Call Her Ganda (2018) - full transcript
When Jennifer Laude, a Filipina transwoman, is brutally murdered by a U.S. Marine, three women intimately invested in the case--an activist attorney, a transgender journalist and Jennifer's...
[music plays]
[glass breaks]
[gentle rain falling]
Subtitles by explosiveskull
[gentle rain falling]
[wind chimes ringing]
[glamorous music]
♪ ♪
[melancholy music]
♪ ♪
[melancholy music]
[Male Reporter] Witnesses
said a white man
with a Marine haircut
met Jeffrey Laude,
who was dressed as a woman
at a nightclub in Olongapo City
on Saturday night.
[melancholy music]
[Female Reporter] The body
of 26-year-old Laude
was found in this
hotel in Olongapo City.
American troops
there were on a break
from military exercises
for the Philippines.
[Meredith] I first learned
about Jennifer Laude
through social media.
I felt a connection
to her immediately,
just as a Filipino trans woman.
[melancholy music]
♪ ♪
[Reporter] Reports out
of the Philippines
say the Marine and the
victim met in a nightclub.
The two left the club with
one of Jennifer's friends
and went to a hotel
where they were
captured by security cameras.
Three other Marines
are being questioned
as possible witnesses.
[ominous somber music]
[crying]
She was just a very
natural person.
She was a very giving person.
She was kind, friendly
to everyone, open-minded.
She was just trying to
live a very normal life.
This is not an isolated case.
[blades whirring]
[somber orchestral music]
From day one that we
handled this case,
we already know the
Laudes' situation.
That's the very reason
why Harry and I
offered our services pro bono.
If you don't have money, you
don't have access to justice.
What kind of a self-respecting
country can we be
if we cannot even
implement our laws
when they are breached
in our territory
and when a victim is a Filipino?
You know, I ask you one thing.
For who it is more
fun in the Philippines
for the Philippine people
or for the U.S. soldiers,
who having everything they
want with no response taken,
and for the cheapest money
they can get?
That's all I wanted
to say about that.
[Skype ringing]
- Can you hear me?
- Yes, I can hear you.
[Meredith] I guess
a good place to start
would be to ask you how
your relationship began.
[Marc] You know, love on
the first sight
is something which I have
considered unrealistic.
But she was even more adorable,
natural person when we met
and after three, four days,
it was clear for me that this
was the person of my life.
[Meredith] What do you
think happened that night?
The only person
who could tell us
what was her intention
to be there that evening
is Jennifer herself.
Unlike other ladyboys
probably have to work
that way every night, she had
different chances than that.
Whatever she did
to end up there,
it has nothing to do with
what happened inside.
Simply nothing.
You know, she was killed on
the 11th of October.
October 1, we got
the confirmation
that her visa is granted.
Here in Germany, the official
wedding date was set.
Her wedding dress
was bought already.
We are just inches away to make
our both dream of life
come true.
[somber music]
How the killing of a
trans Filipina woman
ignited an
international incident.
On October 11 of last year,
the U.S. Marines stationed
aboard the USS Peleliu
got their first night of liberty
after their Tarawa-class
amphibious assault ship
docked in Subic Bay.
Private First Class
Joseph Scott Pemberton,
a 19-year-old from New Bedford,
Massachusetts,
eagerly disembarked
with his battle buddies
Bennett Dahl, Daniel Pulido,
and Jairn Rose.
Jennifer first
left her apartment
with her friend, Jamille.
They took a tricycle
to Ambyanz Nightclub
and arrived there at
approximately 10:30.
[Meredith] The club
was a frequent hangout
for sex workers known
as Pocahontases,
a riff on pok-pok, a
Tagalog term for slut,
which also alludes to
the former colonizers
who often patronize them.
The most dogged of these women,
those who quickly
latch onto the arms
of the men pouring
off the ships,
are usually transgender.
But the foreign soldiers
rarely learned that.
Approximately at 10:45,
Private First Class
Joseph Scott Pemberton
entered Ambyanz with
three other Marines.
[Meredith] The
women had been working
since the soldiers went
on liberty that afternoon.
And by 10:45, when
Laude met Pemberton,
she'd already been
with three clients.
"Jennifer was exhausted,"
said another friend Charis.
"We work as hard as we can
when the soldiers are here."
Within a few minute of meeting,
Pemberton and Laude left
for the Celzone Lodge,
a motel across the street,
accompanied by Laude's friend,
Barbie Gelviro.
According to Elias,
the cashier bellboy,
Pemberton, Jennifer,
and Barbie
entered Celzone Lodge at
approximately 11:05 p.m.
Elias assigned them
room number one.
[Meredith] Gelviro stayed
with the couple for a minute
to help negotiate a rate.
Laude suggested 5,000 pesos,
but Pemberton only wanted
to pay 1,000, about $25.
Laude, nervous that
Pemberton might discover
the girls were trans, quickly
agree to the lower rate
and rushed her friend
out of the room.
About 30 minutes
after the group
had arrived at the motel,
Pemberton casually walked
out of his room alone,
leaving the door
slightly ajar behind him.
He seemed unperturbed as
he passed the front desk
and walked down the
steps into the night.
His curfew was
rapidly approaching
and he and his shipmates
needed to return together.
Elias expected that
Jennifer would shortly follow.
But 15 minutes have passed,
no one came out of the room.
As they were about
to go to sleep,
Pemberton approached Rose
and asked to talk
to him in private.
They walked over to
the front of the ship
far from human ears,
with only the ocean
and the sky to listen.
Pemberton said that
he saw it had a dick.
He told Rose he got so angry,
that he choked it from behind.
"I think I killed a
he-she," Pemberton said.
The medical report
would show that Jennifer
died of asphyxia due to
strangulation and drowning
and the same is reflected
in her death certificate.
Her entire back
was black and blue.
[somber orchestral music]
[somber orchestral music]
♪ ♪
[indistinct chatter]
In so far as the citizenry,
the Filipino citizenry
is concerned,
this is duly served.
The notice is duly served
to the person of Pemberton.
You cannot help this case.
You cannot help the Laudes.
If you just know things
about the killing,
if you just know
things about the murder
because it's not a
simple case of murder.
At the police station,
then I will have to
check it one-by-one against...
The relationship between the
U.S. and the Philippines
is really a relationship between
a colonizer and a
colony or a neo-colony.
[energetic orchestral music]
[Film Narrator] This is the
story of the Philippines,
a nation of islands
on the eastern rim
of the vast Pacific Ocean.
Discovered over 400 years ago
by the explorer Magellan,
the Philippines were
ruled by the Spaniards
for more than 200 years.
[military marching music]
We are a colony of
the United States.
We were purchased allegedly,
from Spain.
We were said to have been
granted independence.
But in exchange,
we've had to agree
that U.S. bases will remain
in the Philippines.
[dramatic orchestral music]
[melancholy music]
[somber orchestral music]
♪ ♪
[upbeat orchestral music]
♪ ♪
The VFA stands for
Visiting Forces Agreement.
This VFA really comes
into play in this case
because it reads about
how the Philippines
should treat the U.S. soldiers.
[upbeat piano music]
[Film Narrator] What exactly
is legal hold?
It may be one of the best things
we have in the Philippines.
Legal hold means that if
you're charged with a crime
under local laws, you'll be
turned over to U.S. authorities
rather than left
in a local lock-up.
Put it this way,
it would be unthinkable
for a foreign soldier
to commit murder in America
and not be apprehended
by U.S. police
and not be tried by U.S. courts.
But what's happened in this case
is we have an instance
where an American Marine
committed a non-service
related offense.
Number one, he
remains in the custody
of American soldiers.
Number two, he was never
physically investigated
by Philippine authorities.
Number three, his attendance
in court proceedings
is a matter of cooperation
with American authorities
rather than as part of
mandatory judicial proceedings.
