Filipinos fight for justice, environment and IP rights

By Fr. Shay Cullen

There is chaos in the Philippine Senate, a once-revered chamber of Congress where the rule of law was established and upheld. Now, its reputation has been tarnished after shots were fired there and Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, former president Rodrigo Duterte’s first police chief and primary enforcer of his bloody war on drugs, escaped its premises more than a week ago to avoid being arrested for crimes against humanity on a warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC). His escape was allegedly facilitated by some of his Senate allies.

Brave Filipinos who have witnessed numerous killings have come forward to fight for justice and testify, many of them family members of that drug war’s victims. They found the courage to speak out despite threats from the allies of the former president, who is set to go on trial at the ICC in The Hague, the Netherlands. His daughter, Vice President Sara Duterte, has been impeached again and is also set to face trial in the Senate.

Other investigations into alleged corruption by politicians and their cronies continue in Congress after billions of pesos were allocated to flood-control projects that were later discovered to be nonexistent. A former Department of Public Works and Highways district engineer in Bulacan has testified, while a former public works undersecretary has agreed to turn state witness. A former Bulacan assistant district engineer has come forward to admit that projects were overpriced or nonexistent. Private contractors involved in flood-control operations have given explosive testimonies, naming numerous lawmakers and other public officials seeking payoffs. A whistleblower has provided critical evidence of cash-filled suitcases delivered to top political figures.

They all have revealed the extent of the corruption in Philippine politics, as most legislators are members of families belonging to the ruling elite. They are members of a disgustingly rich oligarchy living in luxury and ruling a nation that has 12 to 15 dollar-billionaires and over 12,800 dollar-millionaires. They could help change the country’s poverty index if they would only share their wealth and use it to make life happier and less painful, as well as help end suffering and injustice, and protect the environment and human rights. They also could offer a life of decency and social development to the hundreds of thousands of workers in their companies.

In the Gospel of Saint Matthew, there is a story about a rich, young man who came to Jesus of Nazareth and asked him how he could gain eternal life. Jesus told him to live a virtuous life and obey the commandments, which the man claimed he did. Then Jesus saw he was a wealthy man and did not condemn him for being so, but advised him to “sell his possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” (Mt 19:21).

Jesus wanted all people to have good food and adequate homes, education, and prosperity. That no one should live in poverty and go hungry is a vital message of his. To help them is to be one with Jesus himself, he said. (Mt 25:31–46).

Poor, hungry Filipinos

The oligarchy has created a nation with many poor and hungry families. The official poverty rate is 15.5 percent of the population. This translates to about 17.54 million Filipinos living in dire poverty. But as many as 58.62 million Filipinos rate themselves as poor. They live in slums and shanty towns. They struggle to feed their children. This inequality is a great social injustice and indicates a failure of both the ruling elites controlling the government and of the Church that has failed in its mission to challenge the roots of poverty in the structural injustice that plagues the nation.

Do these rich families making up the oligarchy have a conscience, knowing right from wrong, good from bad, and are they always choosing what’s right and good? With 58.62 Filipinos going hungry every day, they are clearly choosing to ignore this dire situation.

Jesus said that unless the rich share their wealth with the poor, it would be extremely difficult for them to enter the Kingdom of God. That sharing has to go beyond handouts. It means working with honest people and social movements to change the structural injustice, inequality and corruption that allows the greedy rich to become even more so. It’s almost impossible for them to change, like putting a rope through the eye of a needle, Jesus said. We would need many miracles for that to happen. But faith in God and in Jesus tells us to work for good and oppose evil and bring justice to people. As Saint James once said, “faith without action is dead.”

Dedicated Christians are taking action, doing great deeds and protecting the environment and people from exploitation. The Haribon Foundation and World Wildlife Fund-Philippines have planted many native trees. These nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) work directly with Indigenous people (IP) to secure land stewardship and sustainably map forests. Brave and committed Filipinos in these NGOs, including Alyansa Tigil Mina and Climate Rights International, record corporate violations, host protests, and demand a halt to mining in key biodiversity areas and island ecosystems. They are taking a stand and putting themselves at risk in their work against large-scale nickel, gold, and copper mining in sensitive ecological areas like Palawan and the Caraga region that cause massive soil erosion, severe river siltation, and toxic acid mine drainage. May their voices be heard and heeded.

Climate action networks, including Aksyon Klima Pilipinas and the Center for Environmental Concerns, strongly protest the government’s 2026 environmental budget cuts and push back against new fossil fuel plants. These NGOs deploy decentralized, off-grid solar and micro-hydro microgrids directly to remote island communities, bringing a new lease on life to them. They also run educational campaigns to accelerate the transition to localized renewable energy. Some install solar panels on buildings to help mitigate climate change. Coalitions like the EcoWaste Coalition and Greenpeace Philippines fiercely campaign against the construction of incinerators and advocate for a total ban on single-use plastics. We are all challenged to become involved to end poverty and injustice and make the Philippines a happier, more just and prosperous nation for its people.