Kin of `Maguindanao massacre' victims see case closure within PNoy's term

BULUAN, Maguindanao -Members of Central Mindanao’s media community are certain of the conviction of the culprits in the infamous Nov. 23, 2009 Maguindanao massacre before President Benigno Aquino III steps down in June 2016.In a statement Sunday, members of the Kampilan Press Corps, whose members cover the activities of the 6thInfantry Division in Maguindanao province, said they are convinced the judiciary would soon hand down a verdict on the case, which involves members of the once dreaded Ampatuan clan in the province.Maguindanao Gov. Esmael Mangudadatu, who lost his wife in the incident, said he is also as optimistic of the dispensation of justice before Aquino’s term ends in June 30 next year.The event, graced by Gov. Mujiv Hataman of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao as keynote speaker, was held at a public gymnasium in Buluan town, the new provincial capital.Among the 58 people killed in the Nov. 23, 2009 Maguindanao massacre was the spouse of Mangudadatu, Genalyn, and 32 journalists.The victims were on their way to the old provincial capitol in Shariff Aguak town to file on Mangudadatu’s behalf his certificate of candidacy (COC) for governor of Maguindanao.Mangudadatu, then vice mayor of Buluan, was to contest the bid for the same post of Andal Ampatuan, Jr., mayor of Datu Unsay town in the second district of the province at that time.Ampatuan, Jr. is now detained, being prosecuted in connection with the massacre.Accompanied by heavily armed relatives and policemen, Ampatuan, Jr. flagged down the convoy carrying Mrs. Mangudadatu and her companions to prevent them from getting through the provincial office of the Commission on Elections in Shariff Aguak to submit there Mangudadatu’s COC.The vehicles carrying the victims were herded at gunpoint to a nearby hill, where they were killed one after another using assault rifles and K3 caliber 5.56 light machineguns.One of the alleged massacre masterminds, former Maguindanao Gov. Andal Ampatuan, Sr., died of liver cancer early this year while in detention.Ampatuan, Sr., patriarch of the Ampatuan clan, was known for his absolute intolerance for political opposition when he was at the helm of the Maguindanao provincial government.One of his sons implicated in the atrocity, Sajid, managed to post bail and has even filed his COC for mayor of their hometown, Shariff Aguak. We are seeking justice the legal way, through the judiciary. We have never resorted to retaliation because we want proper dispensation of justice for the victims of the massacre,” Mangudadatu said.Mangudadatu and members of his family and representatives of different media outfits from across Mindanao are to commemorate the 6thanniversary of the carnage right in the scene of the massacre in Barangay Salman in Ampatuan town southwest of Maguindanao.