MANILA: The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its affiliate, the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP), in expressing disappointment over the suspension of the first day of hearings of the Ampatuan massacre trial.
The long-awaited start of the trial on September 1 was postponed after just one hour by Judge Jocelyn Solis Reyes, after defence lawyer Sigfrid Fortun argued more time was needed to comment on pre-trial documents.
Fortun is representing former Ampatuan town mayor Andal Ampatuan Jnr and 16 police officers, who allegedly served as members of the Ampatuan clan’s private army in Maguindanao, in the southern Philippines.
They face murder charges for the November 23 massacre of 57 people, including 32 journalists and media workers, travelling in a convoy with a political candidate running against Ampatuan Jnr for Governor of Maguindanao province.
NUJP representatives attending the trial joined the victims’ families and prosecutors in expressing outrage over the decision to postpone the trial’s start date to September 8.
Catherine Nunez, the mother of slain UNTV reporter Victor Nunez, wept while being interviewed by the media after the postponement of proceedings, complaining that the Philippines legal system favoured the rich and powerful.
Many of the victims’ families had travelled especially from Mindanao in the Philippines’ south to a maximum security compound at military Camp Bagong Diwa, at Taguig City, in metro Manila, in the country’s north, where the trial had been moved due to security concerns.
“The administration of Benigno Aquino must ensure these trials are conducted promptly and taken as an opportunity to bring about a positive change in the way such killings are handled by the Philippines’ authorities and judiciary,” IFJ Asia-Pacific director Jacqueline Park said.
“Failure to do so will only embolden killers, and reinforce a culture of impunity in which the perpetrators of such crimes are rarely held accountable.”
Philippines Justice Secretary Leila De Lima is reported to have expressed concern over the postponement of the trial, suggesting the defence was causing unnecessary delays for tactical reasons.
She is reportedly exploring the possibility of a Supreme Court intervention to speed up a long and complicated series of trials, with a total of 196 suspects and more than 50 witnesses expected to be called before the courts. - International Federation of Journalists/Pacific Media Watch
Pacific Media Watch
