CONFLICTS / SLOW TRIAL UPSETS MASSACRE KIN
MANILA, NOVEMBER 25,
2011 (STANDARD) by Ferdie Fabella - Natural disasters and
armed conflicts like "rido" or clan wars have displaced thousands of residents
in Mindanao, with over 700,000 people still in dire need of relief and
protection, a United Nations official said on Wednesday.
UN Assistant Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs Catherine Bragg said
many communities remain vulnerable and in need of assistance despite the
outpouring of international aid and the collaboration between aid agencies and
the national government.
Last June alone, nearly 860,000 people in Mindanao were affected by severe
flooding caused by heavy monsoon rains. New displacements continue to occur,
partly due to clan violence known as rido, according to Bragg.
"I am deeply concerned by the impact of cycles of displacement, particularly
those caused by armed confrontations between government forces and armed groups,
and clan fighting," the UN official said in a press conference at New World
Hotel in Makati City.
"I call on 'all parties to conflict' to spare people from the effects of
violence. The rights of the displaced, and others affected by conflict, must be
respected," Bragg added.
Bragg is on a five-day fact-finding mission in the Philippines to assess how
the communities in Mindanao cope with a "protracted humanitarian crisis" brought
about by years of armed conflict and recurring national disasters.
Recounting her two-day visit to various provinces in Mindanao, Bragg said she
saw first-hand the seriousness of the people's needs, especially in
Maguindanao—the site of the infamous massacre of 58 people two years ago—where
she said "the situation remains fragile."
Over 700,009 people in Central Mindanao, Bragg said, are in desperate
situation, particularly in conflict- and flood-affected areas. This includes
people displaced by calamities and conflicts, and people who have returned home
or resettled elsewhere.
"In Mindanao, a lot of basic human needs are not satisfied at the moment. It
is quite evident in my two-day trip there. For example, I was told health
services are very minimal. And without humanitarian provisions, quite a lot of
the population will be without it. Basic needs of food, clean water, and shelter
are still lacking," she pointed out.
In 2011, UN and its partners allotted US $33.3 million for a Humanitarian
Action Plan for Mindanao, 54 percent of which has already been used up in
various humanitarian relief and aid distribution. Bragg said UN is eyeing US
$37.9 million for the region in 2012 to fund "protection activities."
The UN official said the current situation in Mindanao requires sustained and
increased support as she pledged UN's all-out support to government-led
responses to emergency situations.
Humanitarian relief operations, Bragg stressed, are affected by active
fighting in the region.
"Emergency responders must be granted unhindered independent access, and
allowed to undertake essential humanitarian assessments, particularly of the
needs of newly displaced people in insecure areas," she added.
Bragg advised the Philippine government to work on a much more "comprehensive
approach" in addressing the consequences as well as the root causes of the
problems in Mindanao and prepare for future natural disasters and conflict
scenarios.
"Unfortunately, people will continue to need humanitarian aid as long as
conflict and violence deprive them of the opportunity to rebuild their lives,"
she said.
FROM MSNBC
Slow trial frustrates Philippine massacre kin By
TERESA CEROJANO updated 11/23/2011 6:06:49 AM ET 2011-11-23T11:06:49
[PHOTO - Roman Catholic priest Fr. Robert Reyes blesses the site of the
massacre of 57 people including 32 journalists and staff at Maguindanao,
southern Philippines following a mass on the eve of the 2nd anniversary Tuesday
Nov.22, 2011. Also on Tuesday relatives of the massacred victims sued former
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo over the killings, which they claim she could
have prevented. The 32 journalist-victims was the worst's single killing of
journalists in the world. (AP Photo)]
MANILA, Philippines — Two years after a political massacre in the southern
Philippines became the single worst slaying of journalists in the world, more
than half of the nearly 200 suspects remain at large.
Leaders of a politically powerful clan and several of their lieutenants have
been put on trial over the attack — an ambush of a convoy and the slayings of at
least 57 political opponents and media employees who accompanied them. But the
proceedings have moved at a snail's pace, frustrating relatives of the victims.
