Forest destruction in Quezon and Aurora

November 29, 2005

Landslide victims, environmental activists denounce Arroyo, big loggers for continued forest destruction

In commemoration of the 2004 landslide in Quezon and Aurora provinces, more than 150 environmental activists and victims of the tragedy staged a human chain in front of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. They denounced the grave failure of the Arroyo government in stopping large-scale logging operations in the area and in providing much needed rehabilitation services and livelihood support to affected communities.

“Nananatiling mas malala pa sa isang kahig, isang tuka ang aming buhay sa Quezon,” said Ka Miling Rotaquio, a Dumagat leader of Tulay Ugnayan ng Organisasyong Katutubo sa Sierra Madre-Quezon (Tunod-Quezon).

“Pinabayaan kami ng gobyerno. Kahit singkong duling ay walang ibinigay ang gobyerno upang magkaroon kami ng kabuhayan. Karamihan sa aming mga katutubo ay hindi makapagsaka at walang permanenteng hanapbuhay. Natabunan at nasira ang aming mga bukirin at taniman dahil sa landslide.”

Ka Miling did not only lose a house but also his brother and the latter’s wife and two children in the tragedy. He is one of the victims denied of resettlement area and livelihood assistance by the government.

Last year’s landslide and flashfloods in Eastern Luzon claimed more than 1,600 lives and displaced more than 53,000 families. Until now, no significant reforestation and rehabilitation efforts have been implemented in the affected provinces as promised by the government. The government earmarked Php 60 million to reforest 5.4 million hectares of denuded forest land, a pittance of Php11.10 per hectare.

Meanwhile, Marieta Corpuz, Secretary General of the Samahan ng mga Katutubo sa Sierra Madre , accused the government and big logging corporations for perpetuating massive deforestation in their province. Corpuz is an Alta, one of the indigenous peoples in Aurora affected by the landslide.

Corpuz claimed that just a few months after the disaster, the Industries Development Corp and Inter-Pacific Forest Resources Corp. resumed their large-scale logging operations in Aurora. Instead of prosecuting them, President Arroyo and DENR Sec. Mike Defensor connived with big-time loggers as they continued to plunder our forest and pillage our other resources. They also used force through militarization to silence us in our opposition to large-scale logging. The 48th IB Philippine Army conducts military operations in the area to protect the operations of big time loggers under the guise of pursuing the New People’s Army we have often been hastily linked with.”.

This month, DENR Sec. Defensor lifted the logging moratorium in Aurora and other provinces in the country. He said the logging moratorium affected forest-dependent communities throughout the country comprising holders of some 200 Integrated Forestry Management Agreements (IFMAs), 3,000 Socialized Forestry Management Agreement (SFMAs), and 5,000 Community-Based Forest Management Agreements (CBFMAs).

But according to Clemente Bautista, National Coordinator of KALIKASAN People’s Network for the Environment (Kalikasan-PNE), “the resumption of corporate logging, together with the revitalization of large-scale mining, has become a political concession and revenue-generating scheme of the embattled and cash-strapped Arroyo regime to gain support from the elite families with interests in such extractive industries.

In Aurora and Quezon alone, 141,560 hectares of forest owned by nine logging companies are under IFMAs. Industries Development Corporation has the biggest logging concession covering 58,343 hectares. There are 703,158 hectares of forest under IFMAs and another 543,939 hectares under 12 Timber Licensing Agreements (TLA) nationwide.

“These are actually neither owned nor managed by local communities but by the big businesses and powerful political families in the country,” said Bautista.

“It is pure hog wash for the government to proclaim that the lifting of log ban is meant to provide livelihood for the people and victims of the tragedy. The government’s rhetoric of helping the people will only be relevant if it exercises political will to cancel all large-scale logging agreements and operations, impose moratorium on new logging concessions, and provide land to be tilled by and livelihood support for upland dwellers and indigenous peoples. These are the real needs and demands on the ground that will provide the people sustainable livelihood and enable them to judiciously implement management of our forests.”

But we are doubtful whether the beleaguered Arroyo administration can sincerely demonstrate such will. Only a pro-environment and pro-people government that should replace hers can pave the way for the realization of these important reforms our environment in crisis badly needs.” Bautista ended. ###

Reference: Kalikasan-People's Network for the Environment