Lawyer questions SC rules on live coverage of Maguindanao massacre trial

A lawyer of the slain journalists in the Maguindanao massacre on Wednesday questioned the Supreme Court guidelines on the live coverage of the trial. Private prosecutor Harry Roque, who represents families of 14 of the 32 journalists killed in the November 2009 massacre, said the guidelines would discourage the media from covering the trial proceedings. In a report aired over GMA News TV's News To Go, Roque said, "Yung guidelines, na nagsasabing kinakailangan walang tigil yung coverage kapag nagsimula, ay lumalabag sa karapatan ng malayang pamamahayag." Roque issued the statement after the SC on Tuesday granted the petitions seeking live media coverage of the Maguindanao massacre case trial. Under the guidelines, no partial coverage shall be allowed. It specifically said the broadcast of proceedings must be continuous, with no commercial break or other gaps until proceedings are adjourned. Also, the guidelines said no repeat airing of the audio-visual recording shall be allowed until after the finality of judgment, except brief footage and still images derived from cartographic sketches of scenes based on recordings only, or for news purposes. Guidelines being studied One of the signatories of the live-coverage petition Howie Severino, who is also editor-in-chief of GMA News Online, said, "We are still studying the mechanics of the guidelines." Media group National Union of Journalist of the Philippines, and television networks GMA and ABS-CBN had challenged two earlier rulings of the SC that denied the request to air the court proceedings on the massacre case, saying the denial violates the right to information and freedom of the press. Among the petitioners for the live coverage were 50 other media practitioners and representatives from the academe. Meanwhile, the TV5 has no official statement yet on the SC guidelines. But Luchie Cruz-Valdez, head of TV5's news and public affairs, said, "We certainly welcome [the guidelines] and will avail of the permission granted by all means." Meanwhile, defense lawyer Andres Manuel declined to comment on the SC's decision and guidelines. "We'll wait for the finality of the decision kasi there are other available remedies pa," he said in an interview aired over GMA News' News To Go. In a separate statement on Wednesday, however, Roque said the SC decision is still a "positive development." "Even though the resolution is only pro hac vice – which means for this one particular occasion – it shows that the SC appreciates the special importance of this trial to the public, and the right to information," he said. "We should never forget that we are all victims here. The suffering is felt not only by the families of the 58 persons who perished in the attack, but by the entire country. Hence, it is only fitting that the entire country be informed of the latest developments in the trial," he added. Maguindanao massacre The Maguindanao massacre, also known as the Ampatuan massacre, occurred on November 23, 2009 in Ampatuan town in Maguindanao province in Mindanao. At the time, the victims were on their way to file then Buluan town vice mayor Esmael Mangudadatu's certificate of candidacy for Maguindanao governor. Mangudadatu won the gubernatorial post during the May 2010 polls. The 57 people who were brutally killed and buried in a mass grave in Ampatuan town included Mangudadatu's wife, his two sisters, lawyers, aides, and motorists who were witnesses or were mistakenly identified as part of the convoy. The victims also included 32 journalists who were with the convoy. A supposed 58th victim is still missing. — LBG/KBK, GMA News