Tears shed during Maguindanao massacre trial

Wednesday’s hearing on the November 23 massacre of more than 50 people in Maguindanao province had answered a lot of questions from many, but it was too much for the families of the massacre victims. As witness Rasul Sangki recounted the events that led to the massacre, the wives of some of the victims could not help themselves from breaking down. “Noon tinatanong ko sa sarili ko, 'Ano kaya ang ginagawa nila bago sila barilin,' At nung dinescribe niya [Sangki], umiyak ako sa parteng iyon. Maraming umiyak sa amin na mga asawa nung narinig nila iyon," said Naomi Parcon, whose husband, Joel of Prontiera News, was among the 57 that were killed in what is now known as the worst case of political violence in Philippine history. (Before, I was curious to know what were the victims doing before they were shot. When Sangki recounted it, I cried. A lot of the other wives cried too.) Sangki, vice mayor of Ampatuan town where the massacre took place, was the prosecution’s star witness against Andal Ampatuan Jr., the scion of the powerful Ampatuan clan who is the primary suspect in the massacre. Naomi said she believed every word Sangki said during the hearing that was held at the Philippine National Police (PNP) headquarters in Quezon City.

In his testimony, Sangki said he heard the Ampatuan clan’s patriarch, Andal Sr., a former governor of Maguindanao, give the orders to Andal Jr. “Anak, alam mo na ang gagawin mo (You know what to do)," he quoted the elder Ampatuan as saying to his son through a two-way radio. After this, Andal Jr., the mayor of Datu Unsay town also in Maguindanao, led his men in firing shots at the ill-fated electoral convoy carrying the victims, which included members of the rival Mangudadatu clan and several journalists. The convoy was on its way to the provincial capitol of Shariff Aguak to file the documents for Buluan vice mayor Ismael “Toto" Mangudadatu’s gubernatorial bid. Toto was then in Manila. Andal Jr. had earlier pleaded guilty to the 41 counts of murder charges filed against him before the Quyezon City Regional Trial Court. Fifteen more murder charges are lodged before a Cotabato City court. In his testimony, Sangki also recounted how members of the convoy were ordered to either fall on their knees or lie face-down on the ground with guns pointed at them. He said some of the victims pleaded for the lives. - KBK, GMANews.TV