Hundreds of grieving villagers walked under scorching sun on Thursday to bury 12 of 26 Filipino children poisoned by a cassava snack they ate at school in central Philippines. President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo ordered officials to release funds to the families after hearing that some were too poor to afford coffins for their children. Arroyo met the families of the victims in San Jose village on Thursday and ordered police and health authorities to find out what happened.
"Let us get at the root cause of this tragedy," she said after visiting the village. "I want the police to work with the health authorities to give me a detailed report on why, and how, this unfortunate incident happened."