With the VFA, it's like
the Filipinos are being
served on a silver platter.
Here are the Philippines,
kill them.
Here are the Filipinas,
rape them.
Because even if
you are convicted,
your custody will be transferred
to the U.S. Embassy;
it's like you're free.
[Female Reporter] It's a wrap
for U.S. President Barack Obama.
The U.S. reached a
10-year defense deal
to allow more U.S. troops
in the Philippines.
As the U.S. is now
trying even to expand
its presence in the Philippines
through the Enhanced Defense
Cooperation Agreement,
the bigger question is, "What's
in it for the Filipinos?"
To our Filipino Armed Forces,
thank you for being such
an outstanding ally.
God bless the Republic
of the Philippines.
God bless the
United States of America.
God bless the alliance
between our great nations.
Thank you.
[audience applauding]
[somber orchestral music]
[low ambient background noise]
[low ambient background noise]
[low ambient background noise]
[low ambient background noise]
[somber strings music]
♪ ♪
♪ ♪
♪ ♪
[somber strings music]
♪ ♪
[background traffic noise]
♪ If you think that I'm
still holdin' on ♪
♪ Maybe you should go
and love yourself ♪
[food sizzling]
Bye!
I mean, that is really
not only unjust
to the family of Laude,
but also unjust to
the Filipino people.
Let me see the documents.
The entire documents
are in there.
The report is very frustrating.
Yeah, was taken
by the Americans.
Remember our Filipino
police authorities
was unable to get the
KamaSutra condom wrapper.
Yeah, it was only the
American authorities,
the NCIS agent who
got hold the condom,
the KamaSutra condom wrapper,
not our authorities.
That is very interesting to me.
[somber chime music]
In my family, I'm the only one
who's able to finish college.
My father is a tricycle driver
and my mother does
not have regular work.
He's a typical father
who thinks that daughters
need not go to college.
After all, they'll
just get married.
I was telling myself,
"No, I have to finish.
"I have to reach college.
I have to be able to do
something to help the family."
[indistinct chatter]
A lot of people would think that
murder is always premeditated.
There are other two elements:
the abuse of superior
strength and the cruelty.
That's the reason why
they had been saying that
after all Jennifer is a trans,
but he is still a man.
The Marines, you know,
yes they have training.
But they only spend a few hours
in actual military training.
That is to weaken
our allegation that there
is some kind of abuse
of superior strength.
Definitely there is no doubt
that a Marine, an elite force,
certainly has the
superior strength
over every other individual.
Because if not, what difference
does a U.S. Marine soldier make?
If, in this case,
Pemberton gets convicted
and then after that,
he will be incarcerated
not in the Philippines.
My goodness, that
will all the more show
how lopsided this
VFA agreement is.
Jennifer is dead.
Nothing can beat that,
nothing can change that.
Jennifer is dead.
Who killed Jennifer?
A lot of evidence
points to Pemberton.
[soft techno music]
♪ Skyfall ♪
Woo, good job!
What else do you wanna sing?
You wanna do Lady Gaga?
Sure.
[Meredith] "Poker Face",
"Born This Way".
Yeah, I like "Poker Face".
When did you arrive?
I can't even remember anymore.
Oh, I didn't tell the
Laudes that you interview...
Just actually not
thinking not in terms.
You were just like catch up
with Jamille, Charis and Barbie.
[Naomi] What's she doing now?
- What is she doing?
- She's still in Olongapo.
She doing the same thing.
They call it freelancing.
I think they're still
in a lot of ways
processing what happened.
It's the same thing
where they have to deal
with their feelings
and their fears.
I know that you did
attend one of the...
The hearings in Congress
or in the Senate.
There's been a lot
of movement towards
getting an exhumation order.
They both have this.
Every time the lawyers who's
cosponsoring their bills now,
would mention they're doing
that for Jennifer Laude.
It's really nice.
This issue put the
spotlight on our community.
We actually consider
this a watershed moment
in the history of the
Philippine transgender movement
because for the first time,
people are seeing us.
[soft soothing music]
Transgender people
have always been part
of the history of this country
and that goes back through
Pre-Colonial times.
We saw that in the
Babaylan Chronicles,
which are documents
written by Spanish priests.
They took note of
male-bodied people
who carried themselves
as women.
The work as spiritual
leaders of their communities
were known as the Babaylan.
There's always a sermon.
The establishment of religion
were so that my kind of people
were slowly pushed into
the margins of society.
How the church vanquished
the Babaylan or the Shaman,
it had to make the
Babaylan somewhat scary
so called her a
witch and a swine.
We were othered by the church.
Our bodies are not acceptable.
Our identities are
not acceptable.
We've been forced to be
part of niche industries
like the beauty industry
or the sex industry.
The transgender movement
itself has to work.
They eradicate the
notion that you need
to sell your body
in order to survive.
In the meantime, a lot
of my trans friends
are actually doing sex work.
They're saying that
it's survival sex work
and I completely
understand that.
[energetic trumpet music]
[soft jazzy music]
Your first time in a
foreign country
can be quite an ordeal
if you let it.
Here in the Philippines,
you'll find a lifestyle
that's different
from life in America.
With a little knowledge of
what this assignment is like
before you get there though,
it can be a richly-rewarding
experience.
[psychedelic music]
[Naomi] We know for a
fact that whenever
there's increased military
presence in a certain country,
it always encourages the selling
of bodies for sexual services.
It encourages the
exploitation of women,
girls, female identified.
So that includes
transgender women.
If you're a trans woman,
all the doors close to you.
I mean...
You're not welcome to
certain establishments.
You're discriminated in school.
You're discriminated at work.
You're discriminated in public
and even in your private life.
Whether or not Jennifer Laude
was a sex worker
is something that only
Jennifer Laude can answer.
[somber music]
[Female Reporter] The
U.S. serviceman accused
of killing transgender woman,
Jennifer Laude,
faces prosecutors as
his trial begins today.
Pemberton's lawyers
didn't confirm
whether their client will
take the witness stand
or if a plea bargain
agreement is being considered.
[rain pattering]
[ambient sounds of traffic
passing, horns honk]
[ambient sounds of traffic
passing, horns honk]
[melancholy music]
♪ ♪
[somber music]
[indistinct background chatter]
[soft serene music]
♪ ♪
[Meredith] There are many
differences in our lives,
but the one thing
we do have in common
is that trans experience.
If the circumstances
were different,
our lives could've
totally been reversed
and I could be in her situation.
[muffled crosstalk]
She had this sort of like habit
of putting her arm around me
and we were to talk
confidentially together.
In a way, I am kind
of a manifestation of
what she hoped for Jennifer.
That I'm the person
who is trans,
who has moved to
a foreign country
and has made a good
life for myself.
She would say something like,
"You'd be even more beautiful
if you put on more
makeup like Jennifer."
She also called me Ganda.
[soft serene music]
[tribal drum music]
♪ ♪
[muffled chanting]
[energetic oriental music]
[muffled chanting]
[energetic oriental music]
[energetic oriental music]
[muffled chanting]
[energetic oriental music]
♪ ♪
[whistles whistling]
[applause]
[soft oriental music]
[Male Reporter] A day
before testifying
in the Olongapo Regional
Trial Court,
Lisa Pemberton visited
her youngest son,
Lance Corporal Joseph Pemberton.
Very difficult.
He's always been our angel.
I know Joseph would rather
die for his country
than be in this situation.
[Male Reporter] Mrs. Pemberton
denies her son
is angry with members
of the gay community.
She explains Joseph has
been exposed to the issue
since he grew up with a sister
who was a member of
the LGBT community.
His own sister is lesbian,
getting married next month.
He was supposed to be the
best man in the wedding.
[Male Reporter] She says
she can empathize
with the Laude family for
the loss of their loved one.
