Wednesday, December 15, 2010

As Slow As Snail

So yesterday's big news was the decision of the Supreme Court to acquit Hubert Webb and six others of the 1991 Vizconde Massacre.

So what happens now? The Vizconde Massacre will forever be remembered as one of the highly celebrated cases in the country. It was all over the news! Movies were even made because of this tragedy. I was just three years old when the massacre happened so I have no memories about how big the news was back in 1991 but in 1995 when the eye witness Jessica Alfaro surfaced I was already old enough to understand what's going on. I remember being so scared about the possibility that we could be a victim of those massacres too. It may sound silly but back in the day, there were really lots of news about families getting massacred in their homes! And the youngest Vizconde, Jennifer was just SEVEN YEARS OLD when the poor girl was stabbed to death! So I was really terrified! And yes my fear even got worse when the Carlo J. Caparas movie about the massacre came out! Those massacre movies back in the day were scarier than horror films because it could really happen to you!

You know what, I believed Jessica Alfaro back then. I was really angry with Hubert Webb and company because of what (I thought back then) they did. And I admit, that the fact that Huber and company belong to rich families who seemed to have a carefree life even made me hate them more.

But several years after, I just realized how strong Webb's case was. He really has the documents and proof to back his claim that he was not in the country during the time of the crime. He has the videos that he was in the US and he has the statement and records from the US Embassy to prove it. I did not know those facts back in the 90s when the case was talked about, I only learned this stuff this year when this case made the news again. I somehow felt guilty of judging Webb back then. But I was young back then and I was just so horrified with what happened to the Vizconde family that I guess I just want someone to pay for it. And I guess how the media
covered the news back in the day influenced my opinion too. And you know maybe the court back then too was pressured by the public outcry and media hysteria. A case of trial by publicity? Perhaps.

I can't help but feel sad for Lauro Vizconde, his suffering is still not over. For more than a decade he believed that this case was resolved, only to found out that the authority got the wrong guys and the murderers are still out there. Seeing Lauro Vizconde devastated on the news yesterday made me feel so sad that I feel like crying. Mr. Vizconde is not young anymore and I'm afraid that he may not find the justice he deserves in his lifetime. Let's face it, it took 15 years for the court to realize Jessica Alfaro was not a credible witness and that the Webb's alibi were strong! How long would it take them to know who really did the crime?

The bottomline is this case just shows how the justice system in the country works. And it sucks, big time.


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