Militants ask DOJ for probe on Italian priest's slay

Several militant groups on Tuesday urged the Department of Justice (DOJ) to launch an investigation into the killing of Italian priest Fausto Tentorio in North Cotabato. Members of the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan), Karapatan, Promotion of Church People's Response (PCPR) also held a rally outside the DOJ compound in Manila to denounce the killing of Tentorio, said to be a staunch anti-mining advocate. At around 7:30 a.m. on Monday a lone gunman shot Tentorio several times in the head and the body inside the compound of the Mother of Perpetual Help parish church in Arakan town. The slain priest was a member of the Pontificio Instituto Missioni Estere (PIME or Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions). He was the third priest in their congregation who was murdered in the Philippines, according to the PIME Philippines blog. The protesting groups urged the government to probe into previous attempts on the Italian priest's life, including one allegedly carried out by a private army in southern Mindanao." "Other cases of EJK's (extra-judicial killings) should also be resolved. The previous attempt on Father Tentorio's life, involving paramilitary group Bagani in 2003, should also be looked into by the government," Bayan said in a statement. During the rally on Tuesday, Bayan members carried posters with statements like: "Stop extra-judicial killings!" Bayan secretary general Renato Reyes, said, "Fr. Pops was a rural missionary and indigenous peoples advocate. His death underscores the climate of impunity that persists even under the Aquino government. The DOJ should investigate the killing with dispatch." Earlier, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front also condemned the attack, which the group described as a "brutality and savagery that no civilized men or groups could possibly do." In an article posted on the MILF website on Monday, MILF secretariat chairman Muhammad Ameen said men of religion should be untouchable and should not be harmed, except when they are actively taking part in war. - VVP, GMA News