UP Cebu graduate Myles Albasin, who, together with five others were tagged as communist rebels, raises her fists as she passes by her supporters after the arraignment at the Bais City Regional Trial Court in this May 2018 file photo.
Cebu City, Philippines — The family of Myles Albasin continues to cry for justice a year after she was captured by state forces in Mabinay town in Negros Oriental.
Myles, an activist and an alumna of the University of the Philippines Cebu (UP Cebu), was among the six young adults who were tagged as members of the communist rebels.
Read: UP Cebu masscom graduate captured, tagged as red
They were collectively known as “Mabinay 6” and were arrested by the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on March 5, 2018 at Mabinay town in Negros Oriental.
Grace Albasin, Myles’ mother, posted a statement on her Facebook page on Monday, March 5, 2019, calling for the release of her 22-year-old daughter, who was captured exactly a year today.
The Facebook post of Grace Albasin, the mother of Myles Albasin who was tagged as a communist rebel. | CDN Digital screenshot
“If only the instruments of peace are at work here, you won’t be in detention for a year now,” Grace said.
Read: Mabinay 6 pleaded ‘not guilty’
The Albasin family has vehemently denied that Myles is a member of the Communist Party of the Philippines – New People’s Army (CPP-NPA).
In her post, Grace reiterated her previous claims that Myles, a native of Cagayan de Oro City, was in Negros Oriental to engage with the farming community there, and not to join the NPA.
Read: Mabinay 6 lawyer slain; transfer of hearings urged
“You decided to integrate with the farmer communities in Negros Oriental to see the realities of what you heard and read. You met fellow youth who couldn’t read and write because they opted to help their families put food on the table first than attend school with empty guts,” she added.
The Mabinay 6 is now detained in Bais City Jail pending the verdict of the charges on illegal possession of firearms lodged against them. /bmjo