Message of MGen.
Arthur I. Tabaquero during the signing of Manifesto Against Violence
September
10, 2009
I have a motive for
being here with you this afternoon. I am here to ask you to awaken a
sense of urgency against the escalating level of violence in this
region. If we want to push our region forward, we have no time to
waste. There are things we need to do and we must do them now. This
sense of urgency is not fueled by fear or panic. Instead it means
being vigilant and prepared for anything that might happen, not only
for us but also for our family members and fellow Samarnons. It pushes
us to reject those who hinder us from moving forward.
It is a matter of
utmost urgency that we end the prevalence and abuses being committed
by the CPP/NPA, private armed groups, organized crime groups, drug
syndicates and other criminal elements not tomorrow, not next month
nor not next year but NOW! Are we willing to see another mass grave
like the one in Inopacan,
Leyte where 67 victims were buried alive while most were mutilated
in pieces? Should we wait for another Mayor Carlos dela Cruz, the
municipal Mayor of Matuguinao that was shot by unidentified gunmen and
the recent ambush of Fr. Cecilio Lucero, the Parish Priest of Catubig,
Northern Samar
who is known to be an advocate of peace and order, be killed before we
act? Are we going to let them put up bomb-making facilities and plant
landmines that will indiscriminately kill or maim whoever happens to
pass by? With the forthcoming national elections, more violent
incidents might happen because of these lawless elements, are we
prepared for this? We do not want these groups/elements to inflict
further injuries to our people and communities. Let us free the people
from the trauma of violence and state of fear.
The sense of urgency
motivates us to step up our efforts. That is why, I, together with the
members of the 8th Infantry (Stormtroopers) Division
initiated this Manifesto against violence so that everyone of us here
would join our hands together in denouncing all forms of violence and
violation of human rights which we all know adversely affects the
region’s economics development.
Allowing there
groups/elements to persist means we are directly allowing them to win.
This generation of Filipinos must not abdicate its responsibility to
end violence once and for all. We cannot allow the generation of our
children be the one to fight the same serious problem of violence that
their fathers and grandfathers fought before them. In the same vein,
do not let cynicism cloud our judgment regarding violence. Let us see
it as what really is – a parasite that slowly feeds on our people and
our democratic institutions. I know that each one of you is with the
Armed Forces of the Philippines in this battle; for we are waging this
for them.
To end this message,
let me again remind everyone that no nation has ever solved the
unrelenting problem on violence without a national passion to solve
this social malady. Let us remember that our enemies’ greatest weapon
is time. Let us give them one. Let us reject them and quickly bring
them to their inevitable end. For us in the 8th Infantry (Stormtroopers)
Division, we remain committed… just like you. Let me thank all of you,
peace-loving Samarnons for coming today. Maupay nga kulop ha aton nga
tanan!
Related News: Samar
PPOC members, mayors sign “No to Violence” manifesto
Unsolved killings in Northern Samar
A Privilege
Speech delivered before the House of Representatives by Congressman
EMIL L. ONG
9
September 2009
Mr. Speaker,
distinguished colleagues, I rise on a matter of personal privilege in
denouncing the unsolved killings in Northern Samar.
I join Bishop Emmanuel
Trance in condemning the brutal killing of Fr. Lucero. Last September
6, 2009 around
8:30 in the morning Rev. Fr. Cecilio P. Lucero was ambushed by
unidentified gunmen armed with high powered firearms. Fr. Lucero
suffered several gunshots on his head and different parts of his body
and died on the spot and 2 of his companions were seriously wounded.
Fr. Lucero was known to be a human rights activist, and the brother of
our incumbent Vice Governor Boy Lucero and former Congressman Wilmar
Lucero.
Case Status: still
conducting an investigation,
PNP formed a Task Force Lucero, tasked to investigate the shooting incident.
On July 27, 2009,
Lanny Caparal, a resident of Brgy.
