On March 12, 2014, Preda Project officers – Roger Hermogino and Shawn Brooks with two foreign volunteers – Aliyah Hong and Patricia Fehrentz, went to Guiuan, Eastern Samar to distribute vegetable seeds particularly in the Island of Manicani as part of the assistance given to the victims of typhoon Yolanda. Manicani Island is about 45 minutes of boat ride from Guiuan. A total of 41 members in the village of Buenavista, 44 members in the village of Hamorawon and 37 members from the village of San Jose received assorted packets of vegetable seeds after a brief orientation about the Preda project in providing assistance to the Yolanda affected communities. 24 members of the Save Manicani Movement also received packets of seeds.
The team of Preda was welcomed by members of the Save Manicani Movement (SAMAMO) against the nickel mining industry that is operating on the island of Manicani. They organized the informal meetings having been informed that Preda is a partner of the Philippine Misereor Partnership, Inc. (PMPI). The members led by Mr. Marcial volunteered to guide the team as they went to visit villages to distribute seeds. All the beneficiaries were so thankful for the seeds came from a private organization and specially so after learning that the project is not part of the government support in providing seeds that they expected but were not delivered as of the present time. The farmer beneficiaries are still expecting corn seeds and coconut seedlings to replace the damaged coconut trees that are one of the sustainable sources of their family income. The concerned government agencies assured them with assistance to replace the coconut trees.
The Manicani Island is one of the Sites of Struggles (SOS) against mineral mining under the campaign intervention of the Philippine Misereor Partnership and the Alyansa Tigil Mina (Alliance against mining). The island is rich in Nickel. Mining exploration begun in 1989. Their struggle against mining was recently the subject of a documentary film after the son of the leader was killed in what appeared to be an accident while two other members were charged of murdering one of the mining engineers after a heated argument after the later cannot provide legal documents that allowed the mining operation.
The residents barricaded the entrance of the mining company with human shield. This was after the Philippine military dispersed the protest actions against the mining operation. The Save Manicani Movement was organized in 1990. From 1991 to 1992 the group was able to stop the mining operation but the company was able to operate again from 1992 to 1994. In 1997, the group started to stage more protest actions against mining company. In 2001, former DENR Secretary Heherson Alvarez suspended the mining operation after the son of one of the leaders against mining died after being hit by a dump truck of the mining company. In 2004, the newly elected Mayor requested the people to allow the mining to operate and extract 150,000 metric tons of nickel and vowed to end the mining operation thereafter. The Mayor brought military and police presence in the island because of the strong opposition by the majority of the people whose sustainable livelihood from copra production, vegetable farming and fishing is threatened. With the presence of the Philippine Military, the mining company forcibly continued mineral extraction on the island from November to December 6, 2004. Thereafter the people put up a permanent bunk house that can accommodate as many as 20 people as permanent barricade until typhoon Yolanda struck and damaged much of the crops and destroyed their fishing boats.
The island consists of only 1,500 hectares. It is unthinkable that mineral mining was allowed to flatten the hills and destroyed the livelihood of the farmers who rely mainly on agriculture and fishing. With the Alternative Mineral Management Bill, the island of Manicani may be one of the No-Mining zones being a small island with no other source of livelihood other than agriculture and fishing. End
