Philippine Daily Inquirer/News/by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo
ENRAGED JOURNALISTS clad in black, both local and foreign, took to the streets of Manila Wednesday, becoming newsmakers themselves by denouncing the massacre of at least 30 media workers and 27 others on Nov. 23 in Ampatuan, Maguindanao.
At the same time in Maguindanao, journalists briefly took a break from covering military operations and trekked to the massacre site in Sitio Masalay, Barangay Salman to light candles in honor of their colleagues killed in the country’s worst case of election-related violence.
Protest rallies in different parts of the country and the world were also held to coincide with Wednesday’s “Black Day” march, Nestor Burgos of the National Union of Journalists (NUJP) said.
More than a thousand protesters from various sectors in Manila marched with journalists from España Avenue to the Chino Roces (formerly Mendiola) Bridge near Malacañang Palace to shout out their protest close to the seat of government power. They called for justice for the victims and an end to the culture of impunity.
Most dangerous
They also denounced and blamed President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo for the massacre that has earned the Philippines the reputation of being the most dangerous place in the world for journalists.
“Stop the killing” and “Never again to martial law” rang out as the marchers wound their way toward Mendiola.
One participant carried a placard with a toy backhoe on it—a reminder of how the victims and their vehicles were buried in mass graves with the use of a local government-owned backhoe that was waiting at the massacre site. Many wore black shirts and arm bands.
Protesters carried three black coffins symbolizing the death of accountability, press freedom and rule of law. Others carried white coffins and placards with the victims’ names and photos.
The body of a reporter from the Midland Review has yet to be found.
Independent probe
The November 23 Movement, a coalition of media organizations, and the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) were the main organizers of the rallies.
The movement has been calling for an independent investigation of the crime. Aside from journalists, the dead included two women lawyers, and members of the Mangudadatu family and their supporters.
With the larger-than-life statue of press freedom icon Chino Roces in the background, journalists took turns condemning the unabated killing of journalists since Ms Arroyo became president in 2001.
The Nov. 23 massacre brought to more than 100 the number of slain journalists since 1986, about two-thirds of them since Ms Arroyo took power, said Roby Alampay, executive director of Bangkok-based Southeast Asian Press Alliance (SEAPA).
Inquirer publisher and Philippine Press Institute president Isagani Yambot delivered an impassioned speech in Filipino calling on journalists not to let their guard down. “Sumumpa tayo na hindi tayo titigil (Let us make a vow not to let up),” Yambot said.
Referring to the Nov. 23 victims, Yambot said, “Ang kanilang kaluluwa ay nananaghoy at humihingi ng katarungan (Their souls are crying out for justice).”
He quoted poet John Donne: “Any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.”
This won’t be forgotten
“Our quest for justice will not end in the filing of cases and the arrest of the suspects,” echoed NUJP director Julie Alipala, Inquirer Mindanao chief correspondent, who was among the leaders of the march in Maguindanao.
“This story will not end even if justice is done. We will not allow this to be forgotten,” Alampay added.
Alampay said Jakarta journalists were the first to hold a protest rally after the Maguindanao massacre.
The Inquirer has set up a fund for the children of the slain journalists.
“The slain journalists left behind 75 children and dependents. An entire generation of journalists in Mindanao has been lost,” said Sydney Morning Herald’s Ruth Pollard, an IFJ representative who joined a fact-finding mission in Maguindanao.
Two past deans and the present dean of the University of the Philippines’ College of Mass Communication—Georgina Encanto, Luis Teodoro and Rolando Tolentino, respectively—marched with the protesters and carried their own streamer.
Organizers announced candle-lighting rituals all over the country to be held on Dec. 23.
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