Philippines Mangyan tribe on indefinite hunger strike over Norwegian Mining Project

2009-11-27 | FROM PIPLINKS: (Need letters of support) Please contact whit@piplinks.org for more info. See forwarded media reports below of hunger strike by Indigenous Peoples in the Philippines in Manila, outside the headquarters of the Department of the Environment and Natural Resources, in relation to the issuance of a mining concession in the Mangyans ancestral lands and watershed area for the Island of Mindoro (details at http://earthjedi.blogspot.com ). The latest news is that someone has also started a hunger strike in Rome at the World Food Summit in protest against the issuance and project. The strike is having some effect as Secretary of the DENR Atienza is coming under pressure as a result of the national and international press coverage to justify his decision and Intex's shares were halted on the Oslo stock exchange as they fell due to bad publicity and uncertainty. However we need to put as much pressure on the Government of the Philippines (and also the company Intex Resources of Norway and the Norwegian Government) to cancel the Environment Clearance Certificate, as they have already attempted to fluff the issue by saying they will suspend the ECC for 90 days - i.e. to end the hunger strike and then have mining proceed as planned. The hunger strikers have rightly described this as a sham and decided to continue with their action until the ECC is cancelled. The last of the two reports attached below are Support Statements that the Working Group on Mining in the Philippines and LRC have sent to the hunger strikers. PLEASE SEND LETTERS OF SUPPORT TO: roslynarayata@yahoo.com.ph; nc@alyansatigilmina.net; whit@piplinks.org & lodel@piplinks.org 25 MINDORO HUNGER STRIKERS NOT GOING HOME YET http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view/20091118-237059/25-Mindoro-hunger-strikers-not-going-home-yet Arroyo wants Atienza to explain Mindoro mining clearance http://politics.inquirer.net/view.php?db=1&article=20091118-237000 Solon wants DENR probed over mining firms in Mindoro http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view/20091117-236828/Solon-wants-DENR-probed-over-mining-firms-in-Mindoro Anti-Mindoro mining farmer stages hunger strike in Rome http://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/breakingnews/view/20091117-236806/Anti-Mindoro-mining-farmer-stages-hunger-strike-in-Rome Ermita says mining firms in watersheds risk ECC cancellation http://www.isria.com/pages/18_November_2009_159.php Manila freezes Intex's permit for $2.4 bln nickel project http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssIndustryMaterialsUtilitiesNews/idUSSP52386120091118 25 Mindoro hunger strikers not going home yet http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view/20091118-237059/25-Mindoro-hunger-strikers-not-going-home-yet Intex shares, mining permit frozen http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKLI9488520091118 Support Statement with Hunger Strikers over Intex Resources’ project Working Group on Mining in the Philippines 18th November 2009 The UK-based Working Group on Mining in the Philippines wish to express our solidarity with you on your hunger strike to protest the issuance to the Norwegian Company, Intex Resources, of an Environmental Clearance Certificate (ECC) by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Secretary Joselito Atienza in October 2009. In our 2008 report Philippines: Mining or Food? we noted that Intex Resources claim that the “benefits of the project are endless”. This was not the opinion of the authors, who found that the project would seriously damage food production, human rights and the environment of Mindoro. The 2008 report also noted how the majority of sectors including the Provincial Governments and Churches in Mindoro are strongly opposed to Intex and have not given their consent as required by Philippine law. Your hunger strike outside the DENR is an action of last resort to unmask the collusion of the national government against the stated policy for sustainability of the Provinces of Mindoro. It rightly challenges the legitimacy of the decision of the Secretary of the DENR to grant Intex an ECC. This decision flies in the face of the constant and consistent opposition of the people of Mindoro, including the impacted indigenous peoples, and their local government officials, most notably the Provincial Governors of both Mindoro Occidental and Oriental. It is also in breach of the law as it violates the 25-year Mining Moratorium that has been put in place by the Provincial Government in Mindoro Oriental. We note with concern that the mining project is still the subject of an on-going complaint to the Norwegian National Contact Point (NCP), under the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises. The