By Orlando Dinoy; Inquirer Mindanao 03/23/2011
President Benigno Aquino III's thumbing down of a proposal from the League of Municipalities of the Philippines to ban large-scalemining shows his disregard of the people's initiatives to protect their communities from plunder, an environmental group said Wednesday.
Sr. Stella Matutina, OSB, convenor of the Panalipdan Mindanao, a coalition of environmental groups, said Mr. Aquino seemed to have forgotten his promise of good government to the Filipino people when he assumed office.
In a recent talk in Davao City with members of the league, the President expressed support for the mayors' 20-point resolution on climate change adaptation except for the ban big-scale mining.
“It seems that Mr. Aquino, who promised to listen to his boss—the people—is now turning back from this promise,” Matutina in a statement e-mailed to the Inquirer said.
“Rather than supporting the people and the local officials who have come up with environment codes protecting the environment and the community resources from large industries, Mr. Aquino thumbed this down and is rather promoting regulation over protection,” Matutina added.
Panalipdan also criticized the President for suggesting regulation of large-scale mining operations as a solution.
“His fear that small-scale mining activities will increase if there is ban on large-scale mining operations shows his bias for foreign corporations over the interest of the local economy and the livelihood of Filipinos,” Matutina said.
“How can Aquino regulate plunder of resources and destruction of farms, forests and rivers? Plunder is still plundering whether it is regulated or not. By calling for stricter regulation, Mr. Aquino is still giving tacit approval for the destruction of our national economy and natural resources by allowing our mineral wealth to be hauled away by large foreign corporations,” she said.
By Jocelyn R. Uy
Philippine Daily Inquirer; 03/23/2011
Philippine Daily Inquirer; 03/23/2011
A Catholic Church leader advised the government, on Tuesday, to seriously study plans to devolve the functions of the NationalFood Authority (NFA), saying that such a move might deliver a serious blow to poor farmers.
"The privatization of the NFA might neglect our smallrice farmers who depend on whatever small subsidy the government is currently providing them," said Fr. Edu Gariguez, executive secretary of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines National Secretariat for Social Action.
In a weekly forum hosted by the Catholic Media Network on Tuesday, farmer leaders expressed their opposition to the so-called NFA Road Map as it would limit the role of the government to "simply perform the function of a buyer of last resort."
"It will weaken and deteriorate the rice industry because it will give big rice traders and importers absolute control of the industry," said Nestor Diego, secretary general of the Pambansang Kaisahan ng Magbubukid sa Pilipinas (National Association of Farmers in the Philippines) at the forum.
Small rice farmers, on the other hand, would be stripped of whatever remaining support they have from the government, he said.
"Instead of removing subsidy to rice farmers, it must be strengthened," Gariguez later told the Philippine Daily Inquirer in an interview.
Farmer groups grew anxious following an announcement by the government through Budget Secretary Florencio Abad that the NFA might be "shut down" as three of its four functions may be transferred to other agencies, including the private sector.
Early this year, Abad said the NFA's subsidy function might be done by the Department of Social Welfare and Development through its conditional cash transfer program. The function of procuring rice from farmers can be done by the private sector to engage them in the rice trade.
But Diego said instead of privatizing the NFA, the agency must be reorganized and its role strengthened by selling more subsidized and quality rice and aiming to buy a significant bulk of rice production.
The agency's current palay procurement has been too modest to influence the rice industry, said the farmer leaders on Tuesday.
Janess Ann J. Ellao On March 29, 2011 @ 10:53 pm
Bulatlat.com
Relatives and sympathizers of the three Filipinos sentenced to die in China held a vigil at the St. Francis of Assisi Chapel in Batasan Hills, Quezon City, a day before the scheduled execution. Hopes are high that through collective action, a miracle could happen.
“If there is anything that keeps our morale high is a text message from Jason,” referring to the brother Sally Villanueva, 33, one of the Filipinos in death row, “where he said that, ‘Kuya, we are going to China. But we are not going there to witness (my sister’s) death. We will go there in the hope that we can bring her home alive,’” Garry Martinez, chairperson of Migrante International, said in the vigil.
Jason, and his parents Geronimo and Basilisa Ordinario, together with the kin of the other Filipinos who were also sentenced to die left for China last weekend to see their loved ones for the last time should they be executed early morning of March 30.
Martinez added that if Villanueva’s family still hopes for a miracle, “Who are we to give up?”
