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  • 7/16/2024
Sa itinuturing na ‘Last Frontier of the Last Frontier’ na bayan ng Balabac sa Palawan, matatagpuan ang natatagong paraiso ng mga Tribu Molbog… ang isla ng Marihangin.

Pero ang tahimik na pamumuhay sa isla, nabulabog matapos silang pasukin ng mga armadong lalaki!

Ang pakay raw ng mga ito, paalisin ang mga katutubo sa isla! Bakit sila ginagamitan ng dahas at tinataboy sa lupang sinilangan?

*******

UPDATE: Ngayong Biyernes, July 19, nagbigay na ng pahayag ang San Miguel Corporation para pabulaanan ang alegasyon na may kaugnayan sila sa mga armadong lalaki na nanggulo sa isla. Narito ang kanilang naging pahayag:

"San Miguel Corporation (SMC) denies any involvement in the recent incident on Mariang Hangin Island, where it was alleged that uniformed security guards indiscriminately fired guns.

SMC has no connection with those involved in the incident, nor does it own any property in Mariang Hangin for future development.

As a responsible corporate citizen, we uphold the highest standards of ethical conduct and community engagement in all our operations. Resorting to violence or coercion is against our policies and values.

We remain committed to supporting sustainable and inclusive development, respecting the rights and welfare of local communities."

Panoorin ang video.

