Petition of 62 organizations headed by Cáritas. P. Gariguez: “Recognizing the rights of nature means recognizing and honoring the environmental rights of human beings.” A survey reveals that 17% of Filipinos have personally experienced the effects of climate change “severely” in the last three years.
Manila () – The Movement for the Rights of Nature in the Philippines – a consortium made up of religiously-inspired NGOs and environmental movements – has declared a climate emergency in the country. The coalition has also called on the Manila government to pass legislation to ensure that ecosystems, rivers and trees can survive and thrive by recognizing the “rights of nature.” The petition comes just as the Philippines is facing the serious environmental disaster caused by the sinking of the oil tanker MT Princess Empire off the island of Mindoro.
Caritas Philippines is spearheading the campaign in collaboration with Misereor. The 62 member organizations held a three-day general assembly from March 21-23 in Quezon City, near Manila, on the theme “Cultivating the path towards recognition of the rights of nature in the Philippines.”
In 2019, a proposal to regulate the rights of nature was submitted to the Philippine Congress for the first time. Senator Risa Hontiveros relaunched the initiative in July 2022, with a bill in the Senate. In February, Arnan Panaligan, representative of the 1st district of Oriental Mindoro, Joey Salceda, representative of the 2nd district of Albay, and Edgar Chatto, representative of the 1st district of Bohol, presented measures related to the rights of nature for debate in the House Low.
The Agos River became a protected area in 2022, after the local government of Infanta (Quezon province) presented the first national law on the rights of nature.
The federation of environmental groups, the Caritas social action networks, and the diocesan centers for social development promote the “Rights of Nature,” a concept whose core is the need to address the dysfunctional economic system and modern legal, social, and social structures. , political and cultural that are destroying people and the planet.
“Recognizing the rights of nature,” said Fr. Edwin Gariguez, former director of Caritas Philippines, “means recognizing and honoring the environmental rights of human beings. This means that human activities and development must not interfere with the ecosystems’ ability to absorb their effects, regenerate their natural capacities, thrive and evolve.Demands that those responsible – including corporate actors – take full responsibility for negative impacts on Earth’s systems.”
“We recognize the gravity of the situation and the urgent need for collective action to mitigate the negative effects of climate change,” said Mark T. Panalver, Executive Director of Interfacing Development Interventions for Sustainability. Panalver urged government officials to “go beyond the bare minimum on climate talks and tracking targets, and urgently support climate justice by halting projects that are environmentally destructive and focused on profit.” In addition, it calls for “providing our communities with self-determination to be able to adapt to climate change.”
“The time has come to declare a climate emergency, acknowledging the fact that humanity and the entire ecosystem are on the verge of collapse if immediate and strategic measures are not taken to reduce or halt climate change and avoid potentially irreversible impacts,” he added. for his part, Bishop Cosme R. Almedilla, of the Diocese of Butuan.
A recent survey by Social Weather Stations (SWS) revealed that 93% of Filipinos have personally experienced the effects of climate change in the past three years. 17% of those surveyed affirm that the effects have even been “serious” on a personal level. Finally, 76% of those surveyed maintain that, if humanity worked hard, it could stop or slow down climate change.
