Congressman Cosalan sides with anti mining IPs in Kibungan

A large crowd from the 7 Barangays of kibungan gathered at the Municipal covered court of the Municipal hall of Kibungan Ponlacion last January 30, 2015 to show their opposition to large scale mining. They invited the Honorable Ronald M Cosalan who is the representative of the lone district of Benguet to receive their Community and Barangay resolutions against large scale mining. The IPs wanted to show their officials and the Mining investors that in Kibungan large scale mining is very destructive to their water sources and their agricultural lands.

Indigenous people from Lobo and Palina who experienced the adverse effect of mining spoke out. They testified that there was no restoration by the mining company after their lands were explored and minerals were mined out. They expressed their frustration that the past mining activities made their lands poor and sunk their water sources.

The congressman in his message to the IPs said that, out of eight mines that operated in Benguet, it did not make Benguet a rich province. It is actually the agriculture industry that is sustaining it. Those mines that stopped operation have not made noticeable contribution to development of the Province but instead it made the areas of operation inhospitable to progress. Being the author of the Indigenous peoples rights act, He told the crowd that their resolutions to exempt kibungan from large scale mining will be submitted to congress for deliberation. However he informed them that while this particular remedy is being processed to become a law, the people have an existing RA 8371 or the Indigenous Peoples Rights act of 1997 that will protect them from the large mining investors. He told them of the Free Prior Informed Consent that must be recognized and respected from the affected IPs before any mining related activity starts.

The meeting with the officials have some issues to be resolved, endorsements by the Sangunian bayan and the sangunian Panlalawigan have to be made. Endorsement and transmittal of the documents as part of the procedural process has to be complied makes things complicated to the ordinary IPs of Kibungan who patiently wait for the outcome.

The Pakedlan di BENETEN, an NGO is assisting them on their plight against abuses not only of the Mining investors but the complications of bringing out their problems and to be heard. Hoping to be acted upon by the concerned officials and Government agencies, yet there is a lingering doubt that still hang in the air.

      

Environmental trouble looms over Lobo Indigenous People

The Almagan Mining Corporation lately is trying to wrest control of the Lobo Barangay in Kibungan by writing the Fisher folks of the abandoned mine open pit to vacate the lake and remove their fish cages. When the mine was abandoned in 1984 the open pit was filled with water so that the people whose properties were swallowed by the mining pit decided to utilize the lake for fish production. The bigger trouble surfaced when Almagan told the IPs that they are getting back their 1500 hectares of mining claims from the occupants. They said that 120 people sold their properties to them and they have the right to occupy these properties again because it is theirs. But the IPs claim that these properties were not sold but they were just rented and the rents were never given and some were just paid partially.

It will be recalled that in 1972, the Western Minolco operated a mine at Lobo Kibungan and abandoned it in 1984. The company through a deed of assignment transferred its rights to Dagama Mining Resources Incorporated. Then when the application of Dagama expired sometime in 2012, they sold their rights to Almagan Mining Corporation. Now Almagan who is interested in reopening the mines  is threatening the occupant IPs with eviction.

In an interview with Randy Abellera, who is an IP leader in the community, he said that Almagan has no right to operate the abandoned mines in Lobo because they have destroyed the land and never rehabilitated the same. The mines never restored the water resources that were depleted and the agricultural lands were buried under tons of stones and earth. He said further that the company should not be just writing letters to warn the inhabitants of an impending eviction but should meet them in an assembly so that the IPs can demand payment of unpaid rents and damage to properties that they have incurred in operating the Mines. Lastly he said that the Bureau of Fisheries and aquatic resources who is in charge of the fish culture on the abandoned mine pit should not be the appropriate agency to negotiate the plight of the fisher folks but it should be the whole community of Lobo.