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Manila hostage tragedy survivors get legal aid hearing


Two years after the tragedy, survivors of the 2010 Manila hostage crisis were allowed to seek legal help from the Hong Kong government in suing the Philippines for damages, a Hong Kong news site reported over the weekend.
 
On Friday, Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK) said a high court master has heard a Legal Aid Appeal from survivors and relatives of the fatalities in the 2010 tragedy.
 
Democratic Party legislator James To was quoted in the report as saying that the application was rejected at first because the Philippines may invoke state immunity as a defense.
 
It added Hong Kong's Legal Aid Department initially refused to grant the survivors and relatives legal aid to sue the Philippines for damages.
 
Eight Hong Kong tourists were killed in the Aug. 23, 2010 incident where dismissed police officer Rolando Mendoza took a busload of tourists hostage to demand his reinstatement.
 
Mendoza was subsequently killed during the rescue operations.
 
The incident prompted Hong Kong to impose a black travel warning that discouraged Hong Kong residents from visiting the Philippines. — RSJ, GMA News
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