Tuesday, October 18, 2011
KORONADAL CITY (Updated) -- Several groups and individuals condemned the killing of an Italian priest who is a known advocate against corporate and large-scale mining in North Cotabato province.
Cristina Palabay, of the End Impunity Alliance, said Fr. Fausto Tentorio’s public position against big corporate mining in the province and his advocacy for the rights of farmers and indigenous peoples is “a testament to his selflessness.”
Have something to report? Tell us in text, photos or videos.
Tentorio was gunned down around 7:30 a.m. Monday morning inside the parish of the Mother of Perpetual Help in Arakan Valley town in North Cotabato just as he was preparing to leave his convent for a clergy meeting in Kidapawan City.
Tentorio was the third missionary of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (PIME) to be killed in Mindanao. He is a compatriot of Fr. Tullio Favali, who was killed by paramilitary men led by cult leader Norberto Manero on April 11, 1985 in Tulunan, North Cotabato, and Fr. Salvatore Carzedda, who was assassinated by motorcycle-riding gunmen in Zamboanga City on March 20, 1992.Arakan Valley Councilor Leonardo Reovoca, former parish worker of the Diocese of Kidapawan, said Fr. Tentorio was about to board his pickup when a lone gunman approached him and shot him twice on his head.
Animosity
North Cotabato Governor Emmylou Mendoza condemned the incident, fearing this might cause animosity in the locality as the parish priest was well-loved in the community.
"This is a very sad morning to us," she said, adding that police have been instructed to focus on the murder case and resolve it the soonest possible time.
"This case involves a member of an international mission who has been helping our constituents to live better lives," the governor added.
The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) also condemned the killing Tuesday, saying the incident was an act of “brutality and savagery that no civilized men or groups could possibly do.”
Muhammad Ameen, chairperson of the MILF Secretariat, said men of religion, except when actively taking part in the war, are supposed to be untouchable and should not be harmed.
Mendoza said that President Benigno Aquino III was immediately informed about the Italian priest's killing through Local Government Secretary Jesse Robredo.
The suspect, according to Reovoca, was wearing a crash helmet and walked away casually from the site to a parked motorcycle after he made sure his target was dead.
The motorcycle was seen just few meters away from the church's compound, the councilor said.
"But since the suspect was wearing a helmet, nobody was able to recognize his face," Reovoca said.
The priest was supposed to attend Monday the regular clergy meeting of the Diocese of Kidapawan at the Bishop's Palace in Kidapawan City when the incident happened.
His killing came after the declaration of Major General Jorge Segovia, 10th Infantry Division commander, that Southern Mindanao is the new epicenter of the New People’s Army, the End Impunity Alliance noted.
“Such climate of impunity exists to this day, thus victimizing anti-mining advocates such as Fr. Tentorio because of the non-prosecution of those accountable for the previous cases of human rights violations,” Palabay said.
Anti-mining
Tentorio was a staunch anti-mining advocate since he started his parish work in Arakan town, according to Reovoca.
"I am a witness to Fr. Tentorio's strong stance against mining and other projects which are not sustainable and would harm and affect the indigenous peoples, in particular," Reovoca said.
The priest was also active in the campaign on law and order in Arakan Valley.
Just recently, Tentorio was appointed as head of a civil society-led Anti-Criminality Task Force in Arakan, Reovoca said.
Police are still clueless as to the motive and identity of the suspect.
Alyansa Tigil Mina (ATM), a group of non-government organizations opposing mining projects, however, called Tentorio’s untimely demise as "senseless."
"We are equally angered by this incident. It’s another attempt to silence the growing resistance of the Church and the indigenous groups against large-scale mining," ATM national coordinator Jaybee Garganera told Sun.Star.
Reports said that some North Cotabato residents opposed the development of a mining site in Kulaman Valley.
Through a partnership between Chinese-led Nihao Mineral Resources International Inc. and local businessmen, the mining site secured a permit in 2007 to extract nickel, cobalt, and chromium in the area.
Anti-mining advocates had said that the liberalization of the industry in 1995 led to the abuse of free prior and informed consent by mining companies, and displacement of indigenous communities due to strong promotion of large-scale mining.
“The Aquino administration must seriously re-consider its support to mining. The lives of people are not worth the destruction brought by mining,” Garganera said.
Last week, Environment Secretary Ramon Paje said no new mining licenses will be issued this year unless reforms will be implemented in the mining sector.
Profile
Fr. Tentorio, or Fr. Pops, as he was fondly called, was born on January 7, 1952 in St. Mary of Rovagnate in the region of Lombardy, Italy. He was raised in Santa Maria Hoe', Lecco, and was ordained in 1977.
In 1978, he left for the Philippines after being assigned to Ayala in the Achdiocese of Zamboanga. He worked there for two years to get used to the Filipino culture.
He was assigned to work in Columbio, Sultan Kudarat in 1980 and was stationed as mission administrator in the parish, according to the PIME-Philippines website.
It was in Columbio where he further acclimatized himself with the distinct tri-people culture of Mindanao; his assignment placing him in the midst of indigenous Blaans, Muslim, and Christian settlers.
Five years later, he moved on to the mission in Arakan, where he has stayed on till his death. He reportedly heads the Tribal Filipinos Apostolate of the Kidapawan diocese.
He was always protecting the rights of the indigenous peoples of Arakan, particularly the Manobos. He even learned their language.
"We are very sad because we lost already two other priests here in Mindanao," Rev. Julio Mariani, director of PIME's Euntes Mission Center in Zamboanga City, said.
Death threats
Mariani said Tentorio received unspecified death threats around seven years ago, but had not mentioned new threats when they last met in July.
He said Tentorio's killing could have been related to his work defending the rights of indigenous people and helping them hold on to their ancestral land.
"It was a delicate mission because when you deal with the marginalized and the poor, you are bound to step on the toes of some people and this could have been the source of the problem of why he was killed," Mariani added.
Rioflorido said they did not know of any death threats received by Tentorio.
He said police would interview Tentorio's colleagues and other possible witnesses, including teachers at a preschool within the church compound who were attending a flag-raising ceremony when the attack took place.
Italian Ambassador Luca Fornari also condemned the killing and expressed shock, sadness and dismay.
"Killing someone who is doing good things is something that we cannot understand," he added.
He said the embassy has asked police to increase security for missionaries.
Italy has warned its nationals, including priests, not to go to Mindanao, but missionaries have disregarded the advisory in order to help people, Fornari said.
Philippine Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario called on police "to immediately bring the perpetrators of this dastardly act to justice" and offered condolences to Tentorio's family and congregation.
North Cotabato Governor Emmylou Mendoza also appealed for witnesses to come out, or those with information on the killing, to help authorities bring justice to the slain Italian priest. (With Virgil Lopez/AMN/AP/Sun.Star Davao/Sunnex)
No comments:
Post a Comment