Human rights alliance Karapatan condemned the killing last April 25, 2023 of Alex Dolorosa, a fulltime union organizer and paralegal officer of the BPO Employees Network (BIEN). He was also an LGBTQ activist under Be GLad (BPO Employees, Gay, Lesbians and Allies for Genuine Acceptance and Democracy). Dolorosa was found dead in Barangay Alijis, Bacolod City with multiple stab wounds. He was last seen alive on the evening of April 23.

Citing reports from BIEN, Karapatan secretary general Cristina Palabay said Dolorosa had experienced “state surveillance and harassment on January 25, 2021; January 4, 2022; and May 4, 2022.” BIEN said the first harassment incident was at the office of militant party-list organization Bayan Muna in Bacolod City, while the second and third incidents were at the local Gabriela office. During one of the Gabriela incidents, Dolorosa took a video of a surveillance team’s vehicle, causing the driver to speed off. Dolorosa had also reported seeing two men surveilling his residence in Bata Subdivision. The experience prompted him to move residences.

Palabay supported BIEN’s call for justice for the slain union officer and paralegal officer, and urged the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) to conduct an investigation into the matter, taking as context the multiple harassments suffered by the victim prior to his death under suspicious circumstances.