Events & Updates
Learn more about Brandon, his work and what he is up to through his writings, speeches and interviews.
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The forces that nearly murdered me are meeting in San Francisco today
In 2019, members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines attempted to assassinate me in response to my efforts to defend Indigenous Philippine lands from environmental and governmental degradation. Bullet fragments from the attack are still lodged in my body, and I am paralyzed from the chest down.
But it was not only those specific soldiers who were responsible for my near-murder. It wasn’t even only the Philippine government. The global neoliberal economic model that prioritizes endless profiteering and exploitation over peace, equality, and environmental stewardship helped load the gun.
Now, four years later, and back in my hometown of San Francisco, I am surrounded by the leading symbols of that global order—because my city has been chosen as the site of this year’s Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit. For the first time in 12 years, the United States is hosting the APEC Heads of State meeting, a gathering of national leaders from 21 member economies—including Joe Biden, Xi Jinping, and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., all of whom have arrived in San Francisco—and the business executives of some of the largest multinational corporations in the world.
Journey for Justice: It’s Been Three Years Since the Assassination Attempt on My Life
August marks three years since I was targeted for assassination by military agents in the Philippines under the Duterte administration. I was shot in front of my home in the presence of my daughter and family. The attack has left me scarred, nearly dying from eight cardiac arrests, and now permanently paralyzed without the use of my legs or my hands.
After being medically evacuated back to the U.S., it horrifies me to think that the bullet fragments still lodged in my body have been funded through American tax dollars. Until now, there has been no investigation or accountability for this brazen attack, sanctioned by the Philippine government in an atmosphere of total disregard for human rights and the lives of its people.
Under Duterte, the de facto policy has been to kill the poor by the thousands in the guise of a war on drugs. Official numbers report over 6,000 Filipinos were killed in police operations, not including victims of vigilante-style killings estimated at around 30,000 by human rights groups. This brutal record has led to the international watchdog Global Witness declaring the Philippines under Duterte the deadliest in the world for defenders of human rights, the environment, and natural resources.
My fight is their fight: Stand with human rights defenders under attack
your support and concern for me must now help others like me in the Philippines who continue to face state attacks. The fight for justice, and for human rights in the Philippines, continues. I fight not only for myself, but for my fellow human rights defenders targeted by the Duterte government for no other reason than advocating for the voiceless and criticizing the failed policies of the government in alleviating the Filipino people, especially those in rural areas, from the daily crisis of crushing poverty and hunger.