Tell me if it is just poverty that drives people to do this and I will try to understand.
I came across this story and thought it speaks volumes about us as a nation.
______________________________ Tribal farmer surrenders, admits killing Philippine eagle By Joselle Badilla Mindanao Bureau First Posted 18:19:00 07/18/2008
DAVAO CITY, Philippines—A 22-year-old tribal farmer has surrendered to police and admitted to killing an endangered Philippine eagle, conservation officials said.
Brian Balaon yielded to a lumad datu (tribal chief) Friday, two days after a P10,000 cash reward was offered for information leading to the arrest of the killer of the three-year-old bird, Dennis Salvador, director of the Philippine Eagle Foundation, said.
"He felt the heat because the volunteers and association of porters were also mobilized to track him down," Salvador said.
Balaon was brought to the PEF office in Bukidnon, he said. The foundation runs programs to protect the national bird by breeding it in captivity and tracking its survival in the wild.
Conservation workers on Sunday found the dismembered remains of the male eagle nicknamed Kagsabua in Mount Kitanglad Natural Park on southern Mindanao island, four months after it was released back into the wild following treatment for a gunshot wound.
Balaon, a lumad farmer from the village of La Fortuna, Impasug-ong, surrendered Friday afternoon, said Felix Mirasol, Protected Area Superintendent in Bukidnon.
Under Philippine law, those found guilty of killing endangered species can face up to 12 years in prison.
About 800 of the giant birds, designated as the national bird of the Philippines, are believed to remain in the country, where deforestation and poaching threaten their survival.
Balaon admitted he shot and killed the juvenile eagle with an air gun on July 10—not July 12 as suspected—while the bird was perched on a tree near his farm, Mirasol said.
"He claimed that he thought Kagsagbua was an ordinary bird," Mirasol said, adding Balaon also admitted to have feasted on the bird's meat with his friends.
Kagsabua is a tribal term which means “unity”.
The foundation treated the eagle after it was found shot in the forest in 2006 and released it in the park in March, said spokeswoman Irene Melissa Macahis.
She said the eagle had been tracked via radio transmitters attached to it, which on Sunday indicated the bird was no longer moving.
After trekking for hours, workers found the transmitters buried in a steep ravine. A few yards away, they saw the bird's nape feathers, a long rope, and the eagle's feet, leading them to suspect it had been killed, Macahis said.
"Kagsabua was hit in the heart and slowly fell down the tree," Mirasol said, quoting the suspect.
"The crime against Kagsabua is a crime done to the Filipino people," the foundation's president, William Hotchkiss, said in a statement. "The Philippine eagle is a national pride."
Mirasol said in their effort to locate Kagsabua's killer, they talked to the datus in the area.
"We told the datus and the volunteers in the area that the bird is their responsibility. Kagsabua is their responsibility and finding the perpetrator is also their responsibility," Mirasol said.
He said the datus, who were also mad at the incident, performed rituals in an effort to find the suspect.
Salvador said conservation officials were overjoyed at the developments and will pursue a case against Balaon.
The Philippine eagle (Pithecophaga jefferyi) is considered an endangered species because of its rapidly declining population.
At least 400 pairs remain in the wild according to estimates from both the government and private conservation groups.
The first eagle hatched in captivity by artificial insemination and released in 2004 was electrocuted a year later when it perched on an electrical post. Eighteen other birds have been bred by the foundation, but have not been released into the wilderness.
Salvador said while pursuing charges against Balaon can help make people become aware of the need to protect the eagles, information and education campaign should also be strengthened.
"It's always like this, people killing birds," he said. With The Associated Press ________________________
(Here's what Manong Joey Ayala wrote about the Haring Ibon more than two decades ago.)
I often wonder about conservation efforts in general.
I get it, the whole recycle thing, the whole ozone thing, the heritage site thing- but if it were a case of survival (although in this case mukhang napagtripan lang nila yung agila para gawing pulutan, but who knows.. )- i wonder what right we have, living in relatively better conditions, to dictate what we can/should and can't/shouldn't have other people living across the globe do, eat, say etc.
