THE photos and video tell a true story.
They were shamefully rich, immensely powerful, and by many accounts virulent in their ways and mores, during their long rule in Maguindanao province and in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).
By court documents, the lifestyle check conducted by the Office of the Onbudsman, and the testimonies of their own allies and subjects, this much is true: The Ampatuans and their associates had 597 bank accounts, 500 hectares of real property assets, 130 motor vehicles, 420 firearms, and a private army many hundreds strong.
Below is a playlist of PCIJ documentaries on the Ampatuan Massacre of Nov. 23, 2009, as well as on the Ampatuan clan, whose scions now stand accused in the murder of 58 persons, including 32 journalists and media workers.
The videos were produced by the PCIJ team led by Ed Lingao, at the time PCIJ multimedia director.
Research and reporting by Carolyn O. Arguillas, editor of MindaNews, and other journalist-colleagues of PCIJ in Mindanao, assisted in great measure in the making of these video.
Click on the links to watch the video
ANGKAN, Inc, a PCIJ documentary on the clans of Maguiindanao, 2012
ANGKAN, Inc. with subtitles, 2012
Maguindanao: The Quest for Justice, 2010
Maguindanao: Isang Taon Matapos ang Massacre
Freeze order on Ampatuan assets expires, Dec. 2011
LIPAT-BAHAY. A PCIJ documentary on the wealth of the Ampatuans
The Ampatuan assets, a PCIJ documentary on the wealth of the Ampatuans, 2012
PCIJ on GMANewsTV: Maguindanao: Ampatuan Wealth
PCIJ. The sale of the Ampatuan assets, 2013
PCIJ. Ampatuan Massacre, 57th month, 2014
Ampatuan Massacre, 7 years later, 2016
— PCIJ, December 2019