#KMJS

Category

😹
Fun
Transcript
00:00It's like there's a riot in Malaparaisong Island of Balabak, Palawan
00:10because the animals that live there from the seaweed are being sent away.
00:18In the so-called Last Frontier of the Last Frontier,
00:24Balabak, Palawan is the only country
00:29There is a so-called new paradise.
00:34The Malabar tribes have planted the island of Marihangin.
00:40Our life there on the island is very good.
00:42The sand and pebbles are white.
00:44I'm very lucky to live there.
00:47I'm used to it on the island.
00:49That's where we really grew up.
00:51For several generations, their lives and livelihoods revolved around the vastness of the forest and the white sand.
01:06The planting of seaweed or agar-agar.
01:10It can be used as gelatin or other preservatives to thicken the soups.
01:16It can also be processed to make paper, cloth, and cosmetic products.
01:22If you start planting, you can harvest it within 15 days.
01:26But the quiet life on the island was ruined.
01:32Let's kill each other.
01:34Once upon a time, they were invaded by armed men.
01:39Shoot them.
01:40They're still in front of us.
01:41Shoot us.
01:43Shoot us.
01:44Just one.
01:45Shoot us.
01:47We're here.
01:48The tribes were threatened and shot by the armed men.
01:57Some were even shot.
02:02We have nothing against you.
02:03These people are not giving up.
02:05The tribes are asking them to leave the island.
02:08They said they will do ecotourism to make money.
02:12They're still in front of you.
02:18Leave the island.
02:19Even if they give me a million pesos, I won't leave.
02:22If they don't have money, they should help us.
02:25If they don't have money, they should rob us.
02:27Their title is questionable.
02:29We can't fight in court because our enemy, Damboala, can only beat us.
02:35It hurts.
02:36We can feel it.
02:38That's what they're doing to us.
02:43Shoot him.
02:44Shoot him.
02:45Where will their fight for their land end?
02:51This is our land.
02:58That's not yours. Why are you killing us?
03:00The riot happened on June 29.
03:03This is our land.
03:06Just one.
03:07Suddenly, someone shouted that someone was being shot from behind the island.
03:13He was shot in the face.
03:17We were about to be shot.
03:20They were shooting at us.
03:23It was a real bullet.
03:25We don't know the armed men because they were wearing masks.
03:30Don't shoot. We don't have a gun.
03:32Even minors are not safe.
03:35He shot me.
03:36When he shot me, I almost fell down.
03:39The bullet was in the sea.
03:41I was so scared.
03:43I lost myself.
03:44It was my first time to be shot by a gun.
03:46Do you have a gun? Can you fight?
03:47Even if they have a gun, we still continue to fight so that they can leave the island.
03:53We are fighting for our land.
03:55Until the armed men entered the jungle.
03:59Because they were shooting at us.
04:02Some of my friends were inside.
04:04But they couldn't get close because there was no signal there.
04:07We were chasing them in the jungle.
04:10We were chasing them at the end of the jungle.
04:12There was no food.
04:13We were just watching them.
04:15We really blocked them.
04:17The armed men asked for help from the authorities.
04:20But because of the distance of the island,
04:22they waited for five more hours before the armed men arrived.
04:26If something happened to us, we would be dead before our rescue arrived.
04:30They said that they don't have a car.
04:32When they arrived, we were hoping that they would help us.
04:36But when they arrived, the armed men who were shooting at us,
04:40they just let us leave.
04:47This is our land.
04:53The tension now on the island is far from what it was like in the past.
05:01The island of Marihangin has an area of 38 hectares.
05:05It is home to almost 1,000 members of the Molbog tribe.
05:09In the past, many people became interested in the island
05:13because of its rich nature.
05:15But their land was not for sale.
05:18Especially, their ancestors were buried here.
05:22Our grave can't be buried here.
05:25It's prohibited.
05:26It's against the law.
05:28We can't leave it there.
05:30We can't just leave our parents there.
05:36This is the proof that our ancestors named this island.
05:41According to their documents,
05:43the island of Marihangin belongs to a man named Hatib Issa.
05:49That's my grandmother.
05:51The Department of Agrarian Reform also issued a Notice of Coverage
05:57in 2014.
05:58That's a program of the CARP.
06:00The land will be distributed to the poor farmers.
06:05But they were shocked when last year,
06:08the tribe members were fired.
06:11Because the island was bought by a private company.
06:15In 2023, the company filed a petition.
06:18In just one year, the decision came out
06:20that they were exempted from the Notice of Coverage.
06:23Ecotourism will be done.
06:26In Marihangin, it's part of the 25,000 hectare
06:31White Beach Tourism Plan.
06:34Boracay is 2,000 hectare.
06:36This is 12 times larger.
06:38From Boracay, the 2 million tourists,
06:41every year, the number is increasing.
06:43They went to El Nido and Coron.
06:46There are a lot of people.
06:47People are going to the south, Balabac.
06:50That's why people are being fired
06:52so that the place can develop.
06:54Back in 1984,
06:56the Register of Deeds issued a notice.
06:59This is a private property of a private individual.
07:03They asked that the land that is being distributed
07:06here in Marihangin
07:08should be excluded from the program
07:10of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law.
07:12The tribe approved it.
07:14They immediately appealed to the Department of Agrarian Reform.
07:17When they validated this in 2023,
07:20we were happy because we thought
07:22that the land would be distributed to us.
07:24But it was the other way around.
07:25When they came back,
07:26the people of San Miguel Corporation
07:28were with us,
07:29and they gave us money.
07:31It's very disturbing.
07:34Of course, they say that they have a title
07:36because that's what the law recognizes.
07:39But for us,
07:41we don't know our rights
07:43because since the time of our ancestors,
07:45they've been there.
07:46We want to remind you again
07:48that nothing bad is happening.
07:51What's happening here is the validation.
07:54They conducted a joint validation activity
07:58to find out what the state is.
08:00This land is not suitable for agriculture
08:04because it doesn't have potable water
08:09and it's surrounded by sand.
