THE bloody law enforcement operations in Calinog, Iloilo and Tapaz, Capiz on Rizal Day probably made it the bloodiest Rizal Day since the bombings in Metro Manila 20 years ago.

Nine people were killed in Tapaz when the police served search warrants at the homes of the fatalities. The police later said the raids in Calinog and Tapaz were “regular law enforcement activities against loose firearms,” to quote Col. Gervacio Balmaceda, chief of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group Western Visayas. In 2018, from July to October, the police recovered 195 loose firearms in Tapaz, apparently without killing anyone.