In the Philippines, farmers in the south are demanding justice after police opened fire on unarmed protesters, killing at least three farmers and leaving dozens more wounded. At least 6,000 farmers were blocking a highway in the southern city of Kidapawan to demand the government provide rice, because extreme El Niño conditions had destroyed the harvest. On Friday, the police tried to break up the blockade by firing on farmers who had linked arms to form a human barricade. Farmer Noralyn Laus spoke out after the shooting.

Noralyn Laus: “Why we came down here is not to make trouble. We just want to demand for rice, because of the situation of El Niño is leaving our tribes hungry. What happened yesterday, we didn’t start it. They started it by beating us. We wouldn’t be angry if we weren’t beaten up or attacked. We’re having a crisis. We don’t have anything to eat or harvest. Our plants wilted. Even our water has dried up.”