Bishops welcome SC ruling on live coverage of Maguindanao massacre trial

Catholic bishops welcomed the Supreme Court’s decision allowing the live coverage of the trial of the suspects in the Nov. 23, 2009 Maguindanao massacre that killed 57 people. Cotabato Auxiliary Bishop Jose Colin Bagaforo and Caloocan Bishop Deogracias Iñiguez Jr. said the live coverage will help eliminate doubts about the handling of the case. “Yung suspicions natin na baka Lutong-Macao ang mangyayari sa proseso sa korte ay mawala dahil hayagang malalaman ng lahat at makita kung paano ginagawa yung paglilitis sa kaso ng mga akusado," Bagaforo said on Church-run Radio Veritas. “Welcomed talaga yung ginawa ng Supreme Court and I am sure karamihan sa atin ay appreciated yan very much," he added. Excerpts of the interview were posted on the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines news site. For his part, Bishop Iñiguez noted that the public interest in the Maguindanao massacre case had heightened. Of the 57 people killed in the massacre, 32 were journalists and media workers. “[Live coverage] will be good dahil alam naman natin na ito ay makatutulong sa pagbigay-linaw ng bagay ukol sa kaso sa gitna ng public curiosity at public concern," Iñiguez said in a separate interview on Radio Veritas. Last Tuesday, the high court granted the petition filed by the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP), major broadcast networks and families of the victims to have the hearing covered live by the media. But the high court also laid down strict guidelines for media coverage, including the disallowing of commercial breaks. On Thursday, a private prosecutor representing families of 14 of the 32 journalists killed in the massacre said the guidelines, particularly on the non-stop coverage, might discourage the media from covering the trial proceedings. Also, several media organizations met on Thursday to discuss their next move after the SC allowed the petition for live media coverage of the Maguindanao massacre trial under supposedly stringent guidelines. The NUJP, which organized the meeting in Quezon City, also expressed concerns over the SC guideline on "nonstop coverage." — LBG, GMA News