Philippine Government, AFP and DND are Accessories to the Crime of Maguindanao - Ampatuan Murder/Massacre . Some Highpowered Machine Guns Used in the Massacre are DND-Military issued.

Today, hundreds of high powered and sophisticated guns, some made by Armscore - a major arms supplier to the AFP, that can arm 500 soldiers or militia men were recovered in a shallow hole near the residence of the Ampatuans in Maguindanao. The said weapons were said to be the same guns that was used to kill the 57 Ampatuan massacre victims. The source said that the weapons were buried one day after the mass killing.

The question we have now is this: why are the high powered guns in the possession of private individuals? I remember some issues a few months back that was well covered by the media. It involved a junior navy officer and some members of the military. They broke the chain of command and expressed their loss of faith in their superior officers and one issue brought to the media's attention is the sale of high powered guns to the highest bidders who happen to be influential  politicians. I shrugged it off as a mere accusation. But after the Maguindanao massacre, it seems that the accusations were real and backed by convincing proof ( physical evidence recovered ).

I'm pretty sure the issue on the Department Of Defense issued high powered sophisticated automatic guns will just fade away. In the first place who in the Philippines has the balls to investigate or prosecute the high ranking officials of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Department of Defense? NOBODY! The best thing that the so called "investigators" can do is to play around with the media through "paid" press releases.

This being said, it is better to concentrate on prosecuting the Ampatuan massacre killers today rather than diverting attention to the private arms confiscated. It's a hard decision and arguably debatable depending on your political linkage, but it is better to bring justice to the families of the victims by actively participating in the judicial proceedings. To follow the weapons used is useless.