Security at the Provincial Agrarian Reform Office in Dawis, Bacolod City , has been beefed up after what is suspected to be a grenade was lobbed into its compound at 1:50 a.m. yesterday, Senior Supt. Ronilo Quebrar , Bacolod police director, said.

The blast shattered glass on a window, left shrapnel holes on the glass front door, walls and gate of the PARO building, and a crater about six inches in diameter in the ground, but no one was hurt.

Provincial Agrarian Reform Officer Teresita Depeñoso said she, her daughter and DAR staff from the regional office were asleep inside the building when they heard a loud blast. At first they feared it could be followed by another blast or gunfire, she said.

“We called the police and they came right away,” she said.

Ten agrarian reform beneficiaries camping outside of the PARO, who are among 49 demanding installation in Hacienda Carmenchika, Pontevedra, and Hacienda Esperanza in La Carlota City were also unharmed, she said. Both farms were formerly owned by the late Ambassador Roberto Benedicto.

Agrarian Reform Secretary Nasser Pangandaman condemned the incident, saying no amount of harassment and intimidation could stop the government from implementing the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program.

Negros Occidental Acting Gov. Isidro Zayco appealed to those responsible not to resort to violence to resolve their grievances.

“Let us peacefully resolve differences through dialog,” he said.

Depeñoso said the incident, as it appeared, was meant to scare DAR officials and stall them from implementing the agrarian reform program. It took place hours before the DAR provincial officials were scheduled to conduct a delineation survey in Hacienda Carmenchika for the reinstallation of 32 beneficiaries.

“Obviously it was meant to scare us,” Depeñoso said, but added that they are determined to do their job of awarding farmlands to the landless.

But Depeñoso also said it was hard to determine who was responsible for the blast, there are a lot of suspects because there may be many angry because of the DAR implementation of land reform.

We in the DAR are just implementing the law, we are open to dialog, if there are some who have complaints, she said.

Quebrar said a pin from the suspected grenade was discovered at the scene of the blast.

After the blast, witnesses saw two men with towels covering their mouths speed away on board a red XRM motorcycle, Chief Inspector Noel Mana-ay, Bacolod Precinct 1 chief, said.

He said that, although a safety lever used in grenades and shrapnel were found at the scene, lab tests will determine for sure what explosive was used.

The suspects on the motorcycle passed through the north wing of SM City and headed towards Burgos Street , he added.

Farmers camping in makeshift tents outside the gate of the PARO office apparently were not the target, Mana-ay said.

It appears that the DAR office was the target because the explosive was thrown inside the gate of the building, he said.

In a press release issued yesterday, Task Force Mapalad condemned the attack on the DAR.

Edna Sobrecaray, TFM spokesperson, said the attack might have come from reclacitrant landlords opposing the extension of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law of 1988.

“We condemn in the strongest possible terms the attack on the provincial office of the DAR.

“Those behind the blast may be the same landlords who were behind the series of killings of TFM farmers. Now, these landlords are out to threaten even government officials supporting the extension of the CARP,” she added.

Negros CARP Reform Movement, in a separate statement, also condemned the grenade explosion at the PARO.

“We believe that the act that happened at the DAR Provincial office cannot and could not be done by the farmer beneficiaries,” it said.

“We pray that this incident will encourage DAR officials to be stronger in the midst of this crisis,” it added.*CPG

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