MANILA — Overseas Filipino grassroots organizations launched the “Defend Negros” campaign in response to the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ (AFP) operation in Toboso, Negros Occidental that left 19 people dead on April 19, 2026.
More than a month after the massacre, Anakbayan South Seattle (ABSS) along with Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) Washington convened to formally launch the “Defend Negros” in Washington State– a campaign which aims to call for the 19 people who were killed in the 13-hour long strafing operation if the AFP’s 79th Infantry Battalion against the New People’s Army (NPA).
Among those killed were unarmed civilians Kai Dana Rene Sorem, a Seattle-based Filipino activist and founding member of ABSS; Filipino-American activist Lyle Prijoles; journalist and poet RJ Ledesma; student leader Alyssa Alano; and peasant advocates Maureen Santuyo and Errol Wendel.
“So many people love Kai, Lyle. So many people are looking for ways to get involved right now,” said ABSS chairperson Poppy San Jose, citing the outpouring of support the campaign received even before its official launch.
Beyond seeking justice for the Toboso 19, the campaign also calls for accountability for what organizers describe as continuing state violence in Negros, a region that has been marked by heavy military presence, attacks against peasant communities, and the harassment and imprisonment of land rights advocates.
“We want to deepen our analysis of what’s going on in Negros and why the only solution to its problems is national democracy for the Philippines,” San Jose said.
During the launch, participants discussed initial strategies to mobilize overseas Filipinos and solidarity allies.
Among the campaign’s priorities is building support for the Philippine Human Rights Act (PHRA) or H.R. 1433, a proposed bill in the United States Congress that seeks to suspend U.S. security assistance to the Philippines until the government addresses human rights violations and holds state forces accountable.
Organizers also emphasized on the need to challenge what they described as misinformation and red-tagging narratives surrounding the April 19 killings.
“It’s critical that the mass movement is responding and keeping track of the different narratives being spread, especially on the channels that overseas Filipinos are following, like Facebook,” San Jose said. “We need to let people know what the truth is.” (AMU, RVO)
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