De Lima says gov’t not yet resting case in Maguindanao massacre trial
Maguindanao massacre carnage site in Barangay Salman, Ampatuan town in Maguindanao. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines—Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said on Thursday she would discuss with government prosecutors their bid to rest their case following opposition from private prosecutors led by lawyer Nena Santos.
“We will still decide on that…We will discuss about it until I make my final decision,” De Lima told reporters.
Prosecutors led by Taguig Chief Prosecutor Archimedes Manabat had told the Quezon City regional trial court of their intention to rest its case on the 28 accused, who included Datu Andal “Unsay” Ampatuan Jr. and Chief Inspector Sukarno Dicay.
However, even if government prosecutors were no longer inclined to present further evidence against the 76 other accused, they still couldn’t rest their case until after De Lima’s final decision.
More than 100 people had been charged with the killing of 58 persons, mostly journalists, in Maguindanao on Nov. 23, 2009.
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