A STAND ON MINING
An IP in a Mining Community
It is truly very difficult for someone like me who grew up in a mining community and a student studying in the University of the Philippines to give a solid stand on the issue of mining.
I grew up in the mining community of Philex Camp 3, Tuba, Benguet. Philex Mining Corporation is one of the biggest gold and copper producing companies in the Philippines. It is second to Lepanto Consolidated Mining Company in Mangkayan, Benguet.
Known as a responsible mining company, Philex has maintained an impressive track for over 54 years. It is one of the mining companies that has helped sustain the mining industry of the country due to its rich production of gold, silver and copper. With this comes its reputation of taking great consideration of its employees and their families’ welfare. This includes providing them with working benefits, free housing and city services, and low cost quality education for their children.
Looking back, I owe much to the Philex community. This is where I grew up and got an education that landed me where I am today. Since I learned how to think, it has instilled in my mind that I am a product of this mining community and that I should be proud of it.
But coming to the University of the Philippines and learning of the destructive ways of mining and especially being a part of an organization that aims to promote and protect the indigenous cultures, I face a dilemma on how to react to the mining issues.
Although it maybe true that I am a product of the Philex mining community, that it had provided for my education and is the source of income for many families like my own, I cannot deny the fact that I too am an IP and that I have the responsibility to protect my heritage, my tawid.
In UP, I have been taught the value of being an IP and in accepting one’s identity. It has been in this institution that it has come to my knowledge of the various issues that IPs face. One of them is mining and the long time effects that in has on the affected areas.
As an IP, I feel the need to take action towards the abuse of IP domains for some people’s quest for power. It cannot be denied that Philex has done great damage to the ancestral lands of Tuba, Benguet. Mountains are damaged as ores are extracted. Waters are contaminated and the flora and fauna of affected areas decrease dramatically.
Although Philex has claimed itself to be a responsible mining company, it cannot be denied that there is no such thing as rehabilitation of the environment once damage has been inflicted.
I am not saying that Philex Mining Company should be shut down. That would leave a devastating blow to the country’s economy. Like Lepanto Consolidated Mining Company, Philex is one of the earliest established mine in the country. It has provided jobs for many people, IPs and non-IPs alike.
What I am saying is that the opening of new large scale mines in the country especially in the Cordilleras should be stopped. As for established mines, a close watch should be done so as to lessen the damage that these mines could further inflict.
Mining and the IPs
Perhaps one problem why even the IPs themselves are into large scale mining could be dated back in history. It could be assumed that during the early days, they were not educated on the possible effects of mining to their ancestral domains.
This is also the problem that could be said in the approved Mining Act of 1995 and the Revitalized Mining Act of 1997. Not everyone especially those that could be affected by the Act are aware of the devastating consequences of the mining act to the environment and the people themselves.
The Mining Act of 1995 and the Revitalized Mining Act of 1997 are against the recognition of the collective rights, interests and welfare of the indigenous communities. In the Charter Change proposed by the President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, it gives a 100% ownership of the land to foreign investors, thus giving them the right to explore potential mining sites even if it could mean the displacement of IPs and exploitation of ancestral lands.
During Arroyo’s term, 5,000 mining permits have been granted in 6 months alone. As of January 2006, two exploration permit applications (ExPAs) were approved by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Mines and Geosciences Bureau (DENR-MGB) to a Swedish owned Wofland Resources Inc. and Makilala Mining Co. in the province of Kalinga.
True as it may be that this could mean more jobs for people, will this be at the expense of the environment and the loss of other people’s home and lives.
Proper education is needed in order to truly understand the effects of mining. IPs give great importance to their land. This is their home, their life. Many have showered their blood that their lands be saved from mines and dams. Let us not put their deaths in vain.
It is truly very difficult for someone like me who grew up in a mining community and a student studying in the University of the Philippines to give a solid stand on the issue of mining.
I grew up in the mining community of Philex Camp 3, Tuba, Benguet. Philex Mining Corporation is one of the biggest gold and copper producing companies in the Philippines. It is second to Lepanto Consolidated Mining Company in Mangkayan, Benguet.
Known as a responsible mining company, Philex has maintained an impressive track for over 54 years. It is one of the mining companies that has helped sustain the mining industry of the country due to its rich production of gold, silver and copper. With this comes its reputation of taking great consideration of its employees and their families’ welfare. This includes providing them with working benefits, free housing and city services, and low cost quality education for their children.
Looking back, I owe much to the Philex community. This is where I grew up and got an education that landed me where I am today. Since I learned how to think, it has instilled in my mind that I am a product of this mining community and that I should be proud of it.
But coming to the University of the Philippines and learning of the destructive ways of mining and especially being a part of an organization that aims to promote and protect the indigenous cultures, I face a dilemma on how to react to the mining issues.
Although it maybe true that I am a product of the Philex mining community, that it had provided for my education and is the source of income for many families like my own, I cannot deny the fact that I too am an IP and that I have the responsibility to protect my heritage, my tawid.
In UP, I have been taught the value of being an IP and in accepting one’s identity. It has been in this institution that it has come to my knowledge of the various issues that IPs face. One of them is mining and the long time effects that in has on the affected areas.
As an IP, I feel the need to take action towards the abuse of IP domains for some people’s quest for power. It cannot be denied that Philex has done great damage to the ancestral lands of Tuba, Benguet. Mountains are damaged as ores are extracted. Waters are contaminated and the flora and fauna of affected areas decrease dramatically.
Although Philex has claimed itself to be a responsible mining company, it cannot be denied that there is no such thing as rehabilitation of the environment once damage has been inflicted.
I am not saying that Philex Mining Company should be shut down. That would leave a devastating blow to the country’s economy. Like Lepanto Consolidated Mining Company, Philex is one of the earliest established mine in the country. It has provided jobs for many people, IPs and non-IPs alike.
What I am saying is that the opening of new large scale mines in the country especially in the Cordilleras should be stopped. As for established mines, a close watch should be done so as to lessen the damage that these mines could further inflict.
Mining and the IPs
Perhaps one problem why even the IPs themselves are into large scale mining could be dated back in history. It could be assumed that during the early days, they were not educated on the possible effects of mining to their ancestral domains.
This is also the problem that could be said in the approved Mining Act of 1995 and the Revitalized Mining Act of 1997. Not everyone especially those that could be affected by the Act are aware of the devastating consequences of the mining act to the environment and the people themselves.
The Mining Act of 1995 and the Revitalized Mining Act of 1997 are against the recognition of the collective rights, interests and welfare of the indigenous communities. In the Charter Change proposed by the President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, it gives a 100% ownership of the land to foreign investors, thus giving them the right to explore potential mining sites even if it could mean the displacement of IPs and exploitation of ancestral lands.
During Arroyo’s term, 5,000 mining permits have been granted in 6 months alone. As of January 2006, two exploration permit applications (ExPAs) were approved by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Mines and Geosciences Bureau (DENR-MGB) to a Swedish owned Wofland Resources Inc. and Makilala Mining Co. in the province of Kalinga.
True as it may be that this could mean more jobs for people, will this be at the expense of the environment and the loss of other people’s home and lives.
Proper education is needed in order to truly understand the effects of mining. IPs give great importance to their land. This is their home, their life. Many have showered their blood that their lands be saved from mines and dams. Let us not put their deaths in vain.
posted by marianne | 5:10 AM
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