt, Fr. Tentorio’s progressive outlook, especially on the defense of the basic rights of peasants and Lumads, and the extent of the influence it had on people made him a veritable target of government security forces, especially by death squads of the AFP who are emboldened by the reactionary government’s continued backing. This latest brazen murder completely belies Benigno Aquino III’s “winning the peace” and “respect human rights” slogans under the aegis of Oplan Bayanihan (OPB), exposing it as a total hoax. Extra-judicial killings rage on with impunity, masterminded and orchestrated by the AFP, continuing to target political activists, including members of the religious, who espouse pro-people, anti-big business causes. Clearly, there is only one motive for the murder of Fr. Fausto Tentorio: He took a bold stand against big mining interests, against the continuing militarization of the AFP in the area, and against those which trample upon the rights of the both the peasants and the Lumad. And, for the reactionary state, he is a thorn that needed to be pulled out in order for foreign monopoly interests to pillage the Arakan Valley and other parts of North Cotabato unhampered. The NDFP-Mindanao, together with the entire revolutionary movement, is one with the Filipino people in calling for justice for the extra-judicial killing of Fr. Fausto Tentorio. The revolutionary movement is committed to render punishment against units and elements of the AFP, PNP or para-military groups responsible for carrying out extra-judicial killing operations. Justice for Fr. Fausto Tentorio! Justice for all victims of extra-judicial killings! Defeat Oplan Bayanihan! Down with imperialist plunder! (Sgd) Ka Oris Spokesperson NDFP-Mindanao Pamahayag 24 Oktubre 2011









Father Pops* - Pia Montalban Hindi marahil Dahil tiyak Nasa kanang bahagi ka ngayon Sa trono ng Panginoon Kahit pa buong buhay mo'y Sa kaliwa ka tumuntong Marahil sa gilid Nagtataas ka ng kamay Nagtatanong Bakit hanggang langit May kaliwa't kanan, O Panginoon At ngi-ngiti sa iyo Ang Poon Kayong tao lamang naman Nagtakda ng kaliwa o kanan Sa Aming tatlo'y Wala namang pula-puti o dilawan Hindi sa kulay o tindig ang batayan Niyakap na uri Batayan ng aming suri Pati sagot sa tanong Anong nagawa mo sa mundong Naghahanap ng pagkalinga mo? Kaya hindi marahil Dahil kami'y nakatitiyak Nasa bahagi ka ngayong Malapit Sa trono ng Panginoon Kahit pa buong buhay mo'y Inakusahan ka nilang Paring sumusuway Sa utos ng panginoon May-lupa't kapitalistang Sa pagpanginoon sa kapangyarihan At pera'y Siyang itatapon ng Poon Sa kumukulong kumunoy Sa pagkapatas ng Panahon Hindi marahil Dahil tiyak. -------- Si Fr. Fausto Tentorio, PIME* ay isang misyonerong Italyanong nagmahal lamang sa kapakanan ng mga katutubo sa Arakan, North Cotobato. Marahas siyang binaril at kinitlan ng buhay ng mga elemento ng mga nakabangga niya sa paglilingkod at paglalagay ng halaga sa interes ng mga katutubo. **PIME = Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions. http://www.mindanews.com/top-stories/2011/10/22/state-agents-killed-fr-tentorio/



		Sa Mata ng Lingkod - Ramon Quizon Sa mata ng lingkod, Walang hanggahan ang kalupaan Di hadlang ang wika Walang kulay ang balat na saplot Di hadlang ang kaanyuan Walang liblib na kagubatan Di hadlang ang kasukalan Walang yaman para sa iilan Di hadlang ang kahirapan Dahil Sa mata ng lingkod, Ang Pag-ibig Ay Katuwiran at Katarungan Ngunit Sa tudlang ilusyon ng kadiliman, Maghahalo ang balat sa tinalupan Ngunit Sa imbing gawi ng kadiliman, Matitigmak ng dugo ang katigangan Sa dibdib ng tunay na lingkod, Di hadlang ang panakot Walang banta ng tingga at kaduwagan Sa tunay na lingkod, Ang kamatayan ay pagkabuhay Sa isang lingkod, Ito ang tagumpay! Ito ay isang pag-aalay mula sa isang tunay na inspirasyon, Fr. Fausto Tentorio. Isang tunay na lingkod ng sambayanang Pilipino.


