By Aaron Ernest Cruz

Bulatlat.com

RODRIGUEZ, Rizal – Indigenous groups and advocates held a forum and lighting protest on September 19 as part of the upcoming commemoration of Martial Law.

They condemned the mega dam infrastructure projects that submerged ancestral lands and communities.

Themed “Wakasan DAMbuhalang korapsyon! Rehimeng US-Marcos, Singilin!”, the forum highlighted the experiences of the indigenous community from the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr. up to his son and namesake Ferdinand Marcos Jr., The forum participants stressed that developmental aggression continues and the attacks against them persist.

Chuwaley Capuyan, Igorot youth, said that the current administration continues to neglect and violate the rights of the indigenous people, including her father Dexter who was abducted by state forces.

“Attempts to implement development projects that result in extensive militarization of rural regions, especially on indigenous ancestral grounds, have persisted under the Marcos Jr. government,” Capuyan said.

Capuyan also cited the Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC) which is often used by the government to convince the indigenous people to surrender their ancestral lands for the construction of renewable energy and large-scale mining projects.  

Aside from the use of FPIC, Capuyan said that the Marcos Jr. administration used taxpayers’ money for their self-interest instead of public service, citing as an example the bridge loan granted to Makilala Mining Company. The loan worth $76.4 million was granted in February this year to initiate early development works for the Maalinao-Caigutan-Biyog Copper-Gold Project in Kalinga. The people of Kalinga expressed strong opposition to the destructive project.   

Funa-ay Claver of KATRIBU Kalipunan ng Katutubong Mamamayan ng Pilipinas said that the recent floodings should not be used to justify the construction of the mega dam infrastructure, particularly the controversial Kaliwa Dam as it brings more harm than good.

“What we really want to emphasize is that the construction of dams is being used as a way to pocket even more money. Those projects have kickbacks, that’s the corruption aspect. And because of its impact on the indigenous people, of course, this is a different kind of flood, but the indigenous people are also flooded through dams, and this flooding affects communities, sacred sites, burial grounds, and farmlands,” Claver told Bulatlat. 

Claver said that the national budget should allocate other programs and services that will directly help the Filipinos instead of using it for funding substandard and ghost flood control projects. “The natives didn’t even feel the benefits of dams, even if they are near it, especially the recent Jalaur dam. Electricity and water are used basis for justifying of constructing the dams but for us who lived near the dam, electricity and water is inaccessible.”

This is also the same with the Chico Dam River that Marcos Sr. pushed during Martial Law, Claver said. The indigenous people found out that this dam will only be connected to private corporations of his crony.

Environment groups also condemned the structure of mega dam projects due to their threat and lack of consent to Indigenous communities, as well as destruction to the environment. 

Rights violations against indigenous communities 

Claver said that the indigenous community who condemns the Saltan dam has also been subjected to aerial bombing. “The government will say it’s counterinsurgency, but there’s an aspect to it where they bomb to displace the communities and make the dams’ entry smoother.”

Capuyan stressed that there were four bombing incidents under the Marcos Jr. administration particularly in Balbalan, Kalinga and Pilar, Abra. 

There are also leaders who face judicial harassment as laws are used against them like the Anti-Terror Act and Terrorism Financing Prevention and Suppression Act. 

There are four community leaders from Cordillera Peoples Alliance (CPA) who face trumped- up charges. “In addition, there have been incidents of enforced disappearance. Some of the victims include my father, Dexter Capuyao, a former student leader and advocate for indigenous rights,” Capuyan said.

“It’s been over two years and my father still hasn’t been found. These cases demonstrate the ongoing suppression of anyone who stands against the abusive state. Despite the continuous fascism, the indigenous people of the Cordillera do not give up. Our collective action continues to fight for our ancestral rights and self-determination; we remain steadfast in actively fighting for justice and true development,” Capuyan added. (DAA)