UN warns Philippines over 'massive' impact of military ops on Lumads in Mindanao

MANILA, Philippines — Two United Nations experts have warned the Philippines over what they call “massive” impact of military operations on indigenous people in Mindanao, with the extension of martial law for another year seen to escalate militarization in the southern region.

In a statement dated December 27, UN special rapporteurs Victoria Tauli-Corpuz and Cecilia Jimenez-Damary said the ongoing militarization in Mindanao has “massive and potentially irreversible” impact on human rights of some Lumads.

“Thousands of Lumads have already been forcibly displaced by the conflict and have seen their houses and livelihoods destroyed,” the UN experts said.

“We fear the situation could deteriorate further if the extension of martial law until the end of 2018 results in even greater militarization,” they added.

According to Corpuz and Damary, they were particularly alarmed by figures suggesting 2,500 Lumads had been displaced since October.

“The very culture and ways of life of indigenous peoples are intimately entwined with their ancestral lands and environments,” they said.

“Forcing indigenous peoples to leave their homes has an incalculable impact on their very lives and ways of living – one that risks erasing their culture and existence from the heritage of the Philippines, eventually forever,” they added.

They also expressed concern over reports that Lumad farmers had allegedly been killed by military forces on December 3 in Barangay Ned in the province of South Cotabato.

“The Government of the Philippines must ensure that military personnel do not engage in violations of the human rights of indigenous peoples,” the special rapporteurs said.

“We urge the Philippines to observe its obligations under international law to protect the human rights of indigenous peoples, including in the context of armed conflict,” they added.

With 240-27 vote at a joint session, it took Congress less than half a day to approve President Rodrigo Duterte’s request to extend martial law in Mindanao until Dec. 31, 2018 to defeat jihadist militants and communist rebels operating there.

Last month, Duterte signed a proclamation declaring the Communist Party of the Philippines and its armed-wing, the New People's Army, as terrorist organizations. 

The declaration, which came after a breakdown of peace talks following a series of guerrilla attacks, had raised concerns among activists in the national democratic movement that legitimate organizations could be targeted as supporters of terrorism.

Membership in or support of a national democratic activist organization does not mean joining the CPP or its armed unit.

Meanwhile, Duterte earlier threatened to bomb Lumad schools that he said were run by communists to influence the youth to rebel against the government.

“We fear that some of these attacks are based on unfounded suspicions that Lumads are involved with militant groups or in view of their resistance to mining activities on their ancestral lands,” Corpuz and Damary said.

The national democratic movement believes that imperialism, a feudal agricultural system and "bureaucrat capitalism" has kept most of the Philippines poor despite the country being rich in natural resources.

Early this month, advocacy group PAN Asia Pacific reported that the Philippines recorded the highest number of killings related to land conflicts and struggles in 2017 amid a government crackdown on rural communities.