Medyo utilitarian isipin na the present need of one (or even a group) for food does not outweigh the experience of other people (more than the person/s eating) to experience the wonder of something close to extinction--- pero, parang mas mabigat yung tawag ng gutom keysa sa tawag ng "awe in nature"- at least for most people it is.
Not a lot of people would be concerned with a bird that does not really affect them other than it being a conversation piece. Then again, not a lot of people share the belief that in a way (yes, ala the FORCE heheh) we are all connected...
One of my major goals is to go to the galapagos one day and see what is to a lot of experts, is one of the last cradles of birth- before we all fuck it up..
the thing is, when i saw this man on TV, he seemed to sincerely be innocent, at least of the charge of having killed "a Philippine eagle". he's a lumad, a farmer, isn't it entirely possible that for many reasons he really had no concept of a Philippine eagle, an endangered specie?
oh but of course we can always say poverty. and in which case, yes to emil's piece. :)
I totally agree - ignorance of the law is never an excuse. The locals who live near the Protected Area should be more informed/aware so that they will not break the law. I wonder though who's in charge of informing the people, and if they're partly to blame for this incident. :-(
I have to commend the farmer though for surrendering.
i wonder what right we have, living in relatively better conditions, to dictate what we can/should and can't/shouldn't have other people living across the globe do, eat, say etc.
this always stumps me when I want to comment on what's happening to the Philippines. Siyempre, they can always say na wala naman ako sa Pilipinas so anong pakialam ko. Fact is, Pinoy pa rin ako so I think may karapatan akong humirit.
I was supposed to blog longer about this pero di ko pa maisip what to say. Sa ngayon, ang malinaw lang, may bumaril sa agila tapos kinain. Sabi ko nga kung gutom lang ang dahilan, as in kung ikamamatay na ng taong yon kung hindi niya pinatay yong ibon, okay lang. Di ako makikipagtalo sa hunger kasi nga nakakakain ako ng maayos.
Pero kung binaril lang dahil gustong mamaril. Doon ako tutol. Lalo pa yong binaril lang dahil may baril (at posibleng eto nga ang nangyari).
Of course, naging balita lang din naman siya dahil sa endangered species ang agila. Na isyu talaga ito ng environment. It's a tragedy, yes, pero naawa rin naman ako doon sa farmer. Siya yong masasampolan ng environmental law na ito.
Ang masaklap pa rito, yong mas matindi ang panggagahasang ginagawa sa kalikasan gaya ng mga illegal loggers nakakatakas. Wala pa yata akong nakitang nakulong na illegal loggers sa Pinas.
isn't it entirely possible that for many reasons he really had no concept of a Philippine eagle, an endangered specie?
Posible nga Ina. Baka nga hindi niya lang talaga alam ang konsepto ng pagiging endangered.
I remember when I went to India a couple of years back, namangha ako sa mga ibon sa New Delhi, a city not so different from Manila in terms of pollution. Kahit pa, maraming puno doon. Marami ring tao. Yong kahit saan ka tumingin may tao. Namumutakti ng tao. At karamihan sa mga tao mahirap. Di siguro kalabisang sabihin na karamihan sa kanila talagang abject poverty ang status. Pero kahit na mahirap sila, di nila pinagdidiskitahan yong mga ibon o yong ibang mga hayop sa siyudad. Malaking papel ng relihiyon nila dito that they have a totally different view of the world compared to us. They view life differently and it just so happens na yong pananaw nila, angkop sa issue ng sustainable development. Ang tanong, kung paano ba magkakaroon ng pagbabago ng pananaw ang mga Pinoy. Pag natuklasan ko, kayo ang mga unang makakaalam.
Oo nga naman, di excuse yon. who should inform the people anyway? basta, tragedy talaga ito. minor lang siguro ngayon pero unimaginable devastation in the future malamang ang katumbas.
the thread that disturbed me most in this "absurd" article was that the attention given to the issue, to the penalty for the lumad farmer (12 years) does not seem commensurate to the level of crime that is committed to an endangered environment. parang napakalaking issue ang nangyari dahil sa pride eklat ng lumad farmer na ito... habang iyon nga, ang daming may kapangyarihan at pera na hindi man lang ever nagiging accountable sa ating laws dahil sa kabalbalang ginawa na nila sa kalikasan. at nasabi mo na ito.
