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| DENR secretary-designate Gina Lopez |
Alyansa Tigil Mina supports Gina Lopez’s appointment as DENR chief
Alyansa Tigil Mina, a national coalition of mining-affected communities and their support groups, congratulates and extends its support to Gina Lopez as the secretary-designate of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. Her recent appointment by president-elect Rodrigo Duterte is a clear signal that change is indeed coming in the mining sector.
The alliance first worked with Ms. Lopez in 2011 after the death of Palawan broadcaster and anti-mining advocate Gerry Ortega sparked the formation of the Save Palawan Movement and its No to Mining in Palawan campaign. Ms. Lopez spearheaded these initiatives as managing director of the ABS-CBN Foundation. She has since become our ally in other campaigns not just on mining but also climate change and other social and environmental issues.
We have witnessed the dedication of Ms. Lopez in conserving our natural resources and her passion in championing sustainable livelihoods for the rural poor. We have seen the positive impacts of Ms. Lopez’s intervention not only in Palawan but also in other mining-affected communities in Zambales, Batangas, Romblon, Samar, South Cotabato and Surigao del Sur.
As a national coalition and also as a member of the broad Green Thumb Coalition of green groups, ATM will remain vigilant, particularly in the first 100 days of the new administration, in ensuring that the new top officials of the country will follow through on their promising stances and statements on mining.
We look forward to continuing our meaningful partnership with secretary-designate Lopez to protect communities, the environment, and natural resources from illegal and destructive practices or irresponsible companies. We are hopeful that with her at the helm of the DENR, and with Duterte himself as chief executive, the incoming administration would hear and act on our demands, particularly the repeal of RA 7942 or the Philippine Mining Act of 1995, the passage into law of the Alternative Minerals Management Bill, and an assessment of the implementation of Executive Order 79 in pursuit of mining reforms.
