Migrante Taiwan condemns the war crimes and militarization of the Armed Forces of the Philippines against the people of Negros Island. Just last April 19, peasant organizers Errol Wendel and Maureen Santuyo, student leader Alyssa Alano, community journalist RJ Ledesma, Filipino-American activists Kai Sorem and Lyle Prijoles were among the civilians murdered by the AFP through indiscriminate strafing. The group were in the area of Toboso to conduct a field investigation on the issue of landlessness among the sugarcane workers in the area. A month after the massacre, the AFP still continues to evade accountability and has instead only ramped up its killings and human rights violations. Hundreds of residents remain displaced as the military intensifies its operations.
Last April 26, we gathered Filipino migrant workers, students, and international solidarity allies to discuss the conditions of the farmworkers in Negros. The stagnant wages, backwards feudal system, and militarization of our communities are precisely the reasons why thousands of Filipinos leave the country everyday in search of a more livable life abroad. Instead of addressing the root causes of poverty, landlessness, and joblessness in the Philippines, the state continues to heighten its use of military violence against people who organize and assert their right to a decent life. The people’s taxes that could be used to fund jobs, education, and basic social services are instead squandered into military spending used to terrorize our own people. It is not a crime to go to the places unreached by the government, and to take a deeper look into the system that compels people to migrate just to feed their families.
We continue to echo the call for justice and accountability. We continue the fight left behind by Errol Wendel, Maureen Santuyo, Alyssa Alano, RJ Ledesma, Kai Sorem, and Lyle Prijoles in advancing the rights of the Filipino people.
Justice for Toboso 19! Defend Negros!
Resist Militarization, Fascism, and US-led War in the Asia-Pacific!
HUSTISYA PARA SA NEGROS 19!
MILITAR SA KANAYUNAN, PALAYASIN!
