Water justice wanting — fishers

More than two years after the devastating oil spill in the Verde Island Passage (VIP), fisherfolk of Batangas and Oriental Mindoro provinces filed another demand letter with the International Oil Pollution Compensation Funds (IOPC) to seek justice and adequate compensation for damages they suffered.

On 28 February 2023, a tanker carrying 900,000 liters of oil sank off the coast of Naujan, Oriental Mindoro, causing a devastating oil spill.

The tanker, MT Princess Empress, owned by RDC Reield Marine Services Inc. and chartered by a subsidiary of San Miguel Corporation (SMC) and the disaster it caused was the subject of much investigation for months after.

“Justice remains elusive for fisherfolk whose lives and livelihoods suffered in the last two years due to the oil spill, and likely even for years to come. The several thousand received by some may indeed serve as reprieve, but is not enough to cover the full extent of damage, including lingering economic and ecological burdens —brought by the oil spill,” according to Father Edwin Gariguez, lead convenor of Protect VIP.

The cleric indicated that two years is long overdue. “We call on the IOPC, RDC Reield Marine Services Inc., SMC and its subsidiary, to give the affected fisherfolk the compensation that they deserve,” Father Edwin Gariguez, lead convenor of Protect VIP, said.

An independent study by think-tank Center for Energy, Ecology, and Development (CEED) estimated at least P41.2 billion worth of socio-economic and environmental damages were inflicted on Filipinos due to the oil spill.

Communities near the disaster zone still lament the insufficient compensation provided by the IOPC. Accounts from affected fisherfolk show that they still experience a significant decline in fish catch.

Compensation not enough

“Not everyone has been compensated yet, and if there are any, they are really very few and were just used to pay off debts. It is not enough for the time we lost our income, especially since, even though it has been two years since the oil spill, our catch has still not returned to what it was before. We, the fishermen, can still really feel the impact of the oil spill, so we hope that we will finally be given adequate compensation,” Aldrin Villanueva, president of Koalisyon ng mga Mangingisda Apektado ng Oil Spill (KMAOS), said.

Oil spill-affected marine protected areas (MPAs) in the VIP failed the water quality guidelines set by the DENR for oil and grease based on independent studies by think tank Center for Energy, Ecology and Development (CEED) in 2024.

“In the absence of holistic and sustained rehabilitation programs, and with no new stringent measures to restrict threats of marine pollution in the VIP, it’s reasonable to be concerned that affected MPAs could still be hosting alarming levels of oil and grease, and remain vulnerable to other pollutants. MPAs host the highest concentration of marine species and serve as critical breeding grounds for aquatic organisms. Lingering effects of the oil spill may continue to put marine life and the ecosystem integrity of the VIP at risk,” Ivan Andres, deputy head of research and policy of CEED, said.

The groups state they are constrained to pursue any further necessary legal actions that can assure justice for affected communities and the VIP.

“As we stand in solidarity with the affected fisherfolk in Oriental Mindoro, we call on IOPC and the polluters to take responsibility for the damages they have incurred to the fisherfolk communities and the damaged marine ecosystem in the VIP,” according to Gariguez.

“We will continue to fight until all the fisherfolk are rightfully compensated, polluters are held accountable, and the VIP is given stronger protection to prevent such disasters in the future,” he added.