"We know that it is not easy to get justice. We need to work for it, it is
not voluntarily offered or easily obtained," said Grace Morales, widow of
journalist Rosell Morales and sister of another reporter slain in the massacre,
Marites Cablitas.
"The families need to act, to remain strong and to continue the fight," she
said in an interview. "It has been two years but we have not yet obtained full
justice."
The focus of the trial is Andal Ampatuan Sr., patriarch of the powerful clan
in southern Maguindanao province, former governor of an autonomous Muslim region
and a political ally of ex-President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.
Victims' relatives blame Arroyo for a culture of impunity in the southern
Philippines and have filed a lawsuit against her, claiming she could have
prevented the killings, although she has condemned the massacre and denied any
prior knowledge.
However, Arroyo was arrested just last week on charges of electoral fraud for
allegedly instructing Ampatuan and an elections official to rig the results of
2007 congressional polls. She denies any wrongdoing.
Ampatuan is among 96 suspects in custody being tried on murder charges,
including his sons, other relatives and former government-armed militiamen under
his wing. They have pleaded not guilty.
Still at large are an additional 100 suspects, including former police,
military personnel and civilian militia members linked to the Ampatuans,
believed to be hiding in Maguindanao and elsewhere in the restive southern
Philippines.
Gunmen allegedly led by Andal Ampatuan Jr., a former town mayor, stopped
members of the Mangudadatu clan, the Ampatuans' political rivals, as they
traveled to file for candidacy in regional elections. They were led to a hilltop
clearing, gunned down and hastily buried in mass graves alongside their
vehicles, which were crushed by a backhoe.
"This case underscores what happens when people have full control and
absolute power and then abuse it," Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo said during
a ceremony Wednesday at the massacre site. "They were so brazen and thought
nothing could stop them."
The dead included at least 31 media staffers covering the Mangudadatus,
making it the worst-ever single massacre of journalists. The charge sheet lists
57 victims but the body of journalist Reynaldo Momay, who was also part of the
convoy, was never found.
Still-mourning relatives led by Maguindanao Gov. Esmael Mangudadatu, who lost
his wife and sisters in the massacre, lit candles, offered flowers and released
doves during the ceremony at the mound where concrete markers bearing the names
of dead were erected.
Mangudadatu said earlier Wednesday he would scrap a visit to the site in
Ampatuan township — named after the powerful clan — after authorities defused at
least two bombs nearby. But he later changed his mind and decided to attend.
Robredo said he assured relatives of the victims that the government would do
all it can to give them justice and punish all those responsible. But while the
government has taken steps to hasten the prosecution, the trial has suffered
delays because of numerous legal tactics by the suspects' lawyers in a judiciary
notorious for a huge number of backlog cases.
"We guaranteed them that under this administration, there would no longer be
such warlords because no government will support them," Robredo said. "As we
were traveling back to the airport from the massacre site, I saw along the way
that only the police and troops were bearing guns."
In Manila, hundreds of journalists and students marched near the presidential
palace to demand a stop to killings of reporters and justice for victims of the
massacre.
Protesters sprawled briefly on a busy street near the palace and the outlines
of their bodies were traced with chalk to resemble a crime scene. Several
relatives of victims joined the protesters as they lit candles placed on the
chalk markings.
The trial opened last year in a specially built courtroom inside a Manila
maximum-security prison, where the judge is hearing the case twice a week. A
minute of silence was observed during the hearing Wednesday.
Even from behind bars, the Ampatuans still wield influence and instill fear.
Reynafe Momay-Castillo, the daughter of the undeclared 58th victim, said
emissaries of the suspects were offering money to some relatives in exchange for
dropping the case.
"I don't feel safe to work," said Momay-Castillo, a nurse. "We are fighting
so many things, not just fighting for justice. We are confronted with the
realities of life that go with what happened to our loved ones. The problem is
our enemy has so much money."
Associated Press writers Jim Gomez and Hrvoje Hranjski contributed to this
report.
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material
may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Chief News Editor: Sol Jose Vanzi
© Copyright, 2011 by PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE
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rights reserved
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