ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines – On March 18, 1968, about 49 years ago, at least 23 young Muslim trainees were shot to death on Corregidor Island in what has since been known as the Jabidah massacre. (READ: Jabidah and Merdeka: The inside story)
On Saturday, activist youth organizations commemorated the massacre that involved soldiers, tainting the reputation of the military under the Marcos administration and sparking Moro rebellion in Mindanao.
They called for justice for the victims of alleged extrajudicial killings and military violence in the country particularly in Mindanao. (READ: IN NUMBERS: The Philippines’ ‘war on drugs’)
“We urge the government not to abuse their power, kailangan nating matuto sa aral ng (diktadurya). Nasaan ang pagbabago? Bakit maraming gutom?” Raymund Tulonghari, the city coordinator of Kabataan Partylist said.
(We need to learn the lessons of the dictatorship. Where is the promised change? Why are so many people still hungry?)
He also asked millennials to come out of their comfort zones and call out social injustice.
A widow’s cry for justice
Nurhidaya Hassan, 54, joined the rally, demanding justice for the death of her husband Hadji Billamin. According to her, military officers fired indiscriminately at their village in Tapiantana Island, Tabuan-Lasa, Basilan on March 8 at around 5am, killing her husband, a certain Nuruddin Muhlis, and two children.
A military officer has apologized for the deaths of the children, according to an Inquirer report.
The military operation was in pursuit of Mubin Kulin, a close relative of Isnilon Hapilon, the senior ideological leader of the Abu Sayyaf. (READ: Filipino millennial joins ISIS in Syria)
Hadj Billamin is a sheikh and a former board of director of the Bangasamoro Development Agency.
Suara Bangsamoro considered the violent incident as another case of extrajudicial killing under the Duterte administration. – Rappler.com
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