Interpreter’s resignation shows weak security wall in Ampatuan trial

The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) expressed its deep concern over the resignation of the interpreter in the Ampatuan massacre trial, lawyer Rolando Abo of the National Commission for Muslim Filipinos.

In his Aug. 1 letter to Quezon City Regional Trial Court Judge Jocelyn Solis-Reyes, Abo cited a hearing problem called tinnitus, a condition normally described as ringing in the ears, as the reason for his resignation. However, citing reliable sources, media reported that he had been threatened by Andal Ampatuan Sr., one of the principal accused, in a recent court hearing.

GMA-7 reported that Ampatuan Sr. told Abo, “Ayusin mo ang pag-interpret, ha?” ABS-CBN, on the other hand, quoted a source as saying that one of the suspects told Abo “Hindi pa tayo tapos, may araw ka pa.”

Judge Solis-Reyes had to call off the two scheduled hearings immediately  after Abo sent a text message saying he was sick with fever and colds.

If the reported threat against Abo is the real reason for his resignation—and we have no reason to doubt the reports—it underscores the fact that prosecuting this case remains a long, tedious, difficult process fraught with danger for all those involved.

We cannot and do not begrudge Abo’s decision to resign as interpreter. A threat from someone accused of ordering the mass murder of 58 persons, including 32 of our colleagues, should be taken seriously as the murders of a number of witnesses and witnesses’ relatives, and the threats and bribe attempts that keep coming at the victims’ families, have proven.

However, we demand that authorities, especially the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology and all other security forces responsible for guarding the proceedings and all those involved in it, perform their jobs as they should.

That one of the principals accused managed to approach the court interpreter and, worse, threaten him, is a breach of security and an indication that those tasked with ensuring the safety of those involved in the case are incapable or unwilling of doing so.

That this might be so is not farfetched, given the fact that a whole detachment of the BJMP assigned to the Camp Bagong Diwa detention center was relieved following complaints from prosecution lawyers and victims’ families that the principals accused were being allowed undue privileges.

We demand that this incident be investigated and that security measures be immediately tightened to ensure against any recurrence.

But while the immediate responsibility for this incident lies with the security forces, the NUJP reiterates that, in the end, the buck stops with the national leadership, which has promised to get justice not only for those slaughtered in the hills of Ampatuan in November 2009 but also for all other victims of the rampant human rights violations that continue to be our people’s sorry lot.

—ROWENA PARAAN,

secretary general,

National Union

of Journalists of the Philippines, nujphil@gmail.com