LAND AHOY! Bulldozers and backhoes are seen at a reclamation project along Manila Bay in Pasay City. —INQUIRER file photo / RICHARD A. REYES
MANILA, Philippines — Several groups on Friday called on to defend Manila Bay and fishing rights against any reclamation projects that would endanger the environment.
The National Federation of Peasant Women (Amihan) and the Pambansang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas urged the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources to end reclamation projects in provinces.
“We join the call to defend Manila Bay and fishing rights, right to food, right to shelter and poor sectors’ socio-economic rights, who were affected by the reclamation projects in Cavite and other provinces,” Zen Soriano, Amihan National chairperson, said in a statement.
“Sa ngayon, may dredging na nagaganap sa mga bayan ng Ternate, Naic, at Rosario sa Cavite pero wala tayong makuhang kagyat na aksyon mula sa BFAR at rehimeng Marcos. Sa halip na reklamasyon, panawagan namin na magkaroon ng genuine rehabilitation at kilalanin ang mga mangingisda sa kanilang karapatan sa kabuhayan,” she added.
(Currently, there are dredging operations in Ternate, Naic, and Rosario, Cavite but we can’t get any support from the BFAR and the Marcos administration. Instead of land reclamation, we call for a genuine rehabilitation and recognition of fisherfolk’s right to livelihood.)
The groups’ protest was held on the anniversary of the 1998 Fisheries Code.
Land reclamation is the process of creating new land from sea. Currently, there are 187 reclamation projects all over the country, Amihan said, calling these projects “a wholesale displacement of poor sectors, just to benefit private and foreign businesses.”
Manila Bay, Amihan said, is a vital source of marine and fish products, and the continuation of reclamation projects will adversely affect communities in Manila, Navotas, Cavite, Bulacan, Pampanga, and Bataan coastlines.
Amihan encouraged various sectors to support the campaign against reclamation.
“We urge various sectors, especially the women who bear the hard task [of] working on a shrinking family budget, to support the campaign against reclamation projects and support the call for the genuine rehabilitation of Manila Bay. We are all beneficiaries of the livelihood of fisherfolk and poor workers in Manila Bay,” Soriano said.
Pamalakaya disputed the Department of Environment and Natural Resources’ claim that Manila Bay is dead.
Manila Bay not dead, but reclamation killing it, say groups
Pamalakaya calls Manila Bay alive but warned that reclamation projects are killing it.
Geologist and University of Illinois professor Kevin Rodolfo calls reclamation projects the “biggest human-made threats to the environment.”
READ: Geologist warns of hazards of living in reclaimed area
The Congress has also raised questions over environmental impacts of the reclamation projects. —MJ Soriano, INQUIRER.net trainee