March 7, 2005
To Whom It May Concern:
This is a response to the highly misleading and slanderous statement
issued by Juanito Tumangkis and Attorney Pablo Bernardo on February
20, 2005. We feel that a response must be made in order to counter the
many untruths and half truths made by Tumangkis in this statement. We
are astounded that Tumangkis would have the audacity to claim he speaks
for all the Subanons of Siocon and then deliberately misrepresent the
views of so many of them.
1. In response to Tumangkis' introduction
We feel that some information is missing from the introduction of Tumangkis.
Tumangkis is a pure blooded Subanon who currently lives in Sitio Canatuan
with his wife and family. His wife is from Negros and his grandfather
came from Zamboanga City. In 1989, Tumangkis and his brothers became
security guards for a logging company that was operating in Canatuan.
When the logging company stopped operating they began to Small Scale
Mine (SSM) in Guinabucan. In 1994, they moved their operations to Mount
Canatuan to mine the newly discovered gold deposits. In 2002 Tumangkis
found employment with TVI.
2. In response to the claims made regarding the SSAI, the CADT, and
the Council of Elders
Tumangkis makes many erroneous claims about the Subanons and who represents
them. The Siocon Subanon Association Inc. (SSAI) that he so frequently
refers to does not have the support of most of the Siocon Subanon. It
is also not the recognized administrator of the Certificate of Ancestral
Domain Title (CADT) of which covers the land currently occupied by TVI.
The original SSAI was set up by Timuay Jose "Boy" Anoy because
the traditional forms of Subanon leadership were not then recognized
by the Philippine State. This SSAI consistently and strongly opposed
the entry of mining operations to their lands.
However, on November 2001 an unconstitutional meeting took place where
the former leaders of the SSAI were dismissed in their absence and were
replaced with a new faction. A high proportion of the new leaders were
company employees and many had no traditional right to claim land within
the CADT area. Following the coup the company immediately recognized
the group and started working with it. Timuay Anoy and the original
leadership of the SSAI protest the legality of the new SSAI. They assert
that many who participated in the meeting were from outside the CADT
area and had no right to participate or seek election. Local people
have dubbed the current organization as 'TVSSAI'.
Contrary to claims of Tumangkis, the CADT is not - and cannot - be
administered by an organization. The CADT was granted to 226 households
in the Sitos of Mambong, Poduan, Malusok, Binukol in Barangay Candiz,
Canatuan, Cosan, Lumut, Gumibu, Ginubang, Gulangan, and Balubuan in
Barangay Tabayo. Timuay Anoy was recognized as the head claimant and
the claim is not administered by anyone but those Subanon people.
Looking over a list of those 226 households shows that 200 or so of
these households are anti-TVI. Of the estimated 26 households that are
pro-Mining, 16 of them were positively identified as having members
who work with TVI. We identified 48 CADT recipients in total who work
with TVI. Quite obviously this is a far cry from the 90% of Subanon
that Tumangkis claims is in support of TVI.
Furthermore, the Council of Elders is also not a widely recognized
decision making body since it was imposed on the community by the Philippine
state through the National Commission of Indigenous People (NCIP) with
the supposed objective of addressing the conflicts in the community
caused by the presence of TVI. Eleven of the 30 original members (all
CADT holders from Canatuan) walked out of the Council because they felt
was just another one of TVI's tools to divide and conquer the community.
They argue that the honorarium of 6000 php ($109 US) provided to attendees
from TVI is clear proof of this. 6000 php is a substantial amount of
money in a culture where receiving funds often creates obligations towards
the giver.
2. In response to the claim that he speaks for 6000 or so Subanons
in Siocon, Zamboanga del Norte and that their dreams are for the 'development'
of their ancestral domain.
Tumangkis has no right to say that he speaks for all the Subanons of
Siocon. He is not a Timuay and has never been recognized as such by
the Subanon people because he is not the descendent of Timuays. His
roles in the SSAI and the Council of Elders also does not give him this
right since those organizations are not recognized as legitimate by
the majority of Subanons.
Tumangkis then goes on to make the very misleading statement that "The
Subanons are simple, peaceful and loving people whose dreams are for
the development of their ancestral domain, employment and freedom from
poverty, among others." While we agree that most of the Subanons
are simple, peaceful and loving people, we take exception to what Tumangkis
implies when he mentions 'dreams of development'.
