An ecumenical group of Philippine bishops and an environmental coalition have condemned legal action and police operations against Indigenous communities and farmers resisting mining exploration in the northern province of Nueva Vizcaya.
The Ecumenical Bishops Forum (EBF) accused courts of enabling legal attacks on residents of Kasibu town, while Alyansa Tigil Mina (ATM), a national coalition campaigning against destructive mining, called for the cancellation of an exploration permit granted to North Luzon Mineral Resources Corporation (NLMRC).
The groups raised concerns following an Oct. 30 police operation to enforce a temporary restraining order against residents maintaining barricades along roads leading to the company’s exploration sites.
ATM said several protesters were injured during the operation. Residents resumed their barricade after the court order expired.
“We laud the Kasibu protestors for their tenacious opposition to the irregular Exploration Permit granted to North Luzon Mineral Resources Corp. (NLMRC),” said Jaybee Garganera, ATM national coordinator.
Garganera said residents had endured lawsuits and injuries during police dispersals while defending their land and livelihoods.
Residents have maintained the barricades since May, blocking the movement of fuel, equipment and vehicles used for mineral exploration.
They allege that NLMRC obtained its exploration permit without the required consultations and consent of affected communities.
Regional Trial Court Branch 30 issued a 72-hour temporary restraining order on Oct. 27 in favor of NLMRC and the Bugkalot Confederation of Nueva Vizcaya, Quirino, and Aurora, Inc., according to Northern Dispatch.
Judge Paul Attolba issued the order against 56 individuals maintaining barricades along the Paquet-Pao Municipal Road and roads in Pao, Catarawan, Kakiduguen and Paquet.
The order prohibited residents from obstructing company personnel, contractors, vehicles and equipment seeking access to exploration sites.
In its complaint seeking the restraining order and a writ of preliminary injunction, NLMRC accused residents of unlawfully blocking public roads and claimed 8.3 million pesos in losses between May and September because it could not operate.
The company alleged that residents had erected barricades on public roads without legal authority, preventing access to areas covered by its exploration permit.
Fidel Santos, a lawyer representing the residents, challenged the company’s financial claim.
“In their complaint, they did not submit a single document to prove that they suffered losses amounting to P8.3 million,” Santos said.
In a Nov. 2 pastoral statement, the EBF accused the legal system of being used to suppress communities opposing mining operations.
The bishops defended the barricades as an expression of the communities’ responsibility to protect their land and environment.
“The grassroots resistance of Kasibu’s farmers and indigenous people is not a crime, but an act of biblical stewardship and faithful obedience to the Creator,” the bishops said.
The forum also criticized the issuance of court orders against communities resisting mining exploration, accusing the judiciary of protecting corporate interests at the expense of affected residents.
ATM urged local authorities in Kasibu and Nueva Vizcaya to protect residents and address their complaints, citing the responsibility of local governments to promote public welfare under Section 16 of the Philippine Local Government Code.
Garganera said local officials must prioritize the welfare of their constituents over the interests of mining companies.
“ATM urgently demands that the local governments of Kasibu and Nueva Vizcaya ensure that the rights of their constituencies are completely protected and their grievances are adequately addressed,” Garganera said.
The coalition also called on the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), the government agency responsible for regulating mining activities, to revoke NLMRC’s exploration permit.
He said the agency must ensure that mining operations comply with environmental regulations and do not violate the public’s right to a safe and healthy environment.
Kalikasan-People’s Network for the Environment has also called for the cancellation of the company’s permit and an investigation into allegations of harassment and abuse of state power against residents opposing the project.
NLMRC has applied for another exploration permit covering 4,855 hectares in Nueva Vizcaya and neighboring Quirino province, in addition to its existing exploration area in Kasibu.
Santos said the dispute was connected to the Philippine government’s wider mining policy, including Executive Order 122, which establishes a national policy framework for the critical minerals industry.
“The situation in Kasibu is not isolated from what is happening in other areas affected by mining,” Santos said.
The EBF described the use of state power against communities protecting watersheds as an “inversion of righteousness.”
The bishops called on the judiciary to stop what they described as corporate coercion and pledged continued solidarity with residents defending their land.
