Word: maguindanao
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...prime suspect behind the massacre, who was taken into custody on Thursday, is a member of one of Mindanao's leading Muslim political clans: the Ampatuans. They are close allies of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's administration in Manila and rule Maguindanao, a hardscrabble province in an autonomous area for Muslims. Andal Ampatuan Jr., a Maguindanao mayor in his 40s, was expected to be charged with murder, according to local reports, quoting justice authorities. Ampatuan denies involvement: "The reason I came out is to prove that I am not hiding and that I am not guilty," he told local reporters...
...through a banana grove, a large force of gunmen - reports say around 100 - intercepted the convoy of family members and supporters of Buluan vice-mayor Esmael Mangudadatu, also from a prominent local Muslim clan. They were on their way to the provincial capital to file his candidacy papers for Maguindanao's governorship in next year's general elections. It's a position that Ampatuan's father had occupied unopposed since 2001 and which Ampatuan planned to contest to keep the seat in the family. The Mangudadatu group was herded to what appears to have been a prepared killing ground...
...sink at a loyal ally." She is widely believed to have benefited in the 2004 presidential election from votes controlled by the Ampatuans, leaving a hefty political debt. Indeed, her main rival Fernando Poe Jr., a hugely popular movie star, reportedly failed to get a single vote in three Maguindanao towns. "At the core of this horrid incident is a flawed election system that depends heavily on local political clans and warlord families to deliver votes on election day," says Pete Troilo, security analyst at risk consultants Pacific Strategies & Assessments...
...Wednesday the military began disbanding a 350-strong paramilitary force called Cafgu (Civilian Armed Forces Geographical Unit) in Maguindanao while investigating allegations that members were among the gunmen who waylaid the convoy. Cafgu and a clutch of other civilian outfits armed by the security forces have long been used in counter-insurgency operations against Muslim rebels - and were at the disposal of the Ampatuans as part of their armed group. Indeed, another disturbing thread in this tragic episode is the control exercised by local governments generally over the police, especially in deciding key appointments. Four police officers are under investigation...
...statement earlier this year, the MILF disavowed connection with al-Khobar. But an al-Khobar member arrested in February reportedly told police that, although the gang was not officially connected to the MILF, it was run by a rogue MILF commander operating in Maguindanao, a province controlled by the MILF. The arrested man told police that, as they suspected, the group had carried out numerous bombings in southern Mindanao to extort money. Jones says some of that money may be funding MILF fighters. Al-Khobar's "extortion is criminality on one level, but it also seems to be done...