Church leaders in the southern Philippines said the killing of tribal leaders and the harassment suffered by indigenous peoples in Mindanao are related to mining operations in the area. The tribal people “who firmly stand against mining activities were the ones being intimidated by paramilitary forces,” said the Rev. Bong Galela, social action director of the Diocese of Tandag. In Surigao del Sur province, indigenous peoples, collectively known as Lumads, have been under attack by gunmen of the Magahat-Bagani paramilitary force. Human rights groups alleged that the Philippine military trained and funded the group to go after Communist rebels in the hinterlands of Mindanao. The allegation was supported by diocesan clergy. “We call for the disarming and arrest of the members of the Magahat-Bagani group,” Father Galela told a Philippine Senate panel inquiry on Oct. 1. “We also demand the government to ensure that there will be no cover-up in the investigation of these gruesome murders,” the priest said.
Mining Crimes
Show Comments (
)
Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.
The latest from america
In a time of increasing disaffiliation from and disillusionment with the institutional church, a new theological perspective on the church is needed—one that places Jesus’ own teaching at the center.
This week on “Jesuitical,” Zac and Ashley are thrilled to speak with their friend and colleague Father James Martin about his new podcast, “The Spiritual Life with Fr. James Martin, S.J.”
Pope Leo XIV renewed his “appeal for peace” in an interview after a surprise visit to the Vatican Radio Center.
There are so many things you can enjoy when you are poor—and some, it seems, that are easier to enjoy when you’re poor because you cannot lean on the crutches and the shortcuts that litter the path of the rich.