PHNO-HL: AQUINO REVAMPS MINING INDUSTRY / NOY TO ALL AGAINST: GO TO COURT

AQUINO REVAMPS MINING INDUSTRY / NOY TO ALL
AGAINST: GO TO COURT
[PHOTO -Deal inked: The
Philippines is set to unveil controversial mining reforms that will give the
government a greater share of revenue. Picture:
AFP]
MANILA, JULY 9, 2012 (NEWS.COM.AU)
From: AFP - PHILIPPINE President Benigno Aquino has signed a
long-delayed executive order revamping the mining industry.
However, Mr Aquino's spokesman Edwin Lacierda refused to give details of the
order, saying copies of the controversial reforms would be released on Monday.

"He has signed it. Next week, we will release it," Ms Lacierda told
reporters.
The order, originally due out in February, was intended to boost government
revenues from the mining industry while addressing concerns of environmental
groups and local governments that mining was causing too much damage. Mr Aquino
was forced to postpone signing the order after mining companies complained it
would scare away investors and make the country uncompetitive.
The mining industry has been closely awaiting the order, which is expected to
clear up conflicting rules governing the sector. Mr Aquino had previously said
the order would give the government a bigger share of mining revenues and would
ban mining in areas deemed crucial for tourism.
The Philippines is believed to have some of the biggest mineral reserves in
the world - the government estimates the country has at least $840 billion in
gold, copper, nickel, chromite, manganese, silver and iron. However, the
minerals have been largely untapped, partly because of a strong anti-mining
movement led by the influential Catholic Church, while poor infrastructure and
security concerns have also kept investors away.
FROM THE INQUIRER
Aquino on new mining EO: Governors can go to court
By Christine O. Avendaño, Vincent Cabreza Inquirer Northern Luzon,
Philippine Daily Inquirer 12:38 am | Tuesday, June 26th, 2012
LA TRINIDAD, Benguet— President Benigno Aquino on Monday stood by the
new mining executive order (EO) awaiting his signature and welcomed a challenge
in the Supreme Court on whether national laws could set aside local ordinances.

Mr. Aquino was asked by reporters to comment on a statement last week by
Governor Joey Salceda of Albay province that some 40 governors would go to court
to question the much-awaited mining policy once it comes out, fearing that the
measure would "destroy the countryside" that municipal legislation was
protecting.
The President said that the Constitution was "very clear" that national laws
had primacy over local legislation.
He cited constitutional limitations on the law-making powers of local
governments and the scope of their ordinances.
"There is also a clause that [local laws] should [be consistent] with
national laws," he said. "We are not a federated government. We are like a
republican unitary government."
Asked whether Salceda was misinformed, Mr. Aquino said the governor's
conclusions were "premature."
He said he had not yet signed the order, stressing that there was "still some
language I am not comfortable with."
He also added that the measure was a result of discussions with many
stakeholders.
"But if [the governors] feel their rights have been trampled upon, by all
means they can go to appropriate courts," the President said.
But Mr. Aquino said he was "confident" that Salceda "would not have said
something that said ordinances that they have promulgated on a local basis will
supplant national laws."
'Provocative'
At a media forum on Friday, Salceda said the governors regarded as
"provocative" the move that would invalidate local ordinances against mining.

He said that the new policy would "breed inequality of income and assets" and
subvert local efforts to preserve the environment.
The Marinduque Council for Environmental Concerns on Monday rallied behind
Salceda, an economic adviser to then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo but who
supported Mr. Aquino in the May 2010 presidential election.
In an online message sent to the Philippine Daily Inquirer, Miguel Magalang,
the council's executive director, said the Church-supported nongovernmental
organization opposed weakening the mandate of municipal officials under the
Local Government Code of 1991.
Magalang pointed out that in the recently concluded Rio+20 environmental
summit in Rio de Janeiro, a document, "The Future We Want," encouraged action at
the "regional, national, subnational and local levels to promote access to
information, public participation and access to justice in environmental
matters."
The Philippines is committed to support the document, he said, adding that
any mining policy issued without consultation with local communities and local
governments would contradict "the people's right to access to information" and
restrain "their right to public participation."
The council is involved in the campaign in Marinduque seeking justice for
communities damaged by Marcopper Mining Corp.'s toxic mine spill in 1996. It has
also been raising health and tax issues related to Marcopper's operation in the
province.
Marcopper ceased operations in 1996 when the capital town of Boac was
submerged in floodwaters and tailings due to a collapsed tunnel of the company's
Tapian Pit. The spill rendered the Boac River "biologically dead."
Environmental groups in the Visayas also expressed concern on Monday over the
executive order.
Local voices decisive
"Many communities and local governments have stood up against destructive
mining policies. They should be the decisive voice in determining whether to
allow mining or not," said Ma. Geobelyn Lopez, secretary general of the
Madia-as-Ecological Movement.
"It is not just a matter of getting more revenues for the government but the
utilization of our resources while prioritizing national patrimony and the
interest of communities," she said.
Lopez said at least 11 provinces had passed ordinances declaring a moratorium
on large-scale mining, including Capiz, Guimaras, Negros Occidental, Samar,
Eastern Samar and Northern Samar.
John Heredia, the spokesperson of the Capiz Environmental Protection
Alliance, said the new mining policy could set aside a landmark ordinance
imposing a 50-year moratorium on large-scale mining in the province.
"Mining should be treated as a national issue because its effects on the
environment go beyond the borders of local government units. But when
communities and their LGU [oppose] mining, the national government must respect
that decision," said Jay Pefianco, an environmentalist in Antique. With reports from Gerald Gene R. Querubin, Inquirer Southern
Luzon, and Nestor P. Burgos Jr., Inquirer Visayas



Chief News Editor: Sol Jose Vanzi
© Copyright, 2012 by PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE
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