Source: ANN
For the widows and other next of kin of some of the media workers killed in Maguindanao, southern Philippines on Nov. 23, 2009, the massacre was a conspiracy for which former president and now Pampanga Representative Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo should be clapped behind bars with Ampatuan clan members.
In a visit to the Inquirer recently, the grieving family members made no effort to hide their resentment toward Arroyo, saying that as the then President, she consented to and tolerated the Ampatuans� monopoly of power and resources in Maguindanao.
They said the Ampatuans� dominance over all aspects of life in the impoverished province eventually led to the massacre of 57 people, among them 32 media workers, in what is now known as the worst incidence of political violence in the country. (There is a reported 58th victim but the remains have yet to be found.)
�I want to see Gloria in prison along with the Ampatuans for conspiracy. She was protecting them,� Myrna Reblando, outspoken widow of Manila Bulletin correspondent Bong Reblando, quickly replied when asked what would ease her pain.
Julieta Evardo, whose son, UNTV cameraman Julito Evardo, was also among those killed, echoed the conspiracy angle.
She said that she wanted �all those responsible (for the massacre) to rot in jail,� and lamented that 15 months later, only one member of the powerful clan - primary suspect Andal Ampatuan Jr. - had been arraigned.
�All of them should be convicted. What happened was a conspiracy. They all knew that something would happen, from the lowly soldiers to the most senior of them. They should suffer the same penalty,� Evardo said.
Burning questions
Reblando said that had then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo showed up at her husband�s wake, she would have confronted the latter and asked: �Madam, what did you do on Nov. 23? What were your orders?�
�I wanted answers from Gloria if only to lessen the hurt I was feeling then,� she said tearfully.
Reblando said she posed the same questions to Maj. Gen. Alfredo Cayton, the then chief of the Army�s 6th Infantry Division in Maguindanao, when he came to pay respects to her slain husband.
However, she said, she received no answers: �He said Bong was close to him and that they were friends. But that�s not what I need. I wanted to hear the reason he did not grant my husband�s request for security.�
The media workers were in a convoy heading to the local Commission on Elections office to cover the submission of the certificate of candidacy of then gubernatorial candidate Esmael Mangudadatu, a political rival of the Ampatuans. Mangudadatu�s wife, sisters and lawyers were to have submitted the document in his stead.
Over a year after the massacre, Reblando admitted that she had become more daring in answering questions from the media, particularly on matters concerning Arroyo.
�Why did she continue to protect (the Ampatuans)? I know she utilized them during elections, but it had come to a point that the Ampatuans were killing people,� the widow said.
Reblando said Arroyo�s order declaring martial law in Maguindanao in the aftermath of the massacre was a face-saving move amid allegations that she had created a monster out of the influential clan.
�If she did not do it, then it would have been very obvious that she was protecting them,� Reblando said.
Aware that winning a conviction within the next few years was a dim possibility, the families have found strength in one another and in the media groups supporting their cause.
Long haul
They have formed the group Justice Now! with the help of the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines, not only to organize their legal moves but also to bond themselves to their quest for justice.
�We are ready for the long haul,� said Ric Cachuela, president of Justice Now! and the elder brother of slain journalist Val Cachuela of Koronadal City. �We know we have just hurdled the first year and that we may have to wait for at least 20 years before getting a conviction. But we know we can count on media groups to help us.�
Cachuela denounced reports that some of the massacre victims� relatives had received huge sums of money in a purported out-of-court settlement with the Ampatuans.
He said the reports might have been spread deliberately to make it appear that some criminal groups were now after their money, and �if something bad happens to us, then the Ampatuans can easily escape blame.�
Zaldy Ampatuan
The families also raised concern over reports that the Court of Appeals was preparing to grant the petition of Zaldy Ampatuan, former governor of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, seeking his exclusion from the list of respondents of the multiple murder case.
Reblando said a �government official� had warned the families that the appeals court might issue a favorable ruling on Zaldy Ampatuan�s petition in the next few weeks.
On Feb. 18, the private prosecutors urged two appeals court justices to inhibit themselves from taking part in the deliberations on the petition.
�Even if only one of them gets out of jail, I know we will all be in trouble,� warned Editha Tiamzon, widow of slain UNTV crew member Daniel Tiamzon. �The Ampatuans will surely get back at us.�
For now, the families are finding comfort and courage in the individuals and groups backing them in their financial and emotional struggles.
Their lawyers are working pro bono (without fee), Reblando said, adding with a smile: �Sometimes we also feel uncomfortable thinking that our lawyers are also paying for our airfare.�
The families said they continued to hope that President Aquino would make good on his promise to deliver justice to the massacre victims before he steps down in 2016.
�We don�t ask for anything but the justice we deserve,� Reblando said.
