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Reliving the Maguindanao Massacre over and over again

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Last updated: January 5, 2010

The Philippine Daily Inquirer reports in today’s Sunday paper of the existence and proliferation of a so-called “Maguindanao (Massacre) 11/23/2009“ video footage done in the semblance of a documentary which sells from around 70 to 120 pesos each. The video, it was said, is about four hours (2 days) worth of taped footage of the retrieval operations (at the crime scene where the back hoe was found beside the shallow grave hurriedly dug up by the perpetrators to bury the victims, some of them still alive).

There is no script, no background music, no sound but that of the back hoe as it digs for victims. There were vendors of these dvds claiming the ones they’re selling are clear copies since they were taken by Digger
Photo by chefrandenSOCO (scene of the crime operatives) themselves.

I don’t know about you but I think it is very insensitive to sell, buy and watch these DVDs.  Considering that the people being unearthed in all their stripped glory and humanity are real victims and not actors — the red stains on their violated bodies are of real blood — whoever sold these taped videos to be reproduced and peddled in the very streets and public markets of Maguindanao spits on the memory of these poor souls whose lives were taken mercilessly on that fateful Monday.

If it weren’t even considered okay to publish gory still photos online or offline, why would anyone think that it’s okay to watch the retrieval operations over and over again at home?

The mourning families of these victims have suffered enough. The memory of that gruesome event is hard enough to erase. Let us be sensitive enough to spare them of the endless grief of reliving the Maguindanao massacre over and over again.

Please do not buy, sell or watch these “Maguindanao 11/23/09” DVDs.

Update:

I’ve recently read this heartening report that as of Monday, January 4,2010 some 600 “Maguindanao 11/23/09” DVDs have been ‘surrendered’ by Quiapo vendors to Optical Media Board Chair Ronnie Ricketts. This is a wonderful development. Let’s hope more vendors follow suit.

One response to “Reliving the Maguindanao Massacre over and over again”

  1. Anonymous Avatar
    Anonymous

    Actual video of the Maguindanao Massacre DVD Rain in Quiapo here:

    http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=2596421…

    Like

    Reply

Let me know what you think… :)

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● About Me
Cecilia Regina Aquino Blanquera Marmol aka RJ Marmol profile picture

I’m RJ Marmol — writer, musician, and independent creator based in Manila.

I write songs, essays, and books about the messy overlap between money, overwhelm, creativity, identity, and rebuilding. Much of my work circles around what happens when life stops feeling manageable — and how we try to think clearly, make decisions, and keep moving anyway.

I’m also the author of Rebuilding Under Debt: Thinking Clearly When Everything Is a Blur, a nonfiction book published under Steady Hand Press. The paperback edition is listed under my full publishing name, Cecilia Regina Aquino Blanquera.

On the music side, I release work as HeyRJ. On the writing side, this site is where I gather my books, essays, notes, and whatever I’m building next.

Music

HeyRJ is my sonic soul project. I create raw, minimalist-style and deeply personal music interpretations that feel like a late-night conversation with your truest self.

By blending lo-fi acoustic textures with poetic honesty, my work explores love, loss, grief, healing, and the quiet in-betweens of life. Each song is a letter — a journal entry — a gentle companion for when the world feels too loud or too quiet.

While my catalogue began with intimate cover renditions, my work is increasingly being shaped by original writing, drawing from years of poems, lived questions, and emotional survival.

“Stuck Home Syndrome” released on March 20, 2026 is my first original 20-track album written during a period when time felt compressed and days began to blur into each other. The songs came from sitting with thoughts that had nowhere else to go — unfiltered, repetitive, and sometimes uncomfortable. It’s a concept album that isn’t built around singles or polish. It’s closer to a continuous inner monologue, recorded with minimal production and very little ornamentation and meant to be listened to as one cohesive body of work. The goal wasn’t to resolve anything, only to document how it felt while it was happening.

On May 29, 2026 I released new original singles – “Rapturous”, “Uh Huh”, “Look At You”, “All That” and “Blew Print”. I continue to release both original and cover songs and intend to so for as long as I can so check back every once in a while — you might. just find something you’ll like.

For business inquiries relating to music, email me at: heyrjmusic[at]gmail[dot]com or my personal email at: rjmarmol[at]gmail[dot]com.

Books

Rebuilding Under Debt: Thinking Clearly When Everything Is a Blur

A nonfiction book about what debt does to the mind — and how to begin functioning again when financial stress has made everything feel blurred, urgent, and overwhelming.

Rather than treating debt only as a financial math problem, the book explores the emotional and cognitive realities of financial distress: shame, decision fatigue, avoidance, panic, relationship strain, and the difficulty of making sound decisions while mentally depleted.

Published under Steady Hand Press. It’s available worldwide in ebook and paperback formats on Amazon. Bookstores and libraries can also be order it wholesale via Ingram.

Contact

For book-related inquiries, media requests, bookstore questions, or discussion-group invitations, you can reach me through the contact page on this site or send me an email to rjmarmol[at]gmail[dot]com or hello[at]steadyhandpress.com

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