military base expansion to dislocate aetas

7/24/2019 Military Base Expansion to Dislocate Aetas

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Military base expansion to dislocate Aetas, farmers

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“When Camp O’ Donnel was built, they droe away the !etas" #ow they $%& and

'hilippine military( are e)pandin*, and they are on+e a*ain driin* away !etas" -

.dwin Danan, Central /uon !eta !sso+iation

By MARYA SALAMAT

Bulatlat.com

!#2/! - While many indi*enous *roups in the 'hilippines are battlin* to de3end

their an+estral domain 3rom what they +all as “deelopment a**ression, usually o3

lar*es+ale minin*, lo**in*, a*ribusiness and ener*y proe+ts, the !etas o3 Central

/uon are mostly battlin* the o++upation o3 their land and appropriation o3 their

traditional un*le surial nowled*e by the %& and 'hilippine military"

“2t is no se+ret to us in Central /uon that the annual 7aliatan war*ames use our

an+estral domain, .dwin Danan, leader o3 Central /uon !eta !sso+iation $C/!!(,told Bulatlat.com in arious interiews sin+e last year’s 7aliatan" ! thin, diminutie

youn*looin* 89year old !eta, Danan and his *roup has been +allin* on the

*oernment to respe+t their an+estral domain all oer the re*ion - most o3 it are

ae+ted by *oernment +laims that it is part o3 a military reseration, i3 not the

base itsel3"

:irst day o3 seeral lie ;re trainin* eolution at Crow <alley, 'hilippines, o3'hilippine arines and %& arines" $%"&" arine Corps photo by /an+e Cpl" =oey &">oleman, =r"?@eleased?ay A014(

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2n !pril last year, %& and 'hilippine !rmed 3or+es held +ombat e)er+ises and ;eldtrainin* in Camp O’Donnell, Crow <alley, &ubi+ 7ay and :ort a*saysay, allsprawlin*, 3ormer %& military bases in Central /uon where the !eta and some nonindi*enous 3armers also lie" Bhe %& .mbassy in anila said these military e)er+iseswere “to improe interoperability and +ontin*en+y plannin* o3 the two +ountries’

troops" Bhis year, %& military personnel held 7aliatan a+tiities in 7i+ol, but theyalso +ontinued to hold trainin*s in 3ormer %& bases in Central /uon"

Bhey +ondu+ted durin* last month’s 7aliatan some lie;re trainin* eolutions

in+ludin* +lose uarter marsmanship trainin*, military 3ree3all ump 3rom a C1E0=

“&umos assault support air+ra3t, suad ;re and maneuer trainin* at Crow <alley in

Camp O’DonnellF they also held trainin*s that at one time inoled amphibious

assault landin* at the 'hilippine #aal .du+ation Brainin* Command +enter near

Gambales"

2n Capas, Barla+, where Camp O’ Donnell is lo+ated, Danan told Bulatlat.com that

sin+e &eptember last year, the lands bein* used 3or 7aliatan e)er+ises were 3en+ed

o" :or the !eta +ommunities liin* in the area, he said, it represents threats o3

renewed series o3 dislo+ation"

:or !eta leaders lie Danan, se+retary *eneral o3 Central /uon !eta !sso+iation

$C/!!(, the 3en+es en+ompassin* !eta +ommunities hinder the moement and their

meetin* with 3ellow !etas" >e said that een i3 the illa*es +on+erned, &ta" =uliana

$and aru*lu and 7ueno illa*es, too, a++ordin* to the town mayor, !ntonio

@odri*ue =r"( lie within !eta’s an+estral domain, they +annot moe around 3reely

and hold meetin*s in their +ommunities"

2n this wee’s /abayan o3 peasants in obseran+e o3 the e)piration o3 the

Comprehensie !*rarian @e3orm 'ro*ram, whi+h they +all a 3ailure anyway, Danan

said !etas 3rom militaried +ommunities were barred or threatened 3rom oinin*"

Bo *o in and out o3 the 3en+ed o !eta +ommunities in Capas, Barla+, one has to

pass thou*h se+urity +he+s and military *uard posts" Bhe !eta illa*es are within

their an+estral domain, but these were also de+lared as part o3 the nearly 1H,000

he+tare Crow <alley Iunnery @an*e and military reseration in Camp O’ Donnell"