I feel very sorry
for their loss
and what they've [sniffs]
had to go through.
[indistinct chatter]
[indistinct chatter]
[indistinct chatter]
In this case, there's
a 30-minute gap
wherein the room where Laude
was, was totally unsecured.
We cannot say that
it was Pemberton
who killed Laude.
When he left Laude in the
bathroom, Laude was still alive.
So, now, since Laude's dead,
probably the question is,
"Who killed Laude?"
[soft guitar music]
♪ ♪
Obviously there's
somebody on the internet
who's invested in humanizing
him in that specific way
and he's presenting him
as this all-American guy,
which he is, he has that image.
They know he's from New Bedford.
Pemberton's sister is a lesbian,
so he's not antipathetic
towards LGBT people.
Rather than this Marine
who is raised in a
culture of LGBT phobia,
it makes him more
complex than that.
There's also a lot
invested in making
Joseph Scott Pemberton
into this monster.
Even if somebody is
out really thinking
that they don't have these
views against trans people,
especially trans women.
There's all of this
sort of like surrounding
environmental and societal
messages they're receiving
that would lead them to
these types of actions.
[keyboard clacking]
Still in the Philippines,
the camp of the slain
transgender Filipina,
Jennifer Laude,
denied reports that they
are pushing for a deal
for 38 million pesos
and six U.S. Visas
in exchange for dropping
the murder case
against U.S. Marine,
Joseph Scott Pemberton.
The denial followed reports
that Pemberton's lawyer,
Rowena Flores, received new
demands from the Laudes family
in exchange for
dropping the case.
[soft, dramatic music]
♪ ♪
[Skype ringing]
- Hey.
- I don't really care
that much what happens to
Pemberton because, you know,
I accept that what will
happen to Pemberton is a
political decision.
But what I can't accept is
that the further
humiliation of the family,
the further disrespect, the
further dishonoring on Jennifer
because she was not political.
Pemberton probably is political,
but Jennifer never was.
It was never her intention
to be part of any
political crap like this.
[Male Reporter] For the first
time since being accused
in the killing of
Filipino transgender
Jennifer Laude,
October 11, 2014,
U.S. Marine Lance Corporal
Joseph Pemberton
testified in court
as a defense witness
in his own murder trial.
Thinking they were real women,
he said he accepted their
offer of checking in
at the Celzone Lodge Motel
to have paid sex.
Barbie performed
oral sex on Pemberton
then immediately left the room.
After a few minutes, Jennifer
did the same to Pemberton.
But when he wanted more,
he was surprised to find out
Jennifer was also
a man like himself.
He said he felt that
he was being raped.
He was so repulsed
and so disgusted
because he did not
give his consent
to allow a man to
do that to him.
[Atty. Filemon Javier]
Pemberton acted only in defense
of his life and honor.
[food sizzling]
The verdict is expected
tomorrow, the Laude murder case.
If it is a conviction,
the Olongapo Court
will have to determine where
U.S. Marine serviceman
Joseph Scott Pemberton
will be detained.
We are confident that the
court will acquit our client.
We believe there is
reasonable doubt.
Barbie was not an eyewitness.
She didn't see anybody killed.
[wind chimes gently ringing]
[ominous music]
Harry will no longer
come here.
He'll go stay with the church.
[ominous music]
♪ ♪
[ominous music]
- Justice for Laude!
- Justice for Laude!
- Justice for Laude!
- Justice for Laude!
- Justice for Laude!
- Justice for Laude!
We are an independent country.
Therefore, he should be
detained in a Philippine jail.
[intriguing music]
♪ ♪
Oh my goodness.
This is not the voice
of complete justice,
but we had to recognize
that there is victory here.
He's considered a
national prisoner.
[Male Reporter] Pemberton
was surrounded
by two layers of security.
In the inner circle
are US servicemen,
while in the outer circle
are Philippine authorities.
[Male Reporter] Just want to
get permission from a source
present in the courtroom
that the court has called
for a session to hear the
motion of the defense
to satisfy the order
of the court.
[somber orchestral music]
♪ ♪
[somber orchestral music]
♪ ♪
Did the verdict surprise
you at all in any way?
You know, it not surprises me.
For me, it was very clear
form the beginning that
Pemberton would not serve
any day in Philippine trial
whatever counts.
What is the reason to give
him a special treatment?
No one else in the
world would get...
Obviously the reason is that
they know whatever they do
is setting a precedent and
they don't want to be put
in a position where American
military service members
are in danger when
they're overseas.
And so, they're not going
to be able to guarantee
his safety in Philippine prison.
If you go to jail in America
regardless of your
nationality or whatever,
you go to a regular jail, you
don't get a special treatment.
You have to pay the
consequence on what you did.
Referring to the location
and the law you are under.
Hello!
Then tomorrow, we'll
be filing a criminal case
in disobedience through
unlawful order of the court.
Then we're planning
to file a petition.
Even assuming there
is superior strength,
abuse should be proved.
'Cause there's no
second degree murder.
- In the Philippines, yeah.
- In the Philippines,
which is really weird to me.
Because I think
usually in the states
for it to be first
degree murder,
it has to be premeditated.
That's true.
So, that's sort of a...
Yeah, and it's weird.
Does manslaughter exist
in the Philippine?
- No, it's doesn't.
- No?
But again, the way the
judge wrote the verdict
was such that she was
giving all these excuses
in the guise of mitigating
circumstances saying,
"Well, he was drunk.
"It was like a crime of passion,
so we can forgive
him for that."
It was crazy.
After the verdict was read,
then the Americans refused to
give him up to the local police.
It kinda shows that
the Americans aren't
running everything.
It's not completely
orchestrated then.
Oh please Meredith, come on.
Of course they were
running the show.
- I just mean...
- That was how I felt.
I mean, the DOJ's,
I'm sure it [crosstalk].
All I mean is that
it was a surprise
to the Americans that
the order was for
him to go to Bilibid.
That's like a capitulation
on the part of the judge
because when it was read
and the verdict was read,
we felt like the judge was
keeping both parties happy.
She convicted him
of a crime that was
of a lower degree than murder
when it was so clear as daylight
that it was freakin' murder.
The fact that they
weren't prepared
for the custody thing to happen
was really fascinating to me
from a journalistic perspective.
I would ask you to do some
research of that notion
because America as a superpower
is in control of this.
I'm so happy that I'm having
this conversation with you
because now as an
American person
who has Filipino lineage,
you have your foot
on the Philippines
and your foot in America.
You are now in a position
to tell this story
and to be honest about
any court power relations
between our countries.
That's really the culprit,
it all goes back to that.
Jennifer's death is a result
of continued American
imperialism in the Philippines.
There is no denying that.
Yeah.
At 5:30 tonight, a New Bedford
Marine in jail
for killing a
transgender Filipino
is asking a judge to
overturn his conviction.
The court will start to hear
of Pemberton's appeal
on Thursday.
[soft guitar music]
The aftermath of a
U.S. Marine's conviction
in the death of a
Philippine trans woman.
It's close to midnight
in early December
on Waterfront Road in
Olongapo, Philippines.
Dimly lit by yellow
tungsten lamps,
women's figures in tight
clothing walk down the street,
shadows covering their faces.
U.S. service members used to be
able to roam around the area
outside the former base
during their leisure time.
But since Laude's
death last year,
the U.S. Military has
confined service members
to the feed port.
A young woman with hair
halfway down her back
walks alone in Waterfront.
Her figure is slim and taller
than most of the girls
on the street.
"I take my customers here,"
as she gestures
towards the darkness
beyond the road.
Roseanne claims she's 17,
but her voice hasn't
noticeably dropped.
Even though Pemberton
killed Laude
after finding out she was trans,
Roseanne insists that
she needs to keep
her transgender status
from U.S. service members
who pay her for sex.
