Members of the Mabaka tribe files petition against the 40 MW Mabaca River Hydropower Project of JBD Water Power Inc. (JWPI)
August 4, 2023
Members of the Mabaka tribe in Barangay Mabaca, Balbalan, Kalinga filed their petition against the 40 MW Mabaca River Hydropower Project of JBD Water Power Inc. (JWPI) to the Cordillera regional office of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP).
The members of the tribe reiterate their right to self-determination over their natural resources, and their right to their ancestral domain. They believe, as stated in the petition, that the hydropower project will eventually lead to their loss of ownership and control over their land and river.
JWPI is also the proponent of the 49 MW Saltan D and 45 MW Saltan E dams along the Saltan river.
As we celebrate this year's International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples (IDWIP), let us stand in solidarity with our indigenous communities who continue to struggle amid countless attacks. Our activism is terrorism in the eyes of the state, but let us continue to assert our democracy and legitimacy. Our fight for our lands and resources is just and necessary.
Payt latta!
