MANILA, Philippines — Leaders of the Catholic Church and other sectors Thursday called on President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to swiftly act against the perpetrators of the unprecedented election-related carnage in Maguindanao.

It took the government three days to take custody of Mayor Andal Ampatuan Jr. of Datu Unsay town, a prime suspect in the massacre. The mayor, a son of Maguindanao Gov. Andal Ampatuan Sr., a political ally of Ms Arroyo, was flown to Manila under the custody of presidential adviser Jesus Dureza.

The Commission on Human Rights described as a “good start” the government’s taking custody of Mayor Ampatuan.

Appalled

Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales said he was appalled that the abduction and killings “could be carried out in broad daylight with indescribable brazenness and effrontery, that it seemed the perpetrators were confident that they could not be made accountable for it.”

In a statement, Rosales called on the President to exert her leadership most forcefully “so that this great wound on our national psyche and on our democratic institution be bandaged and brought to healing before it opens up into more tragic consequences.”

Cotabato Archbishop Orlando Quevedo, who has jurisdiction over Maguindanao, also demanded that the government “use all its powers” and apply the full force of the law on the perpetrators.

Issuing a statement three days after the massacre, he asked the grieving families and friends of the victims not to seek vengeance “for the sake of humanity” since there will be no end to the cycle of violence.

Unprecedented

Quevedo said the massacre was unprecedented in the history of the once empire-province of Cotabato in terms of “ferocity, brutality and brazenness.”

He, however, said that everyone was to blame for the brutal massacre because politicians had allowed “a culture of impunity” to thrive.

“Political administrations and officials from all parties from the 1960s to the present have cultivated and exploited to their own advantage a social structure of traditional leadership … We have not tried to change this culture of political convenience and thus allowed a culture of impunity to endure through successive administrations.

“Elections have not and will not change this situation. We simply get more of the same,” Quevedo said.

The Association of Major Religious Superiors in the Philippines (AMRSP) said the massacre was “indicative of the culture of violence that has been tolerated by the administration inflicted by a known ally, manifesting the continued ascendancy of warlords and a brutal assault on the freedom of the press.

“We call for an end to violence and death. We beseech everyone to restrain themselves from acts of vengeance and retaliation,” said AMRSP co-chairs Sr. Mary John Mananzan and Fr. Jesus Malit in a statement.

“In the midst of violence and death, the government must act to protect its citizens. It must protect those who seek to engage in the electoral process in an honest and peaceful manner. It must protect those who practice the noble profession of journalism. The killings of journalists strike at the very core of our democratic rights—free speech,” Mananzan and Jesus Malit said.

Votes at any cost

The Free Legal Assistance Group (Flag) said the massacre of innocents in Maguindanao was a direct result of Ms Arroyo’s obsession with votes at any cost.

“By pandering to warlords in exchange for votes, Arroyo has created small kingdoms in the provinces ruled by local tyrants and their private armies,” Flag chair Jose Manuel I. Diokno said in a statement.

“By callously disregarding human rights, she has spawned a culture of violence and impunity where even the most terrible crimes have gone unpunished,” Diokno said.

He said no government of decent repute would allow a massacre, especially of this proportion, to go unpunished.

The Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) called on the government to arrest and file cases against the perpetrators within 15 days or earlier to restore the people’s faith in the country’s criminal justice system and the electoral process.

The victims include two IBP members, Concepcion Brizuela of North Cotabato chapter and Cynthia Oquendo of South Cotabato chapter.

The Australian Embassy in Manila Thursday expressed deep concern over the increasing lawlessness in Mindanao and urged all aspirants in the 2010 elections “to participate in the political process in a lawful and peaceful way.”

The Makati Business Club is challenging the government to put its words into action by swiftly serving justice to the victims.

Sen. Loren Legarda Thursday asked the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to hold the Philippine government accountable for bringing the perpetrators of the carnage to justice.

“There should be no sacred cows in this investigation. President Arroyo must exercise the full force of the law to give justice to those who sacrificed their lives and to their families,” Bro. Eddie Villanueva of Bangon Pilipinas Party said.

Gilbert “Gibo” Teodoro Jr., standard bearer of the administration’s Lakas-Kampi-CMD party, said the “government needs to be more forceful in this case but it should not do anything that would ignite another conflict.” With reports from Dona Pazzibugan, Nikko Dizon, Michael Lim Ubac, Abigail L. Ho, Cynthia D. Balana, and Beverly T. Natividad in Manila; Chalie C. Señase, Inquirer Mindanao