BAGUIO CITY — Members of an Indigenous community from Kalinga province petitioned the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) regional office Wednesday, demanding the immediate cancellation of a large-scale mining project within their ancestral domain.

Representatives from the Balatoc Indigenous cultural community in Pasil, Kalinga, submitted formal petitions and resolutions opposing operations by the Makilala Mining Company Inc.

The group seeks the revocation of the company’s mineral production sharing agreement and its certification precondition. Similar petitions were previously filed with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

The petitioners argued that the mining agreement, approved in March 2024, violates the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act because it was issued six months before the NCIP granted its certification precondition in September 2024.

Under Philippine law, the free, prior, and informed consent of Indigenous communities must be secured before any mining concessions are approved or operations begin.

The community cited Supreme Court jurisprudence holding that prior compliance with these rules is a matter of strict public policy.

Community leaders and youth groups also accused the mining firm of using deceptive tactics and forging signatures to manufacture consent for a 2022 memorandum of agreement.

The petitioners alleged that the project has brought militarization, red-tagging and private armed personnel into the area, creating an environment of fear that disrupts traditional tribal governance and local peace pacts.

The opposition letters highlighted severe environmental and social concerns. Residents expressed fear that large-scale mining would cause widespread environmental degradation, including deforestation, soil erosion and the pollution or drying up of the Pasil and Chico river basins.