Also in Zambales, in San Antonio town, Tong Tai, Corp. will explore 8,100 has. to produce serpentine. The company has been denied by local MGB but has a pending appeal. In Botolan, Cabangan and also in San Antonio, Long Fong Corp. applied for 8,100 has. for serpentine.

In San Marcelino town, Green Valley Co., will develop 4,207 has. for limestone, clay and aggregates. Sophia Mineral Corp., meanwhile, applied for 6,095 has. in San Narciso and San Marcelino towns for serpentine, gravel but filed appealed after being denied.

Meanwhile, limestone mining is abundant in Nueva Ecija, with two big exploration projects involving Royal Cement & Mining Corp., with 8,100 has. in Capotatan, Minalungan, Balukbuk, Pantay in General Tinio town; Global Ore Mineral Inc. with 7,290 has. in Bongabon town. In Lupao town and San Jose City, some 8,131 has. will be used by Mariestad Mining Corp. to mine manganese and ore.

Partial total hectares under process under MPSA, is at 747,180 has.

Applications for MPSA covering some 747,180 has. are still being processed.

New guidelines

By end-August, NCIP will implement new guidelines for Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) in granting Certificate of Pre-Conditions for mining projects.

Indigenous groups have called for the scrapping of the FPIC guidelines promulgated by NCIP in 2003. The Aeta group CLAA had called for its scrapping, saying indigenous groups have been deceived by mining proponents.

NCIP chairman Janette Cansing Serrano said, “Generally, the [new] guidelines provide a clear direction for our people especially in NCIP to facilitate FPIC on the grounds.”

“The guidelines were subjected to a multi-sectoral consultation, we tried to balance the interest of business, state and domains, to ensure that indigenous people’s rights are being protected,” she said.

In the new guidelines, Serrano said the NCIP will follow two tracks: one, regular projects on extraction that would impinge on the culture of indigenous peoples; and two, development undertakings in the domain that would impact socio-economic aspects of the tribe.

“We would like to be sensitive for those [development projects] that are not clearly destructive like research,” she said.

The new guidelines would also shorten the period for undertaking the FPIC, from 180 days to 90 days.

One million mark

NCIP claims it has been able to distribute 44 Certificates of Ancestral Domain Titles (CADTs) covering at least 896,000 hectares nationwide since 2003.

“We are hitting the 1 million mark,” Serrano said. Distribution of some 2 million hectares translating to 75 CADTs is ongoing, she said.

The agency aims to dispose some five million CADTs in over 25 years, “at the rate the Congress is allocating budget [for NCIP]”, she said. The agency is proposing P29 million in appropriation but should the national budget be reenacted, they would only get P22 million.

Himpag Mangumalas, chair of Kalipunan ng mga Katutubong Mamamayan ng Pilipinas (National Federation of Indigenous Peoples Organizations in the Philippines), said although NCIP had promised to distribute yearly some 100 CADTs, still some 12.2 million has. are open to medium to large-scale mining, accounting for 40.65 percent of the country’s total land area.

KAMP data showed 23 identified priority projects of the government, 18 cover indigenous tribes; 10 in Mindanao, 1 in Palawan, 1 in Mindoro and 6 in Cordillera and Northern Luzon.

CLAA recorded 10 Aetas were killed under Arroyo due mainly in defense of their ancestral lands. The latest of which, is Charlie Daylo, an Aeta leader and coordinator of Anakpawis-Zambales.

Mallari said, “Hindi nauunawaan ng mga Aeta ang proseso ng gubyerno dahil hindi pinapaliwanag, puro magagandang pangako ang sinasabi…kapag naagrabyado ang mga katutubo at nagsimulang lumaban, saka sila ginagamitan ng dahas.” (The Aetas don’t understand the processes because the government give no explanation, aside from sweet promises. When the people get abused and start fighting, they start using force.)

“Para kanino ba talaga ang gubyerno?” (For whom is this government?) Bulatlat

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