08:12It's made up of forests, corals, and mangrove areas.
08:16We're removing the land from Marihangin Island
08:20under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law.
08:23If this is really their ancestral domain,
08:26it's a bit dangerous
08:29to issue a Notice of Coverage.
08:32All ancestral domains
08:34cannot be included
08:36in the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law program.
08:40They also showed their waiver.
08:43They said that my parents
08:47were not allowed to sign the waiver.
08:50We're lying about this.
08:52There are signatures that we're not related.
08:55He has no right to sign the waiver.
08:58One of the signatures in the waiver
09:00is the former official of the barangay, Toto,
09:03who is being questioned by the residents.
09:06Toto is not the only one who uses this name.
09:09He uses it a lot.
09:12We don't know who used this name.
09:15It's also stated here that
09:18Hatib Issa died in 1930.
09:20If he died at that time,
09:22how could he get a tax declaration in 1945 until 1963?
09:29While the two of Hatib Issa's eight children
09:32have no signature or thumb mark on the waiver.
09:35It means that their right on the island
09:37is still theirs.
09:38The calamity of our lives is starting.
09:41Our lives are getting worse
09:44because of their threats to us.
09:48We are being harassed there.
09:50They are sending us demand letters.
09:52If we don't leave there,
09:54they will file a case against us
09:56and fine us two million pesos.
09:58The residents did not respond.
10:00They were fined from P75,000 to P100,000.
10:04They were fined from P75,000 to P100,000
10:08so that they can leave the island.
10:10Even if they give me a million pesos,
10:12I don't need it.
10:14We can earn P1,000 a month
10:17as long as our food is good.
10:19It's a waste.
10:20Our island is not a waste.
10:22As long as we are here,
10:23we can make a living.
10:25But because of the hardship of life,
10:27Jason gave.
10:29He received money and moved to the mainland.
10:32We have a house,
10:34but we are running out of money.
10:36And what happened to them?
10:38The sea is bad.
10:40We can't even plant seeds.
10:42We are suffering.
10:43So Jason was forced to return to Marihangin Island.
10:50Come on, shoot us!
10:52Meanwhile,
10:53after the recent encounter on the island,
10:57the residents noticed
11:00that armed men were surrounding them.
11:03The armed men are here.
11:06That's why Mark Anthony's group
11:08is hoping to plant agar-agar
11:11whenever they are allowed to.
11:13We can't focus on making a living
11:15because our minds are with our families on the island.
11:20Our ancestors plowed the land,
11:22but why are they forcing us to plant it?
11:24Who will ask us for help?
11:26Actually, our situation is very difficult now,
11:29but they are making it more difficult for us.
11:33But who are the armed men
11:36who responded to Marihangin?
11:38They say they are the company's guards.
11:41When we asked them,
11:42they said they were ordered by the San Miguel Corporation
11:44to guard the island.
11:46We are just people.
11:47Get out of here!
11:48We are afraid that they will guard us,
11:51that they will arm us.
11:53It's painful.
11:54We will feel what they are doing to us,
11:58to the poor.
12:03Get out of here!
12:05They just want us to leave our own land.
12:08That's all we have.
12:10Their title is questionable.
12:12We can't fight in court
12:14because our enemy is Dambuhala.
12:16I hope the government will be fair to us.
12:19They are not stealing from us.
12:21They are stealing from us.
12:22Our team tried to get the San Miguel Corporation's permission
12:27if they have any connection
12:29with the armed men of Diumano
12:31who are causing trouble on the island.
12:33And their reaction to Diumano
12:35is a questionable title
12:36that is being presented to the citizens.
12:39But they did not respond.
12:42What is the chance of our small fishermen,
12:45our seaweed farmers?
12:47Maybe the Supreme Court,
12:49maybe the Court of Public Opinion,
12:52hopefully, if that happens,
12:54it will be known to our 118 million population.
12:59The area is part of the ancestral domain claim
13:03of the ICCIS-IPs.
13:05This means that the ICCIS-IPs have already been proven
13:08in the Commission
13:09that they really have a claim there.
13:10As per our information,
13:12there are only four titles here in Sitio Maria Hangen.
13:16And based on IPRA,
13:18the Indigenous Peoples' Rights Act,
13:19under Section 56,
13:21the previous rights over the area were just added.
13:25If the area is really titled,
13:28those who live there will still be claimed
13:30by the residents,
13:31including the waters.
13:32For the ICCIS-IPs,
13:33our assistance is also proper.
13:35Because when it comes to assistance,
13:37of course, our mandate is only IPs.
13:39As a ruler,
13:40the one who holds the title
13:42and the one who has the title
13:44is the one who has a fight there.
13:46If it's valid or tampered,
13:49it needs to be submitted for further investigation.
13:52I hope we can be of help.
13:54As a ruler,
13:55we are very grateful.
13:57If our government doesn't hear us,
13:59we call on them to pay attention to our issue.
14:02When it comes to the legal way,
14:04we don't have the ability,
14:05we don't have the ability to pay lawyers.
14:07We are really fighting
14:09in a way that we know there is no payment.
14:11Meanwhile,
14:12there are several NGOs
14:14or non-government organizations
14:16that are now in contact
14:18with the Molbong tribe.
14:19The Ateneo Human Rights Center
14:21has already started to accept support.
14:24Three bishops of Palawan are our allies.
14:27And they will gradually discuss
14:30the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines.
14:33Our lawyers now,
14:35that's what they will work on, right?
14:37Along with the Commission on Human Rights,
14:39they will cancel those pecking orders.
14:42No matter what they do to us,
14:44we will not leave.
14:45Until we die,
14:47we will fight for our rights.
14:53No man is an island.
14:55That's why the members of the Molbong tribe
14:57are hoping to hear their voices.
15:02Join us!
15:06And reach out to those in need
15:08to fight for their land.
15:23Thank you for watching, Kapuso!
15:25If you liked this video,
15:27subscribe to the GMA Public Affairs YouTube channel.
15:31And don't forget to hit the bell button
15:34for our latest updates.

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