It’s the sad reality of activists: Their families often don’t know the full extent of their struggles and risks until they have to bury them, their killers still on the loose.

On Wednesday, April 7, union leader Dandy Miguel was laid to rest in his home province, Laguna, where fellow activists paid tribute to him but none as poignant and cutting than the remarks of his younger sister Daisy. She admitted that she never fully knew the work of her “kuya (older brother).”

“Malayong-malayo ‘yung field of work namin ng kapatid ko, at wala akong idea sa kung anong ginagawa niya. Meron man akong idea, hindi ko alam na ganito kalala,” Daisy said.

(Our fields of work are very different, and I had no idea of his work. If I had any idea, I didn’t know it was this bad.)

In between tears, Daisy asked her brother for forgiveness and told Dandy’s fellow activists: “Inggit na inggit ako sa inyong lahat kasi nakasama ‘nyo siya nang matagal. May bonding kayo, pero kami wala (I envy all of you because you were with him for a long time. You had some bonding, but we didn’t).”

The 35-year-old Dandy was the vice chair of leading regional union group Pamantik-KMU when he was shot 8 times by still unidentified killers on March 28, bloodying his shirt that was printed with unionists’ collective plea: “Sahod, trabaho, karapatan, ipaglaban (Fight for wages, jobs, and rights).”

Dandy is the 10th Calabarzon activist to be killed in March alone. According to data from Karapatan and the Commission on Human Rights (CHR), Dandy is the 30th Calabarzon activist to be slain during the time of President Rodrigo Duterte or since June 30, 2016, and 130th nationwide.

Daisy learned so much from her brother’s death that in burying him, she asked, what if it were her instead, because workers still need him?

“Naiisip ko na sana ako na lang, kasi alam kong marami pang magagawa ‘yung kapatid ko. Dahil alam ko na gustong-gusto niyang tulungan ang bawat isa sa inyo,” Daisy said.

(I thought, I wish it were me instead, because I know my brother still has a lot of things that he can do. Because I know that he really wants to help each one of you.)

If he were alive

If he were still alive, Dandy or “Pang Dandy” as he is affectionately called, would’ve been busy preparing for May 1 or the yearly Labor Day protests of workers and unions.

According to his colleague at Pamantik-KMU whom Rappler talked to on Wednesday, the Pang Dandy he knew would probably be spending most of his days still talking to various unions across the region to keep himself apprised of their problems.

Dandy was soft-spoken, but firm. Daisy said she had some concerns for her brother even in the afterlife, but she knew that even there, he was bent on seeking justice.

“Sobrang sakit na hindi ko ma-imagine na ilalagay na siya sa huling hantungan niya, na lagi kong iniisip paano kung hindi niya kaya doon, kung matatakot siya. Pero naniniwala ako na sa sobrang tapang ng kapatid ko. hanggang ngayon, hinahanap niya ang hustisya para sa sarili niya,” she said,

(It pains me so much that I can’t imagine that he would be brought to his final resting place, that I always think, what if he can’t bear it there, if he would get scared. But I believe that my brother is so brave that until now, he’s seeking justice.)

Before he died, Dandy was working hard to get government protection for other union leaders who were being harassed and surveilled by agents claiming to be members of the army.

In Laguna, Christian Velasquez of Alyansa ng Manggagawa sa Engklabo (AMEN) said, “Mga kasama, wala tayong ibang sinisisi  sa brutal na pagpaslang na ‘to kay ka Dandy kundi ang pasistang rehimeng Duterte, sa pamamagitan ng mga berdugong AFP at PNP, na matagal na nating alam na may mahabang record ng paglabag sa karapatang pantao.”

(My collagues, we’re not blaming anyone else for the brutal killing of Dandy but the fascist Duterte regime, and the butchers of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police, which we all know have a long record of violating human rights.)

His legacy

Dandy left behind a wife, two young children, his mother, and his sister.

He also left behind a platoon of workers and unions that he had helped for so many years.

Mia Antonio of LIGA-Southern Tagalog said proof of Dandy’s dedication as a union leader is the trust given to him by his co-workers in the factory. 

Dandy was unanimously elected as union president at Fuji Electric Philippines, leading a workforce of 400 people, in 2017. He was reelected in 2020. 

The employees always knew that they can count on Dandy, such during the start of the pandemic in 2020 that gravely impacted workplaces, more so factories.

Dandy was instrumental in the negotiations with the company management about health and safety measures after a worker tested positive for COVID-19.

In December 2020, a few months before he was killed, Dandy successfully renegotiated the union’s collective bargaining agreement which will increase the minimum wage in the factory. Because of this, workers will have an increase of P40 in 2020 and 2021, and P50 in 2022. 

His role as a leader went beyond his own workplace. At the height of the strict lockdown because of the pandemic, Dandy assisted Calabarzon-based workers who lost their jobs, making sure that their concerns and situation were properly documented and addressed. 

There are only good words for Dandy on Wednesday during his burial, but after this kind of death – a brutal murder – there is also only one thing left to feel: rage.

“Walang gusto ‘yung kapatid ko kundi mabigyan kayo ng nararapat  sa inyo. Pero hindi ito ang nararapat para sa kapatid ko,” said Daisy.

(My brother wanted nothing more than for you to get what you deserve. But this is not what he deserved.)

The Department of Justice (DOJ) has included Dandy’s case in its special AO 35 or extrajudicial killings (EJKs) task force investigation.

Dandy’s family and colleagues are asking the DOJ for only one thing: help bring justice to a fallen patriot. – Rappler.com