Napo, Palapag,
Northern Samar was shot to death. Witnesses said that the victim was
seen at the waiting shed near the
Mondragon Central
Elementary School waiting for a passenger jeepney to pass by going to
Rawis. Around 10:30 evening more or less a certain Police Officer
Christopher Gimena picked up and dragged the said victim to his house
located at the back of the Mondragon Elementary School. The following
day, the victim was seen lying in bloodbath at the Flagpole of the
said school dead. The victim suffered gunshot wound on her head. The
public believes that the suspect of the said killing was the same
police officer that dragged the victim towards her house.
Case Status: Unsolved.
Dr. Bartolome Resuello
was shot to death last May 2009 at Sition Naparasan, Poblacion,
Pambujan town around 6:00 pm. Dr. Resuello, a known human rights
activist and a consultant of PESANTI, a local farmers organization
based in Catarman, Northern Samar, was on his way to Pambujan when
still unidentified assailants armed with long firearm shot the victim
in close range. The victim suffered several gunshot wounds on his head
and body. He is the brother of the late Provincial Fiscal Romy
Resuello.
Case Status: Unsolved.
Leo Luna Mila, Radyo
Natin FM San Roque, Radio Broadcaster was shot to death last December
2, 2008 around
6 pm by still unidentified assailants. The victim suffered
several gunshot wounds on his body and head. He was shot in just 2
blocks away from his house inside the poblacion of San Roque.
Case Status: Unsolved.
Former Mayor Caesar
“Sasi” Vicencio was shot to death last February 2, 2009 around 12:00
pm, at Poblacion Catubig town after attending the ABC meeting held at
the ABC hall in Catubig. The victim suffered several gunshot wounds on
his body. He was shot also 2 blocks away from his residence near the
Municipal Hall.
Case Status: Unsolved.
Prof. Jose Maria Cui,
a university professor from the
University
of Eastern Philippines was shot to death inside his classroom by still
unidentified assailants. Prof. Cui suffered gunshot wounds on his head
and other parts of his body. The victim was conducting examination
when armed men stormed his classroom and shot him several times. Cui
was a human rights activist. He is the brother of Rev. Father Nunilon
Cui.
Case Status: Unsolved.
Brgy. Captain Marcos
“Makoy” Anquilo, of Brgy. 3 Hillside, UEP Catarman, Northern Samar and
brother-in-law of UEP President Atty. Mar De Asis was shot to death by
still unidentified assassins.
Case Status: Unsolved.
A certain “Jesse”, an
employee of UEP and husband of a UEP professor was shot to death last
year at UEP Scout City.
Case Status: Unsolved.
Killings inside the
PNP provincial command, Camp Delgado, Catarman, Northern Samar where
three children were killed after a grenade launcher exploded.
Case Status: Unsolved.
Engr. and Mrs. Lim, A
resident in Bobon N. Samar which is just 10 km. from Catarman, N.
Samar where also shot inside their residence.
Case Status: Unsolved
Another DPWH Engineer
Galvez was also shot in cold blood in the barangay in Catarman, N.
Samar.
Case Status: Unsolved
Aside from those
mentioned above, there are a lot of undocumented killings not included
in this list.
Our province is
reported by NEDA as the poorest province in Region 8 and Top 10
poorest in the country. How can investors gamble to invest in our
province with the kind of peace and order situation, these killings
will not stop if those criminals will not be caught and they are
becoming emboldened if they roam freely.
Mr. Speaker, dear
colleagues, the unsolved killings in
Northern Samar is growing in number but the same has left unresolved and
continued to be unsolved by our Police Authorities.
My dear colleagues,
these massive unsolved killings in the province of Northern Samar
create chaos and disarray not only in our community but also to the
whole nation at large.
Mr. Speaker, my dear
colleagues, let us give justice to the victims of these massive
unsolved killings in the Island of Samar who were innocents. Let us
help one another in finding the truth and prosecute the criminals.
Because what they have done would mean, a crime against the whole
nation and against Human Rights.
