An environmental group on Friday said that while the production team of the film “Oro” should be held accountable for the death of two dogs during a shoot, the public should recognize the film’s role in exposing the plight of mining communities.
Kalikasan People’s Network for the Environment (Kalikasan PNE), in a statement, said “Oro” should not be banned if the questionable scenes were deleted.
“Yes, the ‘Oro’ production team must be held accountable for its folly, but the show must go on to carry on its cause—granted, of course, that a proper cut of the film is in order,” the group said.
“Oro,” which is based on true events, tells of the massacre of small-scale miners in the village of Gata, Caramoan, Camarines Sur, by a paramilitary group.
Kalikasan said that while “Oro” exposed the “realities of militarization and extrajudicial killings in the countryside vis-à-vis government corruption and extractivism,” it however drew flak over the actual killing of dogs in the film.
The group acknowledged that the production team was wrong to include a scene that showed the slaughter of the animal since it “perpetrated a senseless killing of dogs which is protected under the Animal Welfare Act of 1998.”
It said the scene could have still been filmed even without the actual killing of an animal.
“The production must seriously be investigated to ensure the appropriate sanctions,” it said.
Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) recently called on the Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) executive committee to stop showing the film and investigate its controversial dog slaughter scene. Other related animal and movie groups also supported calls for investigation.
Still, Kalikasan PNE said, “Oro” should be recognized for “taking up the cudgels for victims of environment-related killings and militarization.”
The group said those who were vocal about the animal cruelty issue should also lend their voices “to the marginalized masses that ‘Oro’ helped bring before the public’s consciousness.”
It said that Oro showed the “biggest form of cruelty perpetrated against humans and animals alike in Philippine society: the massive scale of life loss caused by environmentally destructive plunder and the inextricable militarization that comes along with it.”
Around 200,000 to 500,000 small-scale miners across the country are still experiencing this, the group said. There is a pending case in court on the killing of the four miners./rga
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