The Maguindanao Massacre - Three Years Hence

Note:  This blog was supposed to be posted in early November 2012 but has been postponed due to some health emergency in my family.

On November 23, we will revisit one of the darkest parts of our nation's history - the Maguindanao Massacre.  On that date three years previous, 57 civilians (some accounts say 58) women and men were herded to the backhoed mass grave prepared ahead by the Ampatuans and their cohorts. Of those dead were 27 journalists (some reports say more), a staggering  statistical fact which earned another "worst" title for the Philippines. This time around as the worst place to work in by members of the Fourth State.


The Evil Of 3Gs

No time is more opportune than now to remember the atrocity because next  year is going to be election  period once again, and the massacre in Maguindanao was without a doubt politically motivated. As every election nears, the 3Gs - the goons, the guns, and the gold - surface. In the Philippines, 3G does not necessary correspond to current mobile technology.  These  three Gs are the endemic elements of our politics because our politicians couldn't just let go of their position for the power and prestige it summons. The Time Magazine article in 2009 hit the nail on its head when it observed that the carnage in Maguindanao occurred because of "the fierce competition for regional power among the country's small élite of a few hundred families and clans that control an inordinate amount of the national wealth — and the desperate lengths some will go to protect their hold on power." 

One of the many private armies operating in Abra. Photo courtesy of EV Espiritu/Philippine Daily Inquirer

Mirror, Mirror
The issue of political dynasties and warlordism, wherein politicians (especially those at local levels) have their own armed group to protect and project their power, has been plaguing us for decades. These politicians and their goons violate not only election guidelines but also human  rights by "salvaging" rivals. Again FYI, in the Philippines "salvage" has taken a contrary meaning. It means to put away a person for good and not necessarily by humane means. And, unfortunately, these things do not only happen in Maguindanao. 

I've seen atrocities committed by these persons in person as Pampanga also promotes this kind of politics, where a few clans are taking control of the province's helm and, parenthetically, where jueteng money is a very high inducement to many of among our bureaucratic (as well as police and military) top echelons.  

The Commission on Elections has an armful of guidelines and resolutions against private armies, against non-disclosure of campaign spending, placement of political ads, etcetera but miserably fails in implementing them. Recently, COMELEC has admitted that it is "powerless" to stop political dynasties, and coming from the government entity that cannot even implement the simple guideline on proper posting of campaign paraphernalia, such an admission is not surprising. The COMELEC, in my opinion, acts only as a ballot reader and nothing more.

Who's To Blame?

But, of course, the blame does not entirely rest on COMELEC but on our entire political system.   Some blame can also be put on our socio-cultural upbringing as well . Remember our padrino system? If this is the case, then we are all to blame. Not just the "little woman", nowadays known as "the woman in wheelchair",  who allegedly nurtured the Ampatuans out of utang na loob, for ensuring that she and her allies "win" the 2004 election in the Ampatuans bailiwick. Utang na loob is yet another factor in proliferating this kind of politics. 

These value systems, I think, play a grand role in our day-to-day existence - from the simple Juan in the street to the highest leader of the  land. These are the factors why our past and present presidents appoint people in high positions often based only on one qualification - of personally knowing the appointee. I remember Pres. PNoy justifying his choice of person whom he put in a highly sensitive position. He simply said "Kilala ko ang taong ito." I know this person. His statement should have been "I know this person will do good to the country." 

I'm not a social scientist thus I cannot say that the above is the definitive perspective on what ails our political scene. Why the likes of Ampatuans who considered themselves untouchables are put into power and why there are others like them who continue to rule with impunity in our political landscape. 

What now?  
Three years hence, the hope in finding justice for the massacre victims and those they have left behind is still dim. Although the Ampatuans were behind bars, including its patriarch Andal Ampatuan Sr and the alleged mastermind of the massacre Andal Ampatuan Jr, they still wield power. Several witnesses willing to testify against the clan and their cohorts were killed under mysterious circumstances. One was Esmail Amil Enog  who went missing for two months then found murdered and mutilated. Given these circumstances, who would be willing to tell the truth and point at the Ampatuans as the mass murderers?

Andal Ampatuan Jr holding his detainee number (Photo by Bullit Marquez/AP)

Further, Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) has unearthed troubling information about the Ampatuans' recent activity relating to their vast assets, including 161 pieces of real property. According to the PCIJ report, the Ampatuans sold several of those properties before the Anti-Money Laundering Council was able to secure a freeze order against said properties. Guess who's the buyer? It's one of the Ampatuan lawyers named Arnel Cortez Manaloto, a greenhorn in the law profession. Any one can tell that there's collusion going on between the Ampatuans and their lawyer. I remember a joke about lawyers: What's the difference between a lawyer and a bucket of dirt? The bucket. It seems though Manaloto is dirtier than the rest of the ilk. 

There are also reports that the suspects jailed particularly the Ampatuans are getting special treatment from Camp Bagong Diwa jail officials. Who says the scale of justice cannot be tipped to one side?  

Another drawback is the reversal of the Supreme Court of its previous decision to allow live coverage of the trial. The SC reversed its June 2011 ruling, granting Andal Ampatuan Jr motion for reconsideration. Andal Jr appealed to the high court that broadcasting live the trial "deprives him of his rights to due process, equal protection, presumption of innocence, and to be shielded from degrading psychological punishment." 

The Ampatuans should be meted out with all forms of punishment - psychological or otherwise. I am always for the live coverage of the trial. In fact I have put up a page in Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/pages/A-Call-for-Live-Coverage-of-Maguindanao-Massacre-Trial/131107496947872?ref=hl)  to endorse this plea. I think that people should not forget the infamy of the Ampatuans, and broadcasting it live through radio, TV and the Internet is one way of never forgetting and never depriving us of our right to know. The Palace was correct when it labelled the SC decision as restrictive.   

And the trial will still drag on as expected considering the number of suspects (more than 200), victims and witnesses involved. 

Who'll Stop The Rain?
And I wonder/Still wonder/Who'll stop the rain? asks a CCR song of some unending malaise.We could also lament the same of our socio-political system.

Come 2013, at least 70 members of the Ampatuan clan are running for public offices in Mindanao. Sen. Franklin Drilon recently announced that the certification of nomination and acceptance (CONA) of the Ampatuans be revoked by the Liberal Party for the upcoming elections. Reportedly, nine Ampatuans intend to run under the President Aquino's  LP while the others chose other major political parties such as former president Erap Estrada's Puwersa ng Masang Pilipino. 

Who'll stop the rain of carnage upon us? Who's gonna stop the trapos and warlords of reigning over us? I wonder.