With all these, my
dear colleagues, I strongly urged the Committee on Human Rights, the
Commission on Human Rights, the National Bureau of Investigation, and
the Philippine National Police to conduct investigation and to submit
to congress in aid of legislation to solve these unsolved killings in
Northern Samar.
Thank you, Mr.
Speaker and my dear colleagues.
Covenant and
commitment
By Fr. ROY CIMAGALA
September 9, 2009
IT’S good that we
revisit, as often as necessary, some basic realities about our lives,
so we would know how to live and behave with a sense of purpose and
direction.
We just can’t drift
aimlessly in life. Or worse, get entangled with very absorbing earthly
affairs without touching base with our life’s fundamentals that
specify its real and ultimate objective.
Among these realities
are those of the covenant God, our creator and father, has with us,
and the commitment we are supposed to make as a response to that
covenant.
At the moment, these
basic truths and their corresponding duties appear slipping from our
hands, much like a loose ball in a basketball game that we need to
recover as quickly as we can.
More, we need to have
a good, deep and thorough understanding of these truths so we can
have, in a manner of speaking, a firm grip of them, with the view of
fully living out their consequences and implications.
As much as possible,
we should avoid having a shallow idea of what our life is all about or
what it is for. Sad to say, there are several factors that lead us and
keep us in that predicament.
There’s, of course,
our human weaknesses. They often hold us hostage in the state of
mediocrity and complacency. Though we are meant and equipped to go
deeper, we many times get contented with the externals, the
appearances, the shallow, lazy and easy things in life.
Then there are the
workings and effects of sin that can result in sophisticated
ideologies, philosophies, and worse, cultures and lifestyles that can
keep us away from going to the ultimate dimensions or frontiers of our
earthly life.
We always have to keep
an eye in this area of concern. Life is, of course, a work in
progress. It’s a warfare with changing frontlines, with its wins and
losses. It’s at least a very malleable dynamic affair whose shape and
direction depends on how we as protagonists play it.
We just have to be
clear about when things are getting serious or are heading toward a
fatal compromise. We have to avoid these to happen.
We have to understand
that there is a divine covenant with us. God wants to share nothing
less than his life with us. Such is his original and strong will that
despite our lack of correspondence, or even rebellion, he does
everything, including sending his Son to us and the Son dying for us,
to fulfill that will.
The history of this
divine covenant has been long and tortuous, with endless rich lessons
for us to learn. Its present mode, the New Covenant with Christ
himself actually acting on us through the Church, the sacraments, his
Word and workings of the Holy Spirit, is very much in operation in our
midst.
But are we aware of
this? Are we properly reacting and cooperating with it as we should?
The answer is both
‘Yes’ and ‘No.’ The ‘No’ is obvious. But the ‘Yes’ is actually also
there, perhaps hidden, since the Church, in spite of her human
shortcomings, cannot remain indifferent to this divine will for us.
God himself will not allow the Church to fail in its divine mission,
no matter what.
Still, we need to
learn how to correspond properly to this divine covenant. And that’s
why we have to sharpen our understanding and appreciation of the idea
of commitment.
A commitment is the
flowering of all our human powers that should be made to play in our
relationship with God. It’s based and engined by the theological and
supernatural virtues of faith, hope and charity. It, of course,
requires all human virtues.
It is the full and
maximum play of all our powers and faculties, as they get engaged with
our ultimate end and not just any human goals. It’s what gives
direction and consistency to the many parts of our earthly life, and
brings us beyond it.
We are equipped for it
but we need divine grace for it to take effect. Otherwise, we will
just be in the state of potency, and not in act, with respect to our
final goal.
We need to make
this truth more known to all, its skills and other requirements taught
and spread. We can take advantage of the many occasions aspects of
this commitment are lived by us as we enter into contracts, into
marriage and family, professional dealings, religious vows and
promises, etc.
