As it joined Philippine media groups in seeking an end to over a thousand days of impunity since the Nov. 23, 2009 Maguindanao massacre, an international media watchdog group lamented press freedom in the Philippines remains dire.

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) said this dire status is due not only to continued killings of journalists but also to Congress' refusal to pass a Freedom of Information (FOI) law.

“We stand in solidarity with press freedom groups in the Philippines as they commemorate 1,000 days since the Maguindanao massacre in Ampatuan town and continue in their struggle for press freedom and an end to impunity,” IFJ Asia-Pacific Director Jacqueline Park said.

She said that in the case of the Nov. 23, 2009 Maguindanao massacre, almost three years have passed with the victims' families and colleagues still waiting for justice for those brutally murdered.

The IFJ represents more than 600,000 journalists in 131 countries.

At least 57 people, 32 of them media workers, were mercilessly gunned down and buried with a backhoe in Ampatuan town in Maguindanao in November 2009.

“Almost three years after the worst atrocity ever committed against media workers, the victims’ families, colleagues and press freedom defenders eagerly await justice for those brutally murdered in the massacre,” Park said.

On the other hand, the IFJ maintained the Philippines is one of the most dangerous countries in the world for journalists.

It noted that of the 196 suspects including officials, police and militiamen, only 76 have been arraigned.

"The continuing killings of journalists, on-going delays in the trial of the suspects in the Ampatuan carnage and the prolonged refusal of Congress to pass the Freedom of Information bill all represent the dire state of press freedom in the country," it added.

Last Sunday (Aug. 19), media groups including the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines, Philippine Press Institute, Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster sa Pilipinas, Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism and ABS-CBN and GMA Network marked the 1,000th day since the Maguindanao massacre.

The commemoration paid tribute to the victims of the brutal massacre, with relatives of victims reading personal messages. — LBG, GMA News