Authorities prevented fisherfolk from holding a symbolic action outside the court, underscoring what CEED’s Gerry Arances later described as the difficulty marginalized sectors face in making their voices heard.

ALBAY, Philippines—Nearly three years after the MT Princess Empress oil spill devastated the biodiversity-rich Verde Island Passage (VIP), Oriental Mindoro fisherfolk filed a class suit before the Regional Trial Court on December 9.

Demanding accountability from those responsible, the complaint cited under Republic Act (RA) No. 9483 (Oil Pollution Compensation Act of 2007) the liability of shipowner RDC Reield Marine Services, Inc., charterer SL Harbor Bulk Terminal Corporation (a San Miguel Corporation subsidiary), insurer The Shipowners’ Club, and the International Oil Pollution Compensation Funds (IOPC).

RA 9483 makes polluters pay for oil spills and ensures fisherfolk and coastal families can claim compensation.

“Mag-tatatlong taon na pero naghihintay pa rin kami na harapin ng mga may sala ng oil spill na ‘yan. Lubog na lubog na kami sa utang, dahil hanggang ngayon, hindi pa rin bumabalik ang dating sigla ng dagat,” Aldrin Villanueva, president of the Koalisyon ng mga Mangingisdang Apektado ng Oil Spill (KMAOS), said in a statement released by civil-society-led campaign Protect VIP.

(“It has been three years but we are still waiting for those responsible for the oil spill to face us. We are deep in debt. Up to now, the seas have not yet recovered from the oil spill.”)

The KMAOS said that they sent three demand letters to the companies between 2024 and 2025 but received no response. 

Protect VIP lead convenor Fr. Edwin Gariguez stressed that “aid and compensation disbursed so far barely begin to address these damages,” with losses estimated at P41.2 billion by think-tank Center for Energy, Ecology, and Development (CEED). “They must be held fully liable for their negligence, take comprehensive actions in rehabilitating the waters of the VIP, and end their polluting activities.”

As of September 2025, P2.7 billion was disbursed to claimants but fisherfolk maintain this falls far short of the scale of damage. Meanwhile, San Miguel Corporation reported a 215% net income increase over the same period, according to the statement.

Authorities prevented fisherfolk from holding a symbolic action outside the court, underscoring what CEED’s Gerry Arances later described as the difficulty marginalized sectors face in making their voices heard.

“Companies whose destructive activities bring harm report higher earnings year in and out,” in stark contrast to the debt and livelihood loss fisherfolk endure, Arances said. He recommended stringent policies to prevent a repeat of the oil spill.

Rejecting fossil fuel developments in Mindoro island and the VIP, communities in Mindoro inaugurated 37 pilot solar photovoltaic systems for Mangyan Tadtawan households and a parish building in Victoria town. “This solarization in Mindoro is a ray of hope,” Gariguez said, calling for a transition away from fossil fuels to prevent future disasters. (DAA)