x AFP admits tagging Fr. Tentorio rebel pal By Germelina Lacorte, Jeannette I. Andrade Inquirer Mindanao http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/84063/afp-admits-tagging-priest-rebel-pal-probe-hits-snags Uncertainty over whom to trust has made it difficult for persons close to Fr. Fausto Tentorio to cooperate in the inquiry into his murder. This problem was aired Thursday by Justice Undersecretary Francisco Baraan, chairman of a special task force on extralegal killings. But he expressed hope that another trip to Tentorio’s parish in Arakan, North Cotabato province, would result in a free disclosure of information from the Italian missionary’s colleagues and friends. Lieutenant Colonel Leopoldo Galon, spokesperson of the Eastern Mindanao Command (EastMincom) admitted that authorities had labeled Tentorio as “friendly” to the New People’s Army (NPA), the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP). According to Baraan, cooperation from Tentorio’s colleagues became a problem when the military got involved in the investigation. “That was probably one of the reasons they withheld other information,” he said. Baraan said he and a team from the National Bureau of Investigation would make the trip next week. He said he first traveled to Arakan to conduct an inquiry shortly after Tentorio was shot dead by a lone assassin, but the priest’s colleagues said they would wait until after the interment. “I talked with Fr. Giovanni (Vettorello, assistant parish priest) and he was very happy to learn that the DOJ (Department of Justice) had sent a team,” Baraan said Thursday in a press conference. Sketch of a visitor “There is some apprehension [among those close to Tentorio],” he said. “We are looking at getting their cooperation, and I think they are waiting for us to get the details of what they know.” Tentorio, lovingly called “Father Pops” by those who knew him, lived and worked among the Manobo tribe in Arakan Valley for decades. He was gunned down on October 17 as he prepared to drive to Kidapawan City to attend a clergy meeting. An estimated 10,000 people attended his burial in Kidapawan on October 25. Baraan said the task force had obtained a sketch of one of several persons who visited Tentorio at the Our Lady of Perpetual Help convent shortly before the fatal shooting. “We have a sketch of somebody who visited Father Tentorio before he was gunned down. We will confirm it from witnesses if it is the same person they saw,” he said, adding that the sketch had yet to be cleared for release to the public. Baraan clarified that the person on the sketch was “not necessarily a suspect.” “We have not yet settled on a specific theory as to who was responsible and why Tentorio was killed. And we have not ruled out any theories,” he said. Church workers in Arakan had said that days before Tentorio was killed, they saw unidentified men believed to be soldiers near the convent. They said one man entered the convent and inquired where Tentorio was. The military has repeatedly denied involvement in the killing. ‘Friendly’ to NPA “We also received information that there were times he aided some of the rebels,” Galon said. “But even that is justifiable because a priest will help those in distress. Even the Red Cross does that.” Galon said the military was able to confirm Tentorio’s ties with the NPA when the priest’s phone number was found among the contacts listed in the mobile phone of a suspected communist guerrilla who was arrested recently. But he said the military did not believe that Tentorio was active in the communist underground, as supposedly implied in the full-page ad put out in the Inquirer and several local papers in Davao City on Wednesday. “How can religion and communism mix?” Galon said. According to the ad, put out by a group calling itself the Southern Mindanao Regional Party Committee of the CPP and signed by one Siegfred M. Red, the purported committee secretary, Tentorio was “a communist, an internationalist, who devoted more than half of his life to serve the interest of the poor Filipino masses and make the cause of the Filipino people his own.” ‘So be it’ Bishop Modesto Villasanta, a leader of the interfaith group Exodus for Justice and Peace, said he saw nothing wrong in the claim that Tentorio was a communist. “If they found in Father Pops the standard of an ideal communist, so be it,” Villasanta said. “Maybe the CPP appreciates the character of Father Pops, making him worthy to be called a communist and an internationalist.” Villasanta said, however, that only the CPP could confirm whether Tentorio was indeed an active party member. He said he himself did not believe that the ad should be taken as an admission of Tentorio’s involvement in the communist underground. The issue, according to the bishop, is not whether Tentorio was a communist but whether he lived his life in the service of the people. ‘Low life tactic’ The ad also said the military was responsible for Tentorio’s death because he had actively opposed “Oplan Bayanihan,” the government’s new counterinsurgency tactic. (The Armed Forces has described the new tactic as putting more weight on development rather on military operations as a solution to the communist rebellion.) But Galon said the ad was part of the communist guerrillas’ “low life tactic” to pin the blame for Tentorio’s death on the military. “Labeling Father Tentorio as a communist is a deceptive attempt to insinuate that the military is behind his murder,” Galon said. adding: “Who will benefit from his death? Not us.” Galon also said Tentorio was known to support scholars whom the military did not want displaced from school “because they would be vulnerable to recruitment” by the NPA.










