Manila - The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines expresses concern and outrage at the recent attempt by the Philippine army to prevent journalists from accessing evacuation centers in Maguindanao by holding them for over an hour this morning.
In what seems an apparent act to stifle substantial reportage on the state of internally displaced persons or evacuees in Cotabato and Maguindanao, elements of the Bravo company of the 46th Infantry Battalion abruptly halted the convoy of journalists as they were passing through Bagan village in Guindolongan, Maguindanao with no clear explanation.
Worse, the soldiers tried to bring the journalists from Bagan to the brigade headquarters, to which the journalists objected.
Composed of 24 Manila-based journalists, 28 from Mindanao, and 10 members of non-government organizations, the group is on a three-day coverage in Cotabato and Maguindanao to look into the conditions of evacuees displaced by the ongoing conflict between the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.
After a flurry of reactions from media groups and outfits, as well as from the journalists themselves who were being held by the soldiers, 601st Army Brigade commander Col. Medardo Geslani was prompted to explain that his troops were merely clearing the area to foil possible attacks against the "high-profile" group of journalists based on reports they received. The journalists were then released, but only after over an hour of waiting.
Such reasoning is, however, suspect as civilians and other passenger vehicles were allowed to pass through. The media convoy was reportedly singled out and was the only one blocked.
This leads us to believe that journalists were prevented from proceeding to the area due to other reasons, least of which is security. It now becomes clear that one highly possible intention is to prevent media from reporting on the plight of the evacuees, particularly in Datu Piang. One refugee center was reported to have been without food rations for over four months now.
The incident is a cause of alarm given the antagonistic treatment of military and police forces towards members of media covering conflict areas. With the number of journalist killings now at 102, even the slightest deviation like, say, over an hour of baseless and arbitrary detention, is cause enough for a journalist to fear for his own life, and rethink how this government, with its ill-advised actions, is all the more aggravating such dire conditions.
The NUJP calls on the military, particularly the 46th Infantry Battalion, to cease from placing journalists in a situation of fear and allow them full access to the evacuation sites in Cotabato and Maguindanao. We demand an answer as to why the journalists were arbitrarily held this morning with no clear reason.
This incident makes us think that those who claim to be vanguards of our freedoms and safety are often the first to imperil them.
The journalists were on their way from Datu Piang to Cotabato in their second day of the three-day media coverage of the state of evacuees in Mindanao displaced by the continuing conflict between the government and the Moro islamic Liberation Front.
According to NUJP Vice Chair Nonoy Espina, who was among the journalists participating in the coverage, their convoy was stopped by the soldiers at Brgy. Bagan in Guindolongan as allegedly ordered by 601st Infantry Brigade commander Col. Medardo Geslani.
Reports state that Geslani later confirmed that he ordered his troops to stop all media personnel from entering the area and escort them to the headquarters, to which the journalists objected.
Reports further state that other journalists were wondering why only civilians were allowed to pass through without any explanation.
Geslina later explained to the Inquirer that his instructions were only for the purpose of ensuring the safety of the journalists and not intended to halt the fact-finding mission, saying that journalists are "vulnerable and potential targets of some armed groups.”
According the Espina, the journalists were held since 8 am and released only around past 9 am.
PHILIP JAMES MONGAYA TREMEDAL
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