Residents of Didipio, Kasibu, Nueva Vizcaya, both indigenous peoples and rural dwellers, and their cause oriented allies denounce the impending arrest of 11 inhabitants and leaders, who have been in the forefront of resisting large-scale foreign mining company OceanaGold in their community.

This arrest comes in the light of the Department of Justice (DOJ)’s denial of the petition for review last October 20, 2009 filed by the lawyers of the respondents to the resolution of the Provincial Prosecuter of Nueva Vizcaya, which finds probable cause for violation of Section 79 of PD 705 against 11 residents of Didipio. Presidential Decree 705, Section 79, pertains to illegal occupation of classified forest lands, and alleged that the 11 Didipio residents were illegal forest occupants, and that they had cut trees without a permit or license to do so.

We, the residents of Didipio, Kasibu, Nueva Vizcaya, both indigenous peoples and rural dwellers, denounce the impending arrest of their 11 leaders, who have been in the forefront in resisting the OceanaGold mining project in their community.

This arrest comes in the light of the Department of Justice (DOJ)’s denial of the petition for review last October 20, 2009 filed by the lawyers of the respondents to the resolution of the Provincial Prosecuter of Nueva Vizcaya, which finds probable cause for violation of Section 79 of PD 705 against 11 residents of Didipio. Presidential Decree 705, Section 79, pertains to illegal occupation of classified forest lands, and alleged that the 11 Didipio residents were illegal forest occupants, and that they had cut trees without a permit or license to do so.

According to Manang Carmen, a leading officer of Didipio Earth Savers Multipurpose Association (DESAMA) and a baranggay official of Didipio, “We are quite saddened by the DOJ’s decision for they have glossed over the non-implementation of strict criminal procedure that was supposed to be executed by the Provincial Prosecutor of Nueva Vizcaya. How can the DOJ decide this way? It is clear that our leaders were not given due process.”

 

The 11 respondents, which include Peter Duyapat, an Ifugao delegate to the recently concluded United Nations Commission on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (UNCERD) conference held in Geneva, Switzerland last August 2009, were asserting that they were not properly given due process. According to them, none of the legal requirements were followed in the case. The subpoenas were not tendered properly, thus the respondents accidentally only knew of the case when they were attending another community case. The said subpoena just fell into the hands of some persons other than the respondents themselves.

Manong Peter asserts that “In its very essence, this impending arrest through a case filed against us by the Provincial Prosecutor only favors the mining corporation, and is a form of harassment upon those that have been resisting the mining project in our baranggay.”

Likewise, Ronald Gregorio, LRC-KsK Luzon Team Leader agrees to Manong Peter’s assertion, “This is clearly a form of persecution against us indigenous peoples. Obviously this is a SLAPP suit (Strategic Law Suit Against Public Participation) that the main objective is to harass and ultimately quell community opposition that is being often utilised by corporations."  

“How can we be illegally occupying the forest lands, when we have been there for decades and diligently paying taxes to the government? It is a grave insult to us Ifugaos who have been inhabiting Didipio since the 1960s. We are Ifugaos, we live in forest lands.” Duyapat explains.   

Whatever happens, the indigenous peoples, along with their allies, resolve that this case will not weaken their determination to keep on resisting the mining project in Didipio. They are prepared to fight off this case and will not relinquish their right to their land.

“We will fight this case, tooth and nail to the very end.” Duyapat concludes.
 
Ronald A. Gregorio
Team Leader
LRC Luzon Regional Office
41-B Mapagsangguni St., Sikatuna Village, Quezon City Philippines

Tel:   +63 2 926 4409
Fax:  +63 2 434 4079
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