2/06/2005
Ang KaSaMa Info
Indigenous peoples rights advocates are calling on all IPs to close ranks against mining in order to force the government to release their ancestral land and domain titles and to restore the independence of the National Commission on Indigenous Commission on Indigenous People.
“The timing of the promulgation of the Supreme Court decision on the constitutionality of the Mining Act of 1995 just before the Mining Investment Conference in Makati last Feb. 2, 3 and 4 is very auspicious,” the Taga Cordillera Kami Inc. (TCKI), a confederation of the indigenous right advocates, said in a statement.
Another militant group warned of more protests against the High Court’s ruling likewise called for mass actions to condemn the SCs reversal. “The Supreme Court has unmasked itself as vulnerable to manipulation by vested interest parties by making biased judgments over matters of social justice,” the Cordillera People’s Alliance said in its statement.
Although the two groups differ in their advocacies – the CPA being a staunch anti-mining group, while TCKI is a coalition of neo-humanist and progressive idea advocates---in the case against mining expressed their disagreement with SC.
The TCKI in the statement, signed by its secretary General Evaristo Munar, claimed that the timing iwhich the ruling was released just before the mining summit---is evidence of the influence and the maneuverings of the administration of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.
At the center of the matter is the Foreign Technical Assistance Agreement provision of the mining law. The provision grants foreigner investors 100 percent ownership of mining companies. This provision, the TCKI and CPA said, directly contradicts the 1987 Constitution which mandates a 40 percent ceiling on foreign equity in Philippines companies.
The TCKI, together with its mother organization, the Ang Katipunan ng mga Samahang Maharlika (Ang KaSaMa) called all indigenous peoples and indigenous cultural community (IPs and ICC) groups to oppose all attempts on the government of mining prospectors to enter into their domains. The group urges IPS and ICCs to demand that their Certificates of Ancestral Land Titles be issued first before they entertain any proposal for exploration or mining activities in their lands.
“IPs and ICCs should also form regional coalitions and later on form a national coalition which will then demand for the full implementation of the Indigenous People’s Rights Act,” the TCKI statement said.
It claimed that GMA, after gaming a fresh six year term, immediately maneuvered her administration’s machinery to lue foreign investors in order revitalize the mining industry. “The issuance of Executive Orders 354 and 379 watered down IPRA and clipped the powers of the NCIP. These were geared towards making the foreign investors comfortable as soon as they enter into IP areas,” they alleged.
“GMA’s resolve to revitalize the mining industry is at the cost of the rights of IPs and ICCs. The treatment of the government of IPs seems to have reverted to discrimination but in subtler manner,” TCKI added.
Sustained protests
The CPA, on the other hand, in its statement condemned and denounced the Arroyo administration and the Philippine Chamber of Mines for facilitating the sellout of the country’s resources for the exclusive profit of multinational companies.
The militant group also dismissed GMA’s promise that the government will consult the stakeholder as mere lip service and “devoid of sincerity.” It charged that GMA actually had been working to entice foreign investors by offering incentives and tax holidays to foreign mining companies by organizing the International Mining Investment conference.
CPA alleged that conference was also geared towards luring foreign companies to invest in the revitalization of 23 identified mining sites in the country. The sites were not named. “The government is hooked into foreign investments---a part of imperialist globalization disregarding the rights of affected communities and protection of the environment,” the organizations said. It warned that more conflicts will occur in the 23 areas.
The militant group added that credible studies have shown that countries which rely on foreign companies in their mining industries remain among the poorest of the poor and are encountering a series of catastrophes, disasters and conflicts. These countries include Zaire and Serra Leone in Africa and Bolivia in South America.
“The timing of the promulgation of the Supreme Court decision on the constitutionality of the Mining Act of 1995 just before the Mining Investment Conference in Makati last Feb. 2, 3 and 4 is very auspicious,” the Taga Cordillera Kami Inc. (TCKI), a confederation of the indigenous right advocates, said in a statement.
Another militant group warned of more protests against the High Court’s ruling likewise called for mass actions to condemn the SCs reversal. “The Supreme Court has unmasked itself as vulnerable to manipulation by vested interest parties by making biased judgments over matters of social justice,” the Cordillera People’s Alliance said in its statement.
Although the two groups differ in their advocacies – the CPA being a staunch anti-mining group, while TCKI is a coalition of neo-humanist and progressive idea advocates---in the case against mining expressed their disagreement with SC.
The TCKI in the statement, signed by its secretary General Evaristo Munar, claimed that the timing iwhich the ruling was released just before the mining summit---is evidence of the influence and the maneuverings of the administration of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.
At the center of the matter is the Foreign Technical Assistance Agreement provision of the mining law. The provision grants foreigner investors 100 percent ownership of mining companies. This provision, the TCKI and CPA said, directly contradicts the 1987 Constitution which mandates a 40 percent ceiling on foreign equity in Philippines companies.
The TCKI, together with its mother organization, the Ang Katipunan ng mga Samahang Maharlika (Ang KaSaMa) called all indigenous peoples and indigenous cultural community (IPs and ICC) groups to oppose all attempts on the government of mining prospectors to enter into their domains. The group urges IPS and ICCs to demand that their Certificates of Ancestral Land Titles be issued first before they entertain any proposal for exploration or mining activities in their lands.
“IPs and ICCs should also form regional coalitions and later on form a national coalition which will then demand for the full implementation of the Indigenous People’s Rights Act,” the TCKI statement said.
It claimed that GMA, after gaming a fresh six year term, immediately maneuvered her administration’s machinery to lue foreign investors in order revitalize the mining industry. “The issuance of Executive Orders 354 and 379 watered down IPRA and clipped the powers of the NCIP. These were geared towards making the foreign investors comfortable as soon as they enter into IP areas,” they alleged.
“GMA’s resolve to revitalize the mining industry is at the cost of the rights of IPs and ICCs. The treatment of the government of IPs seems to have reverted to discrimination but in subtler manner,” TCKI added.
Sustained protests
The CPA, on the other hand, in its statement condemned and denounced the Arroyo administration and the Philippine Chamber of Mines for facilitating the sellout of the country’s resources for the exclusive profit of multinational companies.
The militant group also dismissed GMA’s promise that the government will consult the stakeholder as mere lip service and “devoid of sincerity.” It charged that GMA actually had been working to entice foreign investors by offering incentives and tax holidays to foreign mining companies by organizing the International Mining Investment conference.
CPA alleged that conference was also geared towards luring foreign companies to invest in the revitalization of 23 identified mining sites in the country. The sites were not named. “The government is hooked into foreign investments---a part of imperialist globalization disregarding the rights of affected communities and protection of the environment,” the organizations said. It warned that more conflicts will occur in the 23 areas.
The militant group added that credible studies have shown that countries which rely on foreign companies in their mining industries remain among the poorest of the poor and are encountering a series of catastrophes, disasters and conflicts. These countries include Zaire and Serra Leone in Africa and Bolivia in South America.
*****
Joel Belinan is the Samaj Secretary in Baguio. His written article regarding the issue on mining was published on February 6, 2005 at ZigZag Weekly Newspaper / Vol. 10 Number VI.
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