By Ethel Monique Domingo
Layout by: Lou Margaret S. Nebit
During a press briefing held Aug. 14, 2026, Northern Luzon-based lawyers, Edgardo Balgos and Fidel Santos, condemned the filing of more than 20 Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) targeting environmental defenders, including members of the Bar, members of the press, and Church and community leaders pushing to halt large-scale mining operations in Nueva Vizcaya.
Cases filed by mining firms involve multiple counts of cyberlibel, including against Balgos and Santos, and grave threats and coercion against indigenous people (IP) leaders manning human barricades to block mining explorations in ancestral lands.
Citing Rule 6 of the Rules of Procedure for Environmental Cases, the lawyers explained that these cases fall under SLAPPs, filed merely to harass environmental defenders and stifle enforcement of environmental laws.
Balgos said that Nueva Vizcaya being a “watershed haven,” destruction of its natural resources will adversely impact major river systems, irrigation networks, and power generation in other parts of Luzon.
Fr. Christian Dumangeng, also slapped with cyberlibel, challenged local governments to categorically oppose destructive mining corporations, while Atty. Elice Balgos appealed for “warm bodies” to sustain human barricades in Dupax and Kasibu.
