Philippines Update
Published by MAC on 2006-02-24
Philippines Update
24th February 2006
An attempted coup against the government of Gloria M Arroyo last week is but one indication of the massive political and civil discontent currently wracking the Philippines.
Even the recent Leyte mudslide disaster is being attributed by well-respected NGOs to the rapacious exploitation of natural resources encouraged under "GMA" - as the president is widely known.
Mounting threats against activists in the Cordillera Peoples Alliance, and other nonviolent NGOs, are seen as the result of an overall military crackdown.
In Negros Occidental, various movements are now gearing up for an anti-mining campaign, similar to others announced nationally over the past few months.
The Mines and Communities editorial board welcomes Kalikasan-PNE as a new member. We also publish a statement from last December's "International Mining Caucus and the WTO", held in Hong Kong under the auspices of Kalikasan-PNE and fellow MAC editorial member JATAM, from Indonesia.