The post Philippines: Reporter shot dead appeared first on Index on Censorship.

Of the 196 accused of perpetrating the massacre, one has been acquitted, and only 79 have been apprehended by the authorities. An overwhelming number of those indicted for the massacre continue to be at large, including no less than 21 members of the Ampatuan clan. Of those in custody, only 51 have been arraigned. Neither Andal Ampatuan Sr, the patriarch, nor Zaldy Ampatuan, former governor of the Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao, have been arraigned because they still have pending petitions in the Court of Appeals questioning the existence of probable cause against them. Meanwhile, at least three witnesses, including self-confessed gunman Suwaid Upham, have been killed and silenced. Many other witnesses, and their immediate families, are on the run fearing that their testimonies may endanger their own lives and those of their loved ones.

There is good news though. To begin with, at least five members of the Ampatuan family, including the patriarch and his two sons, are at least in jail while the trial drags on. “There is at least consolation in the fact that although they have not been found guilty, the Ampatuans are already paying for their sins in jail”, said Myrna Reblando, whose husband, Alejandro or “Bong”, was the only full time employee of a national daily newspaper, The Manila Bulletin, killed in the massacre. There too is the fact that according to witness Rainier Ebus, it was Andal “Unsay” Jr, his cousin Datu Kanor, who is still at large, and several other gunmen, the majority of whom are members of the Ampatuan’s private army, who shot and killed all 58 victims at close range using high-powered firearms. His testimony corroborated to the letter the narration of Upham, the witness who was killed. “Somehow, this truth about who actually killed my son aggravates the pain”, said Catherine Nunez, mother of UNTV cameraman Victor Nunez, who was killed in the massacre.

There have also been at least two witnesses who positively identified the patriarch, the former ARRM Governor and other members of the Ampatuan family as taking part in the planning of the massacre. Witness Lakmudin Saliao, a former household helper of the Ampatuans, testified that he was present in at least two meetings where the clan agreed that their own relative, Ismael “Toto” Mangundadatu, should not be allowed to challenge their rein in Maguindanao. According to the witness, the decision was unanimous: kill “Toto” and whoever would be with him when he files his certificate of candidacy. At one point, the patriarch was quoted by this witness as having ordered his son “Unsay” to spare the journalists and women who were part of the convoy. But the same witness related how the old men also relented after being told by his son that the survivors may give evidence if their lives were spared.

More importantly, the witnesses presented thus far have testified to attempts to cover up this massacre in addition to the earlier attempt to bury all of its victims and their vehicles. The former servant testified how immediately after the carnage, the patriarch authorised the release of 400m pesos (roughly USD 10m) to pay off prosecutors, investigators and witnesses whom they wanted to retract their earlier testimonies. Worse, the witness also testified how no lesser figure than a cabinet member of the former Arroyo regime, Jesus Dureza — ironically was a former journalist himself —was ordered to be given at least 20m pesos (US500,000) albeit for unclear reasons. This is the same Jesus Dureza to whom the Ampatuan clan surrendered custody of “Unsay” Ampatuan, after allegedly agreeing that former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo would ultimately exercise custody over the patriarch’s heir-apparent. Until Arroyo was defeated by Benigno Aquino III in May’s presidential election, this move bolstered the victim’s families fears that they would not find justice while Arroyo was in power given the Ampatuan’s very close personal and political ties with the former president.

Meanwhile, the families of the victims continue to grapple with both the emotional pain and financial pressures brought about by the loss of their loved ones, many of whom were the sole breadwinners of their families. While the Philippine government has given each of the victims at least USD 6,000 by way of financial assistance, this could hardly compensate them for both the economic loss and the emotional pain created by the massacre. “I have to be strong for the sake of my child. I have to invest the little financial assistance I have received to raise my son”, declared Arlene Umpad, live-in partner of McDelbert Arriola, a camera man for UNTV, who was amongst those killed. Arlene has invested part of the money she has received to raise cows in the Province of Quezon where she and her child relocated for security reasons. Arlene, apart from tending to her cows, now also has to raise her child alone. Her son was merely three-months-old when the massacre happened. Her deceased partner was the youngest victim of the massacre.

Many families of the victims of the Ampatuan massacre have opted not to attend the commemoration of the tragedy at the scene of the massacre. “I will be busy tending to the grave of my husband”, said Zenaida Duhay. Another widow, Noemi Parcon, expressed apprehension about the very safety of the commemoration itself since days before, a bomb exploded in the national highway leading to the massacre site. Noemi added: “what is more important is for government to hasten the prosecution so we can obtain justice soon”.