Fr. ROY CIMAGALA
Chaplain, Center for Industrial Technology
and Enterprise
(CITE)
Talamban,
Cebu City
Email:
roycimagala@gmail.com
Press Statement of
Samahan Ng Mga Biktima Ng Komunista (SABIK), Samar Chapter
June 17, 2009
In his press release
on June 10, 2009 [read
press release], Mr. Salas “slammed the
AFP for old gimmick,”
base on his one-sided judgment, and “calls for immediate release of
child soldier.”
It seemed that the
NDF-EV, through its famous prevaricator, Mr. Salas is at first evading
the real issue. Instead of answering the issue why the NPA has in its
rank a child soldier, Mr. Salas immediately assailed the
AFP as having “abducted the child for psywar purposes.” Is it
really possible for the
AFP to abduct a child and teach him how to (confidently)
assemble and disassemble a rifle within a very short period of time?
Apparently, Mr. Salas’
press statement was meant to ACCUSE in order to avoid being ACCUSED of
an obvious violation. For a seasoned liar and protector of the
terrorist NPA like Mr. Salas, it would be easy for him to accuse the
AFP than to answer questions surrounding the continuous recruitment by
the NPA of children for their terrorist movement.
While the AFP may also
have shortcomings, it appeared that this time it is more believable
and credible than Mr. Salas. Someone who had the opportunity to talk
and deal with the former “NPA Child Soldier” had observed the
spontaneity of the child’s responses to various questions regarding
his stay with the NPA. The child, accordingly, gave vivid details of
his experiences and ordeal with the NPA that it is impossible for
someone to believe that he was coached to reveal those details. It’s a
pity that a child like him has been taught by the NPAs to carry and
fire guns when he is supposed to be school learning how to read and
write with other children of his age. Obviously, as the child has
confided, there are many children now being lured and recruited by the
NPA, so it is timely to ask Mr. Salas and the NPA to please have the
conscience to spare the children from your nasty aim of amassing
wealth and power.
Characteristically,
Mr. Salas called on advocates of human rights and children’s right to
investigate about the child in his press release. If there is any
which would heed that call, it would be the Karapatan, which has a
record of making investigation to malign the AFP when the NPA is
already feeling the heat of AFP operations. Mr. Salas’ call for
investigation is to prevent the obvious from looking more obvious. It
is suspected that Mr. Salas did it so that when Karapatan conducts the
investigation, it would not appear that such investigation is already
premeditated and design by Mr. Salas and Karapatan to destroy the AFP
and the soldiers- as they have done it many times before.
For Mr. Salas, this is
a curious question. Can you invoke other things, aside from Oplan
Bantay Laya, Con-Ass, etc, as reasons that you can use to fool the
people into believing your purported “selfish” cause?
Thank you Mr. Salas,
and again it is hoped that you prosper in telling your own twisted
version of the truth!
Reference:
Ann Ocenar, Spokesperson, SABIK-Samar Chapter
e-mail add:
ocenar_anacleto@yahoo.com
Biliran Councilor
filed Complaint-Affidavit before the Ombudsman against Con-Ass
proponents
Below is the full text of
the Complaint-Affidavit filed before the Ombudsman by Naval, Biliran
town councilor Victor A. del Rosario.
