Never Forgotten, Never Silenced: Surface Dexter Capuyan, Bazoo De Jesus, James Balao, Felix Salaveria Jr., Jonas Burgos, and all Desaparecidos!
- Katribu Nasyunal
- Jun 1
- 2 min read
As we mark the International Week of the Disappeared from May 26 to 31, we stand against state-enforced disappearance and other human rights violations. The government has long targeted the Indigenous Peoples, rights advocates, and land defenders. Today, we raise our voices for those who have been abducted—Dexter Capuyan, Gene Roz Jamil “Bazoo” de Jesus, Jonas Burgos, James Balao, Felix Salaveria Jr., and all Desaparecidos.
Agents of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group of the Philippine National Police abducted Dexter Capuyan and Bazoo de Jesus on April 28, 2023, in Taytay, Rizal. Their families have filed petitions for the Writ of Amparo and Writ of Habeas Data before the Supreme Court, and human rights defenders continue to mobilize, calling for the safe return of the two.
James Balao, a Kankanaey-Ibaloi activist, was abducted on September 17, 2008, in La Trinidad, Benguet. He is a founding member of the Cordillera Peoples Alliance and has long been red-tagged for his advocacy. His family and colleagues demand his return, but the government refuses to act.
Felix Salaveria Jr. is an Indigenous rights advocate. He was abducted in Tobaco City, Albay, on August 28, 2024, five days after the abduction of activist James Jazmines. State forces carried out their disappearance in a planned operation to silence their work defending Indigenous communities.
Jonas Burgos is a peasant rights advocate. On April 28, 2007, he was abducted by state forces in Quezon City. His family has fought tirelessly for justice, even bringing his case before international human rights bodies. Despite years of struggle, he remains missing.
Dexter, Bazoo, James, Felix, and Jonas are victims of enforced disappearances for upholding human rights and resisting militarization and plunder of ancestral lands. Their advocacies persist and intensify.
The militarization of Indigenous communities serves corporate interests that threaten the Indigenous Peoples’ land, life, and resources. Projects like the Kaliwa Dam in Rizal and Quezon and the Jalaur Dam in Iloilo forcibly displace the Dumagat-Remontado and the Tumandok, respectively. Mining operations, such as the Didipio Gold-Copper Mine (OceanaGold) in Nueva Vizcaya, Makilala Mining (Celsius Resources) in Kalinga, and nickel extraction in Palawan and Zambales, devastate local ecosystems, prompting the Indigenous Peoples to defend their lands against environmental destruction. Instead of respecting their Free, Prior, and Informed Consent, the state brands them as terrorists, using harassment, arrests, and enforced disappearances to silence opposition. Communities that resist are subjected to state repression, including disappearances, red-tagging, and violence.
We hold the military and police responsible for these crimes, and the government accountable for the disappearances and abductions. The Anti-Enforced or Involuntary Disappearance Act of 2012 (RA 10353) should prevent such atrocities.
Katribu stands firm in the fight for justice. We call on Indigenous communities, human rights defenders, and the Filipino people to resist state repression. We refuse to be silenced. We refuse to forget. We will fight until every desaparecido is surfaced and the Armed Forces of the Philippines and PNP are held accountable.
Comments