Keeping Marinduquenos in the dark

Marcopper photo attributed to Catherine Coumans

We, Marinduquenos, should never forget that Marcopper Mining Corporation never paid property taxes to the Provincial Government of Marinduque from the time they operated the mines in 1969 up to the time the mine closed down in 1996, due to the environmental disaster that transpired then. Recent estimate of tax obligations to the province of Marinduque now amounts to approximately Php 1-Billion (ca $25-million). Read

A year after the accident, Placer Dome sold all shares and by 1999 the large cleanup project on their hands brought about by the disaster would cost about $60-million (Coumans 1999). That does not include estimates for the repair of the abandoned earth dams that continue to pose threats to lives and property, estimates for damages caused the ecosystems of Mogpog River, Calancan Bay and affected coastal areas. Neither does it include estimates for just compensation for Marinduquenos in general, nor for those filed by various claimants in Marinduque and Manila courts for damages caused by the pollution of Mogpog River and Calancan Bay.

There was that $12-million in escrow that was supposed to have been deposited by Placer Dome in a bank in Hongkong “known only to select government and Marcopper officials”. Read. The said money was supposed to “expire” by 2007, and nothing has been disclosed about the fate of those funds since then.

But really, Marcopper’s operation has been characterized by a long history of keeping secret  from the people of Marinduque, matters of critical importance to them. Previous attempts to sit down to pinpoint responsibilities through Congressional inquiries in those years merely confirmed the lingering suspicion in people’s minds that nothing, nothing positive could come out of a case that has been characterized by extreme confidentiality. If at all, only more shock and disbelief could possibly ensue.

So, this non-disclosure game and treachery that haunt us till now that, absolutely have kept us, Marinduquenos, in the dark on issues pertaining to this 17-year old problem.