Republic of the Philippines)
Province of Biliran ) SS
Municipality of Naval )
COMPLAINT-AFFIDAVIT
I, Victor A. del Rosario,
of legal age, Filipino, resident of Riverside, Naval, Biliran, having
been sworn into in accordance with law, do hereby depose and say:
That on the faithful night
of June 2, 2009, the majority members of the House of Representatives
passed House Resolution Number 1109 (HR 1109), which seeks the
convening of a Constituent Assembly (Con-Ass) with the Upper and Lower
Houses of Congress voting jointly on amendments to the 1987
Constitution;
That the House of
Representative’s act of bypassing the Senate is a blatant disrespect
of the political institutions that this country is founded on,
particularly of the Upper House of Congress which was built to serve
as the partner of the Lower House in crafting laws and resolutions;
That even though there are
conflicts in the interpretation of Article XVII of the Constitution
which states that “any amendment to or revision of the Constitution
may be proposed by the Congress upon a vote of three-fourths of all
its members,” allowing Congress to vote jointly would effectively
render the Senate insignificant as three-fourths of the House of
Representatives alone is already enough to fulfill the number of votes
required to pass the resolution, even if all members of the Senate
vote against it;
That the collective act of
the majority members of the House of Representatives is a glaring
display of abuse of power, political arrogance, and most of all a
shameless disregard of the Philippine Constitution which clearly
provides for a bicameral form of legislature composed of the House of
Representatives and of the Senate of the Philippines thereby grossly
violating the essentials of Republic Act No. 6713 or otherwise
known as the “Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public
Officials and Employees” especially on Section 3 (a) (b) (c)
(e) (g) of the said law;
That is it a must for the
OMBUDSMAN being the Protector of the People to conduct and
investigation on the cited unbecoming and unethical conduct of
the majority members of the House of Representatives under the
leadership of Speaker Prospero C. Nograles;
That this complaint is not a
political prosecution intended to harass the members of the House of
Representatives who are signatories to House Resolution 1109;
That as an elected member of
the Sangguniang Bayan of the Municipality of Naval, it is my duty to
uphold the policy of our government embodied in our Constitution to
repress unbecoming and unethical conduct of my fellow public servants
and to advocate that public office is a public thrust.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I
have hereunto set my hand this 11th of June 2009, in the Municipality
of Naval, Biliran, Philippines.
(Sgd.) VICTOR A. DEL
ROSARIO
(Affiant)
SUBSCRIBED and sworn
before me, in the Municipality of Naval, this 11th day of June 2009,
by Victor A. del Rosario with residence Certificate No. 24379525
issued at Naval, Biliran on January 15, 2009.
HR1109 should be
viewed in a wider context and not only on PGMA’s term extension, says
Rep. Alcover
A Press Statement of
ANAD Partylist
June 10, 2009
The Alliance for
Nationalism and Democracy (ANAD) calls on all Filipinos to take a
serious look on the need to amend some provisions of our Constitution
and not harp solely on the issue on the extension of the term of
office of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. The main issue here is
not President Arroyo but on what is best for our people and country. I
voted in the affirmative for House Resolution 1109 to make our
constitution more attuned and responsive to the call of the times.
ANAD believes that
putting in place a Unicameral System or a Federal form of government
could be the best move to make as these would save more than enough
funds that the government could use to strengthen our democratic
institutions and people’s well being. In the present bicameral system,
the upper house or the Senate, aside from practically unnecessary
duplicating the legislative functions with the House of
Representatives, could be a good avenue for corruption especially
during elections where each candidate conducts a nationwide campaign
for a seat in the Senate. This entails a lot of money to spend. The
next question then would be – How would these candidate recover the
money they used during the campaign? The present
presidential-bi-cameral form of government is definitely weak.
Obviously, this breeds corruption from the top to the lowest rung of
governance.
A federal form of
government is also a wise and good move considering the devolution and
decentralization of power and authority from the seat of national
governance to the different regions of the country.
The issue of PGMA’s
possible extension of office is an issue raised and twisted to high
heavens by the Maoist communist agitators and pseudo partylist groups
because:
1. They abhor and
disliked a change in our constitution, either in form or substance.
Any change of system would negate all of their intentions and motives
in conducting street protests and other anti-government actions;
2. The demented minds
of Maoist communist agitator-propagandists’ choice is to constantly
target PGMA because they prefer the present set-up of government in
support to their political aspiration of putting 3 of their cohorts in
the Senate, through their communist front political party MAKABAYAN.
If this happens, it is just a few steps away from the penultimate
position of power in government; and
3. They wanted this
condition because it feeds on their appetite to sow discontent,
disinformation, and public disorder among Filipinos and even the
international community of nations.
