MANILA (UCAN): Bishop Jose Elmer Mangalinao of Bayombong, in the northern Philippine province of Nueva Vizcaya, condemned the violent dispersal of an anti-mining barricade and called for accountability after police forcibly removed residents opposing mining exploration in Dupax del Norte.
The January 23 operation, conducted under a preliminary injunction from Judge Paul R. Attolba Jr., resulted in seven arrests and allowed mining equipment into the area.
“Enough is enough,” the bishop said, adding, “Let us now raise our voices louder and demand accountability.”
Bishop Mangalinao issued a statement following the action at Purok Keon, Bitnong village, where authorities dismantled physical and human barricades that residents had maintained since September 2025 to block the exploration activities of the Woggle Mining Corporation.
The bishop said the events left many with “a mix of emotions—of compassion, discouragement, anger, and also questions.”
It is painful to see the suffering of our brothers and sisters at the barricade—simple citizens and farmers who only want to defend their life and livelihood, their land
Bishop Mangalinao
He described protesters as farmers and residents defending their land and livelihood.
“It is painful to see the suffering of our brothers and sisters at the barricade—simple citizens and farmers who only want to defend their life and livelihood, their land,” he said.
He found it disheartening that residents, after months of hardship at the barricade, were further harmed by recent events.
Bishop Mangalinao criticised what he described as the lack of response from authorities, saying that despite repeated appeals to those in power and petitions before the courts, residents were met with “silence, indifference, and favouritism toward [the] Woggle Mining Corporation.”
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The bishop questioned whether police acted impartially during the operation and urged them to provide “an honest assessment” of the incident. He pressed regulators to address alleged irregularities in the mining permit, demanding transparency in their actions.
In a direct appeal, Bishop Mangalinao said he was praying for Attolba, the judge who issued the injunction in favour of the mining company.
The bishop questioned whether police acted impartially during the operation and urged them to provide ‘an honest assessment’ of the incident
“We pray that your heart and mind may be enlightened so that you may be an instrument not only of human justice but even more of God’s justice,” he said, adding that judicial authority is “only entrusted by God” and should be exercised for “true justice for the oppressed.”
Nueva Vizcaya, in northern Luzon’s Caraballo and Sierra Madre ranges, has long faced mining-related conflict. Local farming communities have raised concerns about water security, land stability, and food production.
Community groups draw parallels with earlier disputes in Kasibu and Quezon, where large-scale mining triggered protests, court cases, and environmental damage claims.
The Woggle Mining Corporation, exploring in Bitnong, is reportedly affiliated with British mining firm Metals Exploration Plc.
Human rights and environmental groups said the arrests following the injunction raise serious legal concerns.
Ryan Roset, senior legal fellow of the Legal Rights and Natural Resources Centre, said the cases filed by Woggle constitute “a clear Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation against environmental human rights defenders exercising their constitutionally guaranteed rights.”
The Woggle Mining Corporation, exploring in Bitnong, is reportedly affiliated with British mining firm Metals Exploration Plc
The Alyansa Tigil Mina group condemned what it described as excessive police force during the dismantling of the barricade, citing reports of a large police deployment to clear residents opposing Woggle’s entry.
Human rights groups Karapatan [rights] and Hustisya [justice] also condemned the arrests and called for the immediate release of the seven protesters, saying they were punished for peaceful resistance.
Environmental coalition, Kalikasan People’s Network for the Environment, protested outside the Department of Environment and Natural Resources [DENR] in Quezon City, on January 23, denouncing the agency’s complicity in Dupax del Norte mining.
“This barricade is not illegal—it is a people’s defense against plunder, destruction, and dispossession,” said Jonila Castro of Kalikasan.
Castro called it “a clear case of state-backed corporate plunder,” stating DENR’s decisions had immediate consequences for communities defending land and livelihood.
Kalikasan said the court order reflected a broader pattern of harassment against communities opposing mining, linked to the Marcos Jr. administration’s push for extractive projects.
Bishop Mangalinao urged residents to remain steadfast: “Even if our barricade has been dismantled, what we are fighting for has not.”
