Burial of Payatas victims blocked by kin, survivors
November 11, 2000 | 12:00am
An organization of Payatas tragedy survivors blocked yesterday efforts of the city government to transfer unidentified human remains pulled out of the rubble of the collapsed garbage dump to a Novaliches cemetery.
Members of the July 10 Payatas Victims Organization – Kalipunan ng mga Damayang Mahihirap (J10PVO-Kadamay) feared that their loved ones would be buried without their consent. An exasperated Quezon City Mayor Mel Mathay went on radio to deny that he had ordered the mass burial of the remains.
"Hindi po totoo yan (That is untrue)," the mayor told radio station DZMM.
The mayor said he is only concerned about the health and sanitation of communities near the makeshift laboratory a volunteer forensic team from the University of the Philippines-Philippine General Hospital had set up.
As early as 5 a.m. yesterday, around 100 Kadamay members barricaded the approach to a vacant lot at the Empire Subdivision, where the remains of some 70 people are kept inside a refrigerated vault. The subdivision is only a few hundred meters away from the scene of the tragedy, which killed some 234 people and injured scores of others.
At around 6 a.m., three six-by-six trucks dispatched by the Quezon City Department of Public Order and Safety arrived, apparently to ferry the remains to the Bagbag cemetery in Novaliches. The trucks, however, were forced to turn back, unable to break through the barricade.
The protestors had been demanding the immediate release of the remains of their loved ones, accusing city officials of pressuring them to withdraw a P1-billion damage suit they filed against the city government in exchange for burial assistance and livelihood programs. City officials denied the allegations.
They also oppose a plan of the city government to re-open a portion of the collapsed dump for a garbage transfer station.
"The mayor is a patent liar," said Delia Badion, who heads the organization. "The last time, he planned to evict us from our homes and then denied he had such plans after he was exposed in the media."
She called for the mayor’s resignation, adding that Mathay should step down from office because he has become callous to the plight of the urban poor.
The mayor was scheduled to meet with the organization yesterday afternoon but he begged off at the last minute, saying he had other urgent matters to attend do.
In a dialogue with the organization last week, Mathay apologized for the delay in the release of the victims’ remains, saying the forensic team has been saddled with the difficulty of identifying body parts which have largely decomposed. He said he cannot do anything but to follow scientific procedures in confirming the identity of the remains.
Early in the afternoon, the protestors proceeded to the Quezon City Hall to hold an indignation rally. A mild scuffle erupted when some Kadamay members tried to put up a picket in the inner reaches of the City Hall premises, which alarmed personnel of the City Hall police detachment. A short negotiation between the protestors and police officials resulted in an agreement to keep the picket within the vicinity of the City Hall flagpole.
Members of the July 10 Payatas Victims Organization – Kalipunan ng mga Damayang Mahihirap (J10PVO-Kadamay) feared that their loved ones would be buried without their consent. An exasperated Quezon City Mayor Mel Mathay went on radio to deny that he had ordered the mass burial of the remains.
"Hindi po totoo yan (That is untrue)," the mayor told radio station DZMM.
The mayor said he is only concerned about the health and sanitation of communities near the makeshift laboratory a volunteer forensic team from the University of the Philippines-Philippine General Hospital had set up.
As early as 5 a.m. yesterday, around 100 Kadamay members barricaded the approach to a vacant lot at the Empire Subdivision, where the remains of some 70 people are kept inside a refrigerated vault. The subdivision is only a few hundred meters away from the scene of the tragedy, which killed some 234 people and injured scores of others.
At around 6 a.m., three six-by-six trucks dispatched by the Quezon City Department of Public Order and Safety arrived, apparently to ferry the remains to the Bagbag cemetery in Novaliches. The trucks, however, were forced to turn back, unable to break through the barricade.
The protestors had been demanding the immediate release of the remains of their loved ones, accusing city officials of pressuring them to withdraw a P1-billion damage suit they filed against the city government in exchange for burial assistance and livelihood programs. City officials denied the allegations.
They also oppose a plan of the city government to re-open a portion of the collapsed dump for a garbage transfer station.
"The mayor is a patent liar," said Delia Badion, who heads the organization. "The last time, he planned to evict us from our homes and then denied he had such plans after he was exposed in the media."
She called for the mayor’s resignation, adding that Mathay should step down from office because he has become callous to the plight of the urban poor.
The mayor was scheduled to meet with the organization yesterday afternoon but he begged off at the last minute, saying he had other urgent matters to attend do.
In a dialogue with the organization last week, Mathay apologized for the delay in the release of the victims’ remains, saying the forensic team has been saddled with the difficulty of identifying body parts which have largely decomposed. He said he cannot do anything but to follow scientific procedures in confirming the identity of the remains.
Early in the afternoon, the protestors proceeded to the Quezon City Hall to hold an indignation rally. A mild scuffle erupted when some Kadamay members tried to put up a picket in the inner reaches of the City Hall premises, which alarmed personnel of the City Hall police detachment. A short negotiation between the protestors and police officials resulted in an agreement to keep the picket within the vicinity of the City Hall flagpole.
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