MANILA – Death threat, abduction, and intelligence operations are among the threats that a human rights lawyer and development workers in Negros face. For the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL), these must stop.
On January 25, Atty. Rey Gorgonio of NUPL-Negros received a death threat while conducting a public forum on the Writ of Kalikasan and the campaign to stop the palm oil plantation in Candoni.
“Si Gorgonio, huwag lang nya sobrahan ng tapang. Kasi lahat ng katapangan, babagsak yan sa katahimikan. Pag napunta na sa katahimikan, walang saysay kung anumang posisyon o titulo niya ngayon. Huwag ka na sumabay sa kanya. Baka madamay ka pa,” the text message to Paghida-et sa Kauswagan Development Group (PDG) development worker Joselito Macapobre read.
(“As for Gorgonio, he should not allow his boldness to go too far. All this courage, this will end in silence. And when this silence is reached, whatever position or title he currently holds will be meaningless. Don’t join him or you. You might be included.”)
The text message also mentioned a drone surveillance near Macapobre’s home.
NUPL said in a statement that the threat echoes the killing of the late Atty. Benjamin Ramos, former secretary general of NUPL-Negros and executive director of PDG, who was gunned down by suspected military personnel on November 6, 2018 after being red-tagged and surveilled. His body sustained at least three gunshot wounds.
Ramos handled the case of the Sagay 14 massacre and Mabinay 6. Up until today, no one has been held accountable for his killing.
Read: No justice a year after death of rights lawyer
“Atty. Gorgonio now represents the clients left by Atty. Ramos, including farmers, peasants, and political prisoners, and is assisting in the campaign for the humane treatment of detainees at the Negros Occidental District Jail in Bago City,” NUPL said.
Elements of the 15th Infantry Battalion reportedly tried to abduct Macapobre on January 18, 2026 after delivering seed relief assistance to farmers. He was seized by three armed men and forced to a waiting van. He managed to break free and escape with the help from nearby farmer leaders.
Macapobre, a development worker with PDG, has been active in assisting farmers opposing the operations of Hacienda Asia Plantation Inc. Even before the attempted abduction, soldiers from the same unit repeatedly visited his home and accused him of being a recruiter for the New People’s Army (NPA).
Another PDG development worker, Analyn Merano, received threatening messages from an individual claiming to be an agent of the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency, accusing her of links to the NPA while pressuring her to cooperate in exchange for money and assurances of safety. The threats extended to her family.
PDG and its staff have been facing threats from state forces. Two of their workers faced trumped-up charges under the Terrorism Financing and Suppression Act in 2025. The local court dismissed the charges.
Read: Court junks terror financing charges against Negros development workers
“These attacks are not isolated acts. They constitute attacks against human rights defenders, as well as environmental and food defenders, who are working to protect land, livelihoods, and the environment for present and future generations,” PDG said in a statement.
The group said that the threats also extended to their partner communities, pressuring and coercing farmer leaders. PDG added, “These actions have discouraged participation in organizational activities and disrupted livelihoods—even in areas close to city centers.”
Established in 1987 to address the famine in Negros, PDG has spent decades advocating for agrarian reform, sustainable agriculture, and the rights of small farmers and fisherfolk in Southern Negros.
Human rights group Karapatan called on the Commission on Human Rights to investigate the threats and harassments against the Negros-based defenders. (RTS, DAA)
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