Ten years ago, 58 persons including 32 journalists and one human rights lawyer, were brutally killed in Sitio Masalay, Ampatuan in Maguindanao, in what is now considered the deadliest attack on journalists and worst case of election-related violence in Philippine history.
10 years of Ampatuan Massacre: End a Decade of Injustice! Convict Ampatuans Now!
IT HAS BEEN A DARK DECADE of injustice for families and loved ones of the victims of the Ampatuan massacre, which killed 58 individuals, 32 of them journalists.
A decade of unbearable grief and pain, as they watch the
masterminds of the world’s single deadliest attack on journalists flex
political power to evade justice for a crime most heinous, all the while
dealing with a personal loss too great for many of us to fathom.
It has been a dark decade of impunity for journalists, as
they watch colleagues get threatened and killed by the coercive power of the
nation’s ruling class, all the while doing their best to fulfill a duty to the
public to report the truth, no matter the consequences to their personal safety
and security.
For the past 10 years, we have seen a corrupt and failed
system—the very same one that allowed such a senseless organized crime to even
be possible—at work to give the best possible advantage to the perpetrators:
with many of the 197 originally accused still at large, with the principal
suspects the Ampatuans being allowed special favors, with witnesses being
bribed and threatened, with the unreasonable delays in the judicial process.
At the same time, we have also seen how the victims’
families, their lawyers, witnesses, and supporters have stood their ground.
Despite being threatened with their lives, they have shown us the real meaning
of courage: to speak truth to power, even one with an active private army and a
web of close relationships with top politicians. They have shown great stamina,
pursuing justice relentlessly, even if some have forgotten the gruesome story
of how 58 innocent people were gunned on the spot and buried with a backhoe in
the rolling hills of Barangay Salman, Ampatuan, Maguindanao province. Because
the Ampatuan Massacre isn’t just another gruesome crime story—it was, and
remains, the starkest symbol of the death of press freedom and the reign of
impunity in this country.
But the end of of this story is yet to be written. The
promulgation of the case is set at any moment; now is the time to make our
calls for justice ring out as loud as possible.
Altermidya- People’s Alternative Media Network joins
colleagues in calling for the immediate conviction of the suspects in the
Ampatuan Massacre, particularly the principal suspects, brothers Andal Jr.,
Zaldy and Sajid Ampatuan. Anything less is unacceptable and would unleash a
storm of wrath, not just from the victims’ families and loved ones, but from
the greater public, including the media community here and abroad. An attack on
one of us is an attack on us all. Justice for 32 of us is justice for us all.
The delivery of justice for Ampatuan Massacre victims will
act like a beam of light shone into a great darkness that is the escalating
climate of fear and impunity under the Duterte administration. We anticipate it
with utmost vigilance and hope.
The post 10 years of Ampatuan Massacre: End a Decade of Injustice! Convict Ampatuans Now! appeared first on AlterMidya.
A year since Duterte’s MO No. 32, Karapatan blasts de facto martial law in Negros, Eastern Visayas, Bicol
Human rights group Karapatan strongly criticized the de facto martial law situation in Negros, Eastern Visayas and Bicol that has resulted in human rights violations in the said regions, after a year of implementation of Pres.
Sampung taon
Kung malayo ka sa probinsya ng Maguindanao, malamang na ordinaryong araw lang ito para sa iyo. Anuman ang edad natin, siguradong mas bata ang hitsura at pakiramdam natin noon kumpara ngayon. Pero huwag sana nating kalimutan ang trahedya ng araw na iyon.
Kailangan nating ulitin ang batayang datos para hindi mabaon sa limot ang karumal-dumal na nakaraan. Tinatayang 58 katao, kasama ang 32 peryodista at manggagawa sa midya, ang minasaker sa Ampatuan, Maguindanao. Pangunahing suspek ang pamilyang Ampatuan na siyang may hawak sa lokal na pamahalaan ng buong probinsya. Paumanhin kung hindi ako komportableng ilahad ang buong detalye ng walang pakundangang pagpatay dahil walang akmang salitang makapagpapaliwanag sa bayolenteng sinapit ng mga biktima, lalo na ng mga nilapastangang babae.
