Bagong Alyansang Makabayan said the critical minerals list issued by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources – Environmental Management Bureau paves the way for the wholesale sell-out and intensified foreign plunder of the country’s resources.
The minerals identified to be national priority include gold, silver, copper, molybdenum, nickel, cobalt, scandium, iron, chromium, limestone and silica. DENR added that companies investing in operations for the extraction of these minerals will be granted a “a whole-of-government urgency.”
This follows the signing of EO 122 in August by Ferdinand Marcos Jr which laid down a Unified National Policy Framework for Developing the Critical Minerals Industry. It is also in compliance with the critical minerals deal signed by the Philippines and the United States early this year.
Marcos and his subordinates mislead the people by claiming that the government is prioritizing the processing of critical minerals to develop an industrial economy, when in fact they are treasonously colluding with the US to exploit our resources to supply the defense industrial needs of the US military. Under the critical minerals deal, the US was given the “first look” privilege in determining the use of our resources. This is a grave violation of our sovereignty and reflects the continuing lopsided relationship between the Philippines and its former colonial ruler.
The focus on critical minerals is also linked to the roll out of the Pax Silica initiative which would require the extraction of minerals, the draining of water and energy resources, and the establishment of an industrial hub in a prime agricultural land in Central Luzon.
It is insulting for the DENR to argue that sustainability principles will guide the development of the critical minerals industry to justify the wanton destruction of watersheds and the displacement of Indigenous Peoples and farmers from their communities. The commitment to provide “a whole-of-government urgency” to large-scale projects of mining companies is a euphemism for the deployment of troops to militarize communities and harass local opposition to extractive operations. The brutal weaponization of bureaucratic and judicial processes to allow destructive mining is highlighted in the ongoing suppression of the anti-mining people’s barricades in Nueva Vizcaya.
Bayan calls on the people to hold Marcos accountable for the unbridled plunder of our resources and the use of fascist measures to intimidate residents and the anti-mining resistance movement. We call for the junking of Pax Silica, EO 122, and mining laws and agreements that enable the dominance of oligarchs and US imperialism. We call for nationwide protests during the state visit of Donald Trump this month who is expected to sign onerous agreements related to Pax Silica.
Lupa sa magsasaka, hindi sa Pax Silica!
Junk EO 122!
Trump out!
Imperyalismo ibagsak!