Steps taken to prevent 'rido' between 2 clans

CAMP SIONGCO, Maguindanao, Philippines  – Authorities have imposed measures to prevent a possible bloody clan war or “rido” between the Utto and Ampatuan clans in Rajah Buayan, Maguindanao.

The two clans now face a standoff sparked by each other’s accusations that certain leaders of both families have raped women related to either side.

Col. Modesto Asto, spokesman of the Army’s 6th Infantry Division, said their commander, Brig. Gen. Rey Ardo, has enlisted the help of religious leaders to defuse the tension between the two clans.

Rajah Buayan Mayor Yacob Ampatuan has differences with one of the elders of the Utto family who contested his bid for a third term in last year’s elections.

The tension between the two clans escalated two weeks ago when reports circulated that the mayor’s defeated rival allegedly raped a woman related to the Ampatuans.

The Utto family, soon after, also reported to local media outfits that the mayor and one of his brothers allegedly molested a woman who was poised to file charges against them.

The Uttos and Ampatuans in Rajah Buayan are both known to have armed followers, among them members of Moro secessionist groups.

Unidentified men fired at the mayor’s house in Shariff Aguak, Maguindanao last week.

Chief Superintendent Bienvenido Latag, Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao police director, said investigators were still determining the identities of the gunmen and the real motive behind the attack.

The gunmen, believed to be secessionist rebels, opened fire with assault rifles and rockets at the adjoining houses of the Rajah Buayan mayor and Mayor Akmad Ampatuan of Salibo town.

“We are looking into different angles. Hopefully our investigators can achieve a breakthrough soon,” Latag was quoted as saying yesterday by the Mindanao Cross, a weekly Catholic newspaper based in nearby Cotabato City.

No one was killed or wounded in the attack, but the incident sowed panic among the residents.