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Lead Philippines: But without credible mass media there, what is left to protect the people..?
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hopeless_race : Sana itreat naman po ng media ang hacienda luisita at mendiola massacre na parang MAGUINADANAO MASSACRE. Ipublicized ang mga katotohanan at ipakita sa tao ang karumaldumal na pinaggagawa sa mga farmers dun. Untouchable po ba sila cory at danding at hindi magawang batikusin ng media about these two massacres?
hopeless_race : Kapag napaguusapan ang mendiola at hacienda luisita massacre ay parang walang nangyari at parang hindi big deal. Anu po ba ang pinagkaiba ng dalawang nabanggit na massacre sa maguindanao massacre?
hopeless_race : Its sad that we pinoys are blind to the fact of what had happened in mendiola and hacienda luisita. Ang tanong..bakit ang media ay hindi manlang matackle ang ganitong usapin? Takot ba sila kay cory at danding?
hopeless_race : Wilkins" brand, for P1.4 billion.-1999 Sugarland Multi-Food Corp. for P2.9 billion 2001- Purefoods Corp P7 billion P60 billion Coca-Cola ... See More 2002- Cosmos Bottling Corp. from RFM Corp. for P14.1 billion October 2008- GSIS' shares in Meralco worth PHP30 Billion. December 2008- country's biggest oil refiner, Petron Corporation. international company shopping spree: Australian boutique brewer J. Boag and Son for A$96 million in 2000. $97 million for Thai Amarit Brewery Ltd $35.5 mi
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jr_lad : rip mr. alecks pabico. you'll be greatly missed!
sevens21 : Dati input mo lng name at SSS ID makukuha mo agad STATIC INFO...
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sevens21 : Gawa naman po kayo ng article about SSS. Pangit ng site nila dali ma blocked ng account
guest_899 : we must check the background of each potential candidates to avoid having another big mistake like GMA
guest_899 : congratulations to PCIJ, more power and God Bless !
jazzymuver : how did Arroyo swallow that kind of things!! how come that she just spend the money our countrymen for her own sake!!
guest_3664 : i would be glad if u can include the investigation of the manner public officials announce infra projects as per COA regulation. It is frustrating to see their faces on the tarpaulin instead of the prescribed information like name of project, date of implementation,amount of contract, source/s of fund, among other things. This is very rampant here in Marikina. Thanks and more power on your noble endeavors. We need people like you to have make our country great again.
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More flak from foreign observers

Posted by: Avigail Olarte | May 18, 2007 at 6:54 pm
Filed under: 2004 Electoral Fraud, 2007 Elections, In the News

(This report was written by PCIJ interns Glenys Banal and Luis Liberato)

TWO teams of international observers today expressed disappointment with the recently held midterm elections.

The 16-member team of the Compact for Peaceful Elections said a sense of resignation over the electoral process, fraud, and violence dominated the conduct of the 2007 elections.

The 27 observers of the People’s International Observers’ Mission agreed, stating that the significant number of disenfranchised voters, vote-buying, deadly election-related violence, direct intimidation of the armed forces, the suspicious absence and abandonment of duties of Commission on Elections (Comelec) officials, and the overt coercion by candidates of powerful political clans ran contrary to the Palace’s statement that Filipino voters “cast their ballot, free of coercion and according to their own will.”

Another delegation of foreign observers from the Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL) earlier reported similar findings of widespread violence, blatant vote-buying, and election irregularities in the Muslim Mindanao provinces.

Read the report of the People’s International Observers’ Mission here and the observations of the Compact for Peaceful Elections here.

Lawrence Surendra of Compact said factors such as “the failure to enforce election laws, the weakness of the party system, and legal loopholes” make the polls prone to fraud and violence.

According to Compact, which had four teams deployed to Pampanga, Nueva Ecija, Negros, Cotabato City, Bicol Region, and the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao, there were 144 recorded cases of election-related violence and 21 incidents of fraud.

Vote-buying, the presence of “flying” voters, delaying tactics in the canvassing of votes, death threats against supporters of certain groups were also widespread.

Meanwhile, People’s IOM condemned the perpetuation of political dynasties.

“Families running a country raises a lot controversy,” said Australian Gill Boehringer. “Clans (use) manipulation and fraud,” added Larry Emery, who was sent to observe the elections in Guimba, Nueva Ecija.

The group reported that rivalries between clans result into violence and reprisals, adding that the use of private armed groups made the it difficult, if not impossible, to conduct a free and honest elections.

It also cried foul over the labeling and the use of fraud, harassment, and force against legitimate party-lists.

“The killings of the leaders and members of these party-list groups are clear evidence of criminal attempts by state forces to drive these groups from the electoral arena and deprive the people of their democratic right to elect their own representatives,” the group said.

Also, there have been reports that the military had campaigned against Bayan Muna, Gabriela, and Anakpawis, telling residents that these groups are fronts of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army.

“The progressive party-list groups were considered evil and should not be voted. They were even running a film showing the evils of voting for the ‘enemy,’” Boehringer reported.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo last Tuesday ordered the filing of at least 20 cases against those responsible for extrajudicial and election-related killings. The order was issued after election observers raised concern over the violence that marred last Monday’s elections.

For its recommendations, People’s IOM said major changes in the electoral procedures should be instituted; elections should be insulated from the partisanship of government agencies and public officials; the culture of fraud engendered by traditional politicians must be altered; effectively halt the military’s interventionist role; reinforce the party-list system of representation; and have an independent and serious investigation on the conduct of the 2004 national elections to resolve the question of the legitimacy of the President’s mandate.

Compact also had similar recommendations, stressing that the electoral process should be done in an environment free of intimidation and harassment.

It recommended, among others, the urgent implementation of the Automation Law; an improved and more efficient Comelec; a more efficient voters’ registration process and the use of voter’s ID to avoid the disenfranchisement of voters; and clearer guidelines for the conduct of elections in hot spots.

This entry was posted on Friday, May 18th, 2007 and is filed under 2004 Electoral Fraud, 2007 Elections, In the News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

5 people have left comments

[...] Yesterday, a delegation of foreign observers, the People’s International Observers’ Mission, decried the labeling, use of fraud, and force against legitimate party-lists and opposition candidates. [...]

INSIDE PCIJ » Party-list groups report massive cheating wrote on May 19, 2007 - 12:05 pm | Visit Link

i-site’s 2007 Election Files » Party-list groups report massive cheating wrote on May 19, 2007 - 1:00 pm | Visit Link

“FOREIGN OBSERVERS MAY HAVE OBSERVED THE NEGATIVE ELECTION PRACTICES THAT HAVE PERSISTED IN EVERY ELECTORAL PROCESS WE HAVE SINCE THE TEJEROS CONVENTION.

NAKAKAHIYA TALAGA TO”

r0d2749 wrote on May 20, 2007 - 10:56 am | Visit Link

[...] Ellen Tordesillas links to an article which mentioned the remark made by a foreign observer about feeling more secure in Afghanistan than in southern Philippines. Inside PCIJ has a transcript of the report of foreign observers. The article notes the following: “The 27 observers of the People’s International Observers’ Mission stated that the significant number of disenfranchised voters, vote-buying, deadly election-related violence, direct intimidation of the armed forces, the suspicious absence and abandonment of duties of Comelec officials, and the overt coercion by candidates of powerful political clans ran contrary to the Palace’s statement that Filipino voters cast their ballot, free of coercion and according to their own will.” [...]

Global Voices Online » More than 140 dead in “peaceful Philippine elections” wrote on May 21, 2007 - 12:53 pm | Visit Link

MediaChannel.org wrote on May 22, 2007 - 12:32 am | Visit Link