Brandon’s Note: This tribute was given at San Francisco Union Square. On Feb. 23 at 9:30 p.m., volunteer teachers Chad Booc and Gelejurain Ngujo II, community health worker Elgyn Balonga and two accompanying drivers Tirso Añar and Robert Aragon were on their way back to Davao City when they were shot dead. This massacre has drawn wide condemnation from various groups and institutions against the brutal massacre in New Bataan, Davao de Oro

Good evening everyone. 

Some of you may know my story. I am one of the lucky few who survived an assassination attempt by the Armed Forces of the Philippines. Persecuted and targeted for serving indigenous peoples, my story is not so different from that of the New Bataan 5.

One of the victims was Chad Booc. He graduated cum laude in computer science in the top university in the Philippines. He could have had a lucrative career anywhere, but he chose to serve the marginalized and neglected indigenous Lumad communities.

Like Chad, I became involved with a youth organization in college and learned about the plight of the Filipino people. I deplored how the indigenous peoples and their ancestral lands are exploited by their own government in the name of profit-driven development. This is manifested in the non-recognition of ancestral land rights, development aggression, government neglect, institutionalized discrimination, militarization and ethnocide, among others.

Like Chad, I was moved by the indigenous peoples I met when I went on my solidarity trip to the Cordillera. Their rich culture and continuing struggle to defend their ancestral land drew me to their cause.

Like Chad, I was harassed and targeted by the military for merely helping indigenous people. Chad, Jurain, and Elgyn committed their lives to serving those neglected and abused by their own government, and an increasingly dangerous one under the brutal Duterte regime. They visited communities striving towards self determination, by building their own schools, and learning about their lands and about how to care for each other.

Chad said, “if you are planted, it means you will sprout once more. That’s why when I die, I don’t want to be buried. I want to be planted.” It reminds me of another dear friend who was also extrajudicially killed in January 2019. Randy Malayao was killed by State Security Forces. He said a similar message as Chad, “Bloom where you are planted.” Both messages give me hope in these times of duress.

I could have been one of the New Bataan 5, or the many others who perished in this fight. I consider myself extremely lucky to be alive. Although I suffer from paralysis, I will continue to use my voice to speak up for those suffering under corrupt rulers like Duterte. I may be persecuted and vilified, but never neutralized. Just as Chad said, we will not and we shall not be buried. Nourished by their sacrifice, we shall rise up and grow stronger as we continue the fight.

Let us continue to demand that the US stop funding the military and police in the Philippines who are committing atrocities, by passing the Philippine Human Rights Act. Let us continue to lift up those who are serving the people to their very last breath.  Let us continue to shine a light on people like Chad, Jurain, and Elgyn and the communities they served.