Tumangkis would have us believe that all the Subanon are strongly in
favour of development through Large Scale Mining. However, this is clearly
not the case, as many Subanons strongly oppose mining. Most of the Subanons
are agriculturalists and they believe in treating the land with respect.
Proof of this sentiment is the fact that the CADT was obtained as a
reaction to the many Large Scale Miners that had begun to show interest
in their land. Most of the Subanons realize that having large scale
mining company on their land does not guarantee them much but environmental
destruction and increased vulnerability to natural and man made disasters.
3. In response to the requests of Tumangkis to: "Stop telling
lies to the world about us", "Stop listening to those who
say they represent us, but do not", "Stop sowing conflict
and strife in our community", "Stop using us for your personal
gain", and "Leave us to decided what is best for us"
Firstly, we would like to state again that Tumangkis does not speak
for the Subanons of Siocon.
Let it be said, however, that we have never knowingly lied to anybody
about the Subanons Siocon. We have also always strived to find out the
views of the Subanons of Siocon by talking to them and including them
in our discussions. We have also talked to those people who are accepted
and respected as traditional leaders in the community. Furthermore,
we have no desire to sow conflict or strife in the Canatuan community.
We find the current divisions amongst the Subanons saddening and we
are troubled by the number of Subanons have turned against their brothers
and sisters for temporary monetary gain.
We would also like to clearly address Tumangkis' reoccurring accusation
that we are "using the Subanons of Siocon for our personal gain".
We have never sought to use the Subanons for our personal gain. Frankly,
we have no idea how we would. We have nothing to gain personally from
our involvement in this issue. We remain involved despite all the difficulties
because we believe that it is an issue of great importance and we are
unwilling to 'leave' and have injustice committed against those that
have asked for our support.
4. In response to the claim that a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) has
been signed between the Subanon and TVI.
This MOA was signed by the SSAI and the Council of Elders, two organizations
whose legitimacy has already been called into question.
5. In response to the claim that Mt. Canatuan is not sacred and that
Timuay Anoy and Mr. Mato supported SSMs to operate there.
Contrary to Tumungkis' claims, Mt. Canatuan is sacred and has always
been identified as such by the local people. This is proven by the fact
that it - along with the lake at Lumingin - was identified as a sacred
place during the processing of the CADC and the CADT.
Tumangkis has repeatedly claimed that Timuay Anoy and Mr. Mato were
supportive of the SSMs in an attempt to discredit their leadership.
He has also frequently alluded to 'monies' received from SSMs in an
attempt to make it sound like they were being bribed. These claims are
misleading.
Timuay Anoy and Mr. Mato did not support what was being done to the
land by the SSMs. To this end they petitioned the local government to
oust Raymond Bosque who was organizing the Bosque Mining Corporation
(BOMICO) with several of the pioneering mining families.
As it became obvious that large scale mining was developing into a
serious threat, Timuay Anoy and Mr. Mato and many of the Subanons took
the necessary steps to secure their rights to the land. These Subanons
and the SSMs entered into a degree of cooperation because they were
now facing a much bigger common enemy. This cooperation is where the
claims of 'receiving monies' originates. However, Timuay Anoy and Mr.
Mato never received 'funds' as such from the SSMs. The only support
was in the form of voluntary contributions from the SSMs for travel
and processing costs related to obtaining the CADC and CADT.
6. In response to the claim that SSM operations were polluting the
water and killing the fish etc.
It is no doubt true that SSM operations were polluting the water. However,
what we have heard from the Siocon residents is that the pollution from
the SSMs was much less significant compared to the current devastating
affects of TVI operations. Farmers and fishers only started to complain
of diminishing harvests and fish catches after TVI started to reprocess
the tailings that they seized from the SSMs.
7. In response to the claim that TVI has the support of the Subanon
community as proven by the 2000 signatures they have and the resolution
passed by the Council of Elders.
TVI has no valid or legitimate proof that it has the support of the
Subanon people. TVI claims that it has gained 'express support' from
over 2000 people and that these people are also members of the SSAI.
