First of three parts The December 2004 Supreme Court decision declaring as constitutional the Mining Act of 1995 paves the way for the entry of foreign mining companies in the Philippines. The Cordillera region in Northern Luzon where 25 percent of gold and 39 percent of copper ore reserves of the whole country are found…

Second of three parts Recent applications for mining exploration and extraction cover 66 percent of the Cordillera land area. By Windel Bolinget Northern Dispatch BAGUIO CITY – The Macapagal-Arroyo government’s aggressive mining policy to attract new investors in the mining industry and hence to boost government revenues appears to be paying off. In the Cordillera…

But small-scale miners will be displaced Conclusion Of the Macapagal-Arroyo’s 23 “priority development projects,” five are in the Cordillera region. BY WINDEL BOLINGET Northern Dispatch BAGUIO CITY – President Macapagal-Arroyo’s 10-Point Legacy names 23 priority mineral resource development projects and 37 priority mining exploration projects for investment by foreign transnational corporations (TNCs). Of the 23…

But AFP in tit-for-tat with armed guerrillas Recent military and NPA reports reveal escalation of armed hostilities in many provinces across the country. BY BULATLAT The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) recently revealed a number of successful raids on suspected camps abandoned by the Marxist New People’s Army (NPA) in Aurora and other provinces.…

“We are living at a moment in history when civil liberties and democracy are under attack as never before and the need for a collective response to counter these threats has never been greater.” By D. L. MONDELO Political Correspondent for Europe BRUSSELS, Belgium – “We are living at a moment in history when civil…

Conclusion To evade land reform, Negros plantation owners together with local executives and land reform officials have devised various schemes. All these enflamed cane farm workers even more. By Karl G. Ombion and Ranie Azue BACOLOD CITY – The history of landlord resistance to agrarian reform has never been more pronounced than in Negros Island.…

First of four-part series Roy (not his real name), 15, had been covering up his arm the whole afternoon when visitors went to their cell. When the jail warden made the juvenile law offenders squat and line up to greet the visitors, he went to the farthest spot to avoid being seen. It turns out…

Second of four parts by Mylene Buensuceso, Ronald Caraig, Likha Cuevas, and Jenielle Marie Enojo According to the latest Save the Children-UK Philippines (SCUK-Phils) study, poverty is the root of juvenile crimes. It involves committing a violation while in the process of carrying out one’s livelihood or in the act of survival. Most juveniles resort…