Manila Today
Various student-journalists and members of the media commemorated the 14th anniversary of the Maguindanao massacre on Thursday, Nov. 23, at the University of the Philippines (UP) College of Mass Communications (CMC).
On Nov. 23, 2009 in the town of Ampatuan in Maguindanao del Sur, the 58 victims were on their way to the filling of certificate of candidacy of then-Buluan Mayor Esmael Mangudadatu were ambushed, kidnapped, and later killed.
The victims’ bodies were buried in three shallow graves on a hilltop.
The wife and sister of political candidate esmael “Toto” Mangudadatu was among the victims.
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) called the Maguindanao massacre the single deadliest event for journalists in history, where at 34 journalists were killed.
Some 200 suspects were later detained, with many dubbing it as the “trial of the decade.”
On Dec. 19, 2019, Ampatuan brothers, Datu Andal Jr. and Zaldy Ampatuan, were convicted of 57 counts of murder and sentenced to 40 years; and additional 15 were sentenced tp 6-10 years for being accessories to the crime.
Meanwhile, 55 others, including Datu Sajid Islam Ampatuan, brother of Andal Jr. and Zaldy, were acquitted.
‘Protect journalists’
Fourteen years after the Maguindanao massacre, the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines pointed out that the country “remains a dangerous place to be a journalist.”
“Although the 2009 massacre has faded from the headlines, the media community has not forgotten and we join them in calling for an end to impunity for crimes against journalists,”NUJP said in a statement.
“Justice in this case and in other attacks on journalists since then will help send the message that attacks on the press are unacceptable in a democracy and will help create a safer media landscape in the Philippines,” NUJP stressed.
In a separate statement, UP CMC likewise renewed calls to protect journalists all over the world who have been subject of attacks and harassment.
“Sa panahon man ng kapayapaan o digmaan, dito man sa atin o ibang bayan, patuloy ang pagsisikap at pakikibaka ng ating mga kasamahan upang ilahad ang mga pangyayaring kailangan nating malaman,” UP CMC statement read.
“Kaya naman hindi tayo mapapagod na manawagan sa mga kinauukulan na lalo pang pangalagaan at itanghal ang kapakanan at mga karapatan nating mga alagad ng komunikasyon at midya para sa walang maliw na pakikipaglaban at pagtaguyod sa kapakanan ng sambayanan,” it further read.
In May, the Philippines improved its global rankings in terms of safety of journalists, jumping to 132 spot from last year’s 147.
Meanwhile, according to the latest data from the Presidential Task Force on Media Security (PTFoMS), the country has recorded 204 cases of media killings from 1987 to 2023.
PTFoMS is an inter-agency body tasked to protect members of the press and created during the term of former President Rodrigo Duterte.
