Gunmen barged into the home of a village leader in the central Philippines, killing him in front of his family in the latest violence ahead of May elections, the military said Friday. Danny Amor was shot several times in the back with silencer-fitted pistols as he had dinner at home with his family in Masbate province's San Jacinto township late Thursday, said Maj. Harold Cabunoc, an army spokesman. Cabunoc said politics was believed behind the killing, the second poll-related murder in the province in three days. The head of a village leaders' association was shot dead Tuesday in Esperanza township. In November, 57 people were massacred in the southern Philippines on their way to register a gubernatorial candidate _ the worst election-related violence in the country's history. Members of a rival clan have been arrested but only one has so far been charged over the killings. In an attempt to forestall violence ahead of the polls, two weeks ago the government initiated a five-month, nationwide ban on carrying guns in public, and at least 357 violators have been arrested so far. National Police Chief Jesus Verzosa put Masbate province under special police watch because of the province's history of poll violence. Nearly a third of Philippine cities and municipalities have been identified as potential hotspots.