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For the widows and other next of kin of some of the media workers killed in Maguindanao, southern Philippines on Nov. 23, 2009, the massacre was a conspiracy for which former president and now Pampanga Representative Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo should be clapped behind bars with Ampatuan clan members.
In a visit to the Inquirer recently, the grieving family members made no effort to hide their resentment toward Arroyo, saying that as the then President, she consented to and tolerated the Ampatuans� monopoly of power and resources in Maguindanao.
They said the Ampatuans� dominance over all aspects of life in the impoverished province eventually led to the massacre of 57 people, among them 32 media workers, in what is now known as the worst incidence of political violence in the country. (There is a reported 58th victim but the remains have yet to be found.)
�I want to see Gloria in prison along with the Ampatuans for conspiracy. She was protecting them,� Myrna Reblando, outspoken widow of Manila Bulletin correspondent Bong Reblando, quickly replied when asked what would ease her pain.
Julieta Evardo, whose son, UNTV cameraman Julito Evardo, was also among those killed, echoed the conspiracy angle.
She said that she wanted �all those responsible (for the massacre) to rot in jail,� and lamented that 15 months later, only one member of the powerful clan - primary suspect Andal Ampatuan Jr. - had been arraigned.
�All of them should be convicted. What happened was a conspiracy. They all knew that something would happen, from the lowly soldiers to the most senior of them. They should suffer the same penalty,� Evardo said.
Burning questions
Reblando said that had then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo showed up at her husband�s wake, she would have confronted the latter and asked: �Madam, what did you do on Nov. 23? What were your orders?�
�I wanted answers from Gloria if only to lessen the hurt I was feeling then,� she said tearfully.
Reblando said she posed the same questions to Maj. Gen. Alfredo Cayton, the then chief of the Army�s 6th Infantry Division in Maguindanao, when he came to pay respects to her slain husband.
However, she said, she received no answers: �He said Bong was close to him and that they were friends. But that�s not what I need. I wanted to hear the reason he did not grant my husband�s request for security.�
The media workers were in a convoy heading to the local Commission on Elections office to cover the submission of the certificate of candidacy of then gubernatorial candidate Esmael Mangudadatu, a political rival of the Ampatuans. Mangudadatu�s wife, sisters and lawyers were to have submitted the document in his stead.
Over a year after the massacre, Reblando admitted that she had become more daring in answering questions from the media, particularly on matters concerning Arroyo.
�Why did she continue to protect (the Ampatuans)? I know she utilized them during elections, but it had come to a point that the Ampatuans were killing people,� the widow said.
Reblando said Arroyo�s order declaring martial law in Maguindanao in the aftermath of the massacre was a face-saving move amid allegations that she had created a monster out of the influential clan.
�If she did not do it, then it would have been very obvious that she was protecting them,� Reblando said.
Aware that winning a conviction within the next few years was a dim possibility, the families have found strength in one another and in the media groups supporting their cause.
Long haul
They have formed the group Justice Now! with the help of the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines, not only to organize their legal moves but also to bond themselves to their quest for justice.
�We are ready for the long haul,� said Ric Cachuela, president of Justice Now! and the elder brother of slain journalist Val Cachuela of Koronadal City. �We know we have just hurdled the first year and that we may have to wait for at least 20 years before getting a conviction. But we know we can count on media groups to help us.�
Cachuela denounced reports that some of the massacre victims� relatives had received huge sums of money in a purported out-of-court settlement with the Ampatuans.
He said the reports might have been spread deliberately to make it appear that some criminal groups were now after their money, and �if something bad happens to us, then the Ampatuans can easily escape blame.�
Zaldy Ampatuan
The families also raised concern over reports that the Court of Appeals was preparing to grant the petition of Zaldy Ampatuan, former governor of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, seeking his exclusion from the list of respondents of the multiple murder case.
Reblando said a �government official� had warned the families that the appeals court might issue a favorable ruling on Zaldy Ampatuan�s petition in the next few weeks.
On Feb. 18, the private prosecutors urged two appeals court justices to inhibit themselves from taking part in the deliberations on the petition.
�Even if only one of them gets out of jail, I know we will all be in trouble,� warned Editha Tiamzon, widow of slain UNTV crew member Daniel Tiamzon. �The Ampatuans will surely get back at us.�
For now, the families are finding comfort and courage in the individuals and groups backing them in their financial and emotional struggles.
Their lawyers are working pro bono (without fee), Reblando said, adding with a smile: �Sometimes we also feel uncomfortable thinking that our lawyers are also paying for our airfare.�
The families said they continued to hope that President Aquino would make good on his promise to deliver justice to the massacre victims before he steps down in 2016.
�We don�t ask for anything but the justice we deserve,� Reblando said.
