CIVILIANS AND SOLDIERS sat tight through the second day of the Zamboanga standoff with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) with still no end to the siege in sight.
MNLF rebels entered the regional hub of Zamboanga City Monday early morning, triggering firefights with government troops and policemen that left six people dead and several more wounded. Local officials have also announced that the rebels are holding civilians captive as human shields.
The rebels were reportedly acting on orders of MNLF founder Nur Misuari, who had declared an independent BangsaMoro Republik last month after complaining that his group had been sidelined in the peace talks with the rival Moro Islamic Liberation Front. Misuari had also complained that the government had already abandoned the 1996 peace agreement it had entered into with the rebel group.
The following are images from the second day of the Zamboanga siege, courtesy of the Philippine Information Agency’s Region IX office in Zamboanga City. All the images are used with permission from the PIA. The PIA Region IX Facebook page also hosts these pictures.
Civilians displaced by the fighting find rest on the sidewalks of the city (photos courtesy of PIAIX)
The Mindanao Human Rights Action Center (MINHrac) says the number of evacuees at the St. Ignatius de Loyola Church has already increased to 2,000 Tuesday afternoon. As a result, the church could no longer accommodate the growing number of evacuees.
Some of the evacuees have now been transferred to the Immaculate Concepcion Archdiocesan School and the Joaquin Enriquez Memorial Sports Complex.
Other news reports have placed the total number of evacuees from all over the city at 7,000-9,000 people.
A government soldier injured during the fighting (photos from PIAIX)
Government troops and armored personnel carriers in Bgy. Talon-Talon (photos from PIAIX)
A fire guts several buildings in Bgy. Sta. Barbara, scene of some of the fighting (photos from PIAIX)
MALOU MANGAHAS, Executive Director of the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism and host of the television show Investigative Documentaries, is one of three journalists honored by the Metrobank Foundation as Journalists of the Year.
The award is given out by the Metrobank Foundation, in partnership with Probe Media Foundation, “to recognize excellence in Philippine journalism across all media platforms – television, radio, print, and online.”
“With the theme Shaping the Nation through Powerful Storytelling, the search honors Filipino journalists whose excellent storytelling has contributed to positive social change and in building the nation,” the Metrobank Foundation said in a statement.
The other two winners are Jarius Bondoc, columnist of the Philippine Star and host of DWIZ’s radio program Sapol ni Jarius Bondoc, and Rodrigo ‘Jiggy’ Manicad Jr., anchor of GMA-7′s Reporters’ Notebook.
Nominees to the award went through a rigorous screening process, where each one submitted five of their best works in the last 10 years. They were then judged by a selection committee based on skills, craftmanship, relevance of content to the community, and contribution to positive social change.
The final stage of the selection involved an interview by a panel led by Supreme Court Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno, and Commission on Higher Education chairperson Patricia Licuanan, University of Sto. Tomas rector Fr. Herminio Dagohoy, University of the Philippines former president Emerlinda Roman, Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation president Carmencita Abella, Asian Institute of Journalism president emeritus Florangel Rosario-Braid, and UP Institute of Islamic Studies dean Julkipli Wadi.
The formal awarding will be done in October this year, to be followed by a series of lectures by the awardees in select areas throughout the country.
The Metrobank Journalist of the Year award is but another feather in the cap of Mangahas, a veteran journalist who has extensive experience in print, television, and online media. Just this June, Mangahas was also chosen as the 2013 Marshall Macluhan Fellow in recognition of her professional work.
A former campus journalist during the Marcos years and editor-in-chief of the Philippine Collegian, Malou graduated cum laude from the University of the Philippines, after finishing her thesis on the run with the use of a portable typewriter (Marcos had issued arrest orders against her and other student leaders).
As the first woman president of the UP University Student Council in 1980-81, she was arrested and detained for nearly four months at the Marcos prison for political detainees in Bicutan, for alleged subversion.
Malou started out as a print journalist in the last years of the Marcos regime, and became editor-in-chief of The Manila Times in 1994-99. She worked as a senior correspondent for Reuters, before moving on to GMA-7 as the first editor-in-chief of GMAnewsTV and Vice President for Research and Content Development of GMA News and Public Affairs.
Malou was a Nieman Fellow for Journalism at Harvard University in 1998-99.
She now works full-time as the Executive Director of the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism, which she co-founded with eight other veteran journalists in 1989.
