Groups tell PHL
government: Be courageous against Canada waste
Press Release
April 8, 2015
MANILA –
Environmental and public health groups tell the Philippine government
agencies to be more courageous against the dirty tactics of Canada
concerning the latter’s illegal waste exports that were intercepted in
the Port of Manila in 2013.
On the eve of Araw ng
Kagitingan, BAN Toxics, Ang Nars Partylist, Global Alliance for
Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA), Ecowaste Coalition and Greenpeace
Philippines staged a rally in front of the Department of Environment
and Natural Resources (DENR) following its pronouncement that the
illegal Canadian waste shipment will be disposed of in the country.
“In light of Araw ng
Kagitingan, we can’t help but feel ashamed of our own government who
are backing off to accommodate the Canadian wastes. We can’t allow any
country to treat our own as their dumping ground. We must defend our
sovereignty the way our heroes did. We must send these wastes back to
where they belong,” said Paeng Lopez of GAIA.
“The Filipino people look up
to the Philippine government agencies to be the hero that will uphold
the nation’s sovereignty against other nation’s attempts,” said Rene
Pineda of Ecowaste Coalition. “To stand up to defend our rights and
the law of the land particularly for Canada to clean up their stinking
mess.”
The Canadian government
continues to dodge the issue by saying this is a private matter
between the Canadian exporter, Chronic Inc., and its Filipino
counterpart, Chronic Plastics. However, various sectors have pointed
out that the illegal shipment is a violation of the Basel Convention,
to which both Canada and the Philippines are parties.
“There is nothing honorable
in letting the Canadian government make the Philippines its dumpsite.
Whatever reason they give or however way we look at it, the dumping is
illegal, improper and immoral. The Philippine government should have
been firm and not allow itself to be bullied by other nations. Doing
so would not only set a bad precedent, but also show the world that
our government has no backbone to defend its sovereignty. In the end,
who else will the Filipinos trust to defend their rights to a safe and
healthful ecology?” said Abigail Aguilar of Greenpeace Philippines.
As per the Basel Convention
on the Transboundary Movement of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal,
a United Nations treaty to which both Canada and the Philippines are
parties, the illegal shipment, containing a mixture of household and
toxic wastes, should be re-exported to Canada. The Basel Convention is
an international treaty that regulates toxic waste and other wastes,
similar to what the Canadian shipper sent to the Philippines, and
prohibits illegal waste trade. The Convention requires the exporting
country, in this case Canada, to take back the illegally seized
shipment and to pay the costs for the return.
Apart from the Basel
Convention, the importation violates a number of local laws such as
the DENR Administrative Order 28 (Interim Guidelines for the
Importation of Recyclable Materials Containing Hazardous Substances)
and Republic Act 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of
2000.
The shipment has been
festering in the Philippine ports for 700 days and, according to the
groups’ calculations, the government is spending at least P144,000 a
day for the loss of income for storage space and the additional
expenses for demurrage, which, to date, costs around P76 million.
Last year, a petition was
signed by international organizations to express their concern over
the illegal waste shipment and urged Canada to take back its waste.
Representatives from NGOs in several countries, including Australia,
China, Germany, India, Russia, and the US, signed the letter.
In an effort to gain public
attention on the issue, the coalition filed an online petition on
change.org that drew more than 25,000 signers, more than half of which
are Canadians. The group is encouraging more people to sign the online
petition to appeal and urge the Canadian embassy in the Philippines to
facilitate the pick up and return of the garbage back to Canadian
soil.