Why are those against
HR 1109 harping on this concern if they believe that the President
does not have the support of the majority of the Filipinos? Why were
the Maoist communist agitators, especially those in the pseudo
Partylist groups, silent and never protested nor questioned then
President Corazon Aquino’s appointing members of the Constitutional
Commission in l986 and not truly reflective of the people’s mandate?
The truth of the matter is that they are afraid of their own shadow.
This is the very same shadow that they themselves created! They are
now totally out of touch with reality. Their only motivation is
putting in place a situation in furtherance of their own revolutionary
agenda.
Let us admit the fact
that there are flaws in the l987 Constitution. These flaws need our
immediate attention and action to be able to respond to the demand of
our people and the call of the time. We should rise up forthwith not
because of our emotions but for a more noble purpose of not allowing
the Maoist communist CPP-NPA-NDF to exploit the issue.
The current situation
is very serious and critical. Indeed, our country needs people who can
readily stand up and ably respond to the demagoguery wrought by the
Maoist agitators who have successfully influenced different sectors of
the Filipino community, to include the religious.
Truly enough, ANAD
will not be surprised to see these personalities on the streets during
the mass actions during President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s State of
the Nation Address on July 27 and chanting anti-Charter change and
other anti-government slogans.
It is high time that I
call on the members of the House of Representatives who voted
affirmative to HR 1109 to come out into the open and explain their
respective position. We have our sworn duty and obligation to explain
this to our people. A united front on pro-charter change must be
established and mobilized to explain to the people the whys,
wherefores, and other imperatives appurtenant to HR 1109 and not to
leave it up to any one man alone.
The same call holds
true for government and all freedom loving Filipinos. There is only
way to enlighten our people. This will only happen if we “come out of
our own cowardly shells.” Our continued silence is only what the
enemies of freedom and democracy wanted.
We must always be
reminded of British statesman Edmund Burke who said - - - ALL THAT IS
NECESSARY FOR EVIL TO TRIUMPH IS WHEN GOOD MEN DO NOTHING.
NPA offensives slap
Oplan Bantay Laya; AFP is responsible for civilian casualties
Press Statement of
National Democratic Front of the Philippines-Eastern Visayas
June 1,
2009
The National
Democratic Front-Eastern Visayas today congratulated the New People's
Army for carrying out offensives in Samar that expose the failure of
the government's Oplan Bantay Laya. The NDF-EV also chided the Armed
Forces of the Philippines for blaming civilian casualties on the NPA
even though government troops deliberately encamp in civilian areas
and facilities. "The people salute the NPA for punishing the fascist
troops who are bolstering the corrupt Arroyo regime," said NDF-EV
spokesperson Fr. Santiago Salas. "The NPA successfully carried out
offensives in San Jorge, Western Samar last May 23, and again in
Catarman, Northern Samar last May 30. At least three soldiers were killed in
action and an Army officer, Lt. Philip Muyco, was also seriously
wounded in the offensives.
"The NDF-EV is
saddened by the civilian casualties in Catarman especially because the
NPA takes pains to avoid such an eventuality. The NPA units are taught
to control their fire and fire only at legitimate targets. But the
same is not true of AFP troops, whom the NPA know from experience fire
indiscriminately and resort as well to turning civilians into human
shields. In the Catarman offensive, 8th ID chief Gen. Arthur Tabaquero
in fact admitted in a media report that his troops were encamped right
inside Brgy. Polangi amidst the civilians. It is most likely that the
civilian casualties were caused by the soldiers, who should not have
been there in the first place."
Fr. Salas also called
on the media to investigate the locations of military camps to see if
these really put civilians at risk. "International humanitarian law
prohibits combatants from camping near civilians or occupying civilian
facilities such as schools and churches. The incident at Brgy. Polangi,
Catarman is already a clear violation by the AFP. The 8th ID should be
held accountable if its military camps put civilians at risk. The
people have long complained to the NPA, 'If these soldiers aren't
cowards, they should go up the mountains and fight the NPA rather than
hide in the villages among the civilians.' The people are justified to
demand their removal."
