Protest caravan vs. San Roque Dam slated tomorrow

MANILA, Philippines – Militant group Bayan and other non-government organizations will kick off a protest caravan and signature campaign tomorrow (Nov. 5) calling for the decommissioning of San Roque Dam in Pangasinan province.

Bayan secretary general Renato Reyes Jr. said they blamed executives of the San Roque Dam for the massive flooding during typhoon “Pepeng.”

The caravan, to be participated by about a dozen vehicles, will travel from Quezon City to Pangasinan then up to Baguio City. 

The convoy of protesters and relief goods hopes to enter Pangasinan before lunch and move around towns affected by flooding. 

"We join the people of Pangasinan in their call for the decommissioning of the dam. To this day, no one has been held accountable for the massive flooding that submerged 38 towns in a matter of hours. Officials from the Napocor and San Roque Power Corporation seem to be off the hook for now," Reyes said. 

Aside from Bayan, scientist group AGHAM, environmental group Kalikasan, the Health Alliance for Democracy, Anakbayan and the Promotion of Church Peoples Response will be participating in the caravan. 

The groups will also take up the issue of large-scale foreign mining during the trip to Baguio City. The continuous presence of large-scale mining operation has been blamed for the landslides that hit many communities such as Itogon and Mankayan. 

The groups will also distribute relief goods in Baguio and other provinces in the landslide-battered Cordillera region. - By Dennis Carcamo (Philstar News Service, www.philstar.com)