MANILA, Philippines - Justice Secretary Leila de Lima on Thursday said she is seeking the transfer of detained policemen who have been implicated in the November 23 Maguindanao massacre.

The policemen are currently detained at Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig along with members of the Ampatuan clan and other suspects in the case. They are among 197 suspects who have been charged with participating in the massacre of 57 people, mostly journalists, in Maguindanao last November.

De Lima said there is growing tension among the suspects, which escalated to a near violent confrontation over the weekend.

"I wrote Interior and Local Government Secretary Jesse Robredo the other day to ask for the policemen detainees at Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig who are more likely to turn state witness to be temporarily transferred to a separate facility within the camp to keep them safe," she said.

The Ampatuans are accused of masterminding the November 23 massacre.