Cafgus Guarding Canadian Mining Firm 
Fire at Protesters; Wound 4

Paramilitary men serving as security guards of a Canadian mining company wounded four persons when they fired at a group of anti-mining protesters last week in Siocon, Zamboanga del Norte, southern Philippines. Four protesters were wounded.

BY ELMER D. SAGBIGSAL
Bulatlat.com

Paramilitary men serving as security guards of a Canadian mining company wounded four persons when they fired at a group of anti-mining protesters last week in Siocon, Zamboanga del Norte, southern Philippines.

Tito Fiel, coordinator of a group called DIOPIM Committee on Mining Issue or DCMI, identified the wounded protesters as Macario Salacao, president of the Siocon Federation of Subanen Tribal Council, Eddie Cayabyab, Juan Veloria and Dakbot Larete, all members of the multi-sectoral group Save Paradise Movement. They were all brought to the Siocon Emergency Hospital for treatment.

The perpetrators, according to Fiel, are members of the Special Citizens Armed Force Geographical Unit Armed Auxiliary (SCAA), which also serves as company security unit for Toronto Ventures Inc (TVI).

Save Paradise Movement is a multisectoral organization composed of farmers, fisherfolk, church people and Subanon natives.

Around 100 protesters belonging to Save Paradise Movement formed a human barricade last March 14 to prevent the planned transfer of TVI mining equipment to its mining site in Sitio (sub-village) Canatuan, more than 20 kms away from Siocon town.

Four days

The barricade was up for four days starting March 13 to prevent backhoes, bulldozer, dumptruck and other equipment from being taken out.

TVI’s Resource Development Philippines, a Calgary, Canada-based mining firms is reportedly developing an open-pit mine on the site where it had been previously processing gold tailings.

Local government officials have also opposed the mining operation. TVI reportedly failed to get a Free and Prior Informed Consent (FPIC) from the Subanons, the legitimate holders of Certificate of Ancestral Domain.

According to Fiel, TVI’s target mining site is also a water source of Siocon and the people in the area recognized the placed as paradise.

In 2002, the municipal council of Siocon passed a resolution banning any activity that would bring environmental destruction in the area, especially large-scale mining.

In September 2003, during an environmental forum sponsored by the local government in Siocon and DIOPIM, 181 barangay (village) officials from Siocon signed a declaration banning any form of environmental destruction. Bulatlat.com

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