“It is infuriating that the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte has done more to care for large-scale mining corporations than to respond to the millions of Filipinos becoming increasingly facing starvation, police brutality, and unchecked contamination of the COVID-19 virus.”
With no substantive discussion on the broad array of Oceanagold’s rights violations of commission, omission, and lack of due diligence, the hearing resulted in a sham proceeding that served as nothing but the latest stunt of Oceanagold to worm out of its track record of violations and injustices. It became their platform to call for the renewal of its Financial or Technical Assistance Agreement, which expired eight months ago and its renewal challenged precisely because of the mine’s plethora of violations.
“For 25 years, Oceanagold was like a never-ending storm that has lashed at us.”
“The ecological agriculture that landless farm workers have painstakingly carved out of the vast monoculture plantations of Negros sugar barons have been irrigated with blood and bullets.”
“…[t]hese potentials are being challenged by different environmentally destructive projects and interventions and intensified extraction of natural and mineral resources. Our sovereignty over our natural resources is being bastardized. “
The peace park is an expression and integration of Karen people’s right to self-determination, natural resource management, environmental protection, and good governance.
Will the economy collapse as the big mines are closed?
Environment Secretary Gina Lopez’ order to close several mines and cancel mining contracts was a move long awaited by mining-affected communities.
In a dialogue, indigenous peoples and Moro asked Environment Secretary Gina Lopez to shut down destructive large-scale mining.
Environmentalists hope government action against destructive firms will lead towards reorientation of the mining industry.
“We hope that under President Duterte, destructive mining operations will stop because we have felt the bad effects of mining.”