Malou keeps a well-stocked kitchen for husband Roel R. Landingin, The Financial Times‘ senior correspondent in Manila and former Bloomberg-Manila bureau chief, and their daughter, who won as Most Valuable Player in the Women’s Basketball League in high school. Malou tends to a small garden where her two kalamansi trees once yielded 75 fruits, a feat in the urban jungle called Metro Manila.
ON NATIONAL Heroes Day, protesters from different sectors and of various advocacies trooped to Rizal Park for a single, common cause: the abolition of the pork barrel.
In true rally fashion, they came bearing banners and posters painted with calls for the scrapping of the Priority Development Assistance Fund or PDAF, that a special audit of the Commission on Audit revealed had been riddled with corruption involving lawmakers, executive agencies, and nongovernment organizations.
The protest tagged as the ‘Million-People March’ took place two days after President Benigno Simeon C. Aquino III supposedly called for the abolition of pork. But what the president actually meant was the revision — yet again — was the supposed abolition of PDAF but not the pork barrel system.
In the 2011 national budget, the first crafted by his administration, Aquino already introduced modifications in the PDAF system. He set a ceiling of pork funds for lawmakers and disallowed insertions in the budgets of line agencies. Transparency measures were also put in place supposedly to ensure the accountable use of PDAF.
But what has not changed since pork’s inception in Philippine politics is that the use of funds essentially remains at the discretion of senators and congressmen. They choose which project to implement, where to carry it out, and who will benefit from it.
The threat of downpour did not dissuade many from staging what is said to be the first and biggest demonstration in the Aquino administration.
“Those who have less in life should have more in law.” Ramon del Fierro Magsaysay, 7th President Republic of the Philippines.
With these words, Magsaysay tried to set the tone for a more socially-attuned administration of justice. Yet 56 after Magsaysay’s death, his words remain a mere slogan.
On November 23, 2009, 58 people — 32 of whom were media workers — were waylaid in what has become known throughout the world as the Maguindanao Massacre, the worst case of election violence in the country, and the biggest case of violence against mediamen in the world. The incident has caught the country flat-footed, yet it also exposed several long-festering, and in many aspects, long-known yet unaddressed issues. On one hand. the incident served as a grisly wake-up call for both national government and local and international civil societies on the issues of election violence, clan politics and dynamics, and violence against media. On the other hand, ending impunity became the priority mission of both the Philippine government and civil societies.
In coordination with United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Libertas, a legal policy non-government organization, the Commission on Human Rights of the Philippines (CHRP) launched a research project that dissected the massacre case as a way to understand these issues and offer recommendations for reforms in the country’s judicial system.
The research project output is a book entitled “Maguindanao Massacre: Case Study for Breaking Impunity, Increasing Accountability, and Broadening Access to Justice.” It is a compendium of interviews, focus group discussions and dialogues with “family members of the Maguindanao Massacre victims, key informants who are private or public prosecutors, officials from the security sector, relevant government agencies, and representatives of civil society organizations (CSOs) and media organizations.”
At the crux of the case study is the fact there is still no clear-cut definition of extrajudicial killing (EJK) especially for state players prosecuting the criminal act. The study posits that a good definition is important to set this specific criminal act apart from the other crimes. It further suggests that this particular crime be called “unexplained killing” and “to let it cover both state and non-state perpetrators.” In this way, the study broadened its scope of coverage to be more inclusive of other similar cases of EJKs, not just in Maguindanao or Mindanao, but all over the country as well.
Red-tagging of this type of crime, or identifying specific cases for special attention, also puts “value” since red-tagged cases are more closely monitored by the justice department at the regional level. The label also attracts more public attention, thereby potentially increasing the confidence level of the witnesses. “It is suggested that red-tagging be done at the point of filing informations in court, and that red-tagged cases no longer be raffled. Aside from special handling by the prosecution, this will also facilitate human rights documentation and monitoring,” the case study reads.
The case study proposes that special courts be designated to hear this type of crime continuously. Study proponents also proposed – by way of citing one of the observation of its key informants — the resumption of peace negotiations between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GPH) and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP), because “while peace talks are ongoing, extrajudicial killings are seen to slow down and become intermittent.” In order to further speed up the court processes on EJKs and other human rights violation cases, the case study also proposes there be mechanisms in the rules of court to allow the perpetuation of testimonies of witnesses.
According to the case study, key informants from both the government and civil societies agree that there should be an enabling law on command responsibility to exact criminal liability and for command responsibility to be applicable to all criminal offenses under the country’s Revised Penal Code. The case study also recommended that there should be “transparency in the conduct of internal investigations and in the military justice system.”