The NDF-EV
spokesperson said that the continuing NPA offensives in
Eastern Visayas are slaps on the claims of new
AFP chief of staff
Gen. Victor Ibrado, who boasts that Oplan Bantay Laya is gaining
ground and the NPA will be defeated by 2010. "The Arroyo regime and
its military are making up stories to justify even more human rights
violations under Oplan Bantay Laya in Eastern Visayas. There will be
more offensives to come in Eastern Visayas. The NPA is getting
stronger with each offensive, the people are getting angrier at the
Arroyo regime which plans to stay on in power, Oplan Bantay Laya will
surely end up in ignominy like the Arroyo regime."
Fr. Santiago Salas
Spokesperson
National Democratic Front of the
Philippines
Eastern Visayas
A sort of homecoming
this summer
By RICKY J. BAUTISTA
March
25, 2009
Once a year, club
members of the Philippine Speleological Society convene. Every year,
other non-member caving clubs in the countryside adds up and joined
them. All of us – the cavers, an underground faction of the outdoor
community, so to speak, are a relative minority, but given the general
conditions of caving, this may be good for the environment.
The last year’s cave
congress was held in Cagayan de Oro City and in Sumilao and Manolo
Fortich in the province of Bukidnon last March 31 to April 6, 2008.
The Speleo Mindanao and the Conservation and Restoration Exercise
(Core), both are member-clubs of the PSS, hosted it. It was indeed
another successful event of the PSS.
Many of the
member-clubs including those fundamentals in the formation of the PSS
and the Philippine Cave Guides Association (PCGA) tagged along by
their leaders regularly met each other to refresh themselves and
impart their advance skills to the newest members and nature-loving
individuals. Raising the quality of caving in the Philippines to
international levels was always their primary aims. Every event is
gatherings of cave enthusiasts, it seems like a homecoming, a sort of
“reunion.”
For every men in the
outdoors, each congress is not a time to play or to rest, instead,
it’s a time for us to standardize our level through workshops that
cover Cave Survey and Mapping and technical rope skills such as SRT
(Single Rope Technique), the primary method used by cavers to descend
and ascend vertical pitches.
And today, while
summer is beginning to heat up, it is once again a time to head out,
travel to one unique place where other comrades from different regions
would meet up.
The venue and side
trips
This year’s venue of
Cave Congress is the Balantak waterfalls, Sohoton, Rawis, and other
caves, all in Basey, Samar, Philippines. The once sleeping town of
Basey is a home of the World’s longest mat-weaved banig as recorded in
the Book of Guinness and a home for the mystical caves, golden rivers,
panoramic rock formations and the world-famous Sohoton Natural Bridge
National Park. In going there, one may pass and see the country’s
longest “love” bridge – the San Juanico Bridge, which connected the
twin islands of Leyte and Samar.
A side trip to the
town of Calbiga town, a home of the East Asia’s largest karsts cave
network is now being planned out by the organizers to be included in
the itinerary. The cave, which has a total land area of 2,968 hectares
featured huge stalagmites & stalactites, giant columns, underground
watercourses, rapids, blindfish, snakes and dancing bats are also
present in the area.
Like in the previous
years, it’s a day we always knew would come, and the thought it would
nag at the back of our minds riding at the back of a dump truck to the
trailhead, sometime speeding around the tip of road cliff, cruising an
inflatable motorboat, chasing the fastest trekker ahead of you that
seems you’re into an adventure race huffing and puffing on a long and
slippery limestone, trying to be dropped or slide from the muddy
terrains.
International cavers
to do the talks
“Caves are among the
most beautiful places on earth. It has considerable value not only in
terms of its beauty but also in its historical, economic, social,
scientific and environmental importance. Yet caves are amongst the
least explored and understood places. Their ecosystems are among the
most vulnerable and easily destroyed.”