Villanueva, Ramon Credo, 42 and Elizabeth Batain, 38, were convicted separately in 2008 and if last ditch efforts fail, would be the first Filipino nationals to be executed in China, for carrying 4,410 grams, 4,113 grams and 6,800 grams of heroine, respectively. They were originally scheduled to be executed earlier – Credo and Villanueva were set to be executed last February 20 while Batain’s execution was originally scheduled last February 21 – but the strong protest action in the Philippines against the government’s seeming neglect on the case of the three Filipinos pushed the administration to send Vice President Jejomar Binay to China on a last ditch effort to plead for their lives.
Mere Victims
Basilisa said that despite the postponement of the death penalty meted on her daughter’s life, a day would come when they are to face their lives without her. But she said that their hopes are high that a miracle would save Villanueva. After all, she said, no parent could ever be prepared to lose a hardworking and good daughter who dreamed for nothing more than to be able to help her family but had, unfortunately, entrusted her life to a wrong person.
Villanueva, as eldest among five children, learned at an early age to shoulder the responsibility of helping her parents not just by doing household chores but in earning extra income to support their family’s needs. She worked as a cook in a cafeteria that their family used to own. She also, later on, sold vegetables and barbecue and ran a sari-sari store on the side.
“She is industrious and ingenious,” Basilisa said.
Her father Geronimo, for his part, said Villanueva is the life of the party, adding that she enjoys family gatherings not just because it is fun but also to keep tabs on her family’s problems. “She would advice her siblings if they had problems,” he said.
“I have nothing to complain about (Sally). I love her. I love her very much” Basilisa told Bulatlat.com. “She is my favorite.”
Their life, however, turned for the worse when Villanueva was offered a cellphone business in 2008, months after she returned from Macau where she worked as a domestic helper. It was Mapet Cortez, also known as Tita Cacayan, who offered the business. The said cellphone business would entail traveling to China to bring home cellphones that will be sold in the country. Villanueva accepted the offer since, she was jobless at that time.
Cacayan, according to the Villanueva’s sworn statement recently published in a national daily, asked Villanueva to use her silver-grey suitcase that “appeared to be empty” which obviously was not the case. Villanueva was apprehended by Chinese authorities upon arrival at Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport after they discovered bags of heroine that were reportedly hidden in the lining of the suitcase.
“I cannot allow this to happen,” Geronimo told Bulatlat.com, “My life would never be the same again without her.”
Syndicate
While Derrick Arnold Carreon of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency told Bulatlat.com that they acknowledge that poverty, poor education and unemployment are some of the reasons why Filipinos are tricked to be a drug mule, he said that “At the end of the day, easy money or the idea of traveling,” he said, serves as motivation for Filipinos to become drug mules because “no body goes for it for the thrill alone.”
But Martinez said no Filipino would dare go out and leave the country only to become a criminal. He said Filipinos who leave the country for work, like Villanueva, do so to uplift her family’s living condition. Gina Esguerra, Migrante International secretary general, added that drug mules are not only victimized by illegal drug syndicates but also of poverty and hopelessness.
According to Migrante International, there are 195 Filipinos who were arrested in China as of February 2011, where 10 were sentenced to death without reprieve, 56 were given the chance for reprieve in two years, 30 were sentenced to life imprisonment, 44 were sentenced to imprisonment for 15 years while the remaining 55 are still undergoing court hearings.
“The execution of Credo, Batain and Villanueva does not solve the problem of narcotic trades which is run by syndicates,” said the Samahan ng mga Migranteng Manggagawa sa Korea , an alliance of Filipinos in South Korea said, “Sparing their lives would make them into witnesses who can provide more information on the big-time narcotic syndicates operating in the Philippines, China and many other countries in Asia.”
Gabriela Women’s Party Rep. Emmi de Jesus said the number of Filipinos who are in death row, not only due to carrying illegal drug but also other crimes as well, reflect the vulnerability of Filipino migrant workers. She added that there is a need to investigate how the heroine was carried out of the country despite the security procedures in Manila airports.
“We earnestly beg Your Excellency for commutation. We believe our loved ones are victims of larger drug syndicates that take advantage of the lack of awareness, vulnerability and desperation of our people. We are pained that they are meted the death penalty while the big drug operators and syndicates go on wild abandon,” Migrante International said in their open letter to China’s President Hun Jintao. “Our appeal is thus an appeal for compassion.”
