Mentors Posted November 23, 2009 Report Share Posted November 23, 2009 Twenty-one politicians and journalists abducted in the southern Philippines have been found dead, the army says. The group were seized on the southern island of Mindanao early on Monday. The military said they were taken by armed men as they tried to file a nomination for a candidate for forthcoming local polls. Elections in the Philippines are marred by violence, particularly in the south where clashes connected to local rivalries and insurgencies erupt. The country is to hold national elections in May 2010. Registration for local and national races began earlier this month. According to local reports, those killed were on their way to an election office in Maguindanao to file papers on behalf of a candidate in the gubernatorial race. The military blamed armed men loyal to a rival politician for the attack. "Our army troopers have reached the area where the vehicles and those held were taken... they were shot by the armed men," Maj- Gen Alfredo Cayton told local radio. "We have recovered 21 bodies. Our men are continuing to scour the area to find the others." The bodies of 13 women and 8 men were found, the military said. Reports said the group had numbered about 30 in total. Among the dead was the wife of the candidate who was planning to run, they said. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8373770.stm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julian2 Posted November 24, 2009 Report Share Posted November 24, 2009 "She said... they had been stopped by 100 uniformed armed men... then her line got cut off," he said. Not sure if the New Peoples Army (Communists) are in Mindanao in any great strength, and I'd be surprised if Abu Sayyaf have that many men in uniform.... Which leaves.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThaiHome Posted November 24, 2009 Report Share Posted November 24, 2009 Not sure what you are trying to say. I think the article makes it pretty clear the main suspect is a private miltia from a rival family. TH Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hugh_Hoy Posted November 24, 2009 Report Share Posted November 24, 2009 Fuggin' "commies" wouldn't surprise me. :content: HH Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julian2 Posted November 24, 2009 Report Share Posted November 24, 2009 The NPA are mostly on the main island of Luzon and Cebu. They're surprising popular among the rural poor, and are often their only means of redress against corrupt local officials and police. I once had a g/f who claimed membership. I tend to agree with ThaiHome, except the "private" militia may not be all that private. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mentors Posted November 24, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 24, 2009 Philippine massacre toll mounts to 39 dead-police MANILA, Nov 24 (Reuters) - Philippine police found 15 more bodies on Tuesday at the site of a massacre in the south of the country, taking the toll in the election-related killings to 39 dead, national police chief Jesus Verzosa said. At least five people remain missing, he told reporters. Gunmen abducted a group of people in Maguindanao province on Monday who were going to file a nomination for a candidate to contest the provincial governor's post in next May's elections. The victims were shot or hacked to death on a remote hillside off the highway http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSMNB002518 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julian2 Posted November 26, 2009 Report Share Posted November 26, 2009 Prime Suspect in Philippine Massacre Surrenders MPATUAN, Philippines  A scion of a powerful clan suspected in the massacre of 57 people in an election caravan in the southern Philippines turned himself in Thursday amid mounting pressure on the government to crack down on lawlessness and warlords. The dead from Monday's massacre include the wife, family and dozens of journalists and supporters of a gubernatorial candidate who wanted to challenge the rival Ampatuan clan, which has ruled Maguindanao province unopposed for years. Andal Ampatuan Jr., a town mayor who allegedly stopped the convoy with dozens of police and pro-government militiamen, surrendered to presidential adviser Jesus Dureza in the provincial capital of Shariff Aguak, said military commander Lt-Gen Raymundo Ferrer. He boarded a military helicopter to a nearby city, from where he will be flown to the capital, Manila, for investigation, Ferrer said. "The family voluntarily surrendered him and they agreed that he will be investigated," he said. Ampatuan's family denied the allegations of his involvement in the slayings. The military deployed tanks and truckloads of troops throughout the province under a state of emergency to hunt down the attackers and prevent retaliatory violence from the victims' clan. Police and soldiers on Wednesday found 11 more bodies at the site of the attack, bringing the death toll to 57. Six of the bodies were discovered in a large pit buried alongside three vehicles, and five were found in a mass grave a few miles (kilometers) off the main highway. The vehicles  a sedan and two vans  were crushed by a large backhoe that ran over and buried them, investigator Jose Garcia said. Ampatuan's surrender followed days of negotiations between his family and Dureza, apparently in a bid to prevent hostilities between the clan's followers and government forces. Interior Secretary Ronaldo Puno said he had warned the Ampatuan family they risked a military attack unless they turned over Ampatuan Jr. by midday Thursday. Ferrer said the area around the provincial capital was tense after troops disarmed about 350 pro-government militiamen loyal to the Ampatuans. The militia is meant to act as an auxiliary force to the military and police in fighting rebels and criminals but often serve as a politician's private army. The clan, which has ruled the province since 2001, helped President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and her allies win the 2004 presidential and 2007 senatorial elections by delivering crucial votes. Arroyo came under intense pressure at home and abroad to seek justice for the victims of the massacre, with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and media and human rights watchdogs voicing their concern over the scale of the killings. The vice Mayor of Buluan township, Ismael Mangudadatu, after receiving death threats, sent his wife and relatives to submit his candidacy Monday when the convoy, including at least 18 journalists, was ambushed. Mangudadatu said four people whom he refused to identify told him Ampatuan Jr. was seen with the gunmen. Five police officers, including one provincial police chief, were relieved of duty and will be brought to Manila to face the investigation together with Ampatuan Jr., Ferrer said. Arroyo vowed justice for the victims and declared a national day of mourning. "This is a supreme act of inhumanity that is a blight on our nation," she said in a statement. "The perpetrators will not escape justice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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