CHRISTIAN UNION for Socialist and Democratic Advancement (Crusada) held a prayer vigil for the victims of the Maguindanao Massacre on November 25 at 4:30 PM at Gate 2.5.

According to Crusada Party Premier Rico La Viña, this year’s prayer vigil was held to reflect the party’s current stand on the unsolved massacre and how it should be commemorated.

“It’s not just a matter of leaving it to the courts for the government to prosecute them (suspects). We also need to do our part and our part begins by remembering them (victims), by remembering the stories of the people who died,” said La Viña.

On November 23, 2009, 58 people were killed by armed men allegedly sent by the politically powerful Ampatuan family. The victims, which include journalists and the wife, relatives and supporters of then Mayor Esmael Mangudadatu, were part of a convoy on its way to file Mangudadatu’ candidacy.

Mangudadatu was running against Andal Ampatuan, Jr. for Maguindanao’s gubernatorial seat in the 2010 elections.

Members of the Ampatuan family and their associates are currently on trial for the massacre.

Bro. Jose Ma. Joaquin Buñag, SJ from non-partisan, Church-based and Jesuit led organization Simbahang Lingkod ng Bayan (SLB) talked to the prayer vigil crowd about the massacre and the response that it necessitates.

Buñag emphasized on his message saying that the solving the case of the Maguindanao Massacre “must be something that will resonate in us. Don’t just think about them (victims) dying unjustly, but think about your own deaths. What if this happened to you?”

After the speech, the names of the murder victims were recited by Buñag and a prayer for peace was offered for them. Candles were then lit by the prayer vigil participants while La Viña gave a speech about the massacre and Crusada’s latest stand on the tragedy.

This is the fourth annual prayer vigil for the victims of the massacre that Crusada, the only accredited political party in the Ateneo, has organized since 2010.

In commemoration

Buñag had three main points in his speech during the prayer vigil.

He first urged the attendees to make it their “personal mission” to ensure that the Maguindanao Massacre victims receive justice.

“The second is to love with much kindness. We cannot do something about justice. We can write about it, but in our very concrete lives, we can love in the very little ways that we can,” Buñag said.

“The third is to walk humbly with God [through prayer]… Much discernment, much prayer is needed especially in these times,” he added.

To emphasize his points, Buñag shared statistics concerning the Maguindanao Massacre to the prayer vigil attendees.

According to him, there have been 58 deaths, 108 imprisonments, 88 people who have yet to be convicted, and 245 out of 500 witnesses that have been put on the stand. He added that four years have passed since the incident, and still there have been no convictions.

Meanwhile, La Viña said in his speech that Crusada believes that justice for the Maguindanao Massacre victims begins “by honoring not only their dignity, but also their entire lives through remembrance.”

“It is important that even amid the ongoing banal caravan of scandal and suffering, we are able to take a step back and recollect the injustices inflicted upon our brothers and sisters in Maguindanao, in order to plunge forward armed with a renewed vision of what justice means and entails,” said La Viña.

Dwindling Atenean involvement

During his speech, La Viña commented that the number of prayer vigil participants continue to dwindle every year.

“It really shows that we forget,” he said.

According to La Viña, this is understandable because of the other political issues and natural disasters that the country has been facing recently.

During an interview with The GUIDON, La Viña said that the dwindling interest among Ateneans does not discourage Crusada from planning future activities that concern the massacre.

“We’ll have this for as long as we need to, for as long as there are no convictions, for as long as the murderers and the people behind this remain free,” he said.

As for Buñag, he said in a separate interview with The GUIDON that the memory of those who fell victims to the tragedy should be shared with others “so it becomes a collective memory of injustice.”

“We need a critical mass of people who will remember and, if you have many people remembering, that’s when concrete action can actually come. And that’s a concrete service. Justice served,” Buñag added.