“When Camp O’ Donnel was built, they droe away the !etas" #ow they $%& and

'hilippine military( are e)pandin*, and they are on+e a*ain driin* away !etas,

Danan said" 'roblem is, he said the tribe hae no pla+e else to *o this time" >e

shared that the rumored relo+ation area is 3ar too small to a++ommodate all the

!etas and non!etas to be dislo+ated by the military base e)pansion"Danan de+ried the way the *oernment and the military hae been pittin* !etas

a*ainst ea+h other, with the military re+ruitin* C!:I%s 3rom amon* !etas"

>e also told Bulatlat.com that +ontrary to what may appear in the news, most o3 the

!etas are opposed to their liely dislo+ation and the +onersion o3 their an+estral

domain into military trainin* *round and base"

Military bases dislocating Aeta, farmers



Crow <alley in Camp O’Donnell was a +omponent 3a+ility o3 Clar !ir 7ase, whi+h

was e)tensiely used by %& !ir :or+e when the !meri+ans oJ+ially had military

bases in the 'hilippines" Bhe nearly 1H,000he+tare 3a+ility was reportedly the %&

troops’ trainin* *round 3or un*le war3are and 3or a*ents in ta+ti+al

+ounterintelli*en+e" $!etas +laim the +omponent o3 the military’s un*le surial

trainin* +ame 3rom them, a3ter !meri+an soldiers based in Clar and &ubi+ 7ay

tapped them to tea+h %& troops how to surie in the un*le"(

&+ene 3rom 7aliatan A014 lie ;re trainin*K 'hilippine !rmy &pe+ial :or+es do3ree3all ump 3rom a %& “&umos assault support air+ra3t, oer Crow <alley, home o3!etas" $%"&" arine Corps photo by /an+e Cpl" !llison De<ries?@eleased(

.en when the %& military bases were turned oer to :ilipinos in the early 90s, then'resident :idel <" @amos e)empted Crow <alley 3rom the +oera*e o3 the 7asesConersion Deelopment !uthority $7CD!(, and resered it mainly 3or use o3 the!rmed :or+es and the De3ense Department" #owadays, Crow <alley also sered asenue 3or annual 7aliatan %& troops’ war*ames"

Claimin* to de3end the interest o3 indi*enous !eta and some nonindi*enous

3armers in his town o3 Capas, its ayor !ntonio @odri*ue =r" attended on =une 9 a

hearin* o3 the Committee on 7ases Conersion in Con*ress to ur*e it to se*re*ate

the nearly A,000 he+tares o3 !eta illa*es, whi+h, he said, are +urrently +oered by

the military reseration" !side 3rom &ta =uliana, aru*lu and 7ueno, the illa*es o3

&ta" /u+ia, !ran*uren, /awy and O’Donnell with !eta and non!eta residents were

also de+lared as part o3 the military reseration" 2n +allin* 3or these illa*es’

se*re*ation, @odri*ue +ited the need to respe+t the ri*hts o3 indi*enous peoples

who mae up the bul o3 people residin* in the de+lared military reseration"



Oer hal3 or AE,0A4he+tare o3 Capas, Barla+’s total land area is +onsidered part o3

the military reseration"

What is worse is that aside 3rom the dire+t dislo+ation the e)pansion o3 the military

reseration would do to !eta +ommunities, the rest are 3a+in* *reater diJ+ulties

with their daytoday surial needs be+ause o3 another *oernment poli+y" !eta

leader .dwin Danan said that aside 3rom bein* under the military in their own

+ommunities, !etas are ;ndin* it harder to surie as their sour+es o3 lielihood are

bein* limited by the Ireen City 'roe+t o3 the 7ases Conersion Deelopment

!uthority $7CD!("

!etas lie by plantin* ri+e and e*etable" Bo prepare or +lear land 3or 3armin*, they

turn 3allen trees into +oal, whi+h they sell in the maret" :or hundreds o3 years,

!etas lie nomadi+ally, leain* a 3arm 3or another to allow new 3orest *rowth a3ter a

time" 7ut in re+ent years and *ien the “deelopment and military or *oernment

+laims on the land, they are ;ndin* less and less 3reedom to moe around"

:irst 3rom le3t o3 this pi+ture is .dwin Danan, se+retary*eneral o3 Central /uon !eta!sso+iation"

Danan told Bulatlat.com that under 'resident 7eni*no “#oynoy !uino 222, it

appeared at ;rst that the indi*enous peoples are bein* *ien their ri*hts under the