		x KALIKASAN PEOPLE’S NETWORK FOR THE ENVIRONMENT 26 Matulungin St. Central Dist., Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines, 1100 Tel./Fax; +63 (2) 924-8756; E-mail: kalikasan.pne@gmail.com Website: www.kalikasan.org Press Statement 17 October 2011 Killing of anti-mining Italian priest condemned by environmental activists Environmental activists under the Kalikasan People’s Network for the Environment today condemned the recent killing of an Italian missionary active in opposing large-scale mining plunder and advocating for indigenous people’s rights in Mindanao. “We strongly condemn the killing of Italian priest Fr. Fausto Tentorio. Fr. Pops, as local folks fondly call him, is a man for the masses particularly the indigenous people. Before the time of his death, Fr. Pops and his organization, the Tribal Filipino Program of the Diocese of Kidapawan, are very active in defending the rights of indigenous people and protection of the environment from the entry of large-scale mining in their area,” said Clemente Bautista, national coordinator of Kalikasan PNE. Fr. Fausto Tentorio and the TFP of the Diocese of Kidapawan are among the most active advocates and staunch oppositionists to the foreign mining project of Xstrata. The project plans to establish an open pit mining and mine waste facility in Sultan Kudarat, one of the areas of concern of the TFP, that will negatively affect the watershed and forests in the said province. Fr. Pops was also very active on the issue of justice and human rights. He was involved in the campaign for justice for killed human rights leader Beng Hernandez, who was killed by the military on April 5, 2002 while she was conducting research on the human rights situation in Arakan Valley, North Cotabato. Arakan Valley during that time was the mission area of Fr. Pops. “Fr. Fausto is the sixth anti-mining advocate killed this year. Like Palawan environmentalist Dr. Gerry Ortega and small-scale miners’ leader Santos Manrique, all of them have opposed large-scale mining projects in their areas. The Aquino administration should also be held accountable for allowing this kind of tragic incident to happen. His failure to stop the killings and give justice to the victims of human rights violations shows his administration’s negligence and disregard to the persisting culture of impunity in the country," asserted Bautista. Based on Kalikasan PNE monitoring, the other anti-mining activists killed this year are Rudy Segovia from Zamboanga, Florita Caya from Compostela, and Rabenio Sungit of Palawan. None of the 36 other cases of killings involving environmental activists since 2001 have been resolved to date.### -- CLEMENTE BAUTISTA National Coordinator Kalikasan People's Network for the Environment (Kalikasan-PNE) No.26 Matulungin St. Bgy. Central, Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines 1100 Tel. No. +63-2-9248756 Fax No. +63-2-9209099 Email: kalikasan.pne@gmail.com Website: www.kalikasan.org ------------------------------------------------------------------------ KALIKASAN PEOPLE’S NETWORK FOR THE ENVIRONMENT 26 Matulungin St. Central Dist., Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines, 1100 Tel./Fax; +63 (2) 924-8756; E-mail: kalikasan.pne@gmail.com Website: www.kalikasan.org Press Statement 19 October 2011 Environmental activists cite similarity of Italian missionary’s killing to previous Xstrata ‘murder by mining’ The probability of a murder motivated by a mining corporation with a track record of human rights violations was considered highly likely today by green groups under the Kalikasan People’s Network for the Environment in the case of Fr. Fausto ‘Pops’ Tentorio, an Italian missionary who was killed inside his convent last October 17, 2011. “Fr. Tentorio was a staunch oppositionist to the entry of Xstrata’s open-pit mining in one of their areas of concern. This and the fact that he was already threatened by elements of the Bagani paramilitary group under the 73rd Infantry Brigade indicate the likelihood that mining and military is behind the killings,” said Clemente Bautista, national coordinator of Kalikasan PNE. The Swiss-owned Xstrata-Sagittarius Mines Inc. (Xstrata-SMI) multinational mining corporation was previously involved in the 2009 killing of Eliezer ‘Boy’ Billanes, another environmental activist leader who exposed and opposed the destructive Xstrata-SMI owned Tampakan Copper-Gold Project in South Cotobato. Xstrata-SMI attempted to establish a large-scale mining operation and mines waste facility in Sultan Kudarat, an area of concern for Fr. Tentorio and his organization, the Tribal Filipino Program of the Diocese of Kidapawan. “Xstrata-SMI’s implication in the killing of Billanes in 2009 was linked to the peace and security program agreed upon by Xstrata-SMI and the military, which produced company-size militias similar to those that also threatened