TABUK CITY, Kalinga — A Catholic Church social action group has announced its support for the Balatoc indigenous community and downstream farmers in Kalinga province as they fight to protect their ancestral domain from expanding large-scale mining operations.

The Social Action Center of the Apostolic Vicariate of Tabuk said development projects must respect the rights of indigenous communities, specifically their right to free, prior and informed consent.

The Rev. Jeorge D. Masinem, director of the center, said downstream agricultural communities initially tolerated the Makilala Mining Co. Inc. project out of respect for the Balatoc tribe’s self-determination.

He said that tolerance depended entirely on explicit assurances that the mining operations would not harm the Pasil River, a major tributary of the Chico River system.

Masinem expressed deep concern over what he described as an aggressive push for additional large-scale mining by outside corporate interests, calling it an abuse of self-governance that disregards the safety of neighboring areas.

Tribal elders, landowners and small-scale miners recently signed a manifesto rejecting unauthorized corporate agreements.

The center cited that under the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act, ancestral domain and resource rights belong to the collective community rather than individual leaders or corporate factions. It raised alarms over reports that new agreements were executed without transparent, collective consensus.

Community opposition to the mining company intensified after petitions were filed with the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples seeking the cancellation of the firm’s mining permits.