Transcript of Interview Senator Risa Hontiveros with Karen Davila, ANC Headstart
February 13, 2023

Q: What is the current status of the mining in Sibuyan Island? What we know so far is that the mining firm says they will stop all exploration tasks. What have you discovered?

Senator Risa Hontiveros (SRH): When I went there last Thursday with Atty. Chel Diokno, una, nag-alay kami ng bulaklak at the monument of the late councilor Armin Marin, who was a councilor and an environmental activist who was killed way back in 2007 during a similar anti-mining rally on Sibuyan Island.

We met and held a public consultation with the anti-mining residents at the barricade, there again on Sibuyan Island. Mayroon pong cease and desist order sa area nila tapos sinabihan dapat walang movement ang mangyayari diyan sa loob pero yung kumpanya nakita ko I saw it myself they still are conducting movements inside. Nakuhanan namin ng video at ayon sa mga residente, yung exploration nila is ongoing parin.

Q: Hanggang ngayon? Until today? Even after the DENR order to stop operations?

SRH: Yes, I saw a hard copy of that CDO order of the DENR. Nakadikit nalang doon sa fence ng illegal causeway. Apparently wala daw kasi magrereceive so dinikit ng DENR doon. But even from the roadside kitang kita namin that there were at least three big mounds of what the residents say are nickel ore nakatakip nalang ng makapal na trapal and according to the residents mas marami pang mounds doon but when they heard that more supporters of the anti-mining residents were arriving, they leveled those, hindi lang nila natakpan yung tatlong mounds pa ng nickel ore doon.

And in the meantime mayroon nang nakahain na petition for writ of kalikasan sa Korte Suprema. Hinihiling nito na mismong SC na ang magutos na wala munang operation at hindi lang ito tungkol sa lupa ha, isyu din doon yung imagine may mga alinlangan yung public school teachers ng Sibuyan sumali sa protesta baka daw hindi sila mabigyan ng benepisyo. This is one of the legal issues aside from the environmental that were consulted with Atty. Chel in our public consultation.

Q: There is mining in different parts of the Philippines but what is it about Sibuyan Island that made the residents protest regarding this? Bawal po ba specifically ang pagmimina sa lugar?

SRH: Hindi pa. Actually thank you for that question dahil pangitain yun ng isang gusto ng mga residente ng Sibuyan na as one of the small islands in our archipelago na gawin nang no-go zone for mining ang Sibuyan. Even from the air, and on the ground, Sibuyan is so beautiful. It's actually known as the "Galapagos of Asia."

Yung mga critically endangered species diyan ay endemic only to Sibuyan. Sa Galapagos Island, pumunta doon si Charles Darwin, way back in the 1800s and that island, the Galapagos, inspired him in his theory of evolution. Ang Sibuyan is known as the Galapagos of Asia so kung mapatunayang may mga critically endangered species pala na nasira ng mining company doon, and that's what the people say, so posibleng yang paggalaw ng endemic species ay paglabag sa environmental laws. Kaya panawagan ko sa mga kasamahan ko sa Senado na buksan na namin ang inquiry sa resolusyon kong ito para mapanagot ang totoong responsable.

Q: The company in question is Altai Philippines Mining Company. Who gave them the permit?

SRH: Earlier, it was the DENR that issued.

Q: Of which administration?

SRH: The previous. Way back in 2021. So first an earlier cease and desist order was lifted in 2021 tapos nitong earlier 2022 naisyuhan ng permit to operate but in the face of itong pagkilos, pagbarikada muli ng mga residente, that cease and desist order has been issued.

Isa pang nakakagulat na sinabi din ng mga residente kapag nagkamali yung isang mining company itong temporary suspension lang ang pinapataw pero kung tricycle driver, and we had tricycle drivers at the public consultation last Thursday, kapag sila daw nagviolate ng traffic law, malaki ang multa. So ang sabi nila, kapag maliit na tao kamay na bakal daw ang nararamdaman, and that kamay na bakal again was felt in the wake of the killing of councilor Marin way back in 2007, recently, sa barikada, may at least dalawang nasaktan na tao because their peaceful barricade was dispersed. And in fact kahit yung pagdating, nakakalungkot, ng isang PNP unit doon, sabi nila they were shocked, Sibuyan had always been peaceful, naharap tuloy sila sa mga riot police with shields and batons, ni isa bato never na binato nila sa mga truck ng mining company kaya na-shock sila na hinarap sila ng ganong fully equipped and armed.