Fr. Tentorio,” Bautista pointed out. Fr. Tentorio is the 7th anti-mining advocate killed this year, with the murder of radio commentator and tribal leader Datu Roy Quijado Gallego in Caraga only last Sunday preceding his death. According to Kalikasan PNE’s monitoring, the seven recorded extrajudicial killings this year under the Aquino administration is the most that ever occurred in a year, out of a total amount of 43 environmental defenders killed since 2001. “With Fr. Tentorio’s murder breaking the record of most envi-defender killings in a year, the Aquino administration is now officially the most dangerous regime to environmental activists. Not one of the 42 previous cases of killings before Fr. Tentorio has been solved, leading us to think that the Aquino regime is an anti-people coddler of mining corporations with atrocious human rights records,” ended Bautista.### -- CLEMENTE BAUTISTA National Coordinator Kalikasan People's Network for the Environment (Kalikasan-PNE) No.26 Matulungin St. Bgy. Central, Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines 1100 Tel. No. +63-2-9248756 Fax No. +63-2-9209099 Email: kalikasan.pne@gmail.com Website: www.kalikasan.org -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- KALIKASAN PEOPLE’S NETWORK FOR THE ENVIRONMENT 26 Matulungin St. Central Dist., Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines, 1100 Tel./Fax; +63 (2) 924-8756; E-mail: kalikasan.pne@gmail.com Website: www.kalikasan.org For Immediate Release 25 October 2011 Environmental activists pledge to carry on the struggle against mining plunder and militarization on Fr. Pops' burial The burial of murdered Italian missionary Fr. Fausto 'Pops' Tentorio today was marked with pledges by environmental defenders to carry on the struggle against mining plunder and militarization. Remembering his fearless stand for the right to land and life of peasants and indigenous peoples, the Kalikasan People's Network for the Environment vowed to continue its advocacy against foreign large-scale mining and militarization in the country. “Fr. Pops' example will always be emulated by environmental activists for his principled stand against destructive large-scale mining, even as it threatened his life. We will continue his struggle against destructive large-scale mining operations threatening the people of Arakan Valley and various other mining-affected areas,” said Clemente Bautista, national coordinator of Kalikasan PNE. Tentorio is the seventh anti-mining activist killed in 2011, which is also the 43rd case of an environmental defender killing recorded by Kalikasan PNE since 2001. Previously threatened by elements from the Bagani paramilitary group, a Special Civilian Active Auxiliary (SCAA) force under the 73rd Infantry Brigade of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), Tentorio's killing is widely believed to be motivated by corporate-sponsored SCAAs. “SCAAs have previously threatened the life of Fr. Tentorio for his opposition to destructive large-scale mining and other corporate interests in his organization's areas of concern. This case is similar to the killing of environmental leader Eliezer 'Boy' Billanes, who was killed for his opposition to the operations of large-scale miner Xstrata-SMI in 2009,” Bautista pointed out. Xstrata-SMI inked a peace and security program with the AFP's 10th Infantry Division in 2008 that trained company-funded SCAAs tasked to protect mining investments. These militia groups were linked to the killing of Billanes, an environmental advocate who led the popular opposition to Xstrata's Tampakan Copper-Gold Project in South Cotobato. Meanwhile, Pres. Benigno Aquino III continued the trend of militarization by approving the commissioning of SCAAs in Claver, Surigao del Norte. The adminstration, under its counter-insurgency plan Oplan Bayanihan, continue to organize AFP Investment Defense Force (IDF) which are tasked to protect corporate interest and operations such as large-scale mining and agro-chemical plantations in the country. “PNoy's approval of paramilitary groups and employment of military forces by foreign and private corporations will lead to more human rights violations and killings. Paramilitary and military forces tasked to protect corporate interest perpetrate a culture of impunity that serves only to strengthen the Aquino administration's image as the most dangerous regime to environmental defenders,” said Bautista. “The primary task of the military is to protect the civilians and their rights but under Oplan Bayanihan it is the other way around, it serves to defend the abuses and violations of corporations against the communities and people. The killings of anti-mining activists are the direct results of this militaristic policy. If Aquino truly wants to stop the killings, it should dismantle the SCAAs and the IDF and abandon Oplan Bayanihan,” Bautista reiterated.###


