InterAksyon.com
The online news portal of TV5
DAVAO CITY -- A community leader who led the recent strings of protest here and in Compostela Valley by survivors of Typhoon "Pablo" was shot dead in her hometown of Baganga in Davao Oriental.
Cristina Morales Jose of Barug Katawhan and Bayan Muna was killed by unidentified motorcycle-riding men at 6 p.m., Monday, according to Anak Bayan-University of the Philippines in Mindanao spokesperson Mariel Moralde.
The victim, who was also a member of Barangay Binondo council in Baganga, was among those who led thousands of protesters from Barug Katawhan and Bayan Muna who for three days camped outside the compound of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) in this city late last month over the agency's alleged inept delivery of relief goods to typhoon victms.
In February, Barug Katawhan also blocked the national highway in Montevista, Compostela Valley, which led DSWD Secretary Corazon "Dinky" Soliman to agree to the release of 10,000 sacks of rice to typhoon survivors.
According Moralde, she received reports that before Jose was killed, she was on her way to Davao City to report cases of human rights violations. The victim was with people who participated in the three-day protest at the DWSD compound.
Moralde said Jose and her companions "were allegedly harassed by the barangay chairman and soldiers from the 67th Infantry Battalion."
