Justice delayed is justice denied. Yesterday, relatives of the 57 people massacred in Maguindanao were frustrated yet again in their quest for justice after the much awaited trial of six senior members of the Ampatuan clan was again put off, upon the request of defense lawyers, by Judge Jocelyn Solis-Reyes of the Quezon City Regional Trial Court’s branch 221.
It’s been a long nine months since the massacre, with the trial of the Ampatuans barely taking off. An estimated 300 men are believed to have participated in the gruesome killing of 57 people, over half of them media workers. Of 197 identified suspects, only 111 have been arrested. Every day that the others remain free puts at risk the lives of witnesses and those close to them. At least four witnesses and two relatives of witnesses have been murdered so far; others have received threats.
Of 28 members of the Ampatuan clan indicted for the crime, only six have been arrested. The family remains politically influential in its turf: eight of 34 mayors elected last May in Maguindanao belong to the clan. From behind bars, the senior Ampatuans, including patriarch Andal Ampatuan Sr., reportedly continue to give orders to their henchmen.
With the government unable to completely dismantle the armed group that has worked for the Ampatuans for a decade, the state should provide sufficient protection at least to key prosecution witnesses. Efforts should also be undertaken to identify and penalize parties involved in reported attempts to buy the silence of prosecution witnesses.
The Maguindanao massacre was the worst case of political violence in this country and the most atrocious attack on journalists anywhere in the world. The direct participation of certain key personalities in the massacre, and even the indirect involvement of others who reportedly gave the green light for the attack, should be easy to establish. Delaying the judicial process rubs salt on raw wounds and puts more lives at risk