Research shows higher quality of life among families with OFWs
Manila Bulletin; MB – Sat, Mar 19, 2011 2:39 AM PHT
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· Filipino families with overseas Filipino worker (OFW) relatives are observed to have more leisure activities and own more gadgets compared to those without, according to a market research conducted by market research consulting firm Synergy Business Consultancy. OFW families are more inclined to eat out, socialize, travel, go to the mall, purchase gadgets, and do recreational activities, as well as allot budget for charitable acts.
"Because they have higher purchase capacity, more of those with OFW families engage in certain leisure activities compared with those without. For example, 43% of respondents with OFW relatives go malling while only 32% of respondents without OFW relative had this as one of their leisure activities. The only similar behavior observed is media consumption," said Synergy managing director Germaine Reyes. The research noted that both groups like to watch TV, listen to the radio, and read newspapers.
OFW families are fond of eating out whether in fast foods or fine dining restaurants, comprising 54% and 19% of respondents, respectively. The malling activities engaged in by OFW families are shopping or window shopping (43%) and watching movies (31%). Social activities are also in the list, which include social drinking (29%), videoke (26%), going to parties or social gatherings (17%), bar hopping (8%), and going dancing in discos or clubs (5%).
Travelling is more common to OFW families (16%), as only 7% of respondents without OFW relatives noted this as one of their leisure activities. Moreover, recreational activities such as going to the gym, playing musical instruments, playing board games, going to the salon or spa, playing video games, or engaging in sports are popular with OFW families. OFW families also allot budget for charitable acts such as participating in the parish and community civic activities, as well as other religious activities.
Gadget ownership with OFW families is prevalent compared with those without, particularly with owning computers or laptops. Thirty-five percent of OFW families have a computer or laptop while only 11% of families without OFW relatives own this gadget at home. "There is a higher incidence of gadget ownership among OFW families, including mobile phones, computers, and digital cameras, among others. It may be that since computers are communication tools, they are used more readily by the families of OFWs to stay in touch. Thus, ownership of computer peripherals seem to be higher as well," expounded Synergy managing director Germaine Reyes.
The survey involved 1,000 households in Metro Manila and the interviews were done from September to October 2010.
In Metro Manila, two in every five households have an OFW immediate household member or relative, which is represented by 929,000 households or 4.7 million household members. In terms of socio-economic profile, 54% or majority of OFW families interviewed belong to the D class. Meanwhile, only 9% of families with OFW relatives are in the ABC class, compared with 4% of families without an OFW immediate household member or relative. According to Reyes, this is a higher-than-usual representation of the ABC households of OFW families compared with those without, and may indicate that having OFW relatives can potentially improve their ability to go up the socio-economic ladder.
Is the Supreme Court deliberately avoiding the farmworkers of Hacienda Luisita?
This was the question posed by Alyansa ng Magbubukid sa Gitnang Luzon (AMGL) chairman Joseph Canlas during a rally led by the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP), the United Luisita Workers Union (ULWU) and Unyon ng Manggagawa sa Agrikultura (UMA) and AMGL in Mendiola recently.
The farmworkers had been holding weekly protest actions in front of the Supreme Court (SC) offices in Padre Faura st. in Manila since January to press the high court to issue the decision on their case against the management of the Hacienda Luisita regarding the revocation of the Stock Distribution Option (SDO).
Every week, too, the Supreme Court disappointed them.
The farmworkers have time and again said the Hacienda Luisita case and how it would be resolved would be a precedent to how other agrarian disputes in the region will be settled. The high court’s decision, they insist, is of grave significance to farmers.
“The SC cannot evade this issue forever; it must take a stand and issue a decision. We have been hearing rumors that the justices have already prepared a decision but have been holding back against announcing it because of pressure from Malacañang itself,” Canlas said.
The justices of the SC are scheduled to hold their en banc sessions every Tuesday, but this last Tuesday, they went to Baguio where the SC has offices. Canlas said it was too early for the SC justices to take a break as the Holy Week holiday is still weeks away.
“We have been regularly holding protest actions in front of the SC building these last three months and the justices are well aware of our demands. This week they must have intended to completely avoid us by going to Baguio,” Canlas said.
Peasant farmer Rodel Canlas, in the meantime, said that whatever the decision the SC makes on their case, the farmworkers of Hacienda Luisita would not stop their campaign. Canlas, UMA’s secretary-general, said they are well aware that the Cojuangco family would not give up easily.
