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The Ampatuan Files

April 23, 2015April 23, 2015 Julius Mariveles Leave a comment

PHILIPPINE regional trial court Judge Jocelyn Solis-Reyes has finally denied the petition for bail of Andal Ampatuan Sr., the principal suspect in the 2009 Ampatuan massacre that led to the death of 58 people, 32 of them journalists and media workers.

‘AS AN important note, however, the ruling of the court is not in judgment of guilt or innocence of the accused which requires proof beyond reasonable doubt which is addressed during a full-blown trial,’ Judge Solis-Reyes adds in her ruling denying the bail petition of Andal Ampatuan Sr. | Photo from interaksyon.com

Reyes, who is hearing the murder charges against the accused, denied Ampatuan’s bail plea more than five years after charges were filed against the suspects in what is now considered as the single deadliest attack against members of the media.

“Wherefore in view of foregoing and finding that evidence of guilt of accused is strong the bail petitions filed by Datu Andal Ampatuan Sr. are hereby denied,” Reyes said in her ruling according to a report of gmanetwork.com.

How influential are the Ampatuans in Maguindanao province? How well-connected are they? In 2013, the PCIJ released its documentary “Angkan,” which explored clan politics in the southern Philippine province.

Angkan Inc., is a documentary produced by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism in an effort to understand the past, present, and future links that define the clans that have ruled Maguindanao province for centuries. Maguindanao is one of several province whose ruling clans have a long historical and cultural heritage. As such, the clans are seen as very much a part of Maguindanao culture. However, the clans have, over the decades, also intruded into the local and national political scene with the help of patrons in Manila who see their use in the gathering of votes.

And how wealthy is Andal Ampatuan Sr? What are his businesses? Interestingly, the PCIJ found out in 2011 that while Andal Sr declared in his statements of assets, liabilities, and net worth that he is a simple farmer, he and his son, Zaldy, own more than 65 properties scattered throughout Maguindanao, Cotabato City, Davao City, and even in ritzy Dasmariñas Village in Makati, home to many foreign embassies and a refuge of the country’s rich and famous.

“These real properties range from a two-hectare farm lot in Cotabato City, to magnificent structures in Davao City and Shariff Aguak that tower over the simple abodes of one of the country’s poorest provinces. One residential property in Davao City alone covers at least 4,000 square meters, and has a mansion that dwarfs other high-end homes with its opulence.” – An Anarchy of Mansions

Click on the photo to read the full story.

The tall gates conceal the mansion in Juna Subdivision, Davao City, that is owned by Andal Ampatuan Sr. | PCIJ File Photo

Tomorrow: The money of the Ampatuans in the banks and how they tried to secure amnesty for their guns.

Rekindling hope

August 24, 2014August 24, 2014 Ed Lingao Leave a comment

IT WAS a gathering repeated over and over again for the past 57 months. This time, on the grounds of the National Council of Churches of the Philippines office in Quezon City, Philippines, journalists, families and friends of the victims of the Ampatuan Massacre gathered to light candles and rekindle hope as the case dragged on to its 57th month yesterday, November 23, 2014.

The Ampatuan Massacre is considered the worst single attack on journalists worldwide. Thirty-two of those killed in the sub-village of Masalay in Ampatuan town, Maguindanao province in southern Philippines were journalists and media workers. They were part of a group that was supposed to deliver the certificate of candidacy of now Maguindanao Gov. Esmael Mangudadatu.

Then Maguindanao Gov. Datu Andal Ampatuan Sr., a close ally of then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is suspected to have ordered the killing. His son, Andal Jr., is alleged to have directed the killings on the ground.

The Ampatuan Massacre case is now being heard by a regional trial court in Quezon City, still stuck after several years on the motions for bail filed by several of the principal accused. Public and private prosecutors are at odds over the handling of the case (“Don’t rest case yet, media groups warn Maguindanao prosecutors”), with some private prosecutors saying that the premature resting of the evidence-in-chief would derail the search for justice for the victims and their families.

There were also allegations that some public prosecutors, including a justice undersecretary, have been bribed while families of the victims exposed attempts to pay them off in exchange for withdrawing from the complaint (“We Want Justice, Not Money”).

Meanwhile, lawyers of several of the principal accused, including Andal Sr. and Andal Jr., withdrew from the case (“I was conflicted, Fortun explains why he quit as Ampatuan counsel”).

For more information and background about the massacre, you can go to the Ampatuan Trial Watch microblog site of the Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility.

This video short produced by PCIJ’s Julius D. Mariveles tells you in brief about the commemoration activity on the 57th month of the Ampatuan Massacre.

Poems for the fallen

August 23, 2014August 23, 2014 Ed Lingao Leave a comment

TODAY, 57 months after the Ampatuan Massacre, justice has yet to be had for 58 people who were murdered on a hilltop in the village of Masalay in Ampatuan town, Maguindanao province.

Exactly 57 months ago today, armed men believed to be under orders from some members of the Ampatuan family, brutally killed the victims who were on their way to deliver the certificate of candidacy of Esmael “Toto” Mangudadatu who challenged the Ampatuans for the governorship of Maguindanao province.

Thirty-two of the victims were journalists and media workers.

The multiple murder cases against more than 100 accused – including some members of the Ampatuan clan that were identified as the alleged masterminds – have dragged on for years. Lately, private prosecutors made public their disagreement with the decision of public prosecutors to rest the case against 28 of the co-accused. Some families of the victims have also confirmed attempts by the Ampatuan family to pay them millions of pesos in exchange for withdrawing from the case.

The Committee to Protect Journalists has called the Ampatuan Massacre as the single deadliest attack against journalists. The International Freedom of Expression Exchange (IFEX) has declared November 23 as the International Day to End Impunity – a day that IFEX has dedicated not only to the victims of the massacre but all those who have been targeted for “exercising their right to freedom of expression, and to shed light on the issue of impunity.”

PCIJ’s Julius D. Mariveles and Cong B. Corrales read their poems in this slideshow of photos taken by Mariveles in 2010 at the massacre site during the first year commemoration.

Mariveles’ poem written in Hiligaynon is titled “Lima Ka Napulo kag Walo,” 58 in the local language, and talks about the slow grind of the wheels of justice. Corrales’ “Ang Pinakamadilim na Tanghali” or “The Darkest Noon describes the Ampatuan Massacre.

Today, the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines is leading the commemoration rites at the NCCP Grounds, Quezon Avenue, EDSA. Those who want to attend are requested to wear black.