Presently, the rules on command responsibility in the Philippines cover only as high as two degrees. However, a respondent from the Philippine Army conceded that — with respect to civilian supremacy over state security forces — court martial will surrender the “subject and the case even if there is a separate crime or administrative case arising under the Articles of War,” provided that there will be clear parameters.
Even though the Philippine Senate had not yet given its concurrence to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (the Rome Statute) pursuant to Article VII of the Constitution when the case study was prepared (2010 to 2011), on August 30, 2011, the Philippine Senate gave its concurrence to the Rome Statute. The Rome Statute, among others, defines the coverage of the doctrine of command responsibility to all state signatories of the international
Other recommendations put forward by the study include:
Requiring a human rights clearance process for personnel in all law enforcement agencies.
Enhancing and increasing coverage of the Witness Protection Program (WPP)
Training of paralegals on investigation and legal support in the prosecution of cases
More inter-agency cooperation and evidence-sharing among agencies involved in the investigation and prosecution of the cases
Initiation of administrative cases involving human rights violations by government agencies DESPITE the absence of private complainants.
More effective firearms control through improved logistics management system by the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
More concrete measures to depoliticize the local police force.
Engagement of the Anti-Money Laundering Council in cases involving HRVs.
The recommendations for more effecive firearms control and the need to depoliticze the local police forces stood out starkly against the backdrop of the Maguindanao Massacre. The Ampatuan clan, the family accused of masterminding the massacre, has been accused of amassing firearms and ammunition through the help of regional and national patrons. In effect, the Ampatuan clan had been able to build its own legal private army using both government arms and ammunition.
As well, the clan has been accused of using the local police force in Maguindanao in carrying out the massacre. Under the Local Government Code, the local government units have operational control over the local police forces. In the case of the Maguindanao Massacre, the local police units were said to have been compromised by the clan through because the clan had full control over the appointments and perks of the local police officers.
During the course of the case study, it was also recommended that there should be a “community and peer support in the prosecution of criminal cases” and a “rationalized and integrated financial and other support for victims of atrocious crimes, including families of the Maguinndanao Massacre victims.” These recommendations stem from the outcome of a series of FGDs with the families of the massacre victims.
“In this respect, a cohesive financial support program with support coming from various sources may be rationalized and administered just by one agency, perhaps the CHRP or the DSWD, so that the families need only coordinate with one agency, Requirements can be streamlined by such agency, so that the families need not undergo repetitive processes for screening, which merely add to the famlies’ difficulty and frustration,” the case study recommends.
The most recent case in point of this was when news that a number of the families of massacre victims have allegedly opted to settle with massacre prime suspects of the Ampatuan clan. Legal counsel Harry Roque of the Center for International law posted in his blog that the families of 14 massacre victims had reportedly signed a written authority with a “close associate” of the Ampatuans to broker a settlement with the accused sometime in February, this year.
Roque’s law firm is representing four of the 14 families who supposedly opted to settle. However, he claimed that the “settlement” was made without his knowledge and that he got wind of the settlement deal from one of his clients.
Although the news of the 14 families of massacre victims considering a settlement with the Ampatuans may come as a shock for most who have been following the massacre case, National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) national chair Rowena Caranza-Paraan said that the move is not “surprising” and that it should not paint the families of the massacre victims as ”sellouts.”
Caranza-Paraan said that there are two main factors that made the families tempted to strike a settlement deal—the snail’s pace of the court trial and families’ lack of sources of income.
“It would always be the decision of the victims’ families. But whether some of them decide to accept a settlement or not, the search for justice for those killed will continue because many of them will never settle,” Caranza-Paraan said.
As observed in the prosecution of EJK and other human rights violations cases in the country, testimonial evidences play a crucial role. When witnesses and families of massacre victims are killed, harassed and often times slapped with trumped up retaliatory charges in court quicker than the respondents of the cases are arrested, then it negates the whole judicial process.
“Hence, there is critical need to secure witnesses. Unfortunately, one common observation is the lack of funds and insufficient of support for witnesses under the Witness Protection Program (WPP),” the case study points out. Thus, the case study also recommends that the justice department’s Witness Protection Program (WPP) be enhanced and its coverage increased.
“Truly, the Maguindanao Massacre was an unspeakable crime. It represents all that is evil in our political system. It shows what is dysfunctional in our legal processes. The only good that can come out of it is that it compels us to train our sights on these infirmities, and galvanizes our resolve as a nation to address it. The above recommendations are made in this light, so that the lost lives of the victims may not be put to naught,” the case study reads in part.