As the Philippines and world commemorate the worst attack on journalists in modern history, the families of the victims will light candles in the tombs of their loved ones. A candle, in the Philippines, is a symbol of remembrance. But to some, it is also a message: that while the flame is burning, the memories of those who have moved on will not be forgotten. And with this comes the prayer that soon there will be justice.

Professor Harry L Roque, Jr is list counsel, International Criminal Court; executive council, International Criminal Bar; chair, Center for International Law. He represents 14 victims of the Maguindanao massacre in domestic and international litigation

The post Maguindanao Massacre: First anniversary marked by little progress appeared first on Index on Censorship.

It was in this context that on April 19 the acting secretary of justice dismissed 57 murder charges against two members of the Ampatuan family: Governor Zaldy Ampatuan of the autonomous region in Muslim Mindanao and town mayor Akmad Ampatuan. Prior to his latest order, a 10-man prosecuting panel established the existence of probable cause against 197 persons, including the two absolved Ampatuans. Originally, only vice-mayor Andal “Unsay” Ampatua Jr was charged for the crime. The decision to charge 196 additional persons is problematic since many of them were charged on the basis of conspiracy. Convicting all would be difficult given that witnesses have stated that not all of the accused were at the scene of the crime or the place where the massacre was planned. Addressing the legal basis for the dismissal against the two Ampatuans, the acting justice secretary concluded that the two had “strong evidence of alibi”, ignoring the fact that jurisprudence views an alibi as the weakest defence and could not prevail against the testimony of a witness that both men were involved in planning the massacre.

The dismissal was brazen. Many victims had been cynical about the sincerity of the Arroyo government to convict a family that delivered crucial votes in the 2004 presidential elections, a feat repeated in the 2007 senatorial elections where all 12 opposition candidates for the senate also got zero votes in the Ampatuan bailiwick of Maguindanao. Still, the victims families hoped that the barbarity of the act, coupled with the international clamour to prosecute this brutal crime, would at least compel Arroyo to conduct an extended charade of sorts before absolving them. The victims never imagined that partial absolution would come so soon as it did: merely five months after the massacre.

It still seems unlikely that the justice secretary will reverse his decision. Soon the public prosecutors will file a motion to implement their bosses’ decision in the court where the multiple murder charges are pending which we, the private prosecutors will surely oppose.

Normally, private prosecutors appear only under the direct control and supervision of the public prosecutors, as it is the state that is the offended party in a criminal case. This potential conflict between the private and the public prosecutors — coming at a time when the public prosecutors themselves have declared publicly that their boss was wrong — is unusual. The public and the private prosecutors normally belong to the same team.

But this conflict, resulting in the “privatisation” of the state obligation to prosecute those who violated the victims’ right to life, is the latest in a series of privatisations of state obligations. This process started when the 197 suspects — all of whom are state organs: policemen, soldiers, members of civilian militia forces, and elected public officials — were investigated for their possible involvement in the crime. With law enforcers charged with the commission rather than investigating the commission of a crime, the investigation of had to be privatised.

Here, the international media community acted fast, sending two leading forensic experts: Dr Jose Pablo Baraybar of the UN Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and Cris Cobb-Smith, who has extensive experience as field investigator of mass murders in the Balkans and in the Middle East. Likewise, with all the accused being state organs, witnesses, including one who admitted to being one of the triggerman and who witnessed the massacre from beginning to end, have had to seek refuge in a private sanctuary rather than the government’s witness protection program. Truly, this process of privatising now even the prosecution of the case attests to a complete abrogation of the state obligation to investigate and prosecute at least 57 murders, thanks to the fact that all the suspected perpetrators are public officials.

This latest decision to absolve two of the Ampatuans on weak legal grounds has at least removed the last iota of doubt that the victims cannot expect justice from the current administration. With elections to be held on May 10, 2010, they are optimistic that change is coming and with it, new hopes for achieving justice to the victims of the worst massacre of journalists in history.

Professor Harry L Roque, Jr is list counsel, International Criminal Court; executive council, International Criminal Bar; chair, Center for International Law. He represents 14 victims of the Maguindanao massacre in domestic and international litigation

The post Maguindanao massacre: Impunity and power appeared first on Index on Censorship.

The post Philippines to stop “culture of impunity” appeared first on Index on Censorship.