Virador: Charter Change intended to defend anti-Filipino Mining Act
Virador:
Charter Change intended to defend anti-Filipino Mining Act
BAYAN
Muna representative Joel Virador today bared “a deceitful Malacañang agenda to
amend the 1987 Constitution that would pave way to intensified environment and
economic degradation due to liberalized mining.”
“Charter
change will add teeth to the already notorious 1995 Philippine Mining Act
(Republic Act 7942) which the Supreme Court again affirmed recently. The
decision of the high tribunal declaring the constitutionality of Section 76 of
R.A. 7942 and its implementing rules and regulations was expected. However, no
amount of touted revenues and compensation can pay for the permanently damaged
environment, displaced indigenous communities, loss of life and livelihood as a
result of large-scale mining. It is frustrating that our tragic experiences with
large-scale foreign mining in Boac, Marinduque, Siocon, Zamboanga del Norte, Rapu-rapu,
Albay, Didipio, Nueva Vizcaya, Surigao del Norte, and other areas continue to
fall on deaf ears. It should be noted however that no measures have been put in
place to reverse this skewed framework,” Rep. Virador said.
“We
thereby challenge the Supreme Court justices to go to these areas and see for
themselves what the local communities have lost: indigenous peoples’ ancestral
domain, once productive farmlands, pristine river and marine ecosystems. This
may help them in seeing the anti-Filipino and anti-environment nature of RA
7942,” Virador added.
Virador
gave these remarks at the round table discussion on “What’s behind Cha-cha?
Exacerbating the ill-effects of liberalized mining” initiated by the
Legislators for Pro-People Mining (LEAP) together with other environmental
groups in Congress.
The
said activity aims to encourage legislators to dissect the dangerous provisions
under the proposed charter amendments.
“The
full-blown implementation of a liberalized, privatized and deregulated mining
industry will come into reality once charter change has been enacted. The
constitutional overhaul will allow 100% foreign-ownership of our lands and
exploit our natural resources. Charter change will further open the country to
unbridled foreign exploitation and plunder,” Virador said.
Under
the current Constitution, land ownership is reserved only for Filipinos in the
view that our people should have the priority to develop our resources for the
good of the country.
“The
proposed Constitutional amendments on liberalization will further aggravate
landlessness, land-use conversion on an unprecedented scale, the whole-sale exploitation
of our natural resources, food insecurity and the destruction of the
environment. Filipinos will be deprived
of the right to use the country’s resources for their own benefit. Local
industries and agriculture that cannot compete with the big multinationals will
also be destroyed,” Virador said. #
