To demand climate justice is to fight against corruption

A popular quote thrown around to inspire the youth is Jose Rizal’s ‘Ang kabataan ang pag-asa ng bayan,’ but what will the youth do if there is no future to hope for—no planet to call home?

By Viggo Sarmago and Marty Apuhin

MANILA — The Philippines has had a longstanding problem of climate injustice: from constant flash floods where masses are displaced and lose their homes, to attacks against indigenous groups and land grabs in the face of corporate interest. On top of these, environmental defenders and climate activists continue to face state-sponsored violence as systems fail to protect their human rights.

Following 53 years since the declaration of Martial law, the youth rally to commemorate the historic event and continue to forge their futures, dismantling a system designed to merely benefit the ruling elite.

Last September 21, thousands of farmers, workers, indigenous peoples, cyclists and bikers, and environment advocates marched from Kalaw Avenue to Mendiola Street, in protest against the rampant corruption terrorizing the country. Following anomalies in flood control projects, many expressed their disdain of the system, politicians, and contractors complicit in the crime.

Environmental defender and vegan advocate carries a plush toy pig with the call to ‘Love Pigs, Hate Fascists, Go Vegan!’ Beyond encouraging individuals to change their diets to be more environmentally friendly, the protestor makes a bold statement to love pigs and hate fascists, a reference to likening cops as ‘pigs’ and fascists. Photo by Marty Apuhin

At the rally, Youth Advocates for Climate Justice Philippines (YACAP) condemned the long history of climate injustice exacerbated by the Marcos Jr. administration, demanding pro-people and pro-environmental policies for a genuine sustainable future.

YACAP presented an uncomfortable truth: the earth and its people are vulnerable to corruption.

Exemplified by subpar flood control infrastructure and destructive disasters intensified by human activities, urban and rural poor communities have endured decades of displacement as a consequence of state negligence.

Rachelle Junsay, National Coordinator YACAP, explained in Filipino, “We are here today not just to commemorate 53 years since the Martial law of Marcos Sr., but also to demand accountability from corrupt practices and demand system change.”

She believes that corruption has stolen the future of the youth, “As a climate advocate and a youth myself, what this government stole from me was a safe, healthy, and sustainable future—because as long as they continue to destroy the environment and they continue to use the taxes of the country to silence the Filipinos—they are ruining the future that the youth will inherit.”

Junsay explained how the flood control anomalies are manifestations of the rotten bureaucrat-capitalist system in which the rich profit off from calamities that drown the masses.

Pet Corgi Maple (@doggo_on_the_go) and her owner biked from Quezon City Hall to Luneta park to bark in solidarity with protestors against corruption. Maple carries a sign that says ‘Babala: Nangangagat ng mga Korap!’ (Warning: this dog bites corrupt people!) Photo by Marty Apuhin

But it’s not just physical spaces that are being plundered.

For David D’Angelo, National Chairperson of the Green Party of the Philippines, the mishandling of billions of funds is downright disrespectful as it deprives the poorest of the poor communities from resources that could save their lives, The honor of the Bulakenyos was stolen as it’s the province of heroes, so too was the peace of mind of the Bulakenyos which was submerged in floods. Then it turns out, billions and billions were allocated to flood control, but all that money went to the wrong places.”

Barangay Panginay, D’Angelo’s community in Bulacan, is home to one of the most infamous ‘ghost’ flood control projects contracted by Wawao Builders.

He explained how corruption robs the peace of mind of Bulakenyos, how almost every day, rain quickly floods the communities who are aware that the billions of pesos supposed to mitigate the disasters were stolen and put in the pockets of politicians and contractors.

D’Angelo explains that billions of the Department of Public Works and Highways’s (DPWH) budget was allocated to climate adaptation—funds which only amount to substandard infrastructure, if any at all.

“If the budget is with DPWH and it’s missing, it means that our climate adaptation means nothing. Nothing will happen because the budget continues to get stolen,” he said.

“It’s a big climate injustice to the poor and to the next generation,” D’Angelo expressed.

When communities are deprived of resources, peoples’ livelihoods suffer.

For the fishermen of Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (PAMALAKAYA) like Aaron Escarial, corruption destroys his dignity and that of his people.

“What the government is doing is not humane nor caring for the environment—the government is rotten because of the system it encourages,” he told Bulatlat in Filipino.

In Navotas, reclamation projects have threatened fisherfolks’ source of income by walling off the mussel farms in the area—supposedly to make way for massive infrastructure projects like highways. These development projects destroy communities, making them vulnerable to flooding and storm surges, cursing the locals to environmental destruction.

Yet while fisherfolk communities across the nation struggle to survive at the hands of so-called ‘development’ projects, the elite continue to steal billions of pesos from the taxes of working Filipinos.

A group of protestors march to Luneta, chanting for change and accountability from government institutions in corrupt practices and the silencing of climate activists. A man holds up a sign that says ‘Defend Environmental Defenders.’ Photo by Marty Apuhin

Escarial reiterated the calls of the fishermen, “If these failed flood control projects continue, then the state of education for the youth and the livelihood of fisherfolks really won’t be fixed. That’s why we echo our fight as PAMALAKAYA to stop all these destructive projects […] and continue our call as fishermen to expose, demand accountability, and jail those in the government who steal.”

The protests in Luneta and in Mendiola were more than just a simple commemoration of Martial law: they were a culmination of years’ worth of frustrations towards the state’s denial to serve the environment and the violence they inflict against environmentalists. The anger that echoed in the streets were voices that longed to be heard—only to be criminalized and silenced.

And while those in the government continue to point fingers at each other, it is truly the masses who take action in fighting against the faces of corruption and the system that enables it. (RTS, RVO)