[Meredith] In the verdict's
aftermath, local officials
and residents are eager for
U.S. troops to come back
and bring money into the
city as they once did.
[Meredith] Locals have even
accused the Laudes of being
selfish by not settling
the case early.
By having gone to trial,
the liberty privileges for
U.S. troops remain suspended,
which in turn has
directly led to hundreds,
if not thousands of locals
losing their sources of income.
Just imagine some businessman
lose about 20 million pesos
in business opportunities
because Americans are not having
their liberty or their rest
and recreational activities.
"We expect liberty will resume
now that Pemberton has been
convicted," Cortez says.
Jennifer's mother,
Julita Laudes,
sits on her brown-floral
print couch.
Despite the conviction,
she is far from satisfied.
[Meredith] Other locals express
a mixture of sympathy
and rejection when it
comes to the presence
of transgender sex workers
in Olongapo.
A souvenir vendor on
Waterfront Road
says that he is indifferent
to the Pemberton verdict
and wishes only that full
liberty would resume,
so that ordinary people in
Olongapo can have income.
[Meredith] Down the street,
a female bystander
sitting on a nearby
park bench shouts back,
"Transgenders need to be
kicked out of Olongapo."
Another taxi driver replies,
"Their words hurt too much.
Those are our fellow Filipinos."
Roseanne is worried about
people identifying her
and finding out
she's a sex worker.
Her mother is not aware
she is doing sex work.
According to the young woman,
she thinks I'm just looking
for a handsome boyfriend
who'll take me to America.
As Roseanne continues
to roam the streets
of Olongapo at night,
she has to believe
that she will encounter
men like Jennifer's fiancé
and not a man like the kind
who ended Jennifer's life.
I think all the Filipinos
wanted to have that big change.
I think he's the
number one candidate
who's running for presidency.
I know he can
do what he promise
that substantial changes will
happen the next six months.
[Female Reporter] The headline
confirms it:
Rodrigo Duterte will be
the new president
of the Philippines.
[Male Reporter] He captured
domestic and international
attention with speeches
peppered with obscene jokes
about sex and rape
and for undiplomatic remarks
about some key players
in the country's politics
including Australia,
the United States and China.
[audience laughing and cheering]
America, prepare to
leave the Philippines.
Prepare for the
event to a repeal
for the abrogation of the
visiting of this country.
[intriguing xylophone music]
♪ ♪
♪ ♪
On this day two years ago,
transgender woman Jennifer Laude
was found dead in a motel
room in Subic, Zambales.
Now U.S. Marine Lance Corporal
Joseph Scott Pemberton
was found guilty
of killing Laude
is detained in a
facility in Quezon City.
[Male Reporter] Behind this
fence is a detention facility
for Lance Corporal
Joseph Scott Pemberton.
No movement can be
detected in the facility.
Space between the
two cargo containers
converted into rooms is
covered with tarpaulin.
Guards from the
Bureau of Corrections
manning the facility
are nowhere in sight.
The Court of Appeal still has
to rule on Pemberton's appeal.
The Laude family continues
to seek justice for Jennifer.
The family would like to
put an end to this case also.
Because for as long
as there is an appeal,
the appeal prolongs their agony.
[intriguing music]
The U.S. Government's position
is they will pay if there's
finality to the case.
Finality meant Pemberton
should be allowed
to go back to the United States.
This was a very clear instance
where the U.S. Government
took advantage of poverty
in attempting to release
one of their Marines
from incarceration
arising from a
criminal conviction.
President Duterte is
the very first president
that allocated for an
independent foreign policy.
I stand solidly behind
him that the presence
of US troops in the Philippines
is a blatant violation
of our sovereignty.
It's a hold-over from
the Colonial Times
and should finally end.
I am a president
of a sovereign state
and we have long-ceased
to be a colony.
[soft introspective music]
[Meredith] New England trip:
hot summer day,
no one on the road.
Greek restaurant, regulars.
Are these people aware of who
Joseph Scott Pemberton is?
Plan for today: go to
Robin Street, home address.
It's at a curve in the road.
Simple-wooden fence,
very modest house.
Working-class family.
Greater New Bedford
Technical Vocational School,
far from the famous
schools of Boston.
Boston: Harvard or MIT?
I wonder what this high school
taught Pemberton
about LGBT people.
Cement grounds,
uniform green grass.
Had Pemberton ever had
a girlfriend before?
Fresh, unlike the
salty air of Olongapo.
Joseph Scott Pemberton
grew up close to the water
and dreamed of being
some place open.
Isn't that why so many
young men join the military?
Nancy, he did it.
He's guilty, that's it.
Let's think about forgiveness.
If he spends 30 years in jail,
he won't have any life
left when he comes back.
Do you happen to
live in New Bedford?
I'm doing a story about
Joseph Scott Pemberton.
I just wonder if you've
heard of the case.
I can see oil trails
that remind me
of oil slicks in Olongapo.
[soft introspective music]
The president is winding
up his trip to Asia
and the Philippines,
his last stop,
before returning home tomorrow.
He appeared to give
the country's leader
a pass on human rights.
President Trump grimaced through
the traditional Asia
summit handshake,
but did not shy
away from praising
controversial Philippine
President Rodrigo Duterte.
Duterte's accused of
ordering death squads
style killings of thousands
of Filipino drug dealers
and users without trial.
[Male Reporter] His troops have
killed more than 7,000 people
since Duterte came into power.
But he's a potential ally in
the region on North Korea.
The president's visit
sparking protests.
Riot police using water
cannons to disperse the crowds.
Mr. Trump winding
down his Asian tour
with a toast and a tribute.
[Duterte vocalizing
foreign language]
Duterte serenading the
US Commander-in-Chief
with the lyrics, "You are
the light in my world."
[crowd chanting] No VFA,
no fascist U.S.A.
No Trump, no VFA,
no fascist U.S.A.
No Trump, no VFA,
no fascist U.S.A.
[somber orchestral music]
♪ ♪
[soft instrumental music]
♪ ♪
[Meredith] I was just
thinking about
how important this spot has been
and how it was the
focus in so much media
and, you know, sort
of, Jennifer's death.
There's this weird surreal
way we just imagined
these past two years.
What does it actually mean?
[soft orchestral music]
♪ ♪
[Naomi] I always get
affected when I hear
of a trans person
being murdered.
A year ago, I also lost
a friend to violence.
She just become another
statistic.
She had more than
20 stab wounds.
She was unrecognizable.
There is the lack of justice
in many trans people's lives.
If members of our community
are killed every day,
then there is no
justice in the world.
[Virginia] If Pemberton
is acquitted,
oh my goodness, that would
really affect my whole belief
in this judicial,
or legal system.
For me it's really
more than Laude's case,
it's our sovereignty here.
It's our freedom here.
It's our right to
determine our own path
without intervention
of a foreign power.
[soft orchestral music]
[Meredith] My community
has been ravaged
by violence consistently
year after year.
Me continuing to do my work,
continuing to strive for
justice and acceptance
is somehow a way
to commemorate her.
[soft orchestral music]
["Sister Song" by
Perfume Genius]
Subtitles by explosiveskull
♪ ♪
♪ Drive on, drive on ♪
♪ My special one ♪
♪ Don't you stop 'til
you know you're gone ♪
♪ Your sister and me
have a set of keys ♪
♪ Don't you worry your
head 'bout a thing ♪
♪ Drive on, drive on ♪
♪ My special one ♪
♪ Don't you stop 'til
you know you're gone ♪
♪ Drive on, drive on ♪
♪ My special one ♪
♪ Don't you stop 'til
you know you're gone ♪
♪ Your sister and me will
keep your place clean ♪
♪ So it shines when
you finally come home ♪
♪ Drive on, drive on ♪
♪ My special one ♪
♪ Don't you stop 'til
you know you're gone ♪
[soft soothing music]
♪ ♪
♪ ♪
[glass breaks]
[gentle rain falling]
Subtitles by explosiveskull
[gentle rain falling]
[wind chimes ringing]
[glamorous music]
♪ ♪
[melancholy music]
♪ ♪
[melancholy music]
[Male Reporter] Witnesses
said a white man
with a Marine haircut
met Jeffrey Laude,
who was dressed as a woman
at a nightclub in Olongapo City
on Saturday night.