Q: The bigger issue here is in terms of policy. This is what's confusing if you are a business owner. You're given a permit by the administration before, so you spent money, you're investing, operating, and then suddenly because of protests the DENR stops you.

Won't this be solved by first before allowing companies to mine, is to identify areas where they can mine? And it should be a law. Because ang nangyayri if it is the whim of this DENR sec to give you a permit, hindi naman iligal yun, may permit ka, bigla nalang you invested money, bigla nalang you get a cease and desist.

SRH: Two important points you've raised. Una, meron talagang kailangang requirements ang isang kumpanya para makapagmina even in the current Philippine mining act of 1995. Ang problema diyan sa Sibuyan, they are deliquent pala. Meron silang at least apat na dokumentong kailangan na wala pa sila. Isang dokumento sa barangay, isang dokumento sa munisipiyo. Kulang sila ng isa pang dokumento sa DENR at kahit sa Philippine Ports Authority, they lack a permit to construct a port kasi nagtatayo sila ng private port doon kaya sabi ng mga tao yung mga corals nasisira din nila.

Pangalawa, indeed, we need, I believe, a new mining law. Yun yung subject ng isang panukalang batas ko, the Alternative Minerals Management Bill, which would identify small-scale, medium-scale community-based traditional mining that may be allowed in different parts of the country, though under stricter rules including those giving a bigger role for the LGUs, for the mining-affected communities, and for the indigenous peoples, at tama ka, meron ding itutukoy na no-go zones including those environmentally protected areas.

So baka yung first step ngayon ay gawing no-go zone ang small islands.

Q: Will you be calling former Secretary Roy Cimatu that gave this company the permit?

SRH: Apparently it was during his term at the helm of the DENR, kapag schinedule na ng Chair ng kumite yung hearing, I expect na iimbetahin din sila.

Q: So today are mining operations still going on?

SRH: Supposedly, per the cease and desist order, hindi, supposedly per the announcement of the company itself, hindi na muna. Pero sabi ng ng mga tao, tuloy-tuloy parin yan kasi yung official title ng ginagawa nila ay exploration but for 50,000 metric tonnes, hindi yan exploratory, extraction na yan. Kaya nakabantay ang mga tao sa barikada so that yung nakadaong na barko doon, will not be able to depart with the nickel ore.

Q: But considering the DENR's issued cease and desist order, can't the DENR order the local police to padlock the property?

SRH: Yeah, they could actually do that and probably should take some action. Alam ko na yung DENR, si Sec Tony Yulo-Loyzaga whom I called has coordinated with the Sec Abalos under whose direction of course is the PNP and nakapag-communicate din ako kay Chief PNP Azurin para to really call for de escalation of the situation there. Ang panawagan ng mga tao, status quo munam, multisectoral and independent na imbestigasyon, kami sa Senado, I hope that we can contribute that para mailagay sa ayos. I really believe that a peaceful and just solution, nasa kamay ng DENR, ng DILG, PNP at malay natin, years ago may mga eco-tourism projects that were being launched there under the late former Secretary Gina Lopez at mga civil society groups. Sana magtake interest ngayon muli ang DOT.

Q: Let's move on to another issue, the SOGIE bill. It's been such a long battle, a struggle

SRH: 23 years.

Q: 23 years and right now the SOGIE bill, is this correct, is back in the committee level at the Senate?

SRH: And I only wish it were back at the Committee level as in the Committee on Women that I chair, ayon ang ineexpect ko, with a certain unexpected turn of events recently, handa na sana akong i-sponsor yung committee report ng SOGIE equality bill last december kasi labing-pito kaming mga senador who happily signed the Committee report and mula noon, tinatanong ako ng LGBTQIA+ community, anyare?