Nakakapang-init ng ulo ang pangyayari, lalo na't lahat ng ito'y dulot ng matinding kapabayaan at sa panggagahasa ng kalikasan. Nakakahiya, nakakapikon at nakakalungkot.
At ang isa pang hindi ko maintindihan ay kung paano nakuryente ang agila na hindi naman "grounded". Ano ito, cover up? Ang nabalitaan ko dito ay press release lang yun at ang tunay na dahilan ay napagod si Kabayan dahil wala nang mapugaran.
On a lighter note, sinong politiko sa tingin nyo ang masarap?
Jay, let's target the ones with more fat, who love to eat sweet and rich food, and especially, those who don't move very much so their meat is tender. In other words, marami tayong mapagpipilian! We wouldn't even need a red wine sauce or the like, because they'd already be steeped in it. We just have to watch out for the heavy smokers or drug users, as they'd be full of toxins -- bawal i-foie gras!
and the conditions that allow this guy to be ignorant of the law to begin with. when shakespeare said ignorance is bliss, i'm pretty sure he didn't imagine a lumad farmer suffering for his ignorance. just like the notion of the ignorance of the law is never an excuse to break it -- sino bang impormado sa batas sa bansang ito? kaninong batas ang nasusunod? to begin with, our laws are in english. kumusta naman ang lumad farmer in english?
to begin with, our laws are in english. kumusta naman ang lumad farmer in english?
I remember translating (a small time raket) protected areas law in tagalog during the 90s. Hindi government ang nagpatranslate. NGO yata. Pero siyempre, Tagalog yon so I doubt kung may nagtranslate nito sa ibang wikang gamit sa Mindanao at Visayas.
Naisip ko ito kasi ako na ang nagtranslate, pero di ko na maalala ang nilalaman nito. At dahil bata pa ako noon, at iba pa ang pananaw tungkol sa pagsasalin (too much academic Filipino), I think I just made it more difficult to understand than the English.
ang daming may kapangyarihan at pera na hindi man lang ever nagiging accountable sa ating laws dahil sa kabalbalang ginawa na nila sa kalikasan
One of the many disasters that we experienced when we were in college was the Ormoc city flash flood. (We had a disaster almost every year from the 1990 Earthquake and Pinatubo eruption in 1991; the 89 coup was not a natural disaster but definitely devastating.)
Authorities then agreed that the cause of the flash flood was the denudation of the forest around the city. Until now, wala pa ring napaparusahang loggers na kumalbo sa mga gubat doon. Just recently, the same thing happened in Quezon and in Leyte early this year. Sino na ba ang nakulong?
There are laws already to go after these loggers pero hindi naman naiimplement. Either walang political will or involved yong mga politikong dapat nagpapatupad ng batas.
One of the many disasters that we experienced when we were in college was the Ormoc city flash flood. (We had a disaster almost every year from the 1990 Earthquake and Pinatubo eruption in 1991; the 89 coup was not a natural disaster but definitely devastating.)
Authorities then agreed that the cause of the flash flood was the denudation of the forest around the city. Until now, wala pa ring napaparusahang loggers na kumalbo sa mga gubat doon. Just recently, the same thing happened in Quezon and in Leyte early this year. Sino na ba ang nakulong?
There are laws already to go after these loggers pero hindi naman naiimplement. Either walang political will or involved yong mga politikong dapat nagpapatupad ng batas.
It's just sad. Pathetic na nga to some extent.
The Guinsaugon disaster, that one naman happened because of natural causes. The place had ample vegetation and trees. It's just that it rained for so many days and the soil doesn't hold itself together (reading from the transcriptions I got from the Red Cross). ;)
i wonder what right we have, living in relatively better conditions, to dictate what we can/should and can't/shouldn't have other people living across the globe do, eat, say etc. 
