who is jonas burgos?
JONAS BURGOS, 36, is a farmer/activist. He is also the son of late Press Freedom Icon Jose “Joe Burgos” and Edita Burgos. The Burgos Family owns a farm in Bulacan and Jonas is the resident farmer of the family. He is married to MaryAnn and has a 3-year old daughter named Yumi.
Jonas was also an activist. He was a community organizer and a member of Kilusan ng Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (Farmer’s Movement of the Philippines).
On the 28th of April 2007, Jonas was having lunch inside a mall in Quezon City when 6 armed men and a woman, who identified themselves as police, forcibly taken him, dragged him like a pig and forced him into a vehicle. As he was being forcible taken, witnesses say he was shouting “Aktibista lang po ako!” (I am just an activist!).
That was the last known whereabouts of Jonas. He did not show up in the family meeting in their home which was supposed to happen that evening.
film stills
BEHIND THE SCENES
DIRECTOR’s statement
An overwhelming feeling came over me when I did not have a glimpse of even the shadow of my brother that night. No text. No phone calls. No brother came home.
Jonas was abducted by state forces in 2007 while having lunch in a mall. It was a case of enforced disappearance and it was the start of the family’s nightmare.
The government defines Enforced Disappearance in Republic Act 10353 as the act of arresting, detaining, abducting, or otherwise depriving someone of their liberty by state agents or by individuals or groups acting with the approval, backing, or consent of the state.
Since the martial law of dictator Marcos Sr, about 1,912 desaparecidos remain missing to date, according to human rights group Karapatan. But how can justice prevail when the crime is committed by the very institution that is mandated to protect its people? Where does one even turn for answers?
This is why this documentary is very personal to me. Telling Jonas’s story is telling the story of more than a thousand victims of enforced disappearance. Our nightmare is the nightmare of every family of a desaparecido.
There are no illusions that this documentary will stop enforced disappearances. But it is my hope that this film will serve as both a step towards finding Jonas and a stride towards justice for all victims of enforced disappearance.
THE DIRECTOR
JL Burgos is an independent filmmaker and visual artist. His body of work focuses on human rights. He was the director and producer of two full-length documentaries — Portraits of Mosquito Press (2015) and Han-Ayan (2017).
Over the course of 25 years, Burgos worked on short films, experimental videos, public service announcements, web series, and a TV show either as a director, cinematographer, editor, scriptwriter, producer, or combination of roles.
Burgos’s most recent projects include Oras De Peligro movie, stage plays Tumindig Ka Aking Saksi and Salvage Eman, and Ano Ang Aming Kasalanan and Pagkatapos Nito music videos.
JL is the youngest brother of farmer-activist Jonas Burgos who was forcibly taken by state forces. Since his brother’s abduction in 2007, JL has been helping spread awareness about enforced disappearance.
Burgos is also the proponent of Stop The Attacks, a campaign by artists for artists who have been victims of constant red-tagging and harassment by the state.
Burgos is currently a board member of Surian ng Sining, a national cultural institute of artists, writers, and cultural workers.
Our Team
jl burgos
Cinematographer/Writer/Editor
bernardine de belen
Co-writer
bong ramilo
Original Music Score
Jedd Dumaguina
Sound
Ramona Nieva
Executive Producer
Ma. Cecilia Tronqued Burgos
Line Producer
Chantal Eco, Jonard Nabus, Gabriel Pancho, Mark Z. Saludes
Camera Unit
Sonny Burgos
Animation
Karl Castro
Poster Design
Grae Dela Cruz, Vynce Genica Ong, Jun Resurreccion
Production Assistants