Main suspect in Philippine massacre surrenders

The main suspect in the massacre of 57 people in an election-related feud in the southern Philippines surrendered on Thursday as authorities moved to dismantle his clan's control over the region.

Andal Ampatuan Jr, a local mayor in Maguindanao province, was flown out by an army helicopter from the provincial capital, where he was handed over by his brother to a senior government official and the top military general in the region.

"The charges are baseless," Ampatuan later told reporters at an airport in General Santos City. "They are not true. My conscience is clear."

On Monday, about 100 armed men attacked a convoy carrying members of the rival Mangudadatu clan, who were on their way to file the candidacy of one of their family for the provincial governor's post in elections next year.

The attackers herded the victims to a remote hillside and attacked them with M-16 rifles and machetes. At least 10 of those killed were motorists who were passing by on the highway and had apparently witnessed the abduction.

Not all the victims have been identified but 22 of them were believed to be journalists accompanying the family, making Monday's attack in the troubled south the deadliest ever on the media anywhere in the world.

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has called the Ampatuans valuable political allies in the past, but her government announced moves against the family on Thursday after the massacre sparked worldwide condemnation.

"I am requesting the investigation of the provincial governor and other mayors relative to this case," Interior Secretary Ronaldo Puno told reporters, adding those officials should be suspended while facing an inquiry.

Clan wars like the feud between the Mangudadatus and the Ampatuans are common in the southern Philippines. There are also many communist and Islamist rebels, bandits and pirates there.

Andal Ampatuan Sr, the patriarch of the family, has been elected governor of Maguindanao three times. He quit the post earlier this year and placed a son as officer in charge.

Another son, Zaldy, is the governor of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, which covers six provinces.

Many other family members are mayors across the province.

On Thursday, soldiers took over town halls and the capitol building in Maguindanao and disarmed a 350-member paramilitary force under the control of the Ampatuans. The authority of local officials to supervise police forces was also revoked, Puno said.

The ruling Lakas-Kampi-CMD party expelled Andal Sr, Andal Jr and Zaldy Ampatuan from the alliance.

"We feel that they have failed to exercise their moral and actual authority over their clan members which is most probably the cause of the incident," said Gilberto Teodoro, who is the administration's candidate for the 2010 presidential elections.

"We don't delve into their culpability under law but their membership in this party ends."

Andal Ampatuan Jr will be brought to Manila to face a formal inquiry and possible criminal charges, Puno said.

"We can assure that the province of Maguindanao is under control and that lawful authorities are in charge, the investigation of the incident is being conducted in earnest and those responsible will be held accountable," he said.