Philippines political massacre toll hits 46
Source: Agencies |
November 25, 2009, Wednesday
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Print Edition
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THE Philippine president placed two southern provinces under emergency rule yesterday as security forces unearthed more bodies, pushing the death toll to 46 in some of the deadliest election violence in the nation's history.
Security forces found 22 bodies in a mass grave yesterday, adding to the 24 bullet-riddled bodies recovered near the scene of Monday's massacre in Maguindanao province, said Chief Superintendent Josefino Cataluna of the Central Mindanao region.
This southern region of the Philippines is wracked by violent political rivalries, in addition to a long-running Islamic insurgency, but the killings have shocked this Southeast Asian nation. One adviser to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has described the massacre as the worst in the country's recent history. A media rights watchdog also says that it appears to be the world's worst mass killing of journalists, with as many as 20 among the dead.
Dozens of gunmen abducted the group of journalists, supporters and relatives of a gubernatorial candidate as they traveled through Amputuan township on Monday to file candidacy documents in the provincial capital for May 2010 elections.
The gubernatorial candidate, Ismael Mangudadatu, who was not a part of the convoy, accused a political rival from the Amputuan clan of being behind the slayings.
Mangudadatu's wife, Genalyn, and his two sisters, were among the dead. The bodies found in the grave, about 2 meters deep, were dumped on top of one another. They included a pregnant woman. Grieving relatives helped identify their loved ones.
Officials were still trying to determine the exact number of people intercepted by the gunmen and whether any had survived. Authorities have said the convoy comprised about 40 people, but Cataluna said at least five other people were still missing.
Rival accused
Arroyo declared an emergency in the provinces of Maguindanao and Sultan Kudarat, allowing security forces to conduct random searches and set up checkpoints to pursue the gunmen.
National police chief Jesus Verzosa relieved Maguindanao's provincial police chief and three other officers of their duties and confined them to camp while they are investigated. One of the police officers was reported to have been seen in the company of the gunmen and pro-government militiamen who stopped the convoy, police said.
Mangudadatu said yesterday that four witnesses had told him the convoy was stopped by gunmen loyal to Andal Ampatuan Jr, a town mayor belonging to a powerful clan and his family's fierce political rival.
Security forces found 22 bodies in a mass grave yesterday, adding to the 24 bullet-riddled bodies recovered near the scene of Monday's massacre in Maguindanao province, said Chief Superintendent Josefino Cataluna of the Central Mindanao region.
This southern region of the Philippines is wracked by violent political rivalries, in addition to a long-running Islamic insurgency, but the killings have shocked this Southeast Asian nation. One adviser to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has described the massacre as the worst in the country's recent history. A media rights watchdog also says that it appears to be the world's worst mass killing of journalists, with as many as 20 among the dead.
Dozens of gunmen abducted the group of journalists, supporters and relatives of a gubernatorial candidate as they traveled through Amputuan township on Monday to file candidacy documents in the provincial capital for May 2010 elections.
The gubernatorial candidate, Ismael Mangudadatu, who was not a part of the convoy, accused a political rival from the Amputuan clan of being behind the slayings.
Mangudadatu's wife, Genalyn, and his two sisters, were among the dead. The bodies found in the grave, about 2 meters deep, were dumped on top of one another. They included a pregnant woman. Grieving relatives helped identify their loved ones.
Officials were still trying to determine the exact number of people intercepted by the gunmen and whether any had survived. Authorities have said the convoy comprised about 40 people, but Cataluna said at least five other people were still missing.
Rival accused
Arroyo declared an emergency in the provinces of Maguindanao and Sultan Kudarat, allowing security forces to conduct random searches and set up checkpoints to pursue the gunmen.
National police chief Jesus Verzosa relieved Maguindanao's provincial police chief and three other officers of their duties and confined them to camp while they are investigated. One of the police officers was reported to have been seen in the company of the gunmen and pro-government militiamen who stopped the convoy, police said.
Mangudadatu said yesterday that four witnesses had told him the convoy was stopped by gunmen loyal to Andal Ampatuan Jr, a town mayor belonging to a powerful clan and his family's fierce political rival.
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