“Let’s say that the SC decides in our favor, does that mean that we have won? No; it doesn’t work that way because we still have to contend with the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program extension with reforms (CARPer) scheme. Under the Carper, farmworkers will still have to prove the legitimacy of their claim to the land as rightful beneficiaries, and they will still have to pay the government for their land share,” he said.
“This is precisely why we are against Carper and why we demand that the SC issues a decision that completely exempts the Hacienda Luisita land dispute from Carper’s coverage. If the SC justices have any delicadeza and a true sense of justice, they will decide in our favor and order that the hacienda be turned over to us without strings attached and without having to go through Carper.”
Canlas said the SC should order the government and the Cojuangcos to give Hacienda Luisita to the farmers and farmworkers “free and clear.”
“This is the least the SC can and should do to remedy the decades of injustice [2] the Cojuangcos have done to the farmers in Hacienda Luisita. The land must be returned to the farmers with no strings attached, no legal complications or further legal impediments,” he said.
No Choice But to Fight For Their Right to Own The Land
The farmworkers of Hacienda Luisita themselves say they would not back down from their fight for land and justice. It has been more than six years since the infamous massacre that claimed the lives of 14 farmworkers, and the survivors and their families are not about to let that blood sacrifice be wasted.
“My parents lived and died waiting for Hacienda Luisita to be given to the farmworkers, and they always said that we have no other choice but to fight for our rights,” said Ramon Reyes, farmer and tricycle-driver living in Brgy. Balete inside the hacienda.
Ramon may be young, but poverty has made him look older than his 22-years. He was barely 15 when the HLI security forces along with elements of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and local police strafed the ULWU picketline area on November 16, 2004. His parents Baby and Miguel were farmworkers and active members of the union. All three of them were in the picketline area when thebullets began falling like rain.
Now, with his both parents gone – his mother succumbed to complications of diabetes in 2005 and his father to possible liver failure in 2007 (“He drank a lot after mother died, and he was suffered great despair when the Cojuangcos said they will never give up Hacienda Luisita to the farmworkers”) – Miguel has taken it upon himself to continue what they believed in. Whenever he can, he joins the activities sponsored by the ULWU and the KMP.
Now, with his both parents gone – his mother succumbed to complications of diabetes in 2005 and his father to possible liver failure in 2007 (“He drank a lot after mother died, and he was suffered great despair when the Cojuangcos said they will never give up Hacienda Luisita to the farmworkers”) – Miguel has taken it upon himself to continue what they believed in. Whenever he can, he joins the activities sponsored by the ULWU and the KMP.
“I learn much from being an activist. I learn about why my family is poor and why so many others are trapped in poverty. I know how injustice works, its victims and who the perpetrators are. I believe in fighting for the land my parents also fought for,” he said.
Mrs. Juana Santiago, 44, also believes in defending her family’s own claim to the land. She and her husband and children have been living in Brgy. Bantog since the early 80s, and she says that she has never seen any of the Cojuangcos.
“They say that they own the land, but we have never seen them work there. We have given our lives to make the land productive, but we were given crumbs and abuse in return,” she said.
Juana used to work in the sugar cane fields pulling out weeds to make sure that they do not stifle the sugar cane plants. She worked eight hours a day, three times a week and she received P9.50 ($0.22) for every day of work.
“I have heard it said that the Cojuangco-Aquinos have insisted that they were kind and humane to us farmworkers, but I never experienced any kindness from them. My own children were never able to finish high school, and we have lived a hand-to-mouth existence all these years. The benefits the Cojuangcos said that they gave us farmworkers never existed – we had to pay for everything, the schools, the health center services, housing,” she insisted.
Now, with the case still pending at the SC, Juana and her husband remain chained to poverty. Disregarding the Cojuangco’s declaration that they own the entire land, they have “sequestered” a little more than a hectare of it and planted it with rice and a few vegetables. Every four months they harvest rice and sell some of it, but in between harvests they survive on loans from relatives.
“The Leprosy of Money”
Supporters of the farmworkers of Hacienda Luisita and their struggle for land and justice have in the meantime been consistent in their commitment to help the farmworkers.
Supporters of the farmworkers of Hacienda Luisita and their struggle for land and justice have in the meantime been consistent in their commitment to help the farmworkers.