#ational Ireenin* 'ro*ram, whi+h almost entirely +oered all 3orested mountains

and oerlapped an+estral domain +laims o3 indi*enous peoples" 7ut the *reenin*

pro*ram also sered as prete)t 3or limitin* the a+tion o3 indi*enous peoples oer



their own lands" eanwhile, tree+uttin* +ontinues where the *oernment allowed

bi* +ompanies to do so"

!t the Committee on 7ases Conersion hearin* at the >ouse o3 @epresentaties last

=une 9, Capas ayor @odri*ue +on;rmed in his spee+h that the Ireen City 'roe+t

o3 the 7CD! and the e)pansion o3 Crow <alley Iunnery @an*e by the 'hilippine !ir

:or+e $under the Department o3 #ational De3ense '!:?D#D( are threatenin* to drie

away some E0,000 indi*enous and nonindi*enous 3armers in ae+ted illa*es o3

Capas"

@odri*ue has promised to support the !etas, Danan said, but the mayor himsel3

has not yet dire+tly taled with the !eta elders o3 Central /uon !eta !sso+iation

$C/!!("

Bhe !etas want the 7CD! to stop its Ireen City 'roe+tF Capas ayor @odri*ue told

the 7ases Conersion Committee in Con*ress he is happy and wholeheartedly

a++eptin* the 7CD! and 'hil" !ir :or+e proe+ts, althou*h he added there is also a

need to prote+t the ri*hts o3 the +itiens who would be dire+tly ae+ted, meanin*the !etas mostly, and some non!eta 3armers"

C/!! is opposin* the “+ontinuin* e)pansion o3 %& military bases and reseration on

!eta’s an+estral domain not ust in the i+inity o3 Camp O’ Donnell in Capas, Barla+

but also in &ubi+, Gambales, 'ampan*a and #uea .+ia" :rom last year to now,

Danan said !eta +ommunities hae 3urther been o++upied by the military"

“ilitary deta+hments in 2' +ommunities did not leae with 'alparan, Danan said,

re3errin* to the retired and now 3u*itie 7ri*adier Ieneral who is impli+ated in the

alle*ed en3or+ed disappearan+e and torture o3 %' students aren .mpeLo and

&herlyn Cadapan" Bhese students, a++ordin* to witnesses, were brou*ht to +amps

and heaily tortured in remote areas belieed to be part o3 the 'hilippine military’se)tensie military bases and reserations in Central /uon"

While the Capas mayor is silent on the presen+e o3 these soldiers and their +amps

all oer the 2' +ommunities, he has been an*lin* 3or the release o3 nearly A,000

he+tares o3 2' lands, +omprisin* their illa*e and parts o3 it, 3rom the military

reseration" >e demanded last =une 9 “Bransparen+y on the part o3 implementin*

a*en+ies, as he ur*ed 7CD! and the 'hil" !ir :or+e or D#D to “mae publi+ the

Deelopment 'lans 3or the proe+ts"

'arti+ularly on the 7CD!?Ireen City 'roe+t, whi+h the !etas oppose, @odri*ue

ased 3or “de;nite answers as to what are the plans and poli+ies o3 the 7CD! 3or the

indi*enous peoples, 3armers and residents ae+ted by the proe+t"

@e*ardin* the Crow <alley Iunnery @an*e Deelopment 'lan, @odri*ue ur*ed 3or

respe+t o3 indi*enous peoples’ ri*hts" 7ut in the same breath, he wanted the

assimilation o3 ae+ted baran*ays by demandin* that their territories be 3reed 3rom

the reseration, 3or it to be truly under the lo+al *oernment" Bhe mayor de+ried

how, oer the years, his town has not bene;ted 3rom these lands be+ause o3



prohibition on any +onstru+tion there, and as 3or parts that are in+luded in base

+onerted e+onomi+ ones, he +omplained that they *et too little share in the ta)es"

Capas ayor @odri*ue also ased the Committee on 7ases Conersion to le*islate

the permanent li3tin* o3 the prohibition on the entry o3 +onstru+tion materials inside

the Crow <alley @an*e"

!s 3or Danan, he reiterated their demand 3or respe+t o3 their an+estral domain, and

3or the military to de+amp &ee more atK httpK??bulatlat"+om?main?A014?06?A8?militarybasee)pansionto

dislo+ateaetas3armers?Msthash"#9&#06"dpu3

military base expansion to dislocate aetas

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