Nasaan nga ba ako noong panahong iyon? Visiting professor po ako sa Hannam University sa Daejeon, Timog Korea at ikalawang semestre ko iyon ng pagtuturo. Patapos na ang tinatawag na Fall Semester at naghahanda na ang mga estudyante kong Koreano (kasama ang ilang dayuhang estudyante sa Hilagang Amerika at Asya) para sa bakasyon nila sa Disyembre. Malamig na ang simoy ng hangin at may niyebe nang pumapatak-patak lalo na tuwing umaga.
Ito ang panahong pinag-iisipan ko at ng aking asawa kung mananatili ba kami sa Timog Korea. Puwede kasi akong mag-renew ng kontrata para sa ikalawang taon ng pagiging visiting professor. Ito ang kadalasang ginagawa ng maraming kapwa faculty sa Unibersidad ng Pilipinas (UP) na nabigyan ng oportunidad na mangibang-bansa. Hindi hamak na mas marami kasi silang maiipon kung magre-renew sila, bukod pa sa magandang karanasan ng pagtuturo o pananaliksik sa isang napakaunlad na bansa.
Maraming dahilan para manatili sa Timog Korea. Hindi lang naman kasi pagtuturo ang inatupag ko roon. Kasama ang iba pang Pilipinong propesor sa bansang iyon, binuo namin ang Philippine Resource Persons Group (PhilRPG) na naglalayong makipagtulungan sa embahada ng Pilipinas para magbigay ng ilang rekomendasyon batay sa aming spesyalisasyon.
Sa pamamagitan ng isang kababayang nagtatrabahong peryodista sa JoongAng Daily, nabigyan ang PhilRPG ng lingguhang kolum at salit-salitan kaming nagsulat ng mga artikulong tumatalakay sa relasyong Pilipinas at Timog Korea. At dahil nagtuturo ako ng peryodismo, sa akin ibinigay ang pangkabuuang koordinasyon sa proyektong ito.
Nagkaroon din ng silbi ang kaalaman ko sa peryodismo sa malaking “pakikibaka” ng mga estudyanteng Koreano sa wikang Ingles. Noong panahong iyon, kinuha rin akong adviser ng publikasyong Global Horizons ng Linton Global College (LGC) ng Hannam University. Bukod sa teknikal na paggabay sa produksyon ng isang publikasyon, nagsagawa rin ako ng ilang pagsasanay sa ilang aspeto ng peryodismo. Sa pangkalahatan, gusto kong isiping nakatulong naman kahit paano ang mga ginawa ko para sa mga peryodistang pangkampus ng LGC.
Pero sa kabila ng pagiging abala sa buhay na malayo sa bansang kinagisnan, babalik at babalik pa rin ang mga problema ng bayan nating sawi. Hunyo 2009 nang maitala ang unang pagkamatay dulot ng H1N1 virus. Setyembre 2009 nang humagupit ang trahedyang dulot ng bagyong Ketsana (Ondoy). Nobyembre 2009 naman nang gumalantang ang kalamidad na dulot ng pamilyang Ampatuan. Bagama’t malala na ang pagkamatay bunga ng isang virus o bagyo, walang maikukumpara sa ilang minutong pagratrat ng bala sa 58 katao.
Maraming dahilan para manatili sa dayuhang bansa. Pero mas maraming dahilan para bumalik na. May kaunting silbi man ako sa Timog Korea, gusto kong isiping mas may silbi ako sa Pilipinas.
Sa isang sitwasyong patuloy na pinapaslang ang mga peryodista at manggagawa sa midya at kinokompromiso ang kalayaan sa pamamahayag, ano pa ba ang puwedeng gawin ng mga ordinaryong taong katulad natin para mabago ang kasalukuang kalakaran? Malinaw na kailangan ang mahigpit na pakikipagkaisa sa iba’t ibang sektor ng lipunan. May limitasyon sa pakikipagkaisang ito kung magtatagal ako sa Timog Korea (kahit na sabihing isang taon lang) kaya mas mainam na bumalik na.