Last March 28, a mass was held at the Sta. Cruz Church in Binondo Manila specifically for the Hacienda Luisita farmers as well as all Filipino farmers who remain neglected by the government. The Promotion of Church People’s Response (PCPR) and the ecumenical community led by the National Council of Churches of the Philippines (NCCP) joined the farmworkers in the mass where 10 priests officiated. The main celebrant was Fr. Wilfredo Dulay, MJ and convenor of the National Clergy Discernment Group. The other celebrants were Fathers Antonio Cibuan, Gerson Afuea, Joseph Matipu, Eugene Canete, Efren Reyes, Oliver Estor, Efren de Guzman, Greg Obejas and Tito Maratas.
In his homily, Fr. Dulay said it was most unfortunate that those who have wealth are most unwilling to share what they have, and that they are “afflicted” with a kind of leprosy, “a leprosy caused by money.”
“The greed and injustice of those afflicted with ‘leprosy of money’ will be met by the most severe punishment . Exploiting the poor and the powerless will be punished with justice, and God’s justice is different from that of men: it is certain, it will not be denied,” he said.
Fr. Dulay expressed hope that the farmworkers of Hacienda Luisita would never lose hope and continue their struggle for land and justice. “May your hope be unlike the flickering lights of candles; may it be strong and may you all remain steadfast. We must not weaken in our struggle for justice and instead remain strong in our faith that the day will come that we will prevail and true change will happen,” he said.
PCPR secretary-general Nardy Sabino said it was very easy for the PCPR to convince the priests to offer mass for the farmworkers.
“They didn’t even require convincing, they merely asked when we wanted the mass to be held. They have been most supportive of the cause of the Hacienda Luisita farmworkers, the same way that they fully supported the campaign of the former Morong 43,” he said.
After the mass, the farmworkers and their supporters held a torch parade from Sta. Cruz Church to the cathedral of the Iglesia Filipina Independiente (IFI) along Taft Avenue fronting the Philippine General Hospital (PGH). In the IFI’s back parking lot where there was also a basketball court, the organization of poets ‘Kilometer 64, the Luisita Peasant and People’s Alliance held a cultural program.
The farmworkers slept there overnight and came daylight, they again took to the streets and marched toward Padre Faura to the SC building where they were told that the justices would be holding their en banc session in Baguio.
Undaunted, they proceeded to Mendiola, and there called out to Malacanang and its main resident President Benigno Aquino III to stop feigning objectivity and relinquish his family’s immoral and illegal claim to Hacienda Luisita.
“This is an issue of life and death for us, we will not be discouraged or ever dissuaded into giving up. Every Tuesday the justices would see the farmers of Hacienda Luisita hold protests in front the High Court building, and they would hear our demands for justice. As for President Aquino, he is fooling no one when he says that he is keeping his hands off this issue. He is the president, and it doesn’t matter if it’s his family that’s involved – if he is truly a man of justice and honor, he would have given up the hacienda long ago,” said ULWU’s Rodel Mesa.
First posted 16:20:34 (Mla time) March 05, 2011
INQUIRER.net
INQUIRER.net
Sixteen years after it was enacted, the Philippine Mining Act of 1995 caused not only environmental destruction, but also graft and corruption, conflicts in mining communities and extrajudicial killings, a network of environmentalists and lawmakers said.
Thus the Minerals Management Bill Now Network (MMB Now! Network) is calling for the mining law’s immediate repeal and the enactment of an alternative mining act to regulate the exploration, development and utilization of the country’s minerals resources.
“For more than a decade and a half, contrary to the promises of development and prosperity that comes with the enactment of the Mining Act of 1995, the Filipino people have only witnessed and become victims of the havoc that the foreign-dominated mining industry has brought to our country,” said Judy Pasimio, executive director of Legal Rights and Natural Resources Center.
“Human rights violations amongst indigenous peoples and communities, mining-related extrajudicial killings, division amongst communities, environmental destructions, cases of bribery amongst government institutions, non-payment of taxes, and undermining of local governance have all been main-stay features under the 16th year history of the mining law,” said Pasimio.
Religious leaders also reiterated their call to repeal the country’s mining law.
Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo said that the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines has consistently called for the abrogation of the country’s mining law.
“The CBCP has issued pastoral statements in 1998 and 2006, calling for the repeal of the Philippine Mining Act of 1995. As pastors, we have witnessed how the faithful has struggled to defend the integrity of creation. Our experiences of environmental tragedies belie claims and assurances of responsible mining,” Pabillo said.
CBCP spokesman Bishop Deogracias Iniguez said mining projects failed to lift people out of poverty.
