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Tuesday, January 20, 2004
Espinoza: DTI works on mining
By Fred C. Espinoza
REVIVE. The Department of Trade and Industry may have all the right reasons for setting its sights on helping revitalize the country’s unproductive yet promising mining sector.
Newly appointed Trade and Industry Secretary Cesar Purisima could have been moved by the fact that the mining industry provided the bulk of the country’s dollar earnings some 20 years back. From earning an estimated $1.2 billion in annual exports in the 1980s, the Philippines now only earns about $500 million.
To prove that he is really determined to take up the challenge, he even made it appear that the DTI “would begin the groundwork for developing the industry by coordinating with other government agencies that could help in this crucial task.”
We hope he can be successful in this endeavor because he would be up against a formidable wall of resistance by environmentalist groups, which fear that it could lead to the displacement of indigenous communities and destruction of the country’s natural resources.
Perhaps this fear has yet to be effectively addressed by the government if we take into account that the implementation of the Mining Act of 1995, which will help develop the industry by promoting mining activities, has long been stalled by a strong lobby by environmentalist groups.
Another factor is that the issue on liberalizing the mining sector has yet to be resolved by the Supreme Court.
On the other hand, it would be a good move for the new secretary to study the problems that leaders in the industry had heaped on their heads by simply disregarding environmental laws as in the case of thousands of tons of mine tailings which found their way into major rivers and vital fishing grounds in Luzon, endangering the lives and future of the rural folk and his family.
It is necessary that the DTI make sure it is dealing with the right people in the industry whose commitment is needed to put mining activities in the country in the proper light. It is in this spirit perhaps that the agency can strike a balance between economic activities and the concerns of our disadvantaged brothers in the indigenous communities in far-flung areas who deserve a fruitful life in peace and harmony with the rest of their neighbors.
In this way, the DTI could at least make good on its promise to put the country on the mining map of the world. While the Philippines is considered the fifth most mineralized country in the world, other countries with a lot less mineral resources have overtaken it in terms of generating export revenue from minerals.
(January 20, 2004 issue)
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