by Mylah Reyes Roque
VERA Files
When they finally met, Myrna Reblando, Glenna Legarta and Mary Jean Merisco would refer to each other as 17, 20 and 19—the numbers assigned by the police to the bodies of their husbands found near each other at the scene of the crime. A fourth widow, Norma Parcon, said her husband’s body was among those buried and recovered by a backhoe.
None of the widows was allowed to walk up to the hill where 57 people, including 30 reporters and media workers were gunned down and mutilated on Nov. 23. It was only days later, after police pictures were leaked to the internet, that the women saw their husbands’ bodies.
Parcon did not see her husband in the photos but she would identify him later through copies of the raw police video reproduced by DVD traders. “Pag-angat ng backhoe, nalaglag yung green ID holder nya–alam ko siya yun (When the backhoe lifted a body, a green ID holder fell—and I knew it was him),” she said.
Click here (VERA Files) for the rest of the story.
Heart wrenching.
This is more than mass murder. It is the extermination of a group of people.
Ellen,
I understand the lawyer for the accused is a top honcho in the Phil (can’t remember his name) who said, after he was asked why he was defending the accused, “It’s a job.”
While I understand that it is the right of any accused, whoever that accused is, and no matter the gravity of the crime, to be represented by a lawyer or a good defence (which the victims were summarily deprived of), I also believe that a defence lawyer is not obligated to accept the job automatically particularly when the crime is heinous.
I wonder if the financial arrangements played a great part in the decision of said top honcho lawyer to accept the job.
The Ampatuans are “fortunate” that this crime doesn’t fall under the international crime of genocide inasmuch as most members of the group who were systematically murdered also belonged to the Muslim faith/ethnicity.
Othewise, they would have to stand trial in The Hague — and in The Hague, there will be no hocus pocus.
Pity, Pinas did away with capital punishment.
Ay, naging bold lahat…
The Ampatuans’ name should be officially added to this Mass Murderers’ list:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mass_murderers_and_spree_killers_by_number_of_victims
Never never forget the fact that the Ampatuans who committted the massacre are Gloria Arroyo’s supporters and best friends, personalities intertwined by Hello Garci, her original sin.
I can’t even imagine the pain felt by the widows when they first saw the pieces of their husbands bodies.
Anna,
The lawyer’s name is Sigfrid Fortun. He was part of Erap’s battery of defense lawyers during the impeachment trial, together with his brother, Raymund Fortun.
Sigfrid Fortun is set to get paid by the Ampatuans a whoppingly immense, er, fortune!
Thanks, Ka Enchong.
Tongue, how much kaya ang hourly stipend ni Fortun? Baka naman lump sum payment (I bet in millions).
Hunger at record high: SWS
HUNGER incidence in the country rose to a new record high of 24 percent (estimated 4.4 million families) in the fourth quarter of 2009 from 18.8 percent in October, the December 5-10, 2009 survey of the Social Weather Stations showed.
http://www.malaya.com.ph/01132010/news5.html
Wow! Ang galeng!
Marami na pala ang malapit nang mamahinga nang lubusan. Dahil ‘yan sa gutom bunga ng napakagandang ekonomiya sa ilalim ng pamumuno ni gloria.
Hanggang dito muna ang galit ko.
Baka umulit ang nangyari kamakalawa na umabot ng 200/120 ang BP ko kaya’t naisugod sa ospital.
Siguro’y nakatakda na makita ko pa rin ang pagkawala ni gloria sa malakanyang.
I’ll moderate my anger.
Relaks muna ako. Aaaaaaaaaaahhhhh! Uuuuuuuummmmmhhhhhh! (Inhale-exhale ‘yan.)
