05/11/2026
ICYMI: Sulong UBC and Students for Philippine Solidarity (SPS) UBC held a vigil at the University of British Columbia Vancouver on May 8th, 2026 to call for justice for the 19 victims of the Toboso Massacre.
On April 19th, 2026, the 79th Infantry Battalion of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) massacred 19 people including 9 unarmed civilians. The 9 civilian victims included 2 minors as well as visiting students, researchers, peasant advocates, and 2 US citizens. The massacre occurred in the town of Toboso, Negros Occidental, an area of the country where sugarcane farmers are intensely exploited by big landlords and plantation owners.
Sulong UBC and SPS UBC decried the unlawful killings and called for an immediate, impartial, and independent investigation into the incident. The groups also called on the Canadian government to cancel its Status of Visiting Forces Agreement with the Philippine government, which allows Canadian troops to be deployed to the Philippines to share resources and conduct joint training exercises with the AFP, a fascist military that has a violent track record of human rights violations against the Filipino people.
In solidarity with the farmers’ movement in the Philippines, the groups are hosting Filipino farmer advocate, Danilo “Ka Daning” Ramos, for a speaking event at UBC as part of his Canada-wide speaking tour. He will share his on-the-ground experiences organizing with farmers in the Philippines including in Negros Occidental where the recent massacre took place. The event will take place on Tuesday, May 19, 2026 at the Henry Angus Building, Room 98.
