Lauro devoting life to helping crime victims

Lauro Vizconde, who said he has lived an abnormal life since the murder of his wife and two daughters on June 30, 1991, vowed yesterday to devote the rest of his life helping other victims of heinous crimes.

For the time being, however, he plans to go away for at least a few weeks as he struggles to pick up the pieces of a shattered life.

Visibly elated by the verdict handed down yesterday by Parañaque Regional Trial Court Judge Amelita Tolentino on seven of nine accused of the triple murder, Vizconde said he was very happy with the judgment.

"I am forever grateful to Judge Tolentino. This is not just my case... this is the people's case... this is the people's victory," Vizconde said during a victory luncheon he hosted after the four-hour promulgation of the sentence.

Dante Jimenez, leader of the militant Volunteer Against Crime and Corruption (VACC), heaped praises on the Vizconde patriarch for "resiliency and dedication" in waging his crusade for justice.

"Mr. Vizconde has been very strong and determined to follow up this case. Let this be a lesson to all victims of crime. Don't depend too much on your lawyers," Jimenez said.

"Maybe, when Ka Lauro returns from his vacation, I can finally pass on to him the chairmanship of the VACC as we have agreed," he added.

Vizconde tacitly confirmed the agreement by doing a "high five" with Jimenez.

VACC member Levy Vinculado, himself a crime victim, said justice was finally given the Vizcondes.

Meanwhile, Manila Archbishop Jaime Cardinal Sin prayed for "inner healing and forgiveness" for the families of both the convicts and the Vizcondes.

In a statement, Sin said he had long been praying for the speedy resolution of the Vizconde case.

"I also know the anguish that our brother Lauro went through with the massacre of his family. May there be healing for both parties," the prelate said.

He added that he continues to pray for eternal peace for the victims-- Estrellita and her daughters Carmela and Jennifer.

"I also pray that Hubert and his friends may find inner peace with God as they serve their sentence," Sin said.

For his part, Sen. Renato Cayetano, who sat beside the Vizconde patriarch throughout the promulgation of the sentence, said the conviction of the suspects showed that the judicial system in the country is working.

"It shows that regardless of your status in life, you get justice if you have strong evidence to present," Cayetano stressed.

Cayetano, chairman of the Senate committee on justice and human rights, credited the government's witness protection program for the resolution of the case.

The senator said that without state witness Jessica Alfaro, the case would not have prospered in court.

Cayetano, who once acted as legal counsel for Vizconde, said he would introduce a bill seeking to strengthen the witness protection program to encourage witnesses to come out and testify in court.

"With a strong witness protection program, I believe more heinous crimes will be solved," he said.

At the House of Representatives, Bohol Rep. Ernesto Herrera cited Tolentino for having the courage to hand down a guilty verdict on Hubert Webb and his six co-accused.

"To say the judge was unfair would be very unfair because she did what she thought was the right thing to do. That's her way of substantiating her decision," Herrera said.

He said if the accused felt that the decision was biased, they could contest the verdict before the Supreme Court.

In Mindanao, Mayor Michael Sinsuat of Upi, Maguindanao hailed Tolentino's decision, saying it boosted government efforts to eliminate a culture of vendetta killings in the country.

Sinsuat said the ruling disproved the perception among Muslims in the remote areas that only the Shari'ah court of the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front is capable of sensibly resolving criminal cases.

"This is a true example of how our judicial system works and that it will remain upholding the law of the land," Sinsuat noted. - With Jose Rodel Clapano, Gina Tabonares, Liberty Dones, John Unson