Makalipas ang 10 taon, ano na ang nangyari? Taon-taon mula noon ginugunita ang masaker na tinutukan ng buong mundo, kabilang na ang United Nations. Wala pa ring hustisya dahil hindi pa nahahatulan ang halos 200 suspek sa kaso. Umabot na ang case records sa halos 240 volumes, dahil na rin sa mahigit 250 testigo na ang nagbigay ng kanilang testimonya sa nangyari.
Hindi man ako abogado, malinaw na malakas ang kaso laban sa mga suspek, lalo na sa mga Ampatuan. May mga testigong nakakita mismo sa nangyari, bukod pa sa iba’t ibang pisikal na ebidensyang nakalap mula sa lugar ng krimen.
Bakit kaya napakatagal bago magbigay ng hatol ang mga kinauukulan? Tandaan nating anumang hatol ng Regional Trial Court ay aakyat pa sa Court of Appeals at Supreme Court. Kaya mahaba-habang pakikibaka pa ang dapat asahan ng mga mamamayang patuloy na naghihintay.
Hustisya ang panawagan ng mga pinagkaitan. Sampung taon na ang nakalipas at huwag na sanang abutin ng sampung taon pa (o higit pa) bago ito ay makamtan.
Para makipag-ugnayan sa awtor, pumunta sa https://risingsun.dannyarao.com
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FOCAP: Ampatuan convictions only acceptable outcome
“Convictions of the perpetrators and full recompense of the victims’ families will be a first step in reversing the long and tragic injustice,” the group said.
The post FOCAP: Ampatuan convictions only acceptable outcome appeared first on Kodao Productions.
Filipino progressives support Bolivia’s Evo Morales
Over 150 people went out in support of the growing international solidarity movement. They held signs bearing the names of organizations and countries of origin of those who have pledged their support to President Evo Morales and Bolivia from different parts of the world.
Filipino supporters also stood behind a huge banner with the Wiphala (indigenous flag of Bolivia) colors calling for the defense of katawhang lumad/ pueblo indegenas/indigenous peoples as they chanted: “¡El Pueblo Unido Jamás Será Vencido! The people united will never be defeated! Ang tao, ang bayan, ngayon ay lumalaban (the people are fighting right now!), Makibaka, huwag matakot (Don’t be afraid to struggle!)
On November 10, Bolivian President Evo Morales was forced to resign by a coup. Since then, progressive organizations worldwide have launched an international campaign to expose the violence against the indigenous people in Bolivia. Bayan emphasized the connections between the struggle of the national minority in the Philippnes and Bolivia.
Speakers from indigenous groups and Moro expressed their condemnation of the US-backed coup, highlighting their experience of minoritization, criminalization and oppression in a country, which they said remains to be a semi-colony of the United States.
Bayan maintained that President Evo Morales’ “partiality to the plight of the oppressed Bolivians yielded years of government-led struggle toward self-determination through advancements in production, stirring up of the domestic economy with the indigenous working poor at the forefront of this historic struggle for human dignity.”
Leaders from International League of Peoples’ Struggle (ILPS), Bayan and Kilusang Mayo Uno exposed what they called as “dastardly acts of terrorism committed by the military and the Bolivian elite backed by US imperialism.”
They argued that the role of the US in the wanton violation of human rights and international law cannot be denied. “Its lead role in regime change, economic sanctions, plunder in different parts of the world but especially so in South America, Caribbean, Africa, Asia and the Middle East should be exposed and opposed by freedom and peace loving citizens worldwide,” Bayan said.
An online open letter of support for Morales and the people of Bolivia titled, “Peoples and of the world with Evo” has been signed by over a hundred organizations and notable individuals worldwide. As of this writing, the statement appears in six languages— English, Spanish, Italian, Russian, Mandarin and Tagalog.
The post Filipino progressives support Bolivia’s Evo Morales appeared first on Bulatlat.
LTFRB-10 begins anti-illegal taxi operations
The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board-10 (LTFRB-10) has started on Thursday (Nov. 21) its three-day inspection of taxis to inventory the units that have been issued the franchise before launching a massive campaign to apprehend unregistered taxi units.
Court junks trumped up cases vs dev’t worker
A local court in Tagum City junked the remaining charges filed against Lumad educator and agriculturist Dominiciano Muya who was accused as a top-rank communist rebel.