Iniguez said the CBCP has observed that “mining areas remain among the poorest areas in the country such as the mining communities in CARAGA, Bicol and Cordillera Regions.”
At the same time, he said the country’s indigenous peoples face serious challenges when confronted with mining as “the cultural fabric of indigenous peoples is also being destroyed by the entry of mining corporations.”
In Congress, bills pushing for the enactment of alternative mining laws have been filed.
Representative Erin Tañada III filed House Bill 206 or the Alternative Mining Bill (AMB) while Representatives Kaka Bag-ao, Walden Bello, Teddy Baguilat Jr., Rufus Rodriguez, Maximo Rodriguez, Carlos Padilla and Roilo Golez filed House Bill 3763 or the Minerals Management Bill (MMB).
Tañada said his proposed measure is a response in regulating the exploration, development and utilization of the country’s minerals resources.
“This bill, if passed into law, will correct all the mistakes and negative effects that the Philippine Mining Act of 1995 has brought to our country and the AMB puts communities, human rights, conservation of our mineral and natural resources, and genuine national development at the center,” he said.
Bag-ao, on the other hand, said their proposed measure wants to ensure that mineral extraction is not done at the expense of the environment and the communities.
“The MMB envisions that if we ever need to extract our mineral resources it should be for the benefit of the Filipino people and not for the interest of foreign and domestic mining corporations,” Bag-ao said.
“The MMB will ensure that any mineral extraction done in the country, it should be geared towards genuine national industrialization and modernization of our agriculture,” said Bag-ao.
Baguilat said the current mining law violates the rights of the indigenous people.
“Under the Mining Act of 1995 the rights of indigenous peoples on their ancestral domains, territories and resources, free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) requirements for indigenous communities, to name a few, have been undermined by irresponsible mining, some corrupt government officials, and most mining companies,” Baguilat said.
He said the MMB “ensures that the right of our indigenous brothers and sisters are respected and protected, specifically that of their right to their lands, territories and resources and that equitable share from any mineral extraction within their ancestral domains is assured.”
Jaybee Garganera, national coordinator of Alyansa Tigil Mina, stressed that the current Philippine Mining Act of 1995 is inadequate in addressing serious challenges that face the country, including climate change, disaster risk reduction and globalization.
“Our studies show that mining has contributed very little to economic growth because of the too liberal incentives given by the current mining law,” Garganera said.
“There really is an urgent need to pass a new mining law that will comply with climate change, disaster-risk reduction and the globalizing economy,” he said.
He said if mining companies “are really serious about responsible mining, then they should support these two pending bills, as these capture comprehensively the genuine practice of mining responsibly.”
Carla Gomez ; March 05, 2011
Inquirer Visayas
Inquirer Visayas
The Department of Budget and Management has withheld the P20-billion budget of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the National Police for personnel services.
Budget Secretary Florencio Abad said the budget would not be released until the PNP and AFP have submitted reports on the positions that have been filled up in their respective units.
"If they submit to us a report of positions being filled up, then we will begin to release the funds," said Abad, who was with President Aquino during his visit to Bacolod City on Friday.
Abad said the DBM was now more prudent in disbursing funds to government agencies after the Senate and House investigations into corruption in the military showed that the budget for unfilled positions had been diverted to a slush fund from which retiring chiefs of staff received multi-million going-away presents upon retirement.
The DBM has withheld the release of the P8.6 billion budget for AFP personnel services and more than P11 billion for the PNP until they submit the reports.
The budget for personnel services is equivalent to 20 percent of the Philippine military budget.
Abad said they received reports that 20 percent of the total allotment for personnel services of the AFP had not been used to actually hire soldiers and would end up as savings.
Former AFP comptrollers Carlos F. Garcia and Jacinto Ligot were accused by ex-AFP budget officer George Rabusa of amassing unexplained wealth at the expense of the Philippine military organization.
Rabusa exposed the high-level corruption in the military, including a purported slush fund that benefitted the top brass, and named some of them as former AFP chiefs Diomedio Villanueva, Roy Cimatu and Angelo Reyes, who all denied the allegations.
The AFP, in a statement, said the 80-percent remaining budget for the entire 2011 can still cover the salaries of all its personnel until the middle of the third quarter.
"It has to be understood that the military cannot maintain a static number of personnel, and instead maintains constant fluctuation in its number due to inevitable circumstances such as attrition due to death, discharges, and optional and compulsory retirements," the statement added.