Btw, manuel buencamino’s latest blog post has a picture of Ampatuan and another of Villar separately posing with the deuxieme putain de la république.
http://www.uniffors.com/?p=3528
Ampatuan and Villar have a very strong resemblance to each other!!! They might be relatives! If Villar wasn’t smiling in his picture, I’m sure no one will be able to tell who is who. 🙂
Ampatuan marunong mag-Tagalog
(Pilipino Star Ngayon) Updated January 13, 2010 12:00 AM
“Isa lang ang hinihiling ko, fair trial lang. Alam ko 100 percent mananalo ako kung bibigyan lang ako ng fair trial. Ito ang hinihiling ko sa gobyerno at sa humahawak ng kaso ko,” ani Ampatuan Jr.
http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=540267&publicationSubCategoryId=92
Di ba ang mga abogado ay sumumpang ipagtatanggol ang tama? Ang katotohanan?
Sisigfried Fortun, nakakalason kang gawing pulutan!
I didn’t notice it earlier. It was Atty. Harry’s wife who wrote this.
Magaling palang magpaiyak ng readers si Mrs. Harry.
“…defence lawyer is not obligated to accept the job automatically particularly when the crime is heinous.” – AdeBrux
Remember the terrorist attacks in India in 2008? There’s one terrorist who survived from the military assault. Not one single lawyer wanted to handle his case.
ang nabasako, at nakita ko sa TV Patrol..ang sabi ni Z Ampatuan they don’t have VIP treatment sa NBI, sana fair trial daw ang ibibigay sa kanila and he is not guilty..walastik! at noong isang linggo wala daw siya sa scene of the crime..nasa Malacanang kasama ng presidente…hindi nga lang seguro nakita si Gloria kasi putot…unbelievable…
With these statements..hindi ako magtataka kung not guilty nga..kasi bakit nga ba rebellion ang charges…how can they be charge of this nga naman..ka utotang dila niya si putot at ang sabi nga ni Lorelie..hindi sila papayaan ni putot..
The job of a lawyer is non-partisan, not emotional at all and if he is really true to his calling specially one assigned by the court for a defense of the poor. He is there to see to it that the formats and procedures of the court and the respondents rights are properly followed. The money may come in first or last or none at all. It wont matter if he gets millions, thats his fate. Crime is not the monopoly of the poor.
Making part of Pinas court procedures the short-cuts and hocus-pocus techniques that make it easier to convict a rich person like Ampatuan Jr and you have introduced shortcuts and hocus-pocus techniques to make it easier to convict a middle-class or a very-poor Pinoy-in-Pinas like ___blank___.
Of course, it won’t be you that gets accused, but maybe the one hauled to court on a frame-up made-up bogus case is the friend of the nephew of your favorite relative, neighbor, restaurant waiter or jeepney driver.
MAGUINDANAO MASSACRE
Andal Ampatuan Jr. fired first, says witness
‘They’re here’
At one point, Ampatuan radioed someone saying in Filipino: “Father, they’re here.”
The man that answered, who Sangki identified as Ampatuan Sr., said: “You know what to do.”
The response prompted Sangki to tell Ampatuan that they could perhaps still resolve the matter.
To which Ampatuan replied: “Huwag kang magsalita d’yan, pagod ako! (Shut up! I’m tired!)”
The entire group then proceeded to Sitio Masalay where Sangki and Ampatuan got off.
“I went behind the Hilux and saw two women being pulled out of the Revo and ordered to join the others,” Sangki said.
He said he heard Pal’ak tell Ampatuan: “Datu, I’m Jimmy!”
But Ampatuan’s men continued to hit Pal’ak, he said.
Pal’ak and the two women were then made to stand together and shot, Sangki said adding that Ampatuan and Datu Kanor “were the ones who fired.”
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20100114-247224/Andal-Ampatuan-Jr-fired-first-says-witness
Hindi tao ang mga ito.
Mga demonyong umakyat sa lupa!
Si putot walang takot sa Dios..o baka naman she does not understand English..kaya she does not understand God’s ten commandments..
Ang mga Ampatuans who are her friends hindi takot kay Allah! hindi din raw marunong mag English (pero narinig ko nagsabi…Not Guilty!) kaya hindi rin niya naintindihan ang utos ni Allah!
In the many courts elsewhere, the terrorists were even very proud of their work for Allah. Here, its so different. Its the other way around.
#14. Yes, Tongue, Mylah is Atty. Roque’s wife.