Philippines

January 1 marks the 40th day after the brutal killings of 57 people, including 31 journalists and media workers, in the Philippine province of Maguindanao. In the Philippine tradition, the day will be considered the “end of mourning.” But the pursuit of a just and thorough prosecution is only beginning, noted CPJ board member Sheila Coronel, who said the “effort will require an unprecedented level of resources, commitment, and collaboration.” Several of us at CPJ got an overnight memo from Coronel, who has returned to her hometown, Manila, to speak with advocates working on the case. 

December 2009

News from the Committee to Protect Journalists

On Thursday, CPJ’s Senior Southeast Asia Representative Shawn Crispin posted an entry—“Cries for justice in the Philippines massacre”—on the international mission he was part of in the Philippines this week. The team was following up in the aftermath of the November 23 massacre that killed at least 30 journalists and media workers in Ampatuan, in Maguindanao province, in the southern Philippines.

Mobilized and clad in black, a group of Philippine journalists symbolically laid down their notebooks, microphones, and cameras in the street to observe a moment of silence outside Malacañang Palace, the seat of national government in the Philippines.

New York, December 9, 2009—The Committee to Protect Journalists joins in the call to journalists across the world to join the Global Day of Solidarity today to demand justice for the journalists slaughtered in Maguindanao province of the Philippines on November 23.

Four groups in the Philippines released what appears to be the most authoritative account on the murder of 57 people on November 23 in Ampatuan, in Maguindanao province, in the Philippines’ southernmost main island, Mindanao. The report puts the death toll for journalists at 30, with a few others classified as media workers—drivers and other support staff. Some bodies are still unidentified. The nine-person investigative team spent November 25 to 30 in the nearest large city, General Santos City, and traveled to the site of the massacre in Ampatuan and to nearby towns interviewing relatives of those killed.

New York, November 25, 2009—A brutal election-related massacre in the Philippine province of Maguindanao on Monday appears to be single deadliest event for the press since 1992, when CPJ began keeping detailed records on journalist deaths.

New York, November 24, 2009—The Committee to Protect Journalists is working with local and international media support groups to extend assistance to the families of the numerous journalists killed Monday in a brutal election-related massacre in the Philippine province of Maguindanao. 

The toll in the brutal, election-related killings in Maguindanao province, Philippines, was still being determined tonight. Several journalists were believed to be among the dead, making the massacre one of the deadliest single events for the press in memory. Here are some other deadly episodes as recorded by CPJ:

New York, November 23, 2009—Several journalists covering relatives and supporters of a local politician who was about to file his gubernatorial candidacy on the Philippines island of Mindanao today were believed to be among those killed by a gang of armed men in Maguindanao province, according to international news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists joined today with Philippine journalists and press organizations around the world in condemning the attack, and called for a full investigation into the details of the slaughter and prosecution of those responsible.