This is written in response to the allegations of Conchita Descarga, a self-styled “Dumagat-Agta leader” of Barangay (village) Calabgan, Casiguran, Aurora (“Lies about Aurora ecozone,” Opinion, 5/23/14).
The bad news, according to Kelvin Rodolfo (he who made “lahar” a household term after the eruptions of Mount Pinatubo), is that Supertyphoon “Yolanda” was neither the first nor the last of such weather disturbances to cross our borders.
One hundred twenty residents of Casiguran—representing at least 2,983 families coming from different sectors such as the farmers, indigenous peoples and fisherfolk—are marching 370 kilometers from Casiguran, Aurora, to Malacañang Palace, in order to highlight their opposition, long voiced by the local communities of Casiguran, to the Aurora ecozone. They will arrive in Manila today, Dec. 10, 2012, and will be welcomed by students from UP, Ateneo and Miriam. Fr. Jett Villarin, SJ, president of Ateneo, will celebrate Mass for them at 7 p.m. at the Church of the Gesu, Ateneo de Manila University, Quezon City.
