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Live coverage and bungling cops worsened bus hostage crisis
By Catherine Zoleta Condino |
August 27, 2010, Friday
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DEAR Editor,
Ten years ago, I was a junior radio reporter in the Philippines.
My mentor Mr Mario Garcia reminded his reporters many times not to give a blow-by-blow account while covering an actual sensitive story.
Avoid reporting how many police operatives are now on the crime scene and what actions these officers are taking - the suspect might be monitoring police moves through radio or TV.
Last Monday, a 12-hour hostage-drama in Manila had a bloody end. Eight Chinese nationals were killed, and many wounded, out of 25 passengers inside a tourist bus.
According to reports, there were two possible reasons that triggered the bloody actions of the suspect, disgruntled former Police Senior Inspector Rolando Mendoza.
First, it could have been the last person on the other side of the phone speaking with Mendoza.
The suspect hung up the phone and uttered the words, "Wala ito" and "basura ito," or "This is nothing," "this is a trash."
Second, the suspect had monitored on the bus television the arrest of his brother within the site. Manila Vice Mayor Isko Moreno partly blamed the media for mishandling the coverage particularly during the said arrest of the suspect's brother.
The authorities said they saw the brother (also a policeman) roaming around in civilian clothes while carrying a gun, so they got him and the gun for safe-keeping.
With these two reasons, many questions were raised.
What are the limitations of the media in handling an actual hostage-taking situation?
Is it really necessary to cover the incident live, knowing that the suspect has demanded media attention and is monitoring everything through the bus television?
I believe that media in general should know their limits in covering such news.
Sometimes, we forget the word responsibility and instead just focus on how to get the scoop or the best angle, to attract human interest and make profits.
I am also sad about how police authorities mishandled the negotiation and botched the subsequent rescuing effort.
We haven't learned from our mistake in the past.
I can still remember that in 2002, a four-year-old kid was held hostage and stabbed to death by a certain Diomedes Talbo in Pasay City bus terminal.
After nearly two hours of negotiations, the suspect stabbed the poor kid before police officers fired on the suspect.
Later autopsy reports also found several bullets inside the body of the victim.
Now, the question is, how many times since 2002 have trainings been carried out? How extensive were these trainings? How adequate are our police gadgets and equipment to deal with this kind of emergency? And how competent are the appointed negotiators?
There is also the long-time problem of graft and corruption in my beloved country.
However, It is not fair to blame current Philippines President Benigno Aquino III.
The hostage crisis occurred less than 100 days since he took his office, and he is still trying to correct the problems he inherited from the previous administrations.
To the families of the victims, we are sorry for your loss and we are deeply saddened. This is not about nationality, it is about being human.
To the suspect, sorry too for your wasted life - for you are also a victim of societal problems.
(Catherine Zoleta Condino, a former broadcast-journalist in the Philippines, and now a freelancer in Shanghai.)
Ten years ago, I was a junior radio reporter in the Philippines.
My mentor Mr Mario Garcia reminded his reporters many times not to give a blow-by-blow account while covering an actual sensitive story.
Avoid reporting how many police operatives are now on the crime scene and what actions these officers are taking - the suspect might be monitoring police moves through radio or TV.
Last Monday, a 12-hour hostage-drama in Manila had a bloody end. Eight Chinese nationals were killed, and many wounded, out of 25 passengers inside a tourist bus.
According to reports, there were two possible reasons that triggered the bloody actions of the suspect, disgruntled former Police Senior Inspector Rolando Mendoza.
First, it could have been the last person on the other side of the phone speaking with Mendoza.
The suspect hung up the phone and uttered the words, "Wala ito" and "basura ito," or "This is nothing," "this is a trash."
Second, the suspect had monitored on the bus television the arrest of his brother within the site. Manila Vice Mayor Isko Moreno partly blamed the media for mishandling the coverage particularly during the said arrest of the suspect's brother.
The authorities said they saw the brother (also a policeman) roaming around in civilian clothes while carrying a gun, so they got him and the gun for safe-keeping.
With these two reasons, many questions were raised.
What are the limitations of the media in handling an actual hostage-taking situation?
Is it really necessary to cover the incident live, knowing that the suspect has demanded media attention and is monitoring everything through the bus television?
I believe that media in general should know their limits in covering such news.
Sometimes, we forget the word responsibility and instead just focus on how to get the scoop or the best angle, to attract human interest and make profits.
I am also sad about how police authorities mishandled the negotiation and botched the subsequent rescuing effort.
We haven't learned from our mistake in the past.
I can still remember that in 2002, a four-year-old kid was held hostage and stabbed to death by a certain Diomedes Talbo in Pasay City bus terminal.
After nearly two hours of negotiations, the suspect stabbed the poor kid before police officers fired on the suspect.
Later autopsy reports also found several bullets inside the body of the victim.
Now, the question is, how many times since 2002 have trainings been carried out? How extensive were these trainings? How adequate are our police gadgets and equipment to deal with this kind of emergency? And how competent are the appointed negotiators?
There is also the long-time problem of graft and corruption in my beloved country.
However, It is not fair to blame current Philippines President Benigno Aquino III.
The hostage crisis occurred less than 100 days since he took his office, and he is still trying to correct the problems he inherited from the previous administrations.
To the families of the victims, we are sorry for your loss and we are deeply saddened. This is not about nationality, it is about being human.
To the suspect, sorry too for your wasted life - for you are also a victim of societal problems.
(Catherine Zoleta Condino, a former broadcast-journalist in the Philippines, and now a freelancer in Shanghai.)
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