So I owe them an answer and I was made to understand noong finollow up ko nga, I was made to understand na nakakuha si Majority leader ng 19 signatures naman, although later sinabi nila, 17 or 18 basta number of signatures para i-remand yung committee report sa aking committee on women so nagcommit naman ako, sabi ko nga I submit, nagcommit ako to hold another hearing.

Q: Is that irregular?

SRH: Hindi naman, it's happened before na nabalik sa committee which it was referred pero ang sabi hindi raw irregular, ang pakiramdam kong irregular, instead of remanding it to the Committee on Women, it was remanded instead to the Committee on Rules. Pinagdebatehan namin yun last Wednesday. At the end of which I submitted to the ruling of the presiding officer I made of record din, that with my whole being I objected to the motion of the, with all due respect, Majority Leader so ang status as of this morning, the ball is in the court of the majority at umaasa ako na the hearing or the meeting of the committee on rules will be scheduled soonest para hindi na natin ipagkait pa ng mas matagal pa ng 23 years already yung community which has been fighting for this.

Q: Why do you think, what scares certain lawmakers about the SOGIE bill? In the lower House, we have Bro. Eddie Villanueva, he actually walked out because he asked for a deferment. But roughly at the same time, in the Senate, it was Senator Joel Villanueva, so you have father and son that actually, in a way, want to delay the SOGIE delay for some reason, What is it about the SOGIE bill you feel that I would say to a degree, offends even religious groups?

SRH: And they have expressed these concerns over the last two decades at pinakikinggan at pinakinggan muli nutong huling pagdinig ng SOGIE Equality Bill in the Senate. I recall since I believe, we believe in genuine consultations and participation, at least 17 religious groups participated actively in our hearing and in our technical working group, and several of these are evangelical religious groups.

Doon sa hearing at saka sa TWG, sumang-ayon ako, for one, to reconsider criminal liabilities for schools that impose heteronormative uniforms on their students or parents who seek medical tests to determine the SOGIE of our children dahil yung ilang religious groups and ilan sa mga colleagues ko ay nagexpress ng concerns tungkol dito. We have been listening to our religious groups for (unclear) po ako to keep on engaging them, kilalanin lang sana natin that we abuse the stigma, the discrimination suffered by our LGBTQIA+ community ay totoo ito, Real. Documented. Dokumentado ito, undeniable ito. Hindi ito mapasisinungalingan.

I also, in the bill already, agreed to include the explicit exemption of marriage licenses para malinaw once and for all, and again and again, na hindi ito bill na naglelegalize ng same-sex marriage. Nakapasok na sa bill yung explicit inclusion ng academic freedom of schools at saka non-disturbance of parental responsibilities sa Family Code.

As I've been saying since the first time I filed this bill in the previous Congresses, hindi po ito special rights o new rights na hinihingi sa bill. Fundamental rights and protection lamang ito na dapat sa bawat Pilipino. At syempre ang isang pinakamahalagang manatili naman sa bill na ito, in terms of mga pagbabawal ay yung syempre workplace prohibition kasi sa Labor Code lang natin bawal ang diskriminasyon, yung bawal dapat ang expulsion from schools batay sa SOGIE ng bata kasi karapatan ng bata ang edukasyon. Bawal yung discrimination sa access sa emergency and necessary medical services, nandyan na yan sa ating Universal Healthcare Law.

And it's simply a matter of humanity. Bawal ang SOGIE-based abuse, against persons deprived of liberty kasi bihag na nga, hindi dapat inaabuso dahil sa SOGIE. Bawal din ang diskriminasyon sa access sa social protection tulad ng ayuda, batay sa SOGIE.

Q: But then there's a lot of this information and confusion regarding some parts of the SOGIE bill. Let's clarify these. For example, is it true that under the SOGIE bill, a school will be penalized if a student in the school refuses to wear either pants or skirts. You know this was a contentious issue in the SOGIE bill?

