Residents, Bishop share concerns about mining plans at province-wide meeting

"Paradise," for Michaela Dupagen of the indigenous Isneg tribe in the northern Philippines, is the town she lives in at the foot of a mountain.

At 64, she climbs hills beneath the Cordillera mountain ranges to plant rice in rain-drenched fields. She picks bananas, pineapples, pomelos and vegetables, and digs for roots in the forest for her family's food. She bathes in waterfalls and drinks from rivers and streams.

The elected councilwoman in Adams also serves as spokesperson for indigenous people in that town of Ilocos Norte province, more than 450 kilometers north of Manila situated below. On June 24, during a public consultation on mining exploration in her province, she told UCA News she was worried about the "luxuries" she and fellow Isneg might lose to mining activities.

Dupagen said her anxiety began when she heard news over radio earlier in the month about a plan of Benguet Mining Corporation (BMC) to explore for ore in a 21,000-hectare area of the province. The area includes Bolaoan community, where she and about 1,000 Isneg live.

So when Governor Michael Keon of Ilocos Norte, heeding the call of Bishop Sergio Utleg of Laoag, convened the consultation at the provincial Capitol, Dupagen came to Laoag City with more than 30 other indigenous people from Adams.

Keon and Bishop Utleg, along with representatives from BMC, the regional Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB), Department of Environment and Natural Resources, National Commission on Indigenous Peoples, NGOs as well as Church workers and volunteers, attended the meeting.

Dupagen and her companions echoed their "strong objection" to mining, as expressed in a June 13 petition signed by 445 Adams residents.

According to the petitioners, the "few jobs" mining activities promise to generate is not worth the environmental "destruction" they expect the industry to cause. They are also concerned about being deprived of their livelihood once natural resources are destroyed.

BMC president Benjamin Philip Romualdez, a cousin of Ilocos Norte Congressman Ferdinand Marcos Jr., told meeting participants, "We don't want to disturb your peace."

His company had "not gotten any permit" yet, he stressed, but he appealed to residents to allow it to explore for ore in the towns of Solsona, Nueva Era, Vintar, Dumalneg and Adams.

Citing Benguet Mining's corporate profile and history of business operations in the country, he said, the company is not only investing in mines. "We are here to invest in Ilocos Norte."

MGB officials estimated the company would invest more than US$60,000 in exploration activities.

Bishop Utleg noted the "risks" involved in mining and cited the destruction of areas in neighboring Abra province, where Canadian and Philippine mining partners are drilling. "Mining is too risky as far as Philippine experience" goes, he asserted.

According to the bishop, who bikes and climbs mountains in his spare time, "Abra is barren" because of "irresponsible development," while Ilocos Norte is "beautiful with green vegetation and forests."

Even if BMC officials are asking permission only for exploration, he continued, "we have in our minds that someday, once this starts rolling, the end result is to mine."

His diocese covers Ilocos Norte province and Laoag City, where 68 percent of the 658,500 people are Catholics. The rest are mostly Christians and indigenous peoples, some of whom follow native beliefs.

Dupagen, a Catholic, told UCA News at the consultation that she shares the bishop's apprehension. She believes investors will take the "rich natural resources" and "leave us empty-handed." She added, "While they say mining could generate more jobs and development opportunities, these are just temporary."

Fellow Adams resident Jesusa Tawali, 64, citing popular tourist spots in their town, said she was concerned landslides and flashfloods might occur after the land is dug up and forests disturbed.

BMC, according to its website, has been mining in the country since 1903, primarily for gold and chromite. In 2005, it applied for a permit for a financial and technical assistance agreement needed for mine exploration in Ilocos Norte, Perla Reyes of the regional MGB office told UCA News on June 27.

She said MGB records show the bureau on May 31 ordered the issuance of a public notice of the corporation's application.

Source: UCANews, June 27, 2008