At least 30 killed in 'gruesome massacre of civilians' in the Philippines

[AlphaCentauri]

Source: LA Times

The victims -- many of them beheaded -- include 13 women, one of whom was an official's wife carrying papers to nominate him for governor.

The convoy of political activists was hijacked by an estimated 100 gunmen as they rode in several vans near the town of Ampatuan, said Army Col. Jonathan Ponce, a spokesman for the 6th Infantry Division. Ampatuan is a city in Maguindanao province, on the island of Mindanao.

The bodies were later found about three miles away. Philippine military troops were searching for at least a dozen more victims who also had been among the group.

"Many of them beheaded, including probably journalists," Ponce said. "Troops are in the area and tracking down those responsible in these killings."

The group included the wife of Buluan township Vice Mayor Ismael Mangudadatu, along with his two sisters, supporters and local journalists.

Officials say they were en route to nearby Shariff Aguak township to file Mangudadatu's nomination papers for the position of governor of Maguindanao province.


Read more: http://www.latimes.com/news/nation-and-world/la-fg-philippines-abductions24-2009nov24,0,6944600.story

[Turbineguy]

1. It was stuff like this

that propelled Marcos into office. There are times when martial law is preferable.

[superconnected]

2. I've never understood the kind of animals that could do this.

Of course in I did have an religious fascist rw boss who kept saying democrats should be lined up and shot for being anti-American. Would that be the kind of ilk that would justify this?

Still, beheading's, eww.

I guess this group doesn't believe in free elections.

[zoff]

3. And rumor is ...

... the Pentagon wants to set up a base not too far from the province in question.

[zelta gaisma]

7. the CIA? or some other agency?

[zoff]

8. Military Base.

The Philippines are still a strategic stepping stone to the Indian Ocean. The US Military must still feel the stinging loss of Subic Naval and Clark Air Bases.

[JonQ]

4. I hadn't realized things were that bad in the philippines

terrible.

[cowcommander]

5. It has always been bad since forever

My parents, who immigrated from the Philippines, told me about how a relative tried to run for mayor of a small town during the Marcos era. His opponent's reponse was throwing a grenade at his political rally, killing him and several other supporters. Although this current incident has certainly shocked the country.

http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/nation/11/23/09/poll-rivalry-triggers-clan-war-maguindanao

To sum it up, the ruling family of Maguindanao, the Ampatuan clan, has controlled local politics for years now. They have already been accused before of being involved in the killing of political rivals and have never hesitated to use violence to hold power. Nobody's been able to do anything before because the family also has strong connections with the right-wing Arroyo administration, but it looks like they finally got too drunk with power and took it too far.

[cowcommander]

6. Death toll up to 46, Phillippines declares state of emergency in provinces

AMPATUAN, Philippines – The Philippine president placed two southern provinces under emergency rule Tuesday as security forces unearthed more bodies, pushing the death toll to 46 in some of the deadliest election violence in the nation's history.

Police and soldiers found 22 bodies in a hillside mass grave Tuesday, 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 reportedly among the dead.

Dozens of gunmen abducted the group of journalists, supporters and relatives of a gubernatorial candidate as they traveled through Amputuan township 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 powerful political rival from the Amputuan clan of being behind the slayings. There is a longstanding bitterness between the two families.

Mangudadatu's wife, Genalyn, and his two sisters, were among the dead.

The bodies found in the grave, about six feet (two meters) deep, were dumped on top of one another. They included a pregnant woman. Grieving relatives helped identify their loved ones before they were given the bodies, covered by banana leaves, for burial.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091124/ap_on_re_as/as_philippines_hostages_killed