Palawan groups slam order suspending antimining mayor

DEMOLITION LEADER In this photo taken on Feb. 22, 2018, Mayor Mary Jean Feliciano of Brooke’s Point, Palawan, speaks with officials of Ipilan Nickel Corp. before leading the demolition of the mining company’s gate, fences, guardhouses and offices, an act that the Ombudsman declared three years later as an abuse of power. —CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — Environmental advocates and groups representing indigenous peoples (IPs) on Tuesday assailed a recent order by the Office of the Ombudsman suspending the mayor of Brooke’s Point town in Palawan province over her decision to stop the operations of a nickel mining company in the municipality.

They have launched a signature drive in Brooke’s Point calling on the Ombudsman to reverse its “unjustified’’ suspension order on Mayor Mary Jean Feliciano, who they said only stood up to the mining company in defense of her constituents’ interests.

“It’s as if we were stripped of our rights in this situation, where the chief executive that we voted for and put in power was suspended just because we stopped a mining company from entering, establishing and operating in our land,” the petition read in Filipino.

‘Grave abuse’

The Ombudsman ordered Feliciano suspended for a year without pay after finding her guilty of “oppression or grave abuse of authority” for stopping the operations of Ipilan Nickel Corp. (INC) in 2018 and demolishing its field offices and facilities.

INC is a subsidiary of Global Ferronickel Holdings, the country’s second-largest nickel producer.

The Ombudsman issued the order on Feb. 19, 2021, three years after Feliciano led the residents and antimining advocates in demolishing INC’s gate, fences, guardhouses and office buildings, made mostly of light materials. The document was obtained by the Inquirer last week.

She argued then that she was only exercising the “police power” of her office spelled out in the Local Government Code.

Cancel ECC

But the Ombudsman ruled that the mayor, who is now on her third and final term in office, had acted without authority, given that the cancellation of the company’s environmental compliance certificate (ECC) had “yet to attain finality.”

In December 2020, Feliciano appealed to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to cancel the ECC with finality, saying the town’s water system, which supplies water to six barangays, is located within INC’s mining site.

The battle began in 2016, when Feliciano was elected into office on a strong antimining platform.

That same year, the DENR granted INC a yearlong special tree-cutting permit as part of a mineral production sharing agreement, allowing it to cut over 13,000 trees and earth-ball 14,000 more.

The following year, then Environment Secretary Gina Lopez revoked its ECC following a nationwide mining audit. INC filed a motion for reconsideration.

Feliciano then issued a closure order, a cease-and-desist order and a demolition order against the company, which she said were all ignored by the nickel company.

That same year, a Palawan court also issued a temporary environmental protection order, compelling INC to stop its mining activities and begin rehabilitating the forest areas it had cleared.

‘Chilling effect’

Feliciano, when reached by the Inquirer last week, said she would “wear the decision with pride” even as she vowed to contest it either by moving for a reconsideration or bringing the case to a higher court.

Lawyer Grizelda Mayo-Anda, executive director of Puerto Princesa-based Environmental Legal Assistance Center, said Feliciano’s suspension could have a chilling effect on environmental defenders.

“If a local official can be suspended for representing the voice of her/his constituents in the fight against a destructive and extractive project, ordinary folk who are fighting mining can be harassed,” she said in a statement.

‘Last ecological frontier’

Conflict and corruption watchdog Global Witness had said the Philippines had become the deadliest country for land and environmental defenders in Asia. These threats loom large especially for Palawan, the country’s “last ecological frontier.”

IP groups protesting Feliciano’s suspension said she only stood up for the rights of the residents, including the tribes who live in Brooke’s Point, an agricultural town near the southern tip of mainland Palawan.

“Our ancestral land would be the first impact area if the mining operations continue here in Brooke’s Point,” Mga Kalebonan et BICAMM, a Pala’wan women’s group, said in a statement.

“If she’s suspended, it would be as if they are setting aside our right to vote for her in the past three terms,” said indigenous Pala’wan groups, Pineuntungan Et KePelewanan BICAMM and the Kabatangan Ancestral Domain. INQ