This claim is untrue. Area residents have informed us that TVI collects
signatures from everyone who visits their compound or attends their
meetings. In most cases the visitors are not told that their signatures
will be interpreted as statement of support for TVI or a request for
membership in the SSAI. Many believe that they are signing perfunctory
documents of attendance or registration. Furthermore, many of the signatories
are from distant municipalities and have no legitimate claim to community
membership.
Tumangkis also makes reference to a resolution passed October 15, 2002
by the Council of Elders. What he neglects to mention is that in September
2002 a resolution was passed by this same body to oppose open-pit mining
on Canatuan Ancestral lands - in spite of the fact that some of the
council's members were TVI employees. This meeting was held in front
of the Subanon community.
This unanimous decision was overturned, however, in October 2002 under
suspicious circumstances. A Council of Elders meeting was called in
Zamboanga City - a day's journey from the ancestral territory and out
of reach for most of the community. This in itself was a breach of the
guidelines issued by the National Commission on Indigenous People (NCIP)
on the implementation of the Indigenous People's Rights Act (IPRA).
The Community Elders say they were lead to believe that the change was
a courtesy to facilitate the participation of prominent public officials
in a largely ceremonial meeting.
Thus, they were surprised when Danilo Bason, a TVI employee, proposed
a resolution supporting TVI's mining operations at the meeting. Strong
objections were voiced since this motion quite clearly contradicted
the conclusions of the previous meeting and there was no community participation
since the meeting was outside of the ancestral domain. Subanon custom
and IPRA guidelines stipulate that decisions should be passed only with
the consensus of all those affected. However, no consensus could even
be reached inside the meeting, let alone within the Subanon community.
The eleven traditional leaders of the SSAI walked out of the meeting
with other Canatuan residents when it became clear that they were going
to vote on the issue.
8. Regarding the eviction of the families from Mt. Canatuan
According to Ofelia Davi and Apolonia Bulagao (an area resident for
87 years) there are currently around 93 families still living within
the mining area. Nineteen of these families are of Subanon origin and
74 are of Visaysan. Of the 19 Subanon families, twelve are pro-TVI and
have family members working with TVI. These families arrived in the
area in 1989 and were previously involved with SSM. The remaining 7
Subanon families are anti-TVI. Of the 74 Visayan families, only 70%
of them were previously involved in SSM. The other 30% of Visayan families
have always been involved in agriculture and this can be evidenced by
the maturity of the fruit trees on their land. Currently all of the
Visayans living within the mining site are practicing agriculture.
Three of these families have received formal eviction notices and the
others have been told to expect it. Although Tumangkis adamantly claims
that the letters of demand were sent for 'reasons of safety' and that
they are being evicted because they are living in the claim area without
our free prior informed consent (FPIC), the letter gives a much different
impression.
Written by TVI and delivered to them by a TVI employee, notice/demand
to immediately vacate the mining area states that (emphasis in original):
As our field survey points out, you are occupying, and have established
a dwelling, in a portion of the Company premises/mining concession area.
Your refusal to vacate the area is obstructing our legitimate operations
and is causing the company costly delays in our work. You are also unnecessarily
putting your entire family at great and serious risk to injury from
the movement from our heavy equipment with your continuous stay on our
site. In connection therewith, we DEMAND you vacate the company premises
and/or mining area within a non-extendible period of FIFTEEN [15] days
from receipt hereof. We request your urgent and preferential action
on this matter or you will leave us with no other option but to initiate
Court action that may result in your criminal and civil liability.
In response to the threatened evictions, the farmers of Mt. Canatuan
Tabayo issued a letter of complaint to the Provincial Governor of Zamboanga
del Norte. In it they request support from the Governor. The letter
states, "We are being evicted by TVI from our own farms which is
our means of livelihood for our sustenance. Their open pit operations
have destroyed our plants and our houses. … We planted rubber
trees 2,000 stem, bananas, coconut trees, mahogany and other fruit trees.
With all of these we will be loosing more than P436,000 monthly if we
are evicted from our home." Attached is a list of 110 signatures.
Six of the signatories are Subanon and the rest are Visayan. They all
live within the mining claim and know that they are facing eviction
very soon.
The Apu' Manglang Glupa' Pusaka' (the SSAI of the traditional leaders
which was renamed for clarification after the dubious creation of the
other 'SSAI') has attached a certification to the above petition. In
this notice it says that the signatories are legal and legitimate residents
of Mt. Canatuan, Tabayo, Siocon within the CADT area since the year
1989. The certification was prepared by Onsino Mato as Secretary of
the Apu' Manglang Glupa' Pusaka' and attested to by Timuay Jose Anoy.
