HONOR OUR HEROES, DEFEND OUR LAND: NO TO PAX SILICA!

On National Heroes Day, Indigenous Peoples, environmental advocates, church workers, human rights defenders, and other concerned sectors launched the NO (Network Opposed) to Pax Silica Alliance to reject the US-led Pax Silica Initiative and defend ancestral lands, national sovereignty, and the rights of communities.

KATRIBU Kalipunan ng Katutubong Mamamayan ng Pilipinas joined Ayta communities directly affected by the planned Pax Silica development in Capas, Tarlac, and other groups in launching the alliance. KATRIBU, one of the alliance’s convenors, joined fellow convenors Tanggol Ayta at Residente para sa Lupa at Kabuhayan (TARLAK); Mansaway! Para sa Lupang Ninuno, Pagpapasya sa Sarili, Kabuhayan, at Karapatan!; ALAB (Advocates for Land, Ancestral Rights, and Biodiversity) Against Pax Silica; and Atty. Tony La Viña in the activity.

Through Pax Silica, Marcos Jr. and Trump administrations further open Philippine territory and resources to US-led economic and geopolitical interests. The Philippines is being integrated into US-led supply chains for semiconductors, artificial intelligence, logistics, energy, and critical minerals under a proposed 1,619-hectare “Economic Security Zone.” The planned artificial intelligence and industrial hub in Capas threatens land conversion, displacement, and militarization, placing Ayta communities and their ancestral lands at greater risk and further undermining Indigenous Peoples’ rights, including their right to free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC).

Furthermore, Pax Silica, together with the Luzon Economic Corridor (LEC), a US-Japan-Philippines initiative spanning the Subic-Clark-Manila-Batangas corridor, advances foreign economic interests rather than genuine national industrialization. These initiatives are designed to secure profits for foreign corporations, strengthen US economic dominance in the Asia-Pacific, and turn the Philippines into a low-cost production and logistics base serving US strategic interests.

These economic projects also go hand in hand with the expanding US military presence in the country through EDCA sites, Balikatan exercises, and joint military operations. The conversion of strategic territories into industrial and logistics hubs further complements the use of Philippine lands for foreign military activities. For Indigenous Peoples, this means the continuing militarization of ancestral lands and communities in the name of so-called development and security.

KATRIBU rejects the Marcos Jr. government’s portrayal of Pax Silica as an opportunity for national development. Pax Silica does not serve the Filipino people. It deepens foreign control over the country’s economy, resources, and strategic territories while placing Indigenous Peoples and other communities at the frontlines of displacement and militarization.

On National Heroes Day, KATRIBU calls on Filipinos to draw inspiration from the heroes who fought for freedom and sovereignty by standing with Indigenous Peoples and other communities defending their lands and rights. The struggle for national sovereignty continues in the fight against foreign control, the sellout of ancestral lands, and the use of Philippine territory for the interests of the US and foreign corporations.

Reference:

Beverly Longid National Convener

KATRIBU Kalipunan ng Katutubong Mamamayan ng Pilipinas