[melancholy music]
[Female Reporter] The body
of 26-year-old Laude
was found in this
hotel in Olongapo City.
American troops
there were on a break
from military exercises
for the Philippines.
[Meredith] I first learned
about Jennifer Laude
through social media.
I felt a connection
to her immediately,
just as a Filipino trans woman.
[melancholy music]
♪ ♪
[Reporter] Reports out
of the Philippines
say the Marine and the
victim met in a nightclub.
The two left the club with
one of Jennifer's friends
and went to a hotel
where they were
captured by security cameras.
Three other Marines
are being questioned
as possible witnesses.
[ominous somber music]
[crying]
She was just a very
natural person.
She was a very giving person.
She was kind, friendly
to everyone, open-minded.
She was just trying to
live a very normal life.
This is not an isolated case.
[blades whirring]
[somber orchestral music]
From day one that we
handled this case,
we already know the
Laudes' situation.
That's the very reason
why Harry and I
offered our services pro bono.
If you don't have money, you
don't have access to justice.
What kind of a self-respecting
country can we be
if we cannot even
implement our laws
when they are breached
in our territory
and when a victim is a Filipino?
You know, I ask you one thing.
For who it is more
fun in the Philippines
for the Philippine people
or for the U.S. soldiers,
who having everything they
want with no response taken,
and for the cheapest money
they can get?
That's all I wanted
to say about that.
[Skype ringing]
- Can you hear me?
- Yes, I can hear you.
[Meredith] I guess
a good place to start
would be to ask you how
your relationship began.
[Marc] You know, love on
the first sight
is something which I have
considered unrealistic.
But she was even more adorable,
natural person when we met
and after three, four days,
it was clear for me that this
was the person of my life.
[Meredith] What do you
think happened that night?
The only person
who could tell us
what was her intention
to be there that evening
is Jennifer herself.
Unlike other ladyboys
probably have to work
that way every night, she had
different chances than that.
Whatever she did
to end up there,
it has nothing to do with
what happened inside.
Simply nothing.
You know, she was killed on
the 11th of October.
October 1, we got
the confirmation
that her visa is granted.
Here in Germany, the official
wedding date was set.
Her wedding dress
was bought already.
We are just inches away to make
our both dream of life
come true.
[somber music]
How the killing of a
trans Filipina woman
ignited an
international incident.
On October 11 of last year,
the U.S. Marines stationed
aboard the USS Peleliu
got their first night of liberty
after their Tarawa-class
amphibious assault ship
docked in Subic Bay.
Private First Class
Joseph Scott Pemberton,
a 19-year-old from New Bedford,
Massachusetts,
eagerly disembarked
with his battle buddies
Bennett Dahl, Daniel Pulido,
and Jairn Rose.
Jennifer first
left her apartment
with her friend, Jamille.
They took a tricycle
to Ambyanz Nightclub
and arrived there at
approximately 10:30.
[Meredith] The club
was a frequent hangout
for sex workers known
as Pocahontases,
a riff on pok-pok, a
Tagalog term for slut,
which also alludes to
the former colonizers
who often patronize them.
The most dogged of these women,
those who quickly
latch onto the arms
of the men pouring
off the ships,
are usually transgender.
But the foreign soldiers
rarely learned that.
Approximately at 10:45,
Private First Class
Joseph Scott Pemberton
entered Ambyanz with
three other Marines.
[Meredith] The
women had been working
since the soldiers went
on liberty that afternoon.
And by 10:45, when
Laude met Pemberton,
she'd already been
with three clients.
"Jennifer was exhausted,"
said another friend Charis.
"We work as hard as we can
when the soldiers are here."
Within a few minute of meeting,
Pemberton and Laude left
for the Celzone Lodge,
a motel across the street,
accompanied by Laude's friend,
Barbie Gelviro.
According to Elias,
the cashier bellboy,
Pemberton, Jennifer,
and Barbie
entered Celzone Lodge at
approximately 11:05 p.m.
Elias assigned them
room number one.
[Meredith] Gelviro stayed
with the couple for a minute
to help negotiate a rate.
Laude suggested 5,000 pesos,
but Pemberton only wanted
to pay 1,000, about $25.
Laude, nervous that
Pemberton might discover
the girls were trans, quickly
agree to the lower rate
and rushed her friend
out of the room.
About 30 minutes
after the group
had arrived at the motel,
Pemberton casually walked
out of his room alone,
leaving the door
slightly ajar behind him.
He seemed unperturbed as
he passed the front desk
and walked down the
steps into the night.
His curfew was
rapidly approaching
and he and his shipmates
needed to return together.
Elias expected that
Jennifer would shortly follow.
But 15 minutes have passed,
no one came out of the room.
As they were about
to go to sleep,
Pemberton approached Rose
and asked to talk
to him in private.
They walked over to
the front of the ship
far from human ears,
with only the ocean
and the sky to listen.
Pemberton said that
he saw it had a dick.
He told Rose he got so angry,
that he choked it from behind.
"I think I killed a
he-she," Pemberton said.
The medical report
would show that Jennifer
died of asphyxia due to
strangulation and drowning
and the same is reflected
in her death certificate.
Her entire back
was black and blue.
[somber orchestral music]
[somber orchestral music]
♪ ♪
[indistinct chatter]
In so far as the citizenry,
the Filipino citizenry
is concerned,
this is duly served.
The notice is duly served
to the person of Pemberton.
You cannot help this case.
You cannot help the Laudes.
If you just know things
about the killing,
if you just know
things about the murder
because it's not a
simple case of murder.
At the police station,
then I will have to
check it one-by-one against...
The relationship between the
U.S. and the Philippines
is really a relationship between
a colonizer and a
colony or a neo-colony.
[energetic orchestral music]
[Film Narrator] This is the
story of the Philippines,
a nation of islands
on the eastern rim
of the vast Pacific Ocean.
Discovered over 400 years ago
by the explorer Magellan,
the Philippines were
ruled by the Spaniards
for more than 200 years.
[military marching music]
We are a colony of
the United States.
We were purchased allegedly,
from Spain.
We were said to have been
granted independence.
But in exchange,
we've had to agree
that U.S. bases will remain
in the Philippines.
[dramatic orchestral music]
[melancholy music]
[somber orchestral music]
♪ ♪
[upbeat orchestral music]
♪ ♪
The VFA stands for
Visiting Forces Agreement.
This VFA really comes
into play in this case
because it reads about
how the Philippines
should treat the U.S. soldiers.
[upbeat piano music]
[Film Narrator] What exactly
is legal hold?
It may be one of the best things
we have in the Philippines.
Legal hold means that if
you're charged with a crime
under local laws, you'll be
turned over to U.S. authorities
rather than left
in a local lock-up.
Put it this way,
it would be unthinkable
for a foreign soldier
to commit murder in America
and not be apprehended
by U.S. police
and not be tried by U.S. courts.
But what's happened in this case
is we have an instance
where an American Marine
committed a non-service
related offense.
Number one, he
remains in the custody
of American soldiers.
Number two, he was never
physically investigated
by Philippine authorities.
Number three, his attendance
in court proceedings
is a matter of cooperation
with American authorities
rather than as part of
mandatory judicial proceedings.
With the VFA, it's like
the Filipinos are being
served on a silver platter.