Gina Batoy, wife of Ramon Batoy who was killed in Arakan North Cotabato, fell to the ground while narrating how the soldiers killed his husband during the protest at the entrance of the 57th IB.









Angry protesters grab an intelligence agent who took pictures of the protesters during the protest at the entrance of the 57th IB.






	Fully-armed soldiers from the 39th IB with a DSLR and a video cam took videos and photos of the participants of the caravan as the delegation are having their lunch break at Matti, Davao del Sur.

VIDEO CLIPS




Enironmental activists pay tribute to Fr. Fausto (Pops) Tentorio

Video: A tribute to Fr. Fausto (Pops) Tentorio He was truly appreciated and loved by the masses he served as this video shows.
















Another victim killed in Arakan Valley By ANNE MARXZE D. UMIL Ramon Batoy, 35, was killed a mere three days after Fr. Fausto Tentorio was killed also in Arakan Valley. Calls for justice echo as Fr. Pops was laid to rest By ANNE MARXZE D. UMIL “Tentorio was “a good priest, a fervent believer who for many years served the people of the Philippines in a courageous and indefatigable way.” Pope Benedict XVI		Scholars to pursue legacy of Fr. Pops By MARIETA BASTE-HERNANI and MARILOU AGUIRRE-TUBURAN “Father Pops told us, Jesus Christ sacrificed his life for the people. What about us humans? Can’t we sacrifice our lives for our fellowmen and women, too?” Sidebar: Musings in the first hours following Fr. Pops murder? Urban poor urges United Nations to investigate rights violations By JANESS ANN J. ELLAO “Real development must be based on social justice. It cannot be achieved by forcibly evicting and throwing us to the countryside and to remote places without decisively resolving the roots of our poverty and oppression.”

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