This story
was taken from Bulatlat, the Philippines's alternative weekly
newsmagazine (www.bulatlat.com, www.bulatlat.net, www.bulatlat.org).
Vol. V, No. 34, October 2-8, 2005
Mining Linked to Military Operations vs
B'laans in Mindanao
A big mining firm plans to
operate in Columbio, an area occupied by the B’laans, an indigenous group in
southern Philippines. Military operations have been regularly conducted since
September, resulting in atrocities reportedly committed against the residents. A
close ally of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is a major shareholder of the
concerned mining company.
BY TYRONE A. VELEZ
Bulatlat
GENERAL SANTOS CITY –As October marks peasant
month, the B'laans (an indigenous group in southern Philippines), along with
environmental and church groups in Columbio, Sultan Kudarat continue their firm
opposition to militarization and mining in their villages.
Recent military operations conducted by five
battalions last September displaced residents of Sinapulan and Datalblao in
Columbio. The church-based La Bugal B'laan Tribal Association reported that four
farmers, including three of their members, were jailed without warrant. Soldiers
also destroyed crops and properties after residents fled their homes, the
association also said.
The church group said in the morning of Sept. 2,
about 20 soldiers barged into the homes of residents of Blesa, Sinapulan. They
took four farmers from their homes and brought them to their headquarters in
Mabuhay. The four – Romeo Mural, Remy Gusanan, Daniel Gusanan and Roderick
Amante – were blindfolded and tortured, it also reported.
Accused of killing a neighboring barrio
chieftain, the four were consequently jailed in Tacurong, South Cotabato. Mural
and the Gusanans were later released after the court ruled that their arrest and
detention were illegal.
Another military patrol in Lamgawel, Datalblao
also on Sept. 2 saw soldiers interrogating farmers on their alleged connections
with the New People's Army (NPA) and coercing them to act as guides to lead them
to NPA camps.
"They kept pressing that we are with the NPA,
and even presented a list bearing our names and claimed that this is a list of
NPA members," said village leader Sima Diagone.
Diagone said that one of his men was even
threatened by a scout ranger at knife point. The soldier pointed out that his
man bore a mole in his face that was similar to a tattoo of the NPA.
A solidarity and sympathy mission here last week
reported these and other military atrocities committed with "wanton disregard of
life, liberty and property of civilian farmers during the conduct of their
operations."
According to the mission report, soldiers
sexually harassed a B’laan woman and held a 12-year old boy as collateral while
they ordered the father to go on an errand.
The report found that the military operations
disrupted the farmers' harvest period, resulting in the damage of rice and corn
harvest, while some crops such as peanuts, vegetables, and camote (sweet
potato) were either missing or destroyed. Livestock and kitchen utensils were
also reported missing. Traditional weapons such as bangkaw (spears) were
broken.
The mission stressed that those responsible for
the atrocities are the 25th, 27th, 38th, 39th and 40th infantry battalions under
the 6th Infantry Division. The group demanded the military to engage in a public
dialogue with the community where they will give full indemnification and a
public apology for the damages inflicted on the village.
Giving support to the mission were 35
organizations from Socsargen and Davao regions including church-led groups,
environmental alliances and peace advocates.
Mining-related
Organizations closely working with the affected
communities see this latest string of militarization as a continuing campaign to
drive away B'laans from their communities to give way for mining operations of
Sagittarius Mines, Inc. (SMI).
Columbio is home to the B'laan communities and
the La Bugal Association, which has launched a decade-long fight against
large-scale mining firms. The La Bugal filed the case with the Supreme Court in
1996 questioning the legality of then President Ramos' Mining Act of 1995.
In the Mineral Policy Institute report, the
B'laans first encountered the Australia-based Western Mining Corporation (WMC)
in mid-1990s which occupied nearly 100,000 hectares in Tampakan and Columbio.
The company’s entry brought a string of military operations every year.
In 1996, an international fact-finding mission
reported that two children and three adults were killed by the military inside
the WMC's concession area.
Massive protests were held by the B'laan
communities demanding the expulsion of WMC. This included a road blockade in
Davao del Sur staged by 600 B'laans and 107 former WMC employees in 1997.
WMC has already ceased operations and gave its
concession area to SMI and its foreign partner, Indophil Resources, Inc.,
another Australian firm. One of the majority shareholders of SMI is said to be
Paul Dominguez, a close ally of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. Dominguez was
presidential assistant in Mindanao during the term of President Fidel Ramos.
Although there is no direct link established
between SMI and military operations, La Bugal and its support groups believe the
military is out in their communities to intimidate those who are against the
giant mining firms. Bulatlat © 2005 Bulatlat
■
Alipato Publications Permission is granted to reprint or redistribute this article, provided its author/s and Bulatlat are properly credited and notified.
Arroyo ally is a
major shareholder of mining company