The Philippines is facing mounting criticism over its aggressive push for “green” mining to meet global demand for transition minerals, as a new report exposes the heavy toll on Indigenous communities and biodiversity.
Released on Dec. 3 by Kalikasan People’s Network for the Environment (PNE) and the London-based Global Witness, the report highlighted how the country’s rush to extract critical minerals like nickel and copper is fueling conflict, displacement, and environmental destruction.
The Southeast Asian nation, the world’s second-largest producer of nickel, is positioning itself as a key supplier of transition minerals for renewable energy technologies under President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s administration.
However, this ambition comes at a steep cost, Kalikasan PNE claimed. According to the report, 20% of the country’s land is covered by mining tenements, with more than 25% of transition mineral zones encroaching on Indigenous territories and critical biodiversity areas.
Indigenous peoples, who manage 75% of the Philippines’ remaining forests, have been disproportionately affected.
Since the 1990s, they have lost land equivalent to the size of Timor Leste to mining projects. Many communities face displacement, coercion, and violence, with the report documenting the militarization of Indigenous lands to pave the way for mining operations.
“At the heart of this issue are real people and ecosystems,” said Beverly Longid, National Coordinator of Katribu, a national Indigenous alliance, and Global Coordinator of the International Indigenous Peoples Movement for Self-Determination and Liberation.
Longid spoke during a forum titled ‘Green’ Mining’s Dirty Bootprint: The Militarization of Indigenous Lands for Energy Transition Minerals, held at the Commission on Human Rights in Quezon City.
Windel Bolinget, Chairperson of the Cordillera People’s Alliance, detailed how the government’s Anti-Terror Law has been weaponized against Indigenous communities.
“Red-tagging doesn’t just target individuals; it destabilizes entire Indigenous communities by justifying militarization,” said Bolinget, who was red-tagged and falsely charged with rebellion and murder before his case was dismissed for lack of evidence in 2021.
The report revealed that militarization has enabled mining projects while silencing dissent. Fr. Raymond Montero-Ambray, a priest and Indigenous rights advocate, stated: “The military uses counterinsurgency as a pretext to crush opposition to mining.”
Red-tagging, or branding activists as terrorists, has intensified under the Marcos Jr. administration, further marginalizing Indigenous communities.
According to the report, the Philippines remains Asia’s deadliest country for environmental defenders, with a third of killings linked to mining disputes.
The environmental consequences of the mining boom are equally alarming. Since 2010, over 211,000 hectares of forest have been lost in mining areas, the report says.
In Palawan, a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, mining zones threaten critical ecosystems and biodiversity hotspots.
“The global rush for transition minerals cannot come at the expense of communities and biodiversity,” said Hanna Hindstrom, Senior Investigator at Global Witness. “We cannot mine our way out of the climate emergency. Attempting to do so will only worsen the plight of our planet and its people.”
Indigenous youth leader Kat Dalon shared how militarization has disrupted Indigenous education, particularly in areas rich in nickel reserves.
“The military brands our education as insurgency training, justifying attacks on schools and displacing communities,” said Dalon, the first college graduate from her clan.
Over 200 Lumad schools have been forcibly closed since 2019, the report states, with the government’s National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) playing a central role in the repression.
Lawyer Fe Esperanza Trampe of the Environmental Legal Assistance Center, Inc., noted similar challenges in Palawan. “In Palawan, communities face land grabs facilitated by militarization and weak FPIC enforcement. Despite immense challenges, these communities continue to resist, demonstrating courage in the face of adversity,” she said.
The report called for sweeping reforms, including the abolition of the NCIP and NTF-ELCAC, stricter guidelines for Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC), and a repeal of the 1995 Mining Act.
Advocates also stressed the need for a mining policy rooted in justice and equity, with greater accountability for corporations and government agencies.
Rodne Galicha, Executive Director of Living Laudato Si, criticized the pro-mining stance of the government. “In Sibuyan, rivers are poisoned, forests cleared, and livelihoods destroyed for corporate profit. This is not for the greater good,” he said.
Lia Mai Torres, Executive Director of the Center for Environmental Concerns, argued that the government’s push for “green” mining perpetuates systemic injustice.
“The Philippine government’s ‘green’ mining push violates the rights of Indigenous people to facilitate land grabs and resource extraction for corporate profit, in a continuation of colonialism. Our natural wealth must not serve multinational corporations. It must serve the people,” she said.