The statement said AFP records show that it is already 97.2 percent filled up, and has an active recruitment system providing uninterrupted training that can easily fill up the remaining 2.8 percent.
March 05, 2011; INQUIRER.net
Sixteen years after it was enacted, the Philippine Mining Act of 1995 caused not only environmental destruction, but also graft and corruption, conflicts in mining communities and extrajudicial killings, a network of environmentalists and lawmakers said.
Thus the Minerals Management Bill Now Network (MMB Now! Network) is calling for the mining law’s immediate repeal and the enactment of an alternative mining act to regulate the exploration, development and utilization of the country’s minerals resources.
“For more than a decade and a half, contrary to the promises of development and prosperity that comes with the enactment of the Mining Act of 1995, the Filipino people have only witnessed and become victims of the havoc that the foreign-dominated mining industry has brought to our country,” said Judy Pasimio, executive director of Legal Rights and Natural Resources Center.
“Human rights violations amongst indigenous peoples and communities, mining-related extrajudicial killings, division amongst communities, environmental destructions, cases of bribery amongst government institutions, non-payment of taxes, and undermining of local governance have all been main-stay features under the 16th year history of the mining law,” said Pasimio.
Religious leaders also reiterated their call to repeal the country’s mining law.
Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo said that the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines has consistently called for the abrogation of the country’s mining law.
“The CBCP has issued pastoral statements in 1998 and 2006, calling for the repeal of the Philippine Mining Act of 1995. As pastors, we have witnessed how the faithful has struggled to defend the integrity of creation. Our experiences of environmental tragedies belie claims and assurances of responsible mining,” Pabillo said.
CBCP spokesman Bishop Deogracias Iniguez said mining projects failed to lift people out of poverty.
Iniguez said the CBCP has observed that “mining areas remain among the poorest areas in the country such as the mining communities in CARAGA, Bicol and Cordillera Regions.”
At the same time, he said the country’s indigenous peoples face serious challenges when confronted with mining as “the cultural fabric of indigenous peoples is also being destroyed by the entry of mining corporations.”
In Congress, bills pushing for the enactment of alternative mining laws have been filed.
Representative Erin Tañada III filed House Bill 206 or the Alternative Mining Bill (AMB) while Representatives Kaka Bag-ao, Walden Bello, Teddy Baguilat Jr., Rufus Rodriguez, Maximo Rodriguez, Carlos Padilla and Roilo Golez filed House Bill 3763 or the Minerals Management Bill (MMB).
Tañada said his proposed measure is a response in regulating the exploration, development and utilization of the country’s minerals resources.
“This bill, if passed into law, will correct all the mistakes and negative effects that the Philippine Mining Act of 1995 has brought to our country and the AMB puts communities, human rights, conservation of our mineral and natural resources, and genuine national development at the center,” he said.
Bag-ao, on the other hand, said their proposed measure wants to ensure that mineral extraction is not done at the expense of the environment and the communities.
“The MMB envisions that if we ever need to extract our mineral resources it should be for the benefit of the Filipino people and not for the interest of foreign and domestic mining corporations,” Bag-ao said.
“The MMB will ensure that any mineral extraction done in the country, it should be geared towards genuine national industrialization and modernization of our agriculture,” said Bag-ao.
Baguilat said the current mining law violates the rights of the indigenous people.
“Under the Mining Act of 1995 the rights of indigenous peoples on their ancestral domains, territories and resources, free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) requirements for indigenous communities, to name a few, have been undermined by irresponsible mining, some corrupt government officials, and most mining companies,” Baguilat said.
He said the MMB “ensures that the right of our indigenous brothers and sisters are respected and protected, specifically that of their right to their lands, territories and resources and that equitable share from any mineral extraction within their ancestral domains is assured.”
Jaybee Garganera, national coordinator of Alyansa Tigil Mina, stressed that the current Philippine Mining Act of 1995 is inadequate in addressing serious challenges that face the country, including climate change, disaster risk reduction and globalization.
“Our studies show that mining has contributed very little to economic growth because of the too liberal incentives given by the current mining law,” Garganera said.
“There really is an urgent need to pass a new mining law that will comply with climate change, disaster-risk reduction and the globalizing economy,” he said.
He said if mining companies “are really serious about responsible mining, then they should support these two pending bills, as these capture comprehensively the genuine practice of mining responsibly.”
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