By Norm Dixon
Villagers in the southern Philippines island of Mindanao say that the Australian giant mining Western Mining Corporation (WMC) is colluding with the military to force indigenous people from their lands. The company has high hopes of discovering huge deposits of gold and copper.
Manila has granted the company exploration and mining rights to large tracts of indigenous peoples' land. Armed forces have resorted to "hamleting" local villagers and invent reasons to disperse and get rid of the people and to minimise resistance to mining on their land, activists say. Hamleting means that villages are turned into virtual concentration camps controlled by the military.
WMC admits that very strong opposition to its activities is developing but denies the activists' claims. The Mindanao project is one of the largest developments the company has ever taken on outside Australia.
The campaign against WMC is being organised by local left-wing activists and church and community organisations. A spokesperson for the New Nationalist Alliance told Radio Australia: "We want WMC and other foreign multinational corporations which rape our lands and exploit our people to leave".
WMC has been exploring in Mindanao since 1987. Many farmers, tribal and ecology groups have petitioned against WMC's search for resources on their ancestral lands. Indigenous people also accuse the company of polluting rivers, killing fish and damaging their farms. Lowland farmers depend on river water for irrigating their fields.
In March 1995, the Philippines government approved a new mining code favourable to foreign mining companies. It allowed 100% foreign ownership of mining ventures and reduced the excise tax from 5% to 2%.
WMC was granted an exploration permit for an area of 99,400 hectares in the regions of Columbio, Sultan Kudarat, Tampakan and South Cotabato. WMC plans to mine copper at Tampakan, and gold and other minerals in the surrounding regions.
WMC has reported it expects a return of about US$2.7 billion. The Philippines government will receive US$500 million from taxes and fees. WMC is building roads to transport its equipment and products, processing plants for the ore and a town to house migrant workers.
Activists say that WMC has made deals with, and bribed, local chiefs, politicians and military authorities. These local elites were granted control over the land during colonial rule and have become wealthy by jointly exploiting the natural resources with foreign companies. In 1995, activists say, WMC "consulted" the local communities while armed groups harassed the communities. The government threatened to send military units to implement development projects.
Protest letters can be sent to: Jen Balkau, Exploration Manager, East Asia and Pacific, WMC Limited, 191 Great Eastern Highway, Belmont WA 6104, or PO Box 91 Belmont WA 6104.