Press Release
June 1, 2011

Transcript of Senator Zubiri's press briefing on Senate probe
on seized black corals, turtles

Senator Migz: Good noon to everyone. This is our first hearing on the investigation of the Senate committee on environment and natural resources particularly on the issue of the rape of our seas, pour marine resources such as the poaching of black corals, turtles, seashells that were apprehended by Bureau of Customs last May 1.

Nakakahinayang po na hindi dumating ang aming main witness na si Mr. Exequiel Navarro and I had no other choice and recourse but to cite him for contempt. And later in the day, with the resolution signed by majority of the members, we will issue a subpoena for his attendance on Monday obviously if he does not attend, the subsequent arrest will order the sergeant at arms of the Senate to arrest him and bring him to the Senate for the continuous hearing on this investigation.

Siya po ang puwedeng magbigay ng liwanag dito sa ating investigation lalo na po sa kung sino ang mastermind at financier nitong sindikato ng pag illegal harvest nitong ating marine resources kaya't napakahalaga po na dumating si Mr. Navarro sa susunod na hearings natin dito sa Senado.

We also would like to remind our government agencies not to take this lightly, ang mga pinapadala nila dito ay mga underlings nila, ito po ay napakahalagang investigation. We had asked DA Sec Alcala and DENR Sec Paje to join us in the subsequent meetings together with the heads of different gov't agencies on law enforcement.

We must come out, aside from possible legislative remedies - amendments to laws, possible filing of cases, -- we must have a long term solution to stop this rape of our oceans and one of the long term solutions is to come up with an interagency task force. An interagency task force that ordered by the president, that will be headed by all these agencies, in particular to look for and run after poachers, individuals doing illegal maritime activities and rape of our seas. Hopefully we will have coastal marine management to set up marine rangers whose task is to apprehend these syndicates that are destroying our marine resources.

This is a matter of national security, this is economic sabotage, no question about it 'pagnaubos na po ang ating coral marine resources wala na pong pangingiitlogan ang ating mga isda, they will ran out of spawning grounds at mauubos po ang fish resources dito sa ating bansa and the ability to feed our coastal marine areas. Remember that many island communities need to fish to survive wala po silang agriculture, wala po sila lupang pagtatamnan ng mais, ng palay, ito po ang survival nitong mga island groups na ito at coastal communities. And if we destroy continiuously our marine biodiverse areas wala po tayong pagkain at kawawa po sila. This is a matter of national security due to its economic sabotage of large proportions.

DID MR. NAVARRO CONFIRM HIS ATTENDANCE?

According to my staff, nakausap po niya by phone kagabi si Mr. Navarro at ang sabi niya confirmed darating po siya at humingi pa nga po ng directions papunta sa senado pero this morning nakakalungkot dahil nagpadala po siya ng text message na hindi po siya makakapunta dahil na-stress daw po siya at naawa daw siya sa kaniyang mga pamilya at anak. Ang sabi ko naman po sa aking staff na sabihin sa kanya na we will give all the security and protection that he needs, we are not going to embarrass him here in the senate; we are going to ask for his assistance and cooperation. Dapat malaman nya kung gaano kahalaga itong ating marine coastal resources at kung makonsensya naman po siya ay ibanggit na po niya sa atin kung sino talaga itong financier at sindikato sa ilalim nitong paggagahasa ng ating karagatan.

The cargo documents are equally important because there's a paper trail but we have to verify these names on these cargo documents are actually authentic and not fictitious, may nangyari na po na fictitious ang mga addresses at hindi mahanap. So he is a key witness, he is a personality who had gone to the Bureau of Customs to retrieve these contraband, these illegal items.

(Are the document fictitious?) We will know by Monday, nangako po ang DTI, bibigyan kami ng addresses, pangalan nitong mga taong ito, we have teams now from PAWB, BFAR to go and make inspections to this particular localities.

Ako iyung author ng Wildlife Conservation Act, under CITES one (the most endangered list) dito bawal talaga ang trade, sale, export, import of this particular item. Iyung penalties nyan ay 12-20 years and fine is up to one million pesos. Same with Philippine eagle pag nahuli at piñata iyan din ang penalties, meron din sa fisheries code pero mas maliit. I would suggest to the bureau of customs and other agents in the fields to utilize the law with stiffer penalty.

Kailangan short term, medium term and long term measure - short term kailangan magsagawa tayo ng task force, magtulungan ang mga ahensya. Nagpapasalamat kami sa media kung hindi nyo ito napapansin kung hindi dahil sa inyo sigurado hindi ito magagawan ng ating mga higher ups in the executive department. Initially, the task force should be created, interagency together with maritime police, customs, coast guard, pawb, bfar and then medium term lagyan natin sila ng pondo, bala at ngipin at long term will be the legislation, the penalties etc.. mas matagal iyun eh.

We may need to amend the Wildlife Conservation Act, ako po author nuong ako po ay congressman, and we may need even increase the penalties and jail time because apparently it is not a deterrent... we will also request the SC na bilisan ang kanilang green courts.

Ang suggestion ko nga eh life imprisonment sa mga nagsasagawa nito, the collectors, poachers, financiers because again this is economic sabotage. Hindi na natin kayang pakainin ang ating kababayan at dumadami tayo, i believe we are already 100 million people so we need to feed our people.

Importante malaman natin saan barangay, localities ito na harvest. All these areas even Turtle Island meron barangay is part of Tawi Tawi so meron talagang LGU dyan at pag nalaman namin rest assured that we will ask and invite these LGU to attend and we will bear down on them and maybe accuse them of neglect.

We have a coastline that is twice as large as the United States but however we need to tap our LGUs kaya nga sa Batangas, Lian, Calatagan bantay na po iyan mahirap mag dynamite fishing dahil alam na ng community na iyan ay food source.. unfortunately there are areas in the PH na kulang pa ang kanilang pagmamahal at pag intindi sa halaga ng coastal resources na ito...dahil hindi sila nag dive eh, hindi sila scientists...

Magkakaroon tayo ng international legal team, so that's important interagency iyan, at ipaparating natin sa China, Vietnam, Taiwan the normal buyers of these products, including European Union, dahil isa sila sa buyers nitong coral resources.

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