“We need this project to address climate change and energy crisis.”
This argument has been repeatedly thrown to us during the long and tedious FPIC process for Gened 1, the first of the four proposed hydropower projects in Apayao awarded to Pan Pacific Renewable Power Philippines Corporation (PPRPPC).
Setting aside the railroaded FPIC process, I want to call out the hypocrisy in using climate change and energy crisis to justify these proposed mega-dams threatening to submerge my ancestral domain.
Suppose we address climate change and the energy crisis. Why are you focusing on an energy source that brings more damages than benefits? Dams across Europe and the US are being abandoned, closed, and removed. Why? The cons outweigh the pros. The human and environmental costs overpowered the energy benefits, yet developing countries are repeating the same mistakes. Globally, these projects only served the interest of corporations and left nothing to our IPs and host communities.
There is nothing clean in damming rivers. Dams emit greenhouse gases such as methane, which is more potent than carbon. There is nothing sustainable in killing our rivers. There is no development in submerging ancestral lands for electricity.
You destroy nature with your definition of development. For years, you displaced IPs and communities to give way to industrialization and meet the urban population’s needs.
How dare you impose on our people to leave their lands and livelihoods and submerge the burial grounds of our ancestors to provide a ‘clean’ energy source for urban cities? You want our people to rent out their agricultural lands, inherited from their ancestors, for a meager amount. You want the Isnag people to sacrifice our ancestral domain and the mighty Apayao river for ‘development’ and ‘sustainable’ energy. How arrogant of you to ask that we give up this river which is a vital part of our identity and has sustained our ancestors and generations of Isnags.
How hypocritical of you to demand such a big sacrifice to help the environment when you cannot even switch off your lights for Earth Hour. The boldness of these people to tell our community that these projects are for the greater good when they are built to benefit industries and urban communities with higher carbon footprints. You are asking a lot from us, yet you are not willing to adopt sustainable practices.
So, the answer is no. No, we will not be sacrificed for your ‘sustainable’ energy. Our people will not serve as sacrificial lambs at the expense of greedy corporations and a government that cannot even protect its IPs. No, we will not let you submerge our home and erase the Isnag culture all for the expense of the energy crisis.
Hands off our lands and rivers. # nordis.net
*The author is a native of Kabugao, Apayao working abroad. She is a member of Kabugao Youth and part of its network overseas supporting the campaign against the Gened Dams Project.
Editor’s note: The opinions expressed do not reflect the views or positions of Nordis. They are published to encourage open dialogue and diverse perspectives. Nordis reserves the right to edit for clarity and length, but the opinions remain solely those of the author.
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