Despite being floated as the solution to Metro Manila’s water woes, the agreement for the construction of Kaliwa Dam is “suspiciously disadvantageous” to the Filipino people, an economic research think tank said on Monday. The construction of the dam also comes at the price of the lives, lands and livelihood of indigenous peoples, according to members of the Dumagat tribe. Quierrez said the dam would inundate their ancestral lands in at least 18 villages. “This project spells the death of our ancestral lands.”The indigenous peoples whose ancestral lands would be affected by the dam were not consulted about the project, she said. “But if the Kaliwa Dam is constructed, where do we go?

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer March 25, 2019 21:22 UTC