Court orders arrest of protesters blocking Nueva Vizcaya mining road

A regional trial court has ordered the arrest of activists using a human barricade to block a road leading to a Woogle Corp. mining exploration site in Nueva Vizcaya province.

In an order dated 19 January, Regional Trial Court Branch 30 Presiding Judge Paul Attolba Jr. directed court sheriffs and the Philippine National Police to arrest any person obstructing Keon Barangay Road.

The court stated the move was necessary to “compel obedience to a lawful order” and prevent the escalation of hostilities.

This follows a 6 January preliminary injunction that prohibited Florentino Daynos and other defendants from maintaining physical barricades at the site. Although a gate was removed, court sheriffs reported that protesters subsequently formed a human chain, forcing officials to suspend enforcement as tensions rose.

Attolba described the human barricade as a “patent act of disobedience” and a circumvention of judicial authority.

“Any act intended to thwart, defeat, or render inutile the lawful orders of the court constitute defiance of judicial authority and tends to bring the administration of justice into disrepute,” the court stated.

The legal dispute involves the application of the Philippine Mining Act. The court determined that a trial on disputed facts was not required to issue the arrest order based on existing records and pleadings.

The court also authorized police to initiate criminal proceedings against individuals who continue to defy the writ.