"We miss you. Why did this happen to you? You shouldn’t have kept that man a secret from us. All you’ve built up is of no use now. You were so young."
25 na taon lamang ang transgender Filipina na si Mhelody Polan Bruno ng bawian siya ng buhay isang linggo ng nakakalipas habang nagbabakasyon sa Australya. Dalawang buwan siya nasa bansa upang makasama ang kanyang kasintahan na si Andy.
Ang pagpanaw
Nakitang sugatan at walang malay si Mhelody sa isang bahay sa Tarcutta Street sa Wagga Wagga noong umaga ng Setyembre 21, 2019.
Dinala ang dalaga sa Wagga Wagga Base Hospital, ngunit namatay din ito pagkatapos ng 10am kinabukasan.
Isang 31 na taon na lalaki ang inaresto at kinasuhan ng manslaughter. Binigyan siya ng strict conditional bail.
The 25-year old stunner was a known face in the local gay beauty pageant circuit. Source: Mhelody Polan Bruno (Facebook)
Hindi suspek si Andy sa kaso.
Ang kanyang pinakamatalik na kaibigan
Kinumpirma ni Dholley Garcia, ang pinakamatalik na kaibigan ni Mhelody, na napag-alam nila na taga-navy ang suspek at sinabi daw noon ni Mhelody na gusto niyang pakasalan ang lalaki.
Ibinahagi ni Dholley na hindi niya kilala ang lalaki at hindi ito naikwento ni Mhelody sa kanila.
"But she had her secrets. She didn’t tell us about him. I think maybe she didn’t want to tell anyone because she already had a boyfriend. I think she met him when she was already in Wagga Wagga."
Habang nasa Wagga Wagga, madalas daw silang tawagan ni Mhelody para ikwento kung saan sila nag-iikot ni Andy.
"We’ve met Andy. He was a nice guy. They met on a dating site and he visited Mhelody in the Philippines twice before. Andy said he loved her when I asked him; but I wasn’t so sure if Mhelody felt the same way."
Mhelody and Dolley Source: Dholley Garcia
Ngunit habang di sigurado si Mhelody noon sa kanyang nararamdaman tungo kay Andy, sinabi ni Dholley na sigurado siya na gusto niyang maging babae.
"Mhelody has always known that she was a woman inside even when we were in schoo. She was a good student. She always got good grades and she was always joining activities in school. She started her transition then. She wasn't ashamed of it. For her, it was easy."
Ang mahirap para kay Mhelody ang pagtatrabaho para sa kanyang sarili at pamilya.
"After she finished school in Surigao, she worked right away. She became the breadwinner of the family. She had her own place in Makati but she lost her job in the call centre in Alorica so she stayed with me often."
"I miss you so much...I can't believe this happened to you. You were supposed to come home tomorrow. We had so many good times left to share..." Source: Dholley Garcia
Malaking kawalan si Mhelody sa buhay ni Dholley.
"I miss her so much. It’s so hard to accept that she’s gone. We were expecting her to come home and tell us about her trip," she says, adding, "We just want justice for Mhelody. Why did that man do that to her? Why did he kill her? He needs to be punished for what he did. We want her body back home."
Tinatawagan ng Migrante Australia ang pamahalaan at ang Filipino-Australian community "to extend support and assistance to Mhelody Bruno’s family as they seek justice and the repatriation of her body back to the Philippines."
Isang vigil para kay Melody ang gaganapin sa ika-pito ng Oktubre sa Victoria Memorial Gardens sa Wagga Wagga mula 7:00 hanggang 10:30 pm.
