“To be the underdog on a larger stage, to stand against overwhelming odds, to be held in the highest regard by those who matter most — our courageous clients who deserve fearless advocates, and the communities that entrust us with their causes — and to be recognized for it on the world stage: that is our truest measure of triumph.”

“To be the underdog on a larger stage, to stand against overwhelming odds, to be held in the highest regard by those who matter most — our courageous clients who deserve fearless advocates, and the communities that entrust us with their causes — and to be recognized for it on the world stage: that is our truest measure of triumph.”

CEBU – The National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL) dedicated its 2026 Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award to its clients, slain colleagues, and generations of “people’s lawyers” who chose to defend the marginalized despite risks to their lives.

In statements following the announcement, NUPL leaders said the recognition extends beyond the organization, pointing to nearly two decades of legal work involving civil liberties cases, strategic litigation, and pro bono defense of marginalized sectors.

“At bottom though, it is a tribute to its clients – past, present and prospective – who have found a voice in their people’s lawyers and are empowered with a common determination to use the law to serve the people and make the rule of justice prevail despite or in spite of the existential challenges to life, limb and liberty,” NUPL Chairperson Edre Olalia said.

For NUPL Vice-President for Mindanao Carlos Isagani Zarate, the award situates the Philippines’ human rights struggle within a global context, highlighting the law as a “primary instrument of defense for the marginalized.”

“It validates the NUPL’s nearly two decades of commitment to peoples’ lawyering-representing farmers, laborers, indigenous peoples and human rights defenders – often at no cost and at great personal risk,” Zarate said.

Similarly, NUPL Secretary General Josalee Deinla said the award reflects the realities of human rights lawyering in the Philippines, where lawyers often face threats alongside the communities they serve.

In December 2025, NUPL sought Supreme Court intervention over alleged red-tagging of its members and other progressive groups, citing a document linked to the  National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) that allegedly labeled NUPL and several organizations as “underground mass organizations and front organizations,” alongside reports of lawyers facing threats, surveillance, and public vilification.

Deinla further said the recognition highlights a practice shaped by both hardship and endurance, with a legacy that outlasts individual lifetimes and repressive regimes.

“To be the underdog on a larger stage, to stand against overwhelming odds, to be held in the highest regard by those who matter most — our courageous clients who deserve fearless advocates, and the communities that entrust us with their causes — and to be recognized for it on the world stage: that is our truest measure of triumph,” Deinla said.

Honoring fallen lawyers and defenders

NUPL President Ephraim Cortez said the award also recognizes the group’s advocacy and the sacrifices of its lawyers who chose to stand with marginalized communities despite risks and hardship.

“We will receive this award mindful of the sacrifices of our members, especially our colleagues who died serving our clients and the people.”

At least 133 lawyers have been killed in the Philippines since 1984, according to NUPL, including 59 during the administration of former president Rodrigo Duterte, a figure described as higher than all recorded killings of legal professionals in the previous five decades, alongside 117 documented attacks against lawyers ranging from threats and harassment to attempted killings.

Many of the cases involved lawyers handling politically sensitive work, including representation of Indigenous communities, farmers, and activists tagged as communist supporters under the government’s anti-insurgency campaign. In several incidents documented by rights groups, lawyers were killed shortly after taking on such cases or after being publicly red-tagged.

Among the most cited cases is the 2018 killing of NUPL lawyer Benjamin Ramos, who was shot in Kabankalan City, Negros Occidental shortly after assisting sugarcane farmers linked to the Sagay massacre. Ramos, a founding NUPL member, had earlier been red-tagged as a communist insurgent, with rights groups linking his killing to a broader pattern of attacks on lawyers handling land disputes and politically sensitive cases.

Cortez also dedicated the recognition to political prisoners and marginalized groups, quoting founding Chairperson Atty. Romeo Capulong: “We have brave clients, they deserve brave lawyers.”

Meanwhile, NUPL Vice-President for Visayas Angelo Karlo Guillen highlighted the work of lawyers, activists, and human rights defenders who continue to face danger in their service to communities.

“It is our honor to serve and speak for these selfless individuals — those persecuted, imprisoned, disappeared or killed by the government only because they had the courage to stand by their convictions,” Guillen said. “So long as there are people like them, injustice will always be challenged. So long as they fight, we will fight beside them.” (RVO)

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