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| Southeast Asia |
| Aquino: Justice for massacre |
| 2010-06-01 |
| [Straits Times] THE Philippine president-apparent vowed to bring to justice members of a powerful political clan charged in the country's worst massacre of 57 people, telling European Union ambassadors on Monday that he will not tolerate armed groups outside the law. Sen. Benigno Aquino III, who is awaiting an official proclamation by the Philippine Congress following May 10 presidential elections, told reporters he discussed the Nov. 23 massacre in southern Maguindanao province with EU ambassadors and made a commitment to obtain justice. Members of the Ampatuan clan who were allied with outgoing President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo are among 198 suspects charged with murdering their political rivals and at least 30 journalists in an election convoy. They allegedly led more than 100 police and government-armed militia in the slaughter. So far, only one member of the family, former town mayor Andal Amptuan Jr, has appeared at a trial that opened in January. The other six are in custody waiting to be arraigned. They have denied the charges against them. Mr Aquino said he will not tolerate a situation where 'one entity or a group or a family thinks they are above the law.' However, Mr Aquino so far has refrained from promising to disband the government-allied militia - an auxiliary force that has augmented outstretched government troops battling communist and Muslim insurgents for decades, and often ended up as a private army on the payroll of local politicians. Human Rights Watch has recently expressed disappointment with his refusal to disarm poorly trained village fighters. Mr Aquino also said he intends to seek justice for hundreds of victims of extrajudicial killings - mostly left-wing activists accused by the military of collaborating with communist insurgents and sympathisers . |
| Posted by:Fred |