“Compostela Valley, where big mining companies operate, has the country’s largest concentration of troops,” he said
“Until peace negotiations start, armed skirmishes are inevitable in Southern Mindanao because of the heavy deployment of troops here,” he added.
Karapatan’s yearend report monitored 92 cases of forcible displacement, affecting 4,724 families or approximately 25,000 people in Southern Mindanao alone. The report also pointed out the rising number of alleged human rights violations in areas where there is heavy deployment of troops.
The group monitored 406 cases of harassment, threat and intimidation in the last six months of the Arroyo administration, affecting 3,311 families or 19,069 people.
During the first six months of the Aquino administration, similar cases decreased to 37, affecting 874 families or 8,104 people.
For the year 2010 alone, Karapatan documented 72 cases of extrajudicial killings in the region, three of them occurring under the new administration.
The group recorded 31 instances where civilians were used as “guides” or “shields” in police and military operations, and 51 cases where schools and other public places were used for military purposes.