9. Regarding the claim that the only people opposed to TVI are Timuay
Anoy, Mr. Mato and SSMs who are non-Subanons
This claim is completely and totally untrue. The majority of Subanons
oppose any large scale mining operations on their land. The Visayans
within the CADT claim (only 20% of whom where formally SSMs) have repeatedly
voiced their opposition to large scale mining in their area or any other
operations that would cause serious environmental damage.
10. Regarding the slanderous and misleading claims made against Timuay
Anoy, Mr. Mato, Timuay Lambo, Ofelia Davi, and Lunie Lucas.
Tumangkis has attempted to discredit all those who oppose TVI by calling
their names and credentials into question. This is pure slander and
the accusations are entirely baseless.
1.1 It is true that Timuay Jose Anoy is not the President of the SSAI
organized and manipulated by TVI, as outlined above. He is, however,
the acknowledged leader of the community and also the Apu' Manglang
Glupa' Pasuaka' - an organization recognized and respected by most of
the CADT recipients.
1.2, 1.3, & 1.4 The fact that his mother is not Subanon has no
bearing on his status as a Timuay. The right to leadership is determined
through the paternal bloodline. He IS a Timuay because his great-grandfather
was a Timuay and the Council of Traditional leaders have all agreed
on his right to bear this title. The Gokum (a traditional Subanon Court)
of Traditional Elders found that (capitals in original):
Jose 'Boy' Anoy is the present Timuay of Canatuan…Undeniably
the Anoy family in Siocon are the legitimate traditional leaders in
Siocon…the Council of Elders organised and constituted [in 2002]
in gross violation of Subanon customs, tradition and practices is declared
abolished. Furthermore, all acts entered into by said group of personas
be declared NULL AND VOID…There was not FREE PRIOR and INFORMED
CONSENT of the Subanon residents of Canatuan and there was a failure
to first ascertain the legal status of the traditional leaders.
1.5 We have already addressed the charges of him 'receiving monies'
from SSM. It is true that he moved to Mt. Canatuan from Paduan, but
this was before TVI arrived on the scene and it in no way diminishes
his authority as a tribal leader. He, like the other Subanons currently
living on Mt. Canatuan, moved to the site after the SSMs occupied the
area. The Subanons did not traditionally live on the mountain because
it is a sacred place. Timuay Anoy and Mr. Mato moved to the site because
they felt their presence was needed to protect the site from the hazardous
effects of small and large scale mining.
It is untrue that he led an application with the MGB to convert the
area to a people's mining area.
1.6 Neither Timuay Anoy nor Mr. Mato are currently staying near the
mining site because they fear for their lives at the hands of TVI's
Special Civilian Armed Auxiliary (SCAA) and other related forces. They
fear that the aim of the continuous slander against them is to isolate
them from the community to the point where their assassinations will
go un-protested. Death threats are not uncommon against local critics
of mining, and at least two anti-mining activists were assassinated
in Mindoro Oriental during the 2004 Philippine election campaign.
2.1 Mr. Mato does come from Candis, Siocon. Candis is part of the CADT
claim area and is located at the foot of the Sacred Mt. Canatuan. The
fact that he does not come from Barangay Tabayo is irrelevant and does
not diminish his right to speak on behalf of the Subanon.
2.2 Mr. Mato is not suspect in either of these ambushes. The charges
were laid by the widow of a TVI employee and filed by TVI's lawyer.
However, despite constant appeals the case against them keeps on getting
thrown out because of 'lack of merit'. A court of law found the Moro
Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) guilty of the attack and cleared Mr.
Mato of all charges. The repetition of these slanderous accusations
is baseless and low.
3.1 Timuay Noval Lambo is not from the mining area and we have never
claimed that was. He is, however, the recognized traditional Chief of
all the Timuays under the Seven River Council which includes Siocon,
Gutalac, Labason, Kalawit, Titay, Ipil, Tungawan, and the Barangays
of Zamboanga City that were traditionally occupied by Subanons. As such,
he has recognized right to speak about the affairs of Subanons in Canatuan.
