Yesterday marks the eleventh anniversary of the gruesome Maguindanao Massacre that took place on November 23, 2009, at Sitio Masalay in Ampatuan, Maguindanao.
58 people who would have been included in Esmael Mangudadatu's candidacy for the governorship of Maguindanao in the upcoming 2010 national elections were killed. Among those killed were Esmael Mangudadatu's wife and two siblings, lawyers, 32 journalists, aides, and motorists suspected to be part of the Mangudadatu convoy. It has been dubbed the 'single worst case of journalist killings in the world' which marks our country as one of the most dangerous countries for journalists.
Almost a decade since the horrific massacre, did the victims achieve justice?
Broad Information:
November 23, 2009. Fifty-eight (58) people were brutally killed in Sitio Msasalay, Barangay Salman, Ampatuan in Maguindanao province. Among those killed were nine members of the Mangudadatu family and more than 30 journalists.
The group of killers was part of a convoy heading to the COMELEC office in Shariff Aguak to file a certificate of candidacy by then-Buluan Vice Mayor Esmael “Toto” Mangudadatu for the governorship of Maguindanao in the upcoming national elections in May 2010. The Mangudadatu family has a long dispute with the ruling Ampatuan family in Maguindanao. Esmael Mangudadatu will run to replace the position currently held by Gov. Andal Ampatuan Sr. and to oppose the son of Ampatuan and Unsay Mayor Andal “Unsay” Ampatuan Jr.
At around 10 a.m., the Mangudadatu convoy reached the part of the highway in Brgy. Salman. Here they were stopped by members of the Maguindanao police and Civilian Volunteer Organizations (CVO) loyal to the Ampatuans. From the checkpoint, the convoy was taken to a hill 2.5 kilometers from the national highway. Toto Mangudadatu's wife even called to block their convoy. At around 11 a.m., the 64th Infantry Battalion (IB) of the Philippine Army received a report that armed groups had abducted a convoy of civilians. It was here that a rescue operation was launched. On a chopper, Buluan Mayor Jong Mangudadatu, who was also looking for his relatives, saw some vehicles on the hill. It was here that the 64th Infantry Batallion exposed the bodies of 15 women and 6 men. The bodies of the bodies were found by bullets. Five vehicles were found at the crime scene. President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo immediately ordered the pursuit of the people behind the horrific massacre. The President also placed the whole of Central Mindanao in a state of emergency the next day. Several more remains and vehicles were discovered in the following days by the combined forces of the PNP, AFP, and SOCO.
Ampatuan Jr., who is accused of being behind the crime, immediately appeared before Presidential Adviser for Mindanao Affairs Jesus Dureza on November 26. He was immediately detained at the National Bureau of Investigation and charged with 7 counts of multiple murders. The Department of Justice also filed 25 counts of murder against Ampatuan Jr. on December 5, 2009. The whole of Maguindanao is subject to Martial Law. Several more suspects were arrested including Ampatuan Sr and Zaldy Ampatuan.
December 8, 2009. The jurisdiction of the Maguindanao Massacre case was transferred to Quezon City. In a ballot held, Judge Luisito Cortez was chosen to handle the case but he refused out of fear of the threat to his life and family. The case was rescheduled and it went to Judge Jocelyn Solis-Reyes of Branch 221 of the Quezon City RTC. Several more cases were filed against the Ampatuans, and several accomplices were also arrested including the police involved in the crime. June 14, 2010. Unidentified assailants shot witness Suwaib “Jessie” Upham in Parang, Maguindanao. Another witness, Esmael Enog, was also killed in March 2012. The current presidential legal counsel Salvador Panelo also served as the Ampatuans' lawyer in September 2014 but resigned in 2015. Several other witnesses were killed in the last year.
July 17, 2015. Ampatuan elder Andal Ampatuan Sr. passed away at the National Kidney and Transplant Institute. Several more policemen were fired and several more requests by the Ampatuan family were not granted by the court. One of the main suspects, Datu Sajid Islam Ampatuan, even won as Mayor of Shariff Saydona Mustapha, Maguindanao in the May 2019 election.
After nearly ten years, the trial ended on July 17, 2019. December 19, 2019. Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 221 has issued a verdict - 28 people have been convicted 'guilty' in the murder case of 58 people, including Datu Andal Jr, Anwar Sr. and Zaldy Ampatuan in connection with the Maguindanao Massacre. They were sentenced to reclusion Perpetua or a maximum of 40 years in prison, and no parole. 56 people, including Datu Sajid Islam Ampatuan, were acquitted.
Source and Reference
[1] Buan, Lian (December 19, 2019), Ampatuan brothers convicted in 10-year massacre case
(Retrieved from https://www.rappler.com/nation/ampatuan-brothers-guilty-ampatuan-maguindanao-massacre-case)
[2] Teves, Maria Althea (December 14, 2009), Timeline - Maguindanao Massacre (until the declaration of martial law)
(Retrieved from https://news.abs-cbn.com/research/12/14/09/timeline-maguindanao-massacre-until-declaration-martial-law)
[3] Tomacruz, Sofia (November 23, 2017), TIMELINE: The long road to justice for Maguindanao massacre victims
(Retrieved from https://www.rappler.com/newsbreak/iq/timeline-maguindanao-massacre-case-trial-updates)