Support the Petition to #CancelOceanaGold in the Philippines

We, the undersigned organizations, express our solidarity with and support for the affected communities and the petitioners against Canadian mining firm OceanaGold Philippines, Inc. Several petitioners, representing different sectors and affected groups, have filed a case to cancel the renewal of OceanaGold’s mining agreement  (Financial or Technical Assistance Agreement/FTAA) with the Philippine government. They contend that OceanaGold’s  large-scale mining operations in the province of Nueva Vizcaya have  violated Philippine laws (case name: ‘Mangalinao et al. v. Executive Secretary Bersamin et al.’).

OceanaGold’s mining operations in the town of Kasibu, Nueva Vizcaya have been implicated in  environmental, socio-economic, and civil-political rights violations, which have been assailed by institutions such as the Philippine Commission on Human Rights and various Special Rapporteurs of the United Nations Human Rights Council. 

In 2021, OceanaGold’s FTAA was renewed by the Office of the President for another 25 years, amid the lack of prior and proper public consultation and consent, and in clear violation of the provincial environmental code, which bans open-pit mining. Environmentally critical projects such as mining are required to secure prior consultation and consent before the President can approve the FTAA renewal, which was not the case. 

This gross violation of the constitutional rights to local autonomy, to public participation, and to a balanced and healthful ecology—ultimately, the people’s right to say “no” to OceanaGold—is the subject of the petition filed by indigenous and community leaders, together with Bishop Elmer Mangalinao of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bayombong, on Earth Day on April 22, 2024.

Crucially, OceanaGold’s operations continue to threaten Nueva Vizcaya’s watershed—and its protectors--that provides water for 3.9 million Filipinos, irrigation for 90,000 hectares of agricultural land, and life for 480 different floral and faunal species.

We believe that international environmental and human rights laws, norms, and standards were disregarded by OceanaGold’s FTAA renewal, including the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People, the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, the UN Resolution Recognizing the Right to a Clean, Healthy, and Sustainable Environment, and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, among others.

We thus urge our respective domestic governments, as well as the relevant diplomatic missions and UN bodies based in our respective countries, to conduct parallel investigations and inquiries into the violations perpetrated by OceanaGold’s FTAA renewal. 

We invite shareholders and other relevant parties across OceanaGold’s global value chain to undertake environmental and human rights due diligence, and hold OceanaGold accountable.

Lastly, we enjoin the international community to support the campaign to #CancelOceanaGold, by organizing sustained protests, lobbying against OceanaGold and its allies in government, amplifying the affected people’s aspirations for justice, and raising financial and material support for the long legal battle ahead.

No Consultation, No Consent, No Renewal!

Save our Watersheds and  Defend our Water Defenders!

Cancel OceanaGold’s Mining FTAA Now!

Signatories

1. Legal Rights and Natural Resources Center / Kasama sa Kalikasan / Friends of the Earth Philippines (LRC/KsK/FoE Phils) | Philippines

