Hundreds of parishioners of Father Rufus Halley, the Irish Columban priest murdered in the southern Philippines, are planning to travel to Cagayan de Oro City today to attend his funeral.
Members of Father Halley's family from Waterford will attend the funeral. His brothers, Walter, Gerry, Eamonn and Emmet, flew to Manila this week and were due to arrive on Mindanao last night.
Muslims and Christians alike from his parish of Malabang, in Lanao del Sur province on Mindanao island, will be present when the priest is buried today at the Columban memorial park. One of Father Halley's closest friends, Mr Josefa Balboa, said yesterday local people would bid goodbye with a heavy heart to a man who built the bridge of understanding between Muslims and Christians.
A Belgian priest, Father Bernard Maes, who was with Father Halley three hours before he was shot dead in a foiled kidnap attempt, said the parishioners of Malabang and the nearby town of Balabagan had vowed to continue the work of peace started by Father Halley, or Father Popong as he was affectionately known. "It must be continued," Father Maes told the Philippine Daily Inquirer newspaper. "Despite the high risks we are facing, peace-building will go on. We have to rise again and continue what Father Popong had started." But he said people were also anxious that those responsible for his death be punished. "We demand justice for Father Popong much as we demand justice for victims of injustices in this part of the country."
Meling Tan, a Chinese-Filipino trader, told the newspaper that Father Halley left a very healthy environment among Muslims and Christians in Malabang. "He taught us how to really love people of another faith because he believed it is only through dialogues that one understands his fellow man," he said. Meanwhile, police are still searching for the man they believe shot Father Halley in the roadside attack last Tuesday.
They believe they know the name of the gunman, allegedly a member of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, the main Muslim group fighting for independence on the island.
The alleged driver of the gang's getaway car, Abdulsamad Ibrahim, has surrendered to police authorities.
Another suspect who reportedly served as the gang's lookout, identified by police as Canal Macapondo, was arrested yesterday.