‘Grief into action’: Cagayan de Oro journalists commemorate 16th anniversary of Ampatuan Massacre

SIXTEEN years after the world’s deadliest single-day attack on journalists, media practitioners here are set to gather on Monday, Nov. 24, to demand continued vigilance and justice for the victims of the Ampatuan Massacre.

The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) – Cagayan de Oro Chapter, in partnership with the Cagayan de Oro Press Club (COPC), will lead a candle-lighting ceremony at 4 pm at the Press Freedom Monument on the Misamis Oriental Provincial Capitol Grounds.

The activity honors the 58 individuals, including 32 media workers, who were brutally killed in Maguindanao on Nov. 23, 2009 — a tragedy that NUJP-CdO chairperson Franck Dick Rosete called a “stark reminder” of the dangers journalists face in the country.

Beyond remembrance, local media leaders are urging the community to view press freedom as a non-negotiable necessity.

“We must insist — loudly, persistently — that freedom of expression is not a luxury but a foundation. We must insist that press freedom is not negotiable but necessary," the COPC statement reads in part.

COPC President Froilan Gallardo challenged the local press to “turn grief into action and turn remembrance into resolve,” emphasizing the need for legal safeguards to protect independent media and institutions that hold power to account.

Engaging the next generation

To bridge the generational gap in media advocacy, organizers are hosting a discussion with young reporters and campus journalists at 2 pm, prior to the candlelighting ceremony.

Rosete said the session aims to revisit the facts of the massacre and educate emerging journalists on the importance of defending media rights amidst continuing challenges in the landscape.

Organizers have opened the commemoration to media practitioners, students, and concerned citizens to amplify the call for full justice for the victims.