The Philippine National Police in Occidental Mindoro has rejected allegations of harassment against indigenous Mangyan residents, calling social media reports “malicious” and urging mass reporting of the pages.

The dispute erupted after advocacy groups reported that armed military and police personnel entered a Mangyan-Iraya campsite on Tuesday.

Peoples Rising for Climate Justice reported that dozens of fully armed soldiers and police officers from the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and Philippine National Police (PNP) entered the campsite at Sitio Kapehan around 3:00 pm on October 14, 2025.

The site was allegedly hosting a Learning and Solidarity Mission in the province.

According to observers, the incident followed a series of alleged harassment including drone flyovers and unidentified individuals on motorcycles photographing and videotaping mission activities.

In a statement posted on social media, the Occidental Mindoro PNP said: “Mariing kinokondena at pinapasinungalingan ng Occidental Mindoro PNP ang mga malisyosong post sa social media.”

The police accused Southern Tagalog Exposure and Peoples Rising for Climate Justice of spreading disinformation aimed at damaging the reputation of the PNP and Armed Forces of the Philippines.

“Hangarin lamang ng mga grupong ito na dungisan at siraan ang PNP at AFP sa kanilang tunay na hangarin at misyong panatilihin ang kaayusan at kapayapaan sa bayan ng Abra de Ilog,” the statement read.

The PNP urged the public to mass report the social media pages, citing alleged falsehoods and misinformation that it said caused fear in the community.

Southern Tagalog Exposure responded by condemning what it called an attempt to censor coverage of the Mangyan-Iraya community’s struggle for land rights in Sitio Malatabako, Abra de Ilog.

The alternative media outlet alleged that during the recent learning and solidarity mission, community members and delegates experienced surveillance by drones and unidentified men, as well as other forms of intimidation by police and military personnel.

The group claimed its coverage documented police working alongside private security personnel from Pieceland Corporation, and showed state forces “fully armed with guns, sowing fear in the communities.”

Southern Tagalog Exposure said the Mangyan-Iraya community has filed complaints with the Commission on Human Rights regarding alleged harassment.

The media group called on journalists and alternative press workers to resist what it described as “state-sanctioned attacks on press freedom.”

Peoples Rising for Climate Justice and other international organizations condemned what they called ongoing intimidation and “a blatant attempt to disrupt humanitarian and solidarity efforts in the area.”