Rights experts call for probe of massacre

MANILA, Philippines, Dec. 3 (UPI) -- U.N. human rights experts are urging the Philippines government to investigate the massacre of 57 people and take measures to prevent a recurrence.

Meanwhile, Philippines President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo Thursday attended the wake of some of the journalists and pledged help and justice to the relatives of the victims, The New York Times reported.

In calling for the probe, the two independent U.N. human rights experts stressed the need to bring the instigators to justice and to take measures to prevent such crimes in the future, the United Nations said Wednesday in a release.

The 57 victims, included 30 journalists and media workers, as well as relatives, lawyers and supporters of Esmael Mangudadatu, a politician from Maguindanao province, were allegedly killed by followers of Andal Ampatuan Jr. Nov. 23.

"The pre-meditated killing of political opponents, combined with a massive assault on the media, must be tackled at various levels that go well beyond standard murder investigations," Philip Alston, special rapporteur on extrajudicial executions, and Frank La Rue, special rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression, said in the release.

Investigators said Ampatuan ordered the slaughter to prevent Mangudadatu from running for provincial governor, an office Ampatuan also sought. Ampatuan surrendered to authorities last week and now is jailed and facing at least 25 counts of murder.

Arroyo has been under heavy pressure to act because Ampatuan belongs to a political clan in the southern Philippines that is closely allied with the president.

The U.N. experts touched on cronyism as well, saying the massacre "demanded a more extensive reflection on the elite family-dominated manipulation of the political processes and the need to eliminate such practices" to ensure democracy in the Philippines.