Nicky on Mindanao

Philippines Presidentiable Nicanor Perlas discusses the following during the Mindanao Coalition for Transparent and Accountable Governance (MCTAG), an organized Forum with the Presidentiables, August 27, 2009, Davao City:

1. Six Pillars of his Platform
2. Leadership for Mindanao
3. Economic Development and the Environment
4. Farm Land Conversion and Low Agricultural Productivity
5. Agriculture and Food Security
6. Philippine Education
7. Not Being Corrupt When Elected into Office
8. Indigenous Peoples Act of 1997
9. Indigenous Peoples Education
10. Business Investments in Mindanao
11. Future of the Youth in Mindanao
12. Bangsamoro Juridical Entity
13. Laws to Protect the Environment
14. Three Women's Rights to Protect and Promote
15. On Another Woman to Become President
16. Peace Agreement with the MILF

All videos uploaded in youtube by NP Volunteer geejayarriola (thank you!). 




Date Originally Posted:  September 3, 2009
About the Video:  Philippines Presidentiable Nicanor Perlas on the Six Pillars of his Platform during the Mindanao Coalition for Transparent and Accountable Governance (MCTAG)-organized Forum with the Presidentiables, August 27, 2009, Davao City
Content summary:  Nicky says we have won the battle for frameworks, but have lost the battle for implementation. We know the processes, we have proposed solutions, but the situation is getting worse. A lot of this has to do with governance. Example: ADB study showed fiscal management, infrastructure and electricity are key constraints to economic development--all these are affected by governance.
Six perspectives in terms of what will work in Mindanao and the rest of the country:
1. eradicating poverty & enhancing the life of all-- in Mindanao: mainstreaming a more sustainable agricultural process and continuing with peace process
2. moral and effective governance
3. integrity of creation -- environmental protection in the wider natural and spiritual context, with which Lumads, ethnic groups (Christians and Muslims) view the environmental situation
4. effective partnerships of social justice -- massive involvement of civil society and business in governance. Governance is not about government. It's about social processes that are put in place to address social objectives.
5. mainstreaming promising initiatives -- that address promising solutions but are ignored
6. holistic education and inner change -- cultural empowerment on the broadest level

2010 is not a normal elections. A lot is at stake in 2010. If we don't get our act together, we will have "trapo" all over again. We have seen where traditional politics takes us. We have to take the risk to move into unchartered waters. If we do this, we will all get the country that we deserve.





Date Originally Posted:  September 3, 2009
About the Video:  Presidentiable Nicanor Perlas on Leadership for Mindanao during the Mindanao Coalition for Transparent and Accountable Governance (MCTAG)-organized Forum with the Presidentiables, August 27, 2009, Davao City
Content summary:  Nicky enumerates the traits needed for a leader in Mindanao:
1. passion for social justice - many issues are results of inequitable development, inequitable access to fruits of development, including struggle for peace
2. political will - ex. challenging the basic political systems that produce poverty, conflict and unsustainable development
3. empowering and consultative leader -- collective intelligence: no one leader can possible provide all the answers. emerges when leader authentically listens, and has a pol will to act on what emerges
4. broad, lofty vision about our possibilities as a nation + practical experience and will to realize that vision



Date Originally Posted:  September 3, 2009
About the Video:  Presidentiable Nicanor Perlas on Economic Devt and the Environment during the Mindanao Coalition for Transparent and Accountable Governance (MCTAG)-organized Forum with the Presidentiables, August 27, 2009, Davao City
Content summary:  In 1992, there was a debate between environment and development. Example:
1. Organic agriculture works! North Cotabato farmers we helped are now yielding twice the national outtage. The fastest trade growth globally is in sustainable organic foods.
2. Water- create a measurable recharge-discharge rate. Green technologies, desalination plants, community-based approach to fisheries
3. Mining - no one is against mining, but what is important is we address the diff impacts: ecological, watershed, ancestral domains, ownership, equity

This is where governance comes in because in this process, in almost every aspect of the way, bad governance results in an unnecessary conflict between development and environment. It can be done. It's being done all over the place. There is a huge opportunity for green economy.



Date Originally Posted:  September 3, 2009
About the Video:  Presidentiable Nicanor Perlas on Farm Land Conversion and Low Agricultural Productivity during the Mindanao Coalition for Transparent and Accountable Governance (MCTAG)-organized Forum with the Presidentiables, August 27, 2009, Davao City
Content summary:  There are tremendous political barriers. Governance creating all kinds of conflicts. Suggestions:
1. Land uses of existing farming ecosystems which are highly productive.
Example: Land Use Code that would allow for indigenous practices to be preserved in the Cavite multi-storey planting systems are being lost as a result of rel estate speculation in Tagaytay and surrounding cities. These practices could become the future best practices out of indigenous knowledge and science that can benefit agriculture in general.

2. Small farmer productivity -- redefine "productivity" not just as labor productivity (