MANILA (UPDATE) - Football player Kieth Absalon and his cousin, Nolven, were laid to rest in Masbate City on Sunday, a week after an IED blast perpetrated by communist rebels claimed their lives.

The two were buried at the Nursery Cemetery in Masbate City past 3 p.m.

• READ: Football player, cousin killed in IED blast in Masbate

The two, along with Nolven's 16-year-old son, were riding their bikes along Barangay Anas in the morning of June 6 when an improvised explosive device went off and hit them.

The minor survived the incident, which the Communist Party of the Philippines said was a result of "errors in the military action mounted by an NPA unit."

The Absalon family, who said the victims were also shot, cried for justice.

• Footballer Kieth Absalon died of gunshot wounds, blast injuries: death certificate

Kieth, 21, played for the Malaya Football Club and the Far Eastern University football team.

He was a standout for FEU's boys' football team, having been named Most Valuable Player of the juniors division in Season 78. He was also a part of the national team that competed in the 2018 AFF Under-19 Championship in Indonesia.

He was a starter for the FEU men's football team in Season 82 before their campaign was curtailed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

• READ: Up-and-coming footballer Kieth Absalon passes away at 21

Officials and rights groups condemned the CPP-NPA's use of landmines, which they say violates the International Humanitarian Law. They also demanded that those responsible for the blast should be turned over to government.

The CPP-NPA had asked "the public to give the concerned NPA commands and Party committees time and space to conduct" their investigation.

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