Here are the Philippines,
kill them.
Here are the Filipinas,
rape them.
Because even if
you are convicted,
your custody will be transferred
to the U.S. Embassy;
it's like you're free.
[Female Reporter] It's a wrap
for U.S. President Barack Obama.
The U.S. reached a
10-year defense deal
to allow more U.S. troops
in the Philippines.
As the U.S. is now
trying even to expand
its presence in the Philippines
through the Enhanced Defense
Cooperation Agreement,
the bigger question is, "What's
in it for the Filipinos?"
To our Filipino Armed Forces,
thank you for being such
an outstanding ally.
God bless the Republic
of the Philippines.
God bless the
United States of America.
God bless the alliance
between our great nations.
Thank you.
[audience applauding]
[somber orchestral music]
[low ambient background noise]
[low ambient background noise]
[low ambient background noise]
[low ambient background noise]
[somber strings music]
♪ ♪
♪ ♪
♪ ♪
[somber strings music]
♪ ♪
[background traffic noise]
♪ If you think that I'm
still holdin' on ♪
♪ Maybe you should go
and love yourself ♪
[food sizzling]
Bye!
I mean, that is really
not only unjust
to the family of Laude,
but also unjust to
the Filipino people.
Let me see the documents.
The entire documents
are in there.
The report is very frustrating.
Yeah, was taken
by the Americans.
Remember our Filipino
police authorities
was unable to get the
KamaSutra condom wrapper.
Yeah, it was only the
American authorities,
the NCIS agent who
got hold the condom,
the KamaSutra condom wrapper,
not our authorities.
That is very interesting to me.
[somber chime music]
In my family, I'm the only one
who's able to finish college.
My father is a tricycle driver
and my mother does
not have regular work.
He's a typical father
who thinks that daughters
need not go to college.
After all, they'll
just get married.
I was telling myself,
"No, I have to finish.
"I have to reach college.
I have to be able to do
something to help the family."
[indistinct chatter]
A lot of people would think that
murder is always premeditated.
There are other two elements:
the abuse of superior
strength and the cruelty.
That's the reason why
they had been saying that
after all Jennifer is a trans,
but he is still a man.
The Marines, you know,
yes they have training.
But they only spend a few hours
in actual military training.
That is to weaken
our allegation that there
is some kind of abuse
of superior strength.
Definitely there is no doubt
that a Marine, an elite force,
certainly has the
superior strength
over every other individual.
Because if not, what difference
does a U.S. Marine soldier make?
If, in this case,
Pemberton gets convicted
and then after that,
he will be incarcerated
not in the Philippines.
My goodness, that
will all the more show
how lopsided this
VFA agreement is.
Jennifer is dead.
Nothing can beat that,
nothing can change that.
Jennifer is dead.
Who killed Jennifer?
A lot of evidence
points to Pemberton.
[soft techno music]
♪ Skyfall ♪
Woo, good job!
What else do you wanna sing?
You wanna do Lady Gaga?
Sure.
[Meredith] "Poker Face",
"Born This Way".
Yeah, I like "Poker Face".
When did you arrive?
I can't even remember anymore.
Oh, I didn't tell the
Laudes that you interview...
Just actually not
thinking not in terms.
You were just like catch up
with Jamille, Charis and Barbie.
[Naomi] What's she doing now?
- What is she doing?
- She's still in Olongapo.
She doing the same thing.
They call it freelancing.
I think they're still
in a lot of ways
processing what happened.
It's the same thing
where they have to deal
with their feelings
and their fears.
I know that you did
attend one of the...
The hearings in Congress
or in the Senate.
There's been a lot
of movement towards
getting an exhumation order.
They both have this.
Every time the lawyers who's
cosponsoring their bills now,
would mention they're doing
that for Jennifer Laude.
It's really nice.
This issue put the
spotlight on our community.
We actually consider
this a watershed moment
in the history of the
Philippine transgender movement
because for the first time,
people are seeing us.
[soft soothing music]
Transgender people
have always been part
of the history of this country
and that goes back through
Pre-Colonial times.
We saw that in the
Babaylan Chronicles,
which are documents
written by Spanish priests.
They took note of
male-bodied people
who carried themselves
as women.
The work as spiritual
leaders of their communities
were known as the Babaylan.
There's always a sermon.
The establishment of religion
were so that my kind of people
were slowly pushed into
the margins of society.
How the church vanquished
the Babaylan or the Shaman,
it had to make the
Babaylan somewhat scary
so called her a
witch and a swine.
We were othered by the church.
Our bodies are not acceptable.
Our identities are
not acceptable.
We've been forced to be
part of niche industries
like the beauty industry
or the sex industry.
The transgender movement
itself has to work.
They eradicate the
notion that you need
to sell your body
in order to survive.
In the meantime, a lot
of my trans friends
are actually doing sex work.
They're saying that
it's survival sex work
and I completely
understand that.
[energetic trumpet music]
[soft jazzy music]
Your first time in a
foreign country
can be quite an ordeal
if you let it.
Here in the Philippines,
you'll find a lifestyle
that's different
from life in America.
With a little knowledge of
what this assignment is like
before you get there though,
it can be a richly-rewarding
experience.
[psychedelic music]
[Naomi] We know for a
fact that whenever
there's increased military
presence in a certain country,
it always encourages the selling
of bodies for sexual services.
It encourages the
exploitation of women,
girls, female identified.
So that includes
transgender women.
If you're a trans woman,
all the doors close to you.
I mean...
You're not welcome to
certain establishments.
You're discriminated in school.
You're discriminated at work.
You're discriminated in public
and even in your private life.
Whether or not Jennifer Laude
was a sex worker
is something that only
Jennifer Laude can answer.
[somber music]
[Female Reporter] The
U.S. serviceman accused
of killing transgender woman,
Jennifer Laude,
faces prosecutors as
his trial begins today.
Pemberton's lawyers
didn't confirm
whether their client will
take the witness stand
or if a plea bargain
agreement is being considered.
[rain pattering]
[ambient sounds of traffic
passing, horns honk]
[ambient sounds of traffic
passing, horns honk]
[melancholy music]
♪ ♪
[somber music]
[indistinct background chatter]
[soft serene music]
♪ ♪
[Meredith] There are many
differences in our lives,
but the one thing
we do have in common
is that trans experience.
If the circumstances
were different,
our lives could've
totally been reversed
and I could be in her situation.
[muffled crosstalk]
She had this sort of like habit
of putting her arm around me
and we were to talk
confidentially together.
In a way, I am kind
of a manifestation of
what she hoped for Jennifer.
That I'm the person
who is trans,
who has moved to
a foreign country
and has made a good
life for myself.
She would say something like,
"You'd be even more beautiful
if you put on more
makeup like Jennifer."
She also called me Ganda.
[soft serene music]
[tribal drum music]
♪ ♪
[muffled chanting]
[energetic oriental music]
[muffled chanting]
[energetic oriental music]
[energetic oriental music]
[muffled chanting]
[energetic oriental music]
♪ ♪
[whistles whistling]
[applause]
[soft oriental music]
[Male Reporter] A day
before testifying
in the Olongapo Regional
Trial Court,
Lisa Pemberton visited
her youngest son,
Lance Corporal Joseph Pemberton.
Very difficult.
He's always been our angel.
I know Joseph would rather
die for his country
than be in this situation.
[Male Reporter] Mrs. Pemberton
denies her son
is angry with members
of the gay community.
She explains Joseph has
been exposed to the issue
since he grew up with a sister
who was a member of
the LGBT community.
His own sister is lesbian,
getting married next month.
He was supposed to be the
best man in the wedding.
[Male Reporter] She says
she can empathize
with the Laude family for
the loss of their loved one.
I feel very sorry
for their loss
and what they've [sniffs]
had to go through.
