“Lawa”

Lahar from the Pinatubo eruption covered the Kakilingan River and submerged the village center of Buhawen and portions of the adjoining villages of Aglao, Pili and San Clemente.

A lake covering some 1,000 hectares now stands in what used to be a prosperous farming community. A lone church spire protrudes above the water. The dike separates the mining site from the lake. The company stopped full-scale operation after the Pinatubo eruption but maintained a skeletal force from its peak of 2,000 workers, residents say.

“Ang lawa ay nalason din dahil tumatagas dyan ang tubig mula sa mina. Hindi naiinom kahit ng mga hayop ang tubig,” (The lake was also poisoned because water from the mining site seeps into it. Even animals do not drink from the lake.) Peping said.

He recalled an incident when three people died when the drums that the company used as posts for a makeshift bridge leaked and contaminated the lake. “Puting likido na lason pala ang laman ng mga drum. Namatay sa lason yung tatlong sumisid sa tubig,” (The drums contained a white poisonous liquid. The three people who dove in the water died of the poison.) Peping said.

“Mula noon, lalo nang nalason ang lawa,” (The lake was all the more poisoned since then.) he said.

Against mining

Apu Kutis said that if he had his way, no mining company will operate in land that they regard as their own or part of their ancestral domain.

“Walang ibinigay na mabuti sa amin ang mina. Sinira nila ang aming kabundukan. Hindi nila tinupad ang kanilang mga pangako,” (We did not benefit from the mine. They destroyed our mountain. They did not fulfill their promises) he said.

He said he was able to work in the mine as a water tender but none of his six children was given a job as promised by the company.

The Aeta’s worst fear is that mining operations will resume. Peping said that last September, village elders were called to a meeting by local government officials and company representatives and told that the company plans to resume operations.

“Kailangan naming magkaisa at tutulan ang plano nila. Wala nang matitira sa amin kung sisirain pa ang kabundukan,” (We need to unite and oppose the plan. Nothing will be left to us if they will continue to destroy the mountain and forests.), Peping said.

Christmas gift-giving

Last December 16, some 300 Aeta families in Barangay Camias, Porac, Pampanga gathered at the multi-purpose hall built on a hill to welcome Christmas gift-giving and medical mission organized by the Kalipunan ng mga Katutubong Mamamayan ng Pilipinas (KAMP or Association of Indigenous Peoples in the Philippines) and the Central Luzon Aeta Association (CLAA).

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