SRH: Wala nang criminal liability doon kapag nag-insist ng heteronormative or male uniform for boys or female uniform for girls. Wala nang penalty doon. Despite the fact, by the way, elsewhere in Asia, sa Japan di ba, nag-adopt na sila ng combination of uniforms na pwede sa mga estudyante nila. But they're a step ahead of us in that direction. Dito sa SOGIE Equality Bill, wala nang legal accountabilities para doon.

Q: It's religious groups that actually brought out their concerns. So let's say, a Catholic school, what is the misconception with the SOGIE Bill in terms of a student in a Catholic school.

SRH: Well I guess the misconception, or the conception on the part of the Catholic schools, kasi nag-aral din tayo sa Catholic schools, ay yung bata na ang sex-assigned at birth ay male ayon sa Cathollic schools o sa ibang religious schools ay dapat magsuot ng damit ng lalaki samantala a student who was sex-assigned at birth female ay dapat magsuot ng damit ng babae. Not just outside the school, but on campus as well. So, consistent lang sa kanilang paniniwala tungkol sa SOGIE o tungkol sa sex at gender ng tao.

Q: So nangangahulugan, in the new bill, if you enroll in a Catholic school, you cannot sue the school, if as a boy you have to be in the boys group, even if you don't identify as male.

SRH: That's right. So sa ngayon, under the bill and vice versa, for girls as well, so under the bill, magiging consideration na yun, sa pagpili din sa eskwelahan if the child with his or her parents would really like that the child dresses as he or she identifies.

Q: Does the SOGIE bill in anyway recognize long partnerships between partners, because the biggest concern is if one has passed away the other would have no rights into their other's properties or they will not be recognized. Is this part of the bill?

SRH: It's not part of the bill yet, explicitly, wala ngang dito marriage license kasi kapag lang kasal ang isang couple, then may inheritance rights, may visitation priority sa mga ospital lalo na kung namamatay na yung partner o asawa nila. May custody of children, rights, yun, wala yun sa bill. Kasi explicity hindi ito bill ng same sex marriage. But I'm still glad you mentioned it kasi ito yung isang pinakamasakit... (unclear)... kababayan natin na same sex partners that you know they can't even be with each other kung namamatay na yung isa, kasi hindi sila kinikilala bilang family, bukod sa usapin ng child custody or inheritance. So that battle, if the LGBTQIA+ community chooses to wage it, will have to wait for a future time.

Q: [inaudible]

SRH: ...but kahit meron na kaming inamend para to meet halfway yung concerns ng ilang grupo, lalo na ilang religious groups, I would like to assure you, ito ay magpagka papayag ng community na ito ay mga provisions na sabi nila ok pwede itong igive sa ngayon, ilaban na lang some other way in the future, basta't yung mga kasama sa heart and soul of the bill ay andoon pa rin. Tulad ng sa workplace prohibition, school expulsion, etcetera.

Q: It is all under the Anti-Discrimination Bill. The Anti-Discrimination Bill is against discrimination of all persons. And it's covered, regardless of, right sexual preference, etc. So this is the challenge with the SOGIE bill. How do you then argue that you need this when the anti-discrimination bill covers that?

SRH: But the comprehensive anti-discrimination bill dahil compre nga siya ... hindi siya... (unclear) SOGIE Equality Bill, kasi it is against discrimination on all basis, may SOGIE, mayroon ding ability and disability, mayroon ding ethnicity at marami pang iba. So mas broad strokes siya. Kung maipasa yun ng una, we would still the SOGIE Equality Bill para idetalye and also because SOGIE is a particular basis of stigma and discrimination kaya may mga particular na protections at kailangan ding karapatan.

Q: A big part of the battle is that lawmakers are saying that there is already the Anti-Discrimination Bill, pero sa pagdetalye ng concerns ng LGBTQ community, hindi ba pwede sa IRR yun?

