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BIGGEST RALLY STOPS PUBLIC HEARING FOR INTEX RESOURCES
Pola, Oriental Mindoro (May 14, 2009)-A public hearing for the proposed Mindoro Nickel Project of Intex Resources Philippines, Inc. planned to be held today in Pola, Oriental Mindoro was not able to even start due to the intervention of the Provincial Legal Officer, Atty. Lorebelle M. Tanyag, Vice Governor Estela Aceron and a crowd of officials from the local government units (LGUs) including the municipal mayors Alfredo Ortega of Victoria , Oriental Mindoro, and Godofredo Mintu of Sablayan, Occidental Mindoro, serving the Cease and Desist Order implementing the mining moratorium of the province together with environmentalists and priests.
Atty. Tanyag in her letter addressed to Mr. Julian D. Amador, Director of Environmental Management Bureau of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), manifested the Provincial Government's "non-negotiable and irrevocable opposition against all forms of mining activities," which includes "all activities in furtherance and preparatory to all forms of mining" as provided in Section 3 of Provincial Ordinance No. 001-2002.The Cease and Desist Order states that the intended public hearing is considered as an act preparatory to mining activity, and therefore a prohibited act under the ordinance. Representatives from Intex Resources tried to disregard the Order by defending the legal mandate of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) process, as prescribed by by P.D. 1586, and DENR AO No. 30 Series of 2003, governing the said activity. In one of his earlier statements, Pola Mayor M. Alex Aranas is planning to file a declaratory relief with the Supreme Court from the mining ordinance which is 'contrary to the national policy on mining.' However, the LGU representatives, and the big crowd that have gathered from different towns, holding anti-mining placards and streamers have prevailed. The pro-mining supporters of the project that were already seated waiting for the hearing to start were caught flatfooted by surprise. 'We are ready to go at all cause to implement and enforce our moratorium ordinance against mining,' says Vice Governor Aceron. The anti-mining delegation came in a caravan of vehicles, deemed by many as the longest ever in the history of the province. The total number of vehicles, according to estimate of the Philippine National Police, numbered to about two hundred with almost 7,000 anti-mining people in attendance. 'The corporarate irresponsibility of Intex Resources is clearly obvious. They wanted to push their project within our fragile forest ecosystem, our critical watershed, and ancestral domain of the Mangyan indigenous peoples despite the strong opposition of the people,' said Fr. Edwin Gariguez of Mangyan Mission. The opposition to the project of Intex Resources has been sustained for almost ten years led by the multi-sectoral movement called Alyansa Laban sa Mina (ALAMIN) with the Apostolic Vicariate of Calapan supported by the different national and international organizations such as Alyansa Tigil Mina (ATM) and the London-based Working Group on Mining in the Philippines (WGMP). Sources: Fr. Edu Gariguez (Mangyan Mission) : 0919.8005595 Mr. Jeff Rafa (ALAMIN) : 0918.9443561 |
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