2. Alyansa Tigil Mina (ATM) | Philippines

3. LILAK Purple Action for Indigenous Women’s Rights | Philippines

4. Caritas Philippines | Philippines

5. Episcopal Commission on Indigenous Peoples | Philippines

6. Friends of the Earth Asia Pacific | International

7. A Radical Guide | United States

8. Academia Cidadã – Citizenship Academy | Portugal

9. AGHAM Advocates of Science and Technology for the People

10. Alyansa ng Novo Vizcayano para sa Kalikasan (ANVIK)

11. Ang Aroroy Ay Alagaan, Inc. | Philippines

12. Apostolic Vicariate of Bontoc-Lagawe | Philippines

13. Aroroy Youth Environmental Guardian | Philippines

14. Asia Indigenous Peoples Network on Extractive Industries and Energy (AIPNEE) | Asia

15. Assisi Development Foundation | Philippines

16. Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association | Bangladesh

17. Bontoc-Lagawe Development and Social Action Center (Bon-Lag DSAC) | Philippines 

18. Both ENDS | Netherlands

19. Canada-Philippines Solidarity for Human Rights | Canada

20. Caraga Watch | Philippines 

21. Cebu Alliance against Reclamation for Life and Environment (CARE for Life and Environment) | Philippines

22. Center for Environmental Concerns - | Philippines 

23. Centre for Environmental Justice | Sri Lanka 

24. Centre for Research and Advocacy, Manipur | India

25. Columban Missionaries | Philippines

26. Communities that Protect and Resist | United States

27. Community Empowerment and Social Justice Network (CEMSOJ) | Nepal

28. Cordillera Peoples Alliance | Philippines 

29. Deep Green Resistance | International

30. Deepgreenarts | United States

31. Earthworks | USA

32. Environmental Defenders Congress | Philippines 

33. Focus on the Global South | Asia

34. Franciscan Missionaries of Mary | Philippines

35. Friends of the Earth APAC | Asia-Pacific

36. Friends of the Earth Australia | Australia

37. Friends of the Earth Japan | Japan

38. Friends of the Filipino People in Struggle - Coast Sailish Territories (Vancouver) | Canada

39. Friends with Environment in Development | Uganda

40. Green Advocates International | Liberia

41. Greenpeace Philippines | Philippines

42. Ifugao Tribe | Philippines

43. Ilocos Network for the Environment | Philippines 

44. Institute for Policy Studies - Trade and Mining Project  | United States

45. International Accountability Project | Philippines

46. International Allies Against Mining in El Salvador | International

47. Inter-Cultural Organizations' Network for Solidarity and Peace, Inc. (ICON-SP) | Philippines

48. Jalaur River for the People's Movement | Philippines  

49. Jamaa Resource Initiatives | Kenya

50. Kalanguya tribe | Philippines

51. Kalikasan People's Network for the Environment | Philippines 

52. Katribu Kalipunan ng Katutubong Mamamayan ng Pilipinas | Philippines

53. Lawyers’ Association for Human Rights of Nepalese Indigenous Peoples (LAHURNIP) | Nepal

54. Laudato Si' Movement Pilipinas | Philippines

55. Law Office of Cooper Brinson | United States

56. Les Amis de la Terre-Togo | Togo

57. London Mining Network | United Kingdom

58. Lumad Mindanaw Peoples Federation | Philippines

59. Lunhaw-Ecology Ministry of the Diocese of San Carlos, Neg. Occ. | Philippines

60. Marian Women Producers Cooperative | Philippines

61. Migrante Alberta | Canada

62. Migrante Melbourne | Australia 

63. Mindanao Cross | Philippines

64. MiningWatch Canada | Canada

65. MONES | Mongolia

66. NGO Forum on ADB | Asia

67. NTFP Exchange Programme Asia | South and Southeast Asia

68. Oyu Tolgoi Watch | Mongolia

69. Palestinian Environmental NGOs Network / FoE Palestine | Palestine

70. Panaghiusa Philippine Network to Uphold Indigenous Peoples' Rights | Philippines 

71. Pangasinan People's Strike for the Environment | Philippines 

72. PANGATAMAN Bikol | Philippines 

73. Philippine Caucus for Peace | Australia  

74. Philippine Human Rights Information Center (PHILRIGHTS) | Philippines

75. Philippine ICCA consortium | Philippines

76. philippinenbüro e.V. | Germany 

77. Philippines Australia Solidarity Association (PASA) | Australia

78. Protect Sierra Madre for the People | Philippines 

79. Rettet den Regenwald | Germany

80. Rivers without Boundaries Coalition | Mongolia

81. Roman Catholic Diocese of Marbel | Philippines

82. Sahabat Alam Malaysia - Friends of the Earth Malaysia | Malaysia

83. Saluadan | Philippines  

84. Salva la Selva | Spain

85. Sarawak Dayak Iban Association | Malaysia

86. Save Cagayan Movement | Philippines

87. Sibuyanons Against Mining (SAM) | Philippines

88. Sisters of Mercy of the Americas Justice Team | USA 

89. Spirit of Eureka, South Australia | Australia

90. Spring Socialist Network | Canada 

91. Sumkad ti Umili para ti Matagoan, Karbengan, Aglawlaw, Daga ken Dayaw (SUMKADD) | Philippines 

92. WALHI / Friends of the Earth (FoE) Indonesia | Indonesia 

93. Yes to Life, No to Mining | International 

94. Young Franciscan Advocates | Philippines