3.2 - 3.5 The rest of these claims do not even warrant an answer given
Timuay Lambo's status in the Subanon Community.
4. Ofelia Davi - Community Organizer for DCMI - grew up in a Subanon
community in Siocon. The first wife of her father was a Subanon and
her father is the step-grandfather of 'Ting' Tumangkis. It seems farfetched
for Tumangkis to claim that the woman who he has always accepted as
'Aunt' is ignorant about Subanons. Davi has been working with Subanons
for most of her adult life and is married to a Subanon man. She is,
of course, very knowledgeable about 'the ways, culture, and traditions
of the Subanons'.
5. Luni Lucas is against all forms of mining and proof of this is the
fact that he sponsored a Municipal Resolution to ban all forms of mining
in Siocon. He is also widely respected by the people and this is evidenced
by the fact that he has been re-elected twice.
11. In response to the claim that the Subanons have decided to allow
TVI to operate on their land
This claim is false. The majority of the CADT holders are opposed to
TVI. They remain opposed to any operations on their land that they cannot
oversee or control. They realize that their land and autonomy is much
more valuable than a fistful of promises.
For most of the Subanons, their experience with TVI has been very bitter.
They have watched the degradation of their land and have experienced
intimidation from the SCAA. Their traditional ways have been mocked
and their voices have been ignored. They have also been denied the right
to freely access and protect their land.
12. In response to the claim that the National Government is supportive
of IP rights
The National Government has proven itself recently to be very strongly
on the side of Large Scale Mining Companies. They have recently taken
many steps to encourage increased investment in the country from foreign
mining companies. This administration is trying very hard to convince
potential investors that they will not experience any opposition from
the local communities as they exploit the land for their own commercial
gain.
13. In response to the claim that NGO's are using the Subanons
These charges are baseless and ridiculous. None of the Filipino NGOs
that are currently concerned with this issue have ever used the Subanons
of Siocon to receive funds. Surely there are easier ways to go about
receiving funds then getting involved in highly contentious legal and
political matters?
Take DCMI as an example because Tumangkis has mentioned them by name.
DCMI is a small advocacy group and its funders recognize them as such.
All funds received are earmarked for their advocacy and education efforts.
DCMI has never claimed to be involved in community development or poverty
alleviation projects. Thus, it has never received money for the types
of investments that Tumangkis is proposing.
Tumangkis is simply making these claims simply because he realizes
that we really do have nothing to gain by being involved. He realizes
the fact we have nothing to gain means that we probably have another,
better, reason for being involved. And we do. We are involved because
the people of Siocon have asked us to become involved in their struggle.
They have asked for our help in protecting their land, their rights,
their livelihoods and their futures.
14. In response to Tumangkis' claim that he is a Timuay and Attorney
Pablo Bernardo's claim that he is the legitimate Chairman of the Provincial
Consultative Body of the Subanons.
As stated before, Tumangkis is not a Timuay and he has never been recognized
as such by the Subanon people. Tumangkis is clearly not of the Timuay
lineage. In February 2004, a Gokum of Traditional Elders met and examined
the genealogical bloodlines of all the Timuays in the Siocon area. The
Gokum ruled that Tumangkis has no right to call himself a Timuay.
Also, Timuay Jose Anoy has recently filed an Affidavit contesting Atty.
Pablo Bernardo's election as chairman of the Provincial Consultative
Body. Bernardo is from Lintangan, Sibuco. The Subanon of this claim
area requested that their Consultative Body be based in Zamboanga City.
Their request was granted and the Consultative Body for the Subanon
from Sibuco is now located in Zamboanga City. Thus Bernardo does not
have the right to be a member of the Consultative Body based in Dipolog
City - let alone the Chairman. It must also be recognized that neither
the selection of Pablo Bernardo nor the establishment of the Provincial
Consultative Body was achieved through any legitimate process according
to the traditions of the Subanon.
We hope that this statement has helped to clear up some of the misunderstandings
that Tumangkis' statement may have provoked. For further background
on these issues please read the Christian Aid report, Breaking promises,
making profits: Mining in the Philippines for more information. It can
be accessed here. Feel free
to contact us for clarification on any of these issues.
Sincerely,
DCMI (DIOPIM Committee on Mining Issues)
PIPLinks (Philippine Indigenous People's Links)