SRH: Hindi, kasi ang IRR ay hindi siya pwedeng lumampas sa pinoprovide ng law. Hindi siya dapat kulang, pero hindi rin siya pwedeng sobra. So what the Comprehensive Anti-Discrimination Bill might provide against SOGIE-based discrimination, mas general yun, mas broad stroke, at maipasa man yung Anti-Discrimination bill, yung IRR niya will only detail what is in the bill. Hindi niya maidadagdag through IRR yung details ng SOGIE Equality Bill na wala sa provisions ng comprehensive Anti-Discrimination Bill.

Q: The Maharlika investment fund, what can we expect in the next few days?

SRH: I think in the next few days pag magschedule ulit ng hearing si Chairman, idedetalye talaga namin yung grounds kung bakit it was a bad idea from the start. And palagay ko, dahil nasa DNA na yan ng Maharlika Fund as conceptualized and ng Maharlika Bill, palagay ko lalabas sa hearing our arguments against the Maharlika - that it is premature, marami na tayong at mas magkakaroon tayo ng utang, at marami pang ibang problema na dapat iprioritize. I think these will be substantiated. Q: You talked about removing capital from the Land Bank and the DBP. Pero paano kung may pagkukunan ng pondo?

SRH: Well, sa ngayon, for one I don't see any financial service that can't already be done, or that could additionally be done by the Development Bank of the Philippines or Land Bank, na kayang irender nitong Maharlika Fund.

Wala tayo nung surplus na meron ang Indonesia with their Sovereign Wealth Fund, from their oil and mineral windfalls. Wala tayong ganoon dito, sa ating natural resources. Ang Indonesia, they source still the majority of their Sovereign Wealth Fund from foreign investments, wala pa tayong nakaline up na ganoon. At bakit din Indonesia had billions of dollars worth of investment projects na nasa pipeline na, nadevelop na and fully fleshed out in their project proposals, wala pa tayo sa ganoon.

So it is a no-starter sa ngayon, I think in the medium term pwede natin reconsider ang isang sovereign wealth fund, but first things first, i-address natin yung marami pang ibang urgent na problems. That will strengthen our economy, that will strengthen our people more, para we can mobilize more domestic funds pati sa ating financial and banking system. Let's develop the projects, wala pang detalye eh, sinasabi lang we will have infra, we will attract foreign investments pero wala pang detalye.

Let's prepare that attractive portfolio tulad ng Indonesia or for that matter, Thailand, let alone Norway. And then let's see go on the road, sometime in the medium term pwedeng reconsider ito.

Q:What do you make of it that in the middle of hearing the Maharlika Investment Fund, your colleagues in the Lower House, some of them are pushing to change the Constitution, they are reopening the talk on Charter Change, but President Marcos Jr. himself said he wasn't keen about changing the 1987 Constitution. What do you make of his reaction?

SRH: Well I was reassured again, lalo na noong narinig ko sa balita mo kanina, because I do remember noong campaign parang hindi rin naman tinalakay o hindi cinommunicate ni Presidente noon that he was interested in it, if he won the presidency. And now that he is President, of course mas nakakaramdam kami from our colleagues in the House, nakapagfile na rin yung isang colleague ko dito sa Senate focused on the economic provisions of the Constitution, kaya parang kambal yung interes namin dyan sa Maharlika Fund o yung Sovereign "Liability" Fund.

But I am reassured to hear again from the President - and explicitly this time - na hindi sila interesado or it is not a priority. I hope that will be for real for the rest of his six year term. Because really it is not about amending the Constitution, in fact parts of it have been in a way de facto amended by legislation lalo na sa economic arena. And I think marami pang ibang priorities na dapat pagbuhusan nila ng enerhiya nila sa administrasyon.

Q: It makes a difference when the President speaks.

SRH: Oh yes.

Q: The biggest problem is that the President hasn't really made a statement on (unclear) SOGIE Bill.

SRH: And I hope that he might, lalo na my colleague, his sister, has been supporting it. And I have never heard an anti-SOGIE statements from the President so sana yung silence niya means consent, if not openness. But to get a bill, a ratified bill, to Malacanang for his signature, we still have to fight it out here in the Senate, and Rep. Geraldine Roman, there at the House. Committed po kami dyan, ilalaban namin. Kumakapit kami sa laban na ito.