JOURNALISTS AND MEDIA WORKERS held a photo exhibit, ecumenical prayer and candle-lighting ceremony on Thursday (May 23) in New Manila, Quezon City to remember the victims of the grisly Ampatuan Massacre that shocked the world 42 months ago, and remind the nation of the continuing reign of the culture of impunity in the country.
The travelling exhibit dubbed “Never Forget: The Ampatuan Massacre” opened in the morning at the National Cathedral of St. Mary and St. John, 277 E. Rodriguez Sr. Avenue, Quezon City. This travelling exhibit includes photographs of Jes Aznar, Nonoy Espina, and Veejay Villafranca, Vincent Go, among others. The exhibit shows how the nation moves forward from the gruesome murder that exposes how impunity works at its worst. Never Forget has been displayed in schools, churches, and government institutions such as the Congress and Senate.
Media groups led by the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP), as well as journalists from different media outfits, capped off the whole-day memorial with an ecumenical prayer, a short program and a candle-lighting for the victims of impunity.
In her speech during the program, Rowena Paraan, NUJP national chairperson said that while the media community continues to remember the the victims of the massacre, journalists and media workers across the nation should also fight against the continued culture of impunity under the Aquino administration.
“Why must PNoy wait for 2016? He must do what he can to stop this culture of impunity now,” said Paraan.
For her part, Edith Tiamzon—wife of Ampatuan Massacre victim Daniel, a UNTV cameraman—expressed her gratitude for the media community’s continued support.
“Kahit na parang hindi umuusad ang kaso, nagpapasalamat ako sa suporta ninyo. Nagbibigay ito ng lakas ng loob magpatuloy hanggang makamit natin ang hustiya,” Tiamzon told journalists and media workers.
Forty-two months ago, police and militiamen supposedly led by Andal Ampatuan Jr. waylaid a convoy that was supposed to file the candidacy papers of Esmael “Toto” Mangudadatu. The incident on November 23, 2009 led to the death of 58 people, including 32 journalists, and has since been known as the worst case of election-related violence in recent years. The massacre has also been known as the single most brazen attack against journalists and media workers.
The Ampatuan massacre has earned the country the dubious role of being the international poster cover of impunity. The International Freedom of Expression Exchange Network (IFEX)—a federation of 90 independent organizations worldwide—has declared every 23rd of November, as the International Day to End Impunity.
Forty-two months since the massacre, 99 of the 196 accused are still at large. Exacerbating this is the snail-paced trials brought about by 750 pleadings (motions, manifestations, petitions, comments) filed; 540 of which are filed by the defense panel. There are still 103 of the 307 motions filed by both the defense and prosecution have yet to be resolved by the Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 221. One of the witnesses have been killed and another one allegedly committed suicide.
In its latest special report on Impunity Index, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has ranked the Philippines third worst in the world. Worse, the country ranked third for the fourth consecutive year. War-torn Iraq and Somalia ranked first and second, respectively.
The country’s impunity index rating this year is “0.580 unsolved journalist murders per million inhabitants.” Last year, CPJ also ranked the Philippines third worst in the world with a rating of 0.589.
“Despite President Benigno Aquino III’s vow to reverse impunity in journalist murders, the Philippines ranked third worst worldwide for the fourth consecutive year. Fifty-five journalist murders have gone unsolved in the past decade,” the May 2, 2013 special report of CPJ entitled “Getting away with murder,” reads in part. The CPJ—founded in 1981—is an independent, non-profit organization that advocates for “press freedom worldwide by defending the rights of journalists to report the news without fear of reprisal.”
Published yearly, CPJ’s Impunity Index special report monitors “countries where journalists are killed regularly and governments fail to solve the crimes.” The 2013 Impunity Index report covers media killings which have remained unsolved from January 1, 2003 to December 31 last year. CPJ’s report this year lists 12 countries since they listed only countries with five or more unsolved cases. The group considers a case unsolved “when no convictions have been won.”
The CPJ report has identified the government’s inability to secure the witnesses of media killings as its foremost obstacle in ending the culture of impunity in the country.
“The insecurity of witnesses is a key problem in addressing impunity. Authorities in the Philippines, ranked third worst on CPJ’s index, have yet to make headway in the prosecution of dozens of suspects in a politically motivated massacre in Maguindanao province that claimed the lives of more than 50 people, including 32 journalists and media workers, in 2009. Three witnesses in the Maguindanao case have themselves been murdered, one of them dismembered and mutilated,” the report reads.
