Remembering Joe Tangente, martyr
draft of Tangent's letter addressed to then Defense Sec. Juan Ponce Enrile, Aug. 10, 1976. |
Jose Aquilino Tronco Tangente, college graduation photo,
St. Vincent Ferrer Seminary, Jaro, Iloilo City
Ka Baran and Ka Randa
[I initially intended to write about Joe Tangente (October 9, 1949 - August 28, 1987), only but in the course of my interview with his younger brother Orvillo Tangente, 65, I realized that his martyrdom in the anti-Marcos resistance, merely unlocks more participants crying to be recalled, particularly, his wife who-predeceased him, Elma Villaron, daughter of a Tumandok tribal leader in the highlands of Tapaz town, Capiz Province. Ka Randa, as her brother-in-law recalls.She was killed in military raid in Maayon town, Capiz along with four other comrades. All five were buried in a common grave.).Fact Sheet:Name of martyr: Jose Aquilino Tronco, TangenteHometown: Tigbauan, IloiloDate of birth: October 9, 1949Date of death: August 28, 1987
killed in an encounter in a military raid, at Sitio Maadyos, Pandan, Antique bordering with Brgy. Minaa, Aklan
Code names: Ka Baran, BrandoParents: he is sixth of the 7 children of Urbano Sr. and Paz Taneza, both public school teachers.Siblings:1. Myrna Librodo2. Nora Rose Trio3. Urbano, Jr.4. Noel5. Lorna Canto6. (Jose Aquilino)7. Orvillo________________________________Ka Baran and Ka Randa
If there's an honor at all that the puppet dictator Ferdinand Marcos deserved, it's not a spot at the Libingan ng mga Bayani but the "gratitude" of the Filipino people for having served as biggest recruiter for the armed resistance led by the New People's Army (NPA).
It was his declaration of martial law which drove many bright and promising young men and women to the hills to join the NPA, among them a theology student Jose Aquilino Tronco Tangente.
As college student at the St. Vincent Ferrer Seminary, "Joe", as he was also called by peers, served as secretary to Archbishop Joe Maria Cuenco (+) but he still found time to join street demonstrations organized by militant student organizations (KM and SDK), and tagging along fellow seminary students.At one point, in 1971, the protesting seminarians he led came up the stage and took off their cassocks signifying their readiness to fight the looming Marcos dictatorship beyond the pulpits.After finishing college, the Jaro archdiocese sent him for further studies at Loyola School of Theology in Quezon City. He was second year in theology and needed two more years to complete the course prior to ordination but the declaration of martial law on September 21, 1972 cut that short.“My brother knew he was already in the blacklist of the military so he returned to Iloilo and rejoined his comrades who went underground,” recalls Orvillo, 65, the younger brother.He was moving around in the urban underground for sometime until his arrest, January 19, 1975. He was preparing to go to his next assignment, the hills via Dumangas, Iloilo when arrested by intelligence operatives of the Philippine Constabulary. He was shipped to Lahug, Cebu City that same day. He was tortured. He was transferred June 8, 1975 to Iloilo on orders of then defense secretary Juan Ponce Enrile. The latter granted his parents’ request to transfer their son to Iloilo.In Iloilo, his custodians granted him living out status -- he lived at his home in Tigbauan, Iloilo but required to report to Camp Delgado, Iloilo City, the PC regional headquarters once a week.He stopped reporting to the military camp in 1976 and rejoined his comrades in the hills.
In the hills of Panay Island as a guerilla leader of the New People's Army (NPA), he fell in love and married fellow guerilla Elma “Ka Randa” Villaron, a daughter of a Tumandok Tribal leader in Tapaz, Capiz. They had two daughters Easter Grace and Hasmin Roja, both of them mothers now. The first has two children, the second three.Randa, his wife, was a “binukot” and daughter of a Tumandok chieftain. Binukot (rough translation: kept) refers to a daughter who is kept in the house to keep her away from the heat of the sun, until she is offered for marriage. The NPA changed that practice though. She feel in love and it was she who made the choice – of marrying Joe.Randa, recalls a former comrade, had a pair of hands that were adept in erecting makeshift shelters during encampment in the forests. She had the nose that knew where to find food. In one gathering with urban-based female cadres, Ka Randa “solved” their hunger by disappearing along the slopes; she reappeared with camote and other tubers, about half the sack she was carrying one her shoulder. She is tanned and danced the “binanog”, a courtship dance that mimics the “banog” or eagle.Ka Randa and four other guerillas were killed in a raid of government soldiers in Maayon, Capiz (unknown date). All five were dumped in a common grave.A former comrade recalls that Joe was meticulous in his work and known for his red smiles, in the literal sense that is: the redness of his mouth and teeth came from his habit of called “nganga” - chewing betel nut laced with lime (apog), patched with tobacco leaf, and wrapped in betel leaf (buyu).Circumstances of death.Months after the martyrdom of his wife Ka Randa, Joe was with five persons who passed by a farmer who was celebrating the birthday of his (famer's) child in Sitio Maadyos, Pandan, Antique.
A squad of government soldiers however detected their presence and attacked them. The guerillas still managed to put up a fight. The four others managed to escape while Joe covered their retreat. He could have escaped had it not been for an M203 grenade that exploded nearby ripping his left abdomen.Through friends in the Army, the family was able to confirm the identity of Joe, the lone casualty. “The Army soldiers hurriedly buried him not knowing that he had a prize on his head,” says Orvillo, the younger brother.
Among Joe's tasks was being a "political officer" (PO) of the "main regional guerilla unit" (MRGU), a position which makes one guidance counselor of sort, raising the ideological and political education of the troops.The family, after two attempts and 15 days from the date of encounter, was able to recover the cadaver of the slain guerilla via Ibajay town, Aklan, which was the easier route if one travelled via Capiz to Aklan.The ground was drenched with rains; the cadaver was still intact, probably the high humidity of the soil slowed down decomposition.“We accepted the death of my brother but what embittered us is that the soldiers still desecrated his body,” laments Orvillo.Not contented with killing the man, they mutilated his corpse, they stabbed his chest many times and cut off his penis.
He is buried at the Catholic Parish Cemetery,Tigbauan, Iloilo.
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