A female farmer was shot dead inside her home in Sitio Makilo, Barangay Camansi, Kabankalan City on the night of December 23, according to rights groups.
The victim was identified as Warlita Jimenez by the September 21 Movement and Human Rights Advocates Negros, the wife of slain farmer Joseph Jimenez.
Joseph was killed alongside peace consultant Ericson Acosta in 2023 in the same area in an alleged encounter involving the 15th Infantry Battalion that residents have disputed as fake.
The 55-year-old Warlita was resting with her family at around 11 p.m. when two armed men wearing bonnets forcibly broke into their house.
An eyewitness said the assailants entered her room, fired four shots, and fled immediately after.
Warlita was declared dead at the scene.
After her husband’s killing, Warlita Jimenez was repeatedly approached by soldiers and pressured to admit she was a member of the New People’s Army and to “surrender,” a claim her family and community denied.
Warlita was a member of PAMMACA, an association of small farmers and farmworkers in Barangay Camansi, which advocates for land rights.
She had been active in campaigns for land ownership and had reported threats and harassment aimed at discouraging farmers from asserting their claims.
Residents said military forces have harassed the association following her husband’s death.
Community members added that Jimenez was not the only resident who was allegedly falsely labeled as an NPA member, saying similar accusations had been made against other ordinary farmers, with some being forced to “surrender”
In a statement, the September 21 Movement said the killing highlights the continuing attacks against civilians and rights defenders in the countryside.
The group warned that violence would persist “as long as the root causes of the armed conflict are ignored and social justice remains unaddressed.”
The September 21 Movement renewed its call for the resumption of peace talks, saying this is necessary to address the roots of the conflict and prevent further civilian deaths.
Paghimutad 