[indistinct chatter]
[indistinct chatter]
[indistinct chatter]
In this case, there's
a 30-minute gap
wherein the room where Laude
was, was totally unsecured.
We cannot say that
it was Pemberton
who killed Laude.
When he left Laude in the
bathroom, Laude was still alive.
So, now, since Laude's dead,
probably the question is,
"Who killed Laude?"
[soft guitar music]
♪ ♪
Obviously there's
somebody on the internet
who's invested in humanizing
him in that specific way
and he's presenting him
as this all-American guy,
which he is, he has that image.
They know he's from New Bedford.
Pemberton's sister is a lesbian,
so he's not antipathetic
towards LGBT people.
Rather than this Marine
who is raised in a
culture of LGBT phobia,
it makes him more
complex than that.
There's also a lot
invested in making
Joseph Scott Pemberton
into this monster.
Even if somebody is
out really thinking
that they don't have these
views against trans people,
especially trans women.
There's all of this
sort of like surrounding
environmental and societal
messages they're receiving
that would lead them to
these types of actions.
[keyboard clacking]
Still in the Philippines,
the camp of the slain
transgender Filipina,
Jennifer Laude,
denied reports that they
are pushing for a deal
for 38 million pesos
and six U.S. Visas
in exchange for dropping
the murder case
against U.S. Marine,
Joseph Scott Pemberton.
The denial followed reports
that Pemberton's lawyer,
Rowena Flores, received new
demands from the Laudes family
in exchange for
dropping the case.
[soft, dramatic music]
♪ ♪
[Skype ringing]
- Hey.
- I don't really care
that much what happens to
Pemberton because, you know,
I accept that what will
happen to Pemberton is a
political decision.
But what I can't accept is
that the further
humiliation of the family,
the further disrespect, the
further dishonoring on Jennifer
because she was not political.
Pemberton probably is political,
but Jennifer never was.
It was never her intention
to be part of any
political crap like this.
[Male Reporter] For the first
time since being accused
in the killing of
Filipino transgender
Jennifer Laude,
October 11, 2014,
U.S. Marine Lance Corporal
Joseph Pemberton
testified in court
as a defense witness
in his own murder trial.
Thinking they were real women,
he said he accepted their
offer of checking in
at the Celzone Lodge Motel
to have paid sex.
Barbie performed
oral sex on Pemberton
then immediately left the room.
After a few minutes, Jennifer
did the same to Pemberton.
But when he wanted more,
he was surprised to find out
Jennifer was also
a man like himself.
He said he felt that
he was being raped.
He was so repulsed
and so disgusted
because he did not
give his consent
to allow a man to
do that to him.
[Atty. Filemon Javier]
Pemberton acted only in defense
of his life and honor.
[food sizzling]
The verdict is expected
tomorrow, the Laude murder case.
If it is a conviction,
the Olongapo Court
will have to determine where
U.S. Marine serviceman
Joseph Scott Pemberton
will be detained.
We are confident that the
court will acquit our client.
We believe there is
reasonable doubt.
Barbie was not an eyewitness.
She didn't see anybody killed.
[wind chimes gently ringing]
[ominous music]
Harry will no longer
come here.
He'll go stay with the church.
[ominous music]
♪ ♪
[ominous music]
- Justice for Laude!
- Justice for Laude!
- Justice for Laude!
- Justice for Laude!
- Justice for Laude!
- Justice for Laude!
We are an independent country.
Therefore, he should be
detained in a Philippine jail.
[intriguing music]
♪ ♪
Oh my goodness.
This is not the voice
of complete justice,
but we had to recognize
that there is victory here.
He's considered a
national prisoner.
[Male Reporter] Pemberton
was surrounded
by two layers of security.
In the inner circle
are US servicemen,
while in the outer circle
are Philippine authorities.
[Male Reporter] Just want to
get permission from a source
present in the courtroom
that the court has called
for a session to hear the
motion of the defense
to satisfy the order
of the court.
[somber orchestral music]
♪ ♪
[somber orchestral music]
♪ ♪
Did the verdict surprise
you at all in any way?
You know, it not surprises me.
For me, it was very clear
form the beginning that
Pemberton would not serve
any day in Philippine trial
whatever counts.
What is the reason to give
him a special treatment?
No one else in the
world would get...
Obviously the reason is that
they know whatever they do
is setting a precedent and
they don't want to be put
in a position where American
military service members
are in danger when
they're overseas.
And so, they're not going
to be able to guarantee
his safety in Philippine prison.
If you go to jail in America
regardless of your
nationality or whatever,
you go to a regular jail, you
don't get a special treatment.
You have to pay the
consequence on what you did.
Referring to the location
and the law you are under.
Hello!
Then tomorrow, we'll
be filing a criminal case
in disobedience through
unlawful order of the court.
Then we're planning
to file a petition.
Even assuming there
is superior strength,
abuse should be proved.
'Cause there's no
second degree murder.
- In the Philippines, yeah.
- In the Philippines,
which is really weird to me.
Because I think
usually in the states
for it to be first
degree murder,
it has to be premeditated.
That's true.
So, that's sort of a...
Yeah, and it's weird.
Does manslaughter exist
in the Philippine?
- No, it's doesn't.
- No?
But again, the way the
judge wrote the verdict
was such that she was
giving all these excuses
in the guise of mitigating
circumstances saying,
"Well, he was drunk.
"It was like a crime of passion,
so we can forgive
him for that."
It was crazy.
After the verdict was read,
then the Americans refused to
give him up to the local police.
It kinda shows that
the Americans aren't
running everything.
It's not completely
orchestrated then.
Oh please Meredith, come on.
Of course they were
running the show.
- I just mean...
- That was how I felt.
I mean, the DOJ's,
I'm sure it [crosstalk].
All I mean is that
it was a surprise
to the Americans that
the order was for
him to go to Bilibid.
That's like a capitulation
on the part of the judge
because when it was read
and the verdict was read,
we felt like the judge was
keeping both parties happy.
She convicted him
of a crime that was
of a lower degree than murder
when it was so clear as daylight
that it was freakin' murder.
The fact that they
weren't prepared
for the custody thing to happen
was really fascinating to me
from a journalistic perspective.
I would ask you to do some
research of that notion
because America as a superpower
is in control of this.
I'm so happy that I'm having
this conversation with you
because now as an
American person
who has Filipino lineage,
you have your foot
on the Philippines
and your foot in America.
You are now in a position
to tell this story
and to be honest about
any court power relations
between our countries.
That's really the culprit,
it all goes back to that.
Jennifer's death is a result
of continued American
imperialism in the Philippines.
There is no denying that.
Yeah.
At 5:30 tonight, a New Bedford
Marine in jail
for killing a
transgender Filipino
is asking a judge to
overturn his conviction.
The court will start to hear
of Pemberton's appeal
on Thursday.
[soft guitar music]
The aftermath of a
U.S. Marine's conviction
in the death of a
Philippine trans woman.
It's close to midnight
in early December
on Waterfront Road in
Olongapo, Philippines.
Dimly lit by yellow
tungsten lamps,
women's figures in tight
clothing walk down the street,
shadows covering their faces.
U.S. service members used to be
able to roam around the area
outside the former base
during their leisure time.
But since Laude's
death last year,
the U.S. Military has
confined service members
to the feed port.
A young woman with hair
halfway down her back
walks alone in Waterfront.
Her figure is slim and taller
than most of the girls
on the street.
"I take my customers here,"
as she gestures
towards the darkness
beyond the road.
Roseanne claims she's 17,
but her voice hasn't
noticeably dropped.
Even though Pemberton
killed Laude
after finding out she was trans,
Roseanne insists that
she needs to keep
her transgender status
from U.S. service members
who pay her for sex.
[Meredith] In the verdict's
aftermath, local officials
and residents are eager for
U.S. troops to come back
and bring money into the
city as they once did.
[Meredith] Locals have even
accused the Laudes of being
selfish by not settling
the case early.
By having gone to trial,
the liberty privileges for
U.S. troops remain suspended,
which in turn has
directly led to hundreds,
if not thousands of locals
losing their sources of income.
Just imagine some businessman
lose about 20 million pesos
in business opportunities
because Americans are not having
their liberty or their rest
and recreational activities.
"We expect liberty will resume
now that Pemberton has been
convicted," Cortez says.
Jennifer's mother,
Julita Laudes,
sits on her brown-floral
print couch.
Despite the conviction,
she is far from satisfied.
[Meredith] Other locals express
a mixture of sympathy
and rejection when it
comes to the presence
of transgender sex workers
in Olongapo.
A souvenir vendor on
Waterfront Road
says that he is indifferent
to the Pemberton verdict
and wishes only that full
liberty would resume,
so that ordinary people in
Olongapo can have income.
[Meredith] Down the street,
a female bystander
sitting on a nearby
park bench shouts back,
"Transgenders need to be
kicked out of Olongapo."
Another taxi driver replies,
"Their words hurt too much.
Those are our fellow Filipinos."
Roseanne is worried about
people identifying her
and finding out
she's a sex worker.
Her mother is not aware
she is doing sex work.
According to the young woman,
she thinks I'm just looking
for a handsome boyfriend
who'll take me to America.
As Roseanne continues
to roam the streets
of Olongapo at night,
she has to believe
that she will encounter
men like Jennifer's fiancé
and not a man like the kind
who ended Jennifer's life.
I think all the Filipinos
wanted to have that big change.
I think he's the
number one candidate
who's running for presidency.
I know he can
do what he promise
that substantial changes will
happen the next six months.
[Female Reporter] The headline
confirms it:
Rodrigo Duterte will be
the new president
of the Philippines.
[Male Reporter] He captured
domestic and international
attention with speeches
peppered with obscene jokes
about sex and rape
and for undiplomatic remarks
about some key players
in the country's politics
including Australia,
the United States and China.
[audience laughing and cheering]
America, prepare to
leave the Philippines.
Prepare for the
event to a repeal
for the abrogation of the
visiting of this country.
[intriguing xylophone music]
♪ ♪
♪ ♪
On this day two years ago,
transgender woman Jennifer Laude
was found dead in a motel
room in Subic, Zambales.
Now U.S. Marine Lance Corporal
Joseph Scott Pemberton
was found guilty
of killing Laude
is detained in a
facility in Quezon City.
[Male Reporter] Behind this
fence is a detention facility
for Lance Corporal
Joseph Scott Pemberton.
No movement can be
detected in the facility.
Space between the
two cargo containers
converted into rooms is
covered with tarpaulin.
Guards from the
Bureau of Corrections
manning the facility
are nowhere in sight.
The Court of Appeal still has
to rule on Pemberton's appeal.
The Laude family continues
to seek justice for Jennifer.
The family would like to
put an end to this case also.
Because for as long
as there is an appeal,
the appeal prolongs their agony.
[intriguing music]
The U.S. Government's position
is they will pay if there's
finality to the case.
Finality meant Pemberton
should be allowed
to go back to the United States.
This was a very clear instance
where the U.S. Government
took advantage of poverty
in attempting to release
one of their Marines
from incarceration
arising from a
criminal conviction.
President Duterte is
the very first president
that allocated for an
independent foreign policy.
I stand solidly behind
him that the presence
of US troops in the Philippines
is a blatant violation
of our sovereignty.
It's a hold-over from
the Colonial Times
and should finally end.
I am a president
of a sovereign state
and we have long-ceased
to be a colony.
[soft introspective music]
[Meredith] New England trip:
hot summer day,
no one on the road.
Greek restaurant, regulars.
Are these people aware of who
Joseph Scott Pemberton is?
Plan for today: go to
Robin Street, home address.
It's at a curve in the road.
Simple-wooden fence,
very modest house.
Working-class family.
Greater New Bedford
Technical Vocational School,
far from the famous
schools of Boston.
Boston: Harvard or MIT?
I wonder what this high school
taught Pemberton
about LGBT people.
Cement grounds,
uniform green grass.
Had Pemberton ever had
a girlfriend before?
Fresh, unlike the
salty air of Olongapo.
Joseph Scott Pemberton
grew up close to the water
and dreamed of being
some place open.
Isn't that why so many
young men join the military?
Nancy, he did it.
He's guilty, that's it.
Let's think about forgiveness.
If he spends 30 years in jail,
he won't have any life
left when he comes back.
Do you happen to
live in New Bedford?
I'm doing a story about
Joseph Scott Pemberton.
I just wonder if you've
heard of the case.
I can see oil trails
that remind me
of oil slicks in Olongapo.
[soft introspective music]
The president is winding
up his trip to Asia
and the Philippines,
his last stop,
before returning home tomorrow.
He appeared to give
the country's leader
a pass on human rights.
President Trump grimaced through
the traditional Asia
summit handshake,
but did not shy
away from praising
controversial Philippine
President Rodrigo Duterte.
Duterte's accused of
ordering death squads
style killings of thousands
of Filipino drug dealers
and users without trial.
[Male Reporter] His troops have
killed more than 7,000 people
since Duterte came into power.
But he's a potential ally in
the region on North Korea.
The president's visit
sparking protests.
Riot police using water
cannons to disperse the crowds.
Mr. Trump winding
down his Asian tour
with a toast and a tribute.
[Duterte vocalizing
foreign language]
Duterte serenading the
US Commander-in-Chief
with the lyrics, "You are
the light in my world."
[crowd chanting] No VFA,
no fascist U.S.A.
No Trump, no VFA,
no fascist U.S.A.
No Trump, no VFA,
no fascist U.S.A.
[somber orchestral music]
♪ ♪
[soft instrumental music]
♪ ♪
[Meredith] I was just
thinking about
how important this spot has been
and how it was the
focus in so much media
and, you know, sort
of, Jennifer's death.
There's this weird surreal
way we just imagined
these past two years.
What does it actually mean?
[soft orchestral music]
♪ ♪
[Naomi] I always get
affected when I hear
of a trans person
being murdered.
A year ago, I also lost
a friend to violence.
She just become another
statistic.
She had more than
20 stab wounds.
She was unrecognizable.
There is the lack of justice
in many trans people's lives.
If members of our community
are killed every day,
then there is no
justice in the world.
[Virginia] If Pemberton
is acquitted,
oh my goodness, that would
really affect my whole belief
in this judicial,
or legal system.
For me it's really
more than Laude's case,
it's our sovereignty here.
It's our freedom here.
It's our right to
determine our own path
without intervention
of a foreign power.
[soft orchestral music]
[Meredith] My community
has been ravaged
by violence consistently
year after year.
Me continuing to do my work,
continuing to strive for
justice and acceptance
is somehow a way
to commemorate her.
[soft orchestral music]
["Sister Song" by
Perfume Genius]
Subtitles by explosiveskull
♪ ♪
♪ Drive on, drive on ♪
♪ My special one ♪
♪ Don't you stop 'til
you know you're gone ♪
♪ Your sister and me
have a set of keys ♪
♪ Don't you worry your
head 'bout a thing ♪
♪ Drive on, drive on ♪
♪ My special one ♪
♪ Don't you stop 'til
you know you're gone ♪
♪ Drive on, drive on ♪
♪ My special one ♪
♪ Don't you stop 'til
you know you're gone ♪
♪ Your sister and me will
keep your place clean ♪
♪ So it shines when
you finally come home ♪
♪ Drive on, drive on ♪
♪ My special one ♪
♪ Don't you stop 'til
you know you're gone ♪
[soft soothing music]
♪ ♪
♪ ♪