20/09/2026
✊ NEVER AGAIN, NEVER FORGET: DEFEND LAND, LIFE, AND RESOURCES
Martial law remains one of the darkest chapters in our history. In the Cordillera, it was during the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos Sr. that large-scale and destructive projects were imposed upon our communities.
The World Bank-funded Chico River Basin Development Project was introduced in four phases, covering the massive Chico River system stretching from Kalinga to Bontoc, Mountain Province. In Abra, the Marcos crony-linked Cellophil Resources Corporation (CRC), a massive logging and paper concession, threatened the vast forests and communities of the province.
Human rights violations were documented both in the countryside and in the urban centers of Metro Baguio. Students, farmers, workers, women, and Indigenous Peoples rose in resistance against destructive projects that threatened to displace Indigenous communities from their ancestral lands, destroy their livelihoods, and undermine the unity of our communities.
The courageous struggles of our people against the Chico Dam and Cellophil Resources Corporation became defining chapters in the Cordillera’s history of resistance. Through collective unity, courage, and sustained struggle, our people were able to stop these destructive projects and defend their land, life, and honor.
Today, our lands and rivers remain threatened by massive destructive projects across the Cordillera.
In Abra, the Yamang Mineral Corporation (YMC) and Golden Lake Mineral Resources Inc (GLMRI) threaten vast areas in Tineg, Sallapadan, Licuan-Baay, Lacub, and Malibcong. In Kalinga, the Saltan River remains threatened by proposed megadam projects by JBD Water Power Inc. (JWPI) alongside DPJ’s Engineer’s Upper Tabuk Hydropower Project (UTHP). Makilala Mining Company Inc (MMCI) also seeks to undertake mining activities in Balatoc, Kalinga. In Apayao, mining activities of Titan Earth Mining Inc and OceanaGold Copper Fields threaten communities in Conner, while proposed Gened dams of Pan Pacific Corp (PPC) along the Apayao-Abulog River pose further threats to our rivers and communities.
In Benguet, communities continue to stand their ground through barricades against Crescent Mining and Development Corporation (CMDC) in Mankayan and the expansion of Itogon-Suyoc Resources Inc (ISRI) in Itogon.
These projects, alongside the national push for Pax Silica and the recently signed memorandum of understanding on critical mineral exploration across Philippine lands, raise serious concerns for Indigenous Peoples, our environment, and our sovereignty as a nation.
On this 54th commemoration of Martial Law, we, the people of the Cordillera, must never forget.
We must hold on to the valiant struggles of our people in defense of land, life, and resources. We must safeguard the victories won through the courageous defense of our ancestors and communities. We must ensure that the lessons of history remain alive and that authoritarian rule and the repression of people’s rights have no place in our society.
We must never allow fear to silence our communities.
As youth, we are reminded to carry forward the legacy of Macliing Dulag, Pedro Dungoc, Lumaya Gayudan, Petra Macliing, and all the other heroes who fought for democracy, self-determination and social justice.
Their struggles remind us that collective action can defend communities against powerful interests and that the protection of land, life, and resources is a continuing responsibility.
Never Again. Never Forget.
Join the National Day of Remembrance against Martial Law, tomorrow, September 21!
1PM: Alternatibong Klase (AKLAS) at UP Baguio
5:30PM: Unity March, assembly at UP Baguio