ECC has been issued before the Norwegian Ambassador has had a chance to engage in a fact-finding engagement as requested by the Norwegian NCP. We regard this as a deliberate attempt to obstruct the people of Mindoro’s access to remedies under international processes. We understand and agree with your clearly stated concerns, and – as noted in our report – we still believe the project would damage one of the most important water catchment areas and the possibility of sustainable food production in the foreseeable future for Mindoro. We therefore hope your action will lead to the DENR Secretary reconsidering his decision by cancelling the ECC, as well as the original mining permits, and adopting a more rational and just overall approach to mining in the Philippines that respects the environment, human rights and the rule of law'. Fr Frank Nally, On behalf of the Working Group on Mining in the Philippines Which part of the sentence, “NO!” do you not get? Open letter by LRC-KsK to Lito Atienza: No means no! 19 November 2009 In front of your office at the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) are 25 women and men, mostly Mangyan people, from Mindoro, who are on hunger strike. They are calling for the cancellation of the Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC) you have issued to the Norwegian mining company, Intex for its Mindoro Nickel Project. They are the people who will be experiencing the direct impacts of the mining operations, and they have not been consulted, not by DENR, nor by INTEX. Most probably because you and INTEX would not want to hear what they have to say. Thus, they are bringing their position to your doorstep – they don’t want INTEX, they don’t want mining in the Alangan Mangyan’s ancestral domain, not in their watershed and anywhere in Mindoro. A 25-year moratorium on mining was passed in 2002 in Oriental Mindoro. Similar ordinances were passed by different municipal governments of Occidental Mindoro, with 8 out of 11 municipalities passing a resolution against mining. Governors, vice-governors, mayors and congressmen repeatedly stated in strong terms, and strong voices, that they do not want mining in their provinces. They said this in various public hearings in the provinces, they repeated this in DENR last Monday as the hunger strike began, and yesterday during the dialogue with you. The Bishops, priests and nuns have called for the respect of the peoples’ strong position against mining, and one of them, Fr. Edwin Gariguez, a Mindoreno himself, is one of the hunger strikers. They made this statement in the pulpits, they made this on the streets of Mindoro, they repeated this during the dialogue with you, and they are reiterating this position in the hunger strike now. You have issued the ECC to INTEX on October 14 even without the necessary requirements from INTEX - no documentation of public consultation, no documentation proving that they are not within the watershed areas. In fact, you have issued the ECC without waiting for the recommendation of the EIA-Review Committee. And that would not be surprising now that the Review Committee report has been released, with their final recommendation – DENIAL of the ECC. One of their findings is that no public consultation with the stakeholders directly affected was held; 4 of the 6 components of the mining project have no baseline data, particularly on terrestrial flora and fauna; and that there was no proper project area delineation. With all of these, all you have to show for is a mere suspension of the ECC for 90 days. You are in effect giving INTEX and yourself the opportunity to cover up the inherent defects of the ECC . The 25 year moratorium was not recognized in the suspension order, and most certainly not the ancestral domain of the Mangyans. What does it have to take for you to hear the message of the people of Mindoro? The LGUs and the religious of Mindoro are now more angered by the inadequacy of the suspension order, and the deceit with which this was issued. The 25 people who are on hunger strike are now more determined to pursue their cause. The message of the Mindoro people is loud and clear –NO to INTEX. NO to mining in their provinces. The final recommendation of the EIA Review Committee –NO ECC for INTEX. Why can’t you take NO for an answer, Mr. Lito Atienza? For someone who has been said NO to by the Commission on Appointment for 8 times, it might be really difficult for you to understand that NO is the opposite of yes. That NO is a negative response. That NO is a NO. So before you leave your office to run for Mayor again, clean up your mess. REVOKE THE ECC of INTEX. In solidarity with the people of Mindoro, Judy A.Pasimio Executive Director Legal Rights and Natural Resources Center (LRC-KsK/Friends of the Earth-Phils. judy.pasimio@lrcksk.org http://www.lrcksk.org