On May 27, we celebrate the 17th anniversary of the Presidential Proclamation of Tañon Strait as a protected seascape. Tañon Strait is a unique global natural heritage which every Filipino should feel privileged to be part of. It is the home of a wide array of fishes, half of the entire species of whales and dolphins found in our archipelago and rich mangroves, corals and sea grass beds, not to forget that it is the primary source of livelihood for our coastal residents, now facing the ravages of climate change and heavily polluted waters.
Tañon Strait attracts local and foreign tourists and divers and hosts popular diving sites in Bantayan Island, Pescador Island, Moalboal and Malapascua in Cebu and Mantalip Reef in Bindoy, Negros Oriental and thriving ecotourism programs in Aloguinsan and Bais, among so many others.
It is considered the biggest marine protected area (MPA) in the Philippines spanning 521,018 hectares, dividing Cebu and Negros provinces. Branded as the most challenging of all MPAs and as the Tañon Declaration crafted by stakeholders noted, it is “overfished, its waters are threatened with pollution from poorly regulated industries and sewage, and its habitats are getting degraded by destructive fishing practices and poorly managed development projects.” In other words, lousy governance and inconsistent policies are big issues in the protected seascape.
The challenges may be attributed to the overlapping jurisdiction of the national government, two administrative regions (Regions 6 and 7), the provinces of Cebu, Negros Oriental and Negros Occidental, 42 coastal cities and municipalities, and 298 barangays. Imagine having to deal with the sensitivities and values of each local chief executive from each component local government unit, some of whom chose to abdicate the clear shared responsibility of protecting our seas. As a result, there was, and still is, a weak implementation of our otherwise progressive laws and, for 16 years, the lack of a road map to guide stakeholders, the General Management Plan (GMP).
This year, however, there is a compelling reason to celebrate its anniversary. The organizers from the government and civil society managed to do what was seen as next to impossible – convening the first-ever general assembly of the managing body, the Tañon Strait Protected Area Management Board back-to-back with a Stakeholders’ Summit participated in by almost 400 engaged citizens, and the passage of the GMP subject to refinements and approval of the DENR Secretary. The solutions to the challenges were consolidated in the Tañon Declaration now uploaded in the website created for Tañon Strait stakeholders, www.tanonstrait.org.
The convergence of stakeholders are reinvigorated and the Environmental Rule of Law strengthened by two recent positive developments: the Supreme Court decision declaring as unconstitutional the service contract which allowed the destructive oil drilling in Tañon Strait and the enactment of the empowering amended Fisheries Code against illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing through RA 10654.
The continuing lack of political will by some LGUs to protect our seas, our people’s livelihood and our lives is best illustrated by the proposal of the Toledo city government to dump and cover 11 hectares of its coastlines and sensitive and threatened marine habitats, species and displace the fisherfolk. Toledo City is part of Tañon Strait.
Engaged members of Knight Stewards of the Sea Inc., popularly known as Sea Knights, and Save Tañon Strait Citizens Movement (who successfully fought the Tañon oil drilling) voluntarily offered their expertise to assess visually the state of the waters of Toledo City portion of Tañon Strait. The membership of this highly respected organization consists of diving priests, biologists, lawyers, doctors, young professionals, police, public servants, accountants and entrepreneurs who share the collective passion of protecting our marine resources.
Through a letter, they notified the pertinent authorities of its planned activity on May 23. While the DENR, Coast Guard, Oceana (a disclosure: I am the vice president) and barangay Poblacion supported and participated in the endeavor, the City Hall did not only respond, a duty mandated by RA 9485, the Anti-Red Tape Act and other accountability laws, it ordered the pullout of the diving team, according to the policemen who were ordered to do so.
The act was not only most unfortunate. It was a brazen abuse of authority, meant to harass, vex and chill the participation of citizens in decision-making who wanted to show government proof of a marine life still existing despite its degraded state. It also revealed an utter lack of respect for the staff of government agencies, who were performing the mandates of their office.
The intervention of political authorities in the exercise of the government agencies’ mandates of environmental protection and to ensure that the rights of the people to a healthful and balanced ecology are not impaired, demands a full-blown investigation, and, if necessary, holding them accountable. We urge the immediate investigation of this gross travesty of the rights of the citizens and civil servants who did their job.
The journey of restoring the beauty and bounty of Tañon Strait is arduous but the determination and active participation of the Cebuanos and Negrenses can spell the big difference. We need more champions of our oceans.
Nature counts on you to protect her.
Will you?
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