The National Democratic Front of the Philippines on 11 June expressed its sincere condolences to the family of Kieth Absalon, 21, and his uncle, Nolven Absalon, 40, who were killed in Masbate City on 6 June by an improvised explosive device (IED) detonated by the New People's Army. The Communist Party of the Philippines in a June 8 statement admitted the error of the military action and expressed deep remorse over the deaths of the two. Both were unarmed civilians not taking part in the armed conflict.

Following the accidental deaths of Keith and Nolven, President Rodrigo Duterte, his security officials, and various civilian personalities and organizations condemned the NPA actions. Duterte’s security officials demanded that those involved be surrendered to the authority of the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP).

In the 11 June statement signed by NDFP Chief International Representative Luis Jalandoni and NDFP Negotiating Panel Interim Chairperson Julieta de Lima, the NDFP stressed that it had the responsibility to investigate the incident. They said that, under the 1998 GRP-NDFP Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL), the NDFP has “sole jurisdiction over complaints against units and personnel of the New People's Army, in the same way that the GRP has the sole jurisdiction over complaints against its own armed units and personnel”.

They added, “The agreement is in consonance with the fact that the GRP and NDFP are engaged in a civil war and is a step forward in the direction of negotiating a just peace between the two parties. The agreement established the Joint Monitoring Committee as the principal mechanism to monitor the implementation of the CARHRIHL.”

On 9 June, the CPP assured the public “that the higher and lower Party committees, NPA commands and revolutionary organs of governance are fully capable of determining the necessary course of action to correct the errors of the NPA unit that led to the June 6 Masbate tragedy… The incident is being fully assessed with the aim of avoiding such errors in the future and further strengthening the NPA in serving and defending the people.”

The Philippine Ecumenical Peace Platform issued its own statement expressing deep sorrow over the deaths of Keith and Nolven Absalon. “While the tragic incident is truly condemnable, it is also a timely reminder for us to pause and reflect. The deaths… fully underscores the cost of the armed conflict in the country.”

The PEPP added, “There are calls for justice from the family and public. There are mechanisms in place that can hopefully provide justice like the CARHRIHL and related agreements and we hope that it is not disregarded by both parties even though the peace negotiations are suspended.”

They stressed that “the most viable option to stop the violence on the ground and to resolve the conflict is through a negotiated peace settlement between the warring parties.”

In a related development, three unarmed civilians also from Masbate City were killed by elements of the Philippine National Police and Armed Forces of the Philippines. The armed security forces claimed they engaged the civilians in an armed encounter. Family and relatives of the victims however asserted that they are not members of the NPA.