Statement of Rose

Today (April 28) is our 8th year wedding anniversary. It has been almost 15 days of your disappearance. While I cannot exactly express what and how I feel for the past days spending sleepless nights, all I wish now is that we could be together on this very special day.

Surely, without you, I cannot celebrate grandiosely the 8th year of our togetherness. What for? I cannot light a dinner candle for two and embrace you tightly around my arms. This night will be cold, but I will just keep the flame of courage burning in my heart to give me strength each day as I wait eagerly for your safe return.

Our son, DM, keeps on asking me when will you be home. That query is giving me a wrench in the heart, for I myself do not know if when would that be. My dear, I sometimes feel that everything is uncertain. But I keep holding on to the belief that wherever you are, you still have that love for me, for DM, and for the people whom you serve.

It hurts us much when some military elements and their cohorts are flaunting theories of “self ambush” and purging within the Communist Party of the Philippines as possible motives of your disappearance. Worse, they are sowing intrigues, and even trying to make it appear that you, together with Luisa, are just having a good time now roaming around some of the shopping malls of Iloilo City. Would you risk your integrity, dear, just to boost the popularity of Anakpawis Partylist to gain popular support from the people? Would you and Luisa be content and happy enough to be used as pawns and make yourself a member of the Communist Party of the Philippines to satisfy the allegations of military mouthpieces? To hell with them!

When you opted to live a life with the oppressed, just like Luisa, you knew the consequence of being tagged as communist, terrorist, a destabilizer, a threat to the society. This is the price of being faithful to forward the cause of building a just and humane society. This is truly a noble endeavor. And I never regretted that we are together in this cause. And until that night of April 12, when some unidentified armed men forcibly abducted you and Luisa, I couldn’t almost believe that we are now starting to face the fascist attack of this regime.

They took you away from DM and me and from the people you serve. I urge the Arroyo government and the Armed Forces of the Philippines to locate you and Luisa. And until this 8th year of our marriage, I only hope to see and be with you.

I am hurting. I am gnashing my teeth to think of those who abducted you and Luisa. Who’ll be next from our ranks? Who’ll be the next target of the Oplan Bantay Laya II of this government? This anti-insurgency scheme has already claimed almost 900 lives from the ranks of activists, media persons, and human rights advocates. They don’t even care for our cry for justice. They aren’t deaf and dumb for sure. But once they operate with military precision and swiftness positively identifying their targets, we can say that only this government can make this happen.

I am fearful of that day to come when more Luisas and Nilos will just simply disappear. I am also fearful when there will also be like Leeboy being shot in any time of the day. To whom will I turn to? I hope I can still lean on to this government and seek justice for those victims of political repression.

To those who knew of the whereabouts of Nilo and Luisa, please let us know. Please help us save the lives of Luisa and Nilo from the hands of their abductors.

My love, on this day, I will make vow to myself. I am re-affirming my love to you as my husband, as the father of DM, and as my comrade in the service to the people. You may be physically absent, but I will foster a more fervent commitment to continue with what you have been doing. Yes, I am hurt and in pain, but these aren’t enough for me to take even a few steps backward. I know more families are even grieving for having the same fate that we have.

Nilo, I love you very much. We miss you so dearly.
Happy 8th year wedding anniversary!