Indigenous
peoples around the globe are making themselves heard in international
arenas and at the national level. But many challenges remain in
the fight for full recognition of all their right
In
commemoration of the August 9 Int'l Day of Indigenous Peoples
GMA's mining agenda and military decrees a lethal combo
– IPs
Typhoon
Chedeng did not stop indigenous peoples of Southern Tagalog and
Central Luzon from storming the Office of the President in Malacanang
where the newly created Philippine Mining Development Corporation
(PMDC) resides.
Carrying
with them placards and streamers denouncing the alleged ineptitude
of the government to resolve the adverse mining impacts in indigenous
communities, the group led by the Kalipunan ng mga Katutubong
Mamamayan ng Pilipinas (KAMP) reiterated earlier calls to scrap
the Mining Act of 1995 and for the withdrawal of all corporate
mining operations in their territories.
KAMP
noted that 18 of the 24 priority mining projects of the Arroyo
administration are located in indigenous territories: ten in Mindanao,
six in Cordillera and Northern Luzon, and one each in Palawan
and Mindoro Islands.
The
group further criticized Pres. Arroyo's implementation of the
Human Security Act of 2007, saying that "the mining and anti-terrorism
laws, undeniably to be carried out in sync, will result to 'legalized'
political repression, massive land grabbing, and even the killing
of people who openly disapprove the 'national development' rhetoric
of the Arroyo administration."
Himpad
Mangumalas, spokesperson for KAMP, explained that militarization
of indigenous communities plays a vital role in the government's
agenda for revitalizing the mining industry. "By deploying
troops and setting up military detachments, the government assures
transnational and multinational mining corporations that our communities
are cleared off of any resistance."
"The
Human Security Act bestows Pres. Arroyo and her allies the mandate
to tag as 'economic terrorists' anyone who gets in their way and
therefore fall prey to State persecution," he added.
The
indigenous leader also described the President's move to include
PMDC under her office and the hailing of her brother-in-law, Rep.
Ignacio Arroyo, into the Congressional committee on natural resources
as "troubling because it greatly diminishes all measures
for transparency" and that "it may have even been a
well-thought move to further weaken the social and environmental
safeguards provided by the Constitution, and later on allows for
a 'one-stop shop' processing in the applications of mining giants."
"We
would like to remind Pres. Arroyo that this makes her even more
accountable to victims of mining disasters and of mining-related
human rights violations, including economic dislocation, eviction
from ancestral territories and the virtual 'ethnocide' of tribal
communities," the KAMP leader said.
Mangumalas
cited the recently reported collapse of TVI-Resource Development
Philippines' mine tailings pond in Siocon, Zamboanga del Norte
in Mindanao. The Canadian-owned mining firm which operates in
Mount Canatuan, a sacred site of the Subanens, denied their tailings
pond had collapsed. However, residents are wary that the wall
of the pond might give way due to heavy rains.
In
Kasibu, Nueva Vizacaya in Northern Luzon, three Bugkalot and Ifugao
village chiefs are reportedly facing charges when Australian-owned
Oxiana Philippines Inc. filed a case against 22 men, the three
tribesmen included, after putting up a barricade against the entry
of the mining exploration in their community. The town mayor asked
higher government officials and the mining giant to "respect
the people's will."
The
group also challenged recently proclaimed PMDC chief, Mr. Heherson
Alvarez, to "take a bold and decisive stand whenever indigenous
peoples' rights are at stake" but also reminded him that
"there is a fine line between genuine consultation and deception."
Mangumalas
was pertaining to the consultation mechanisms offered by the Indigenous
Peoples Rights Act (IPRA) and one of its major provisions, the
Free, Prior and Informed Consent, which has been "reengineered
to easily accommodate demands of the mining sector."
"Mr.
Alvarez may want to study and seriously implement the recommendations
put forward by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the indigenous
peoples, Prof. Rodolfo Stavenhagen, that lists guidelines on how
to respect the rights of the indigenous peoples in the country.
His 'current boss' seemed to have failed miserably when her foreign-controlled
mining industry is at stake," Mangumalas said.
The
protest action in Malacanang is part of KAMP's month-long activity
to commemorate the United Nations-declared International Day of
Indigenous Peoples
For
more details, please contact Mr. Himpad Mangumalas (mobile no.
+639167565260) or our Media Liaison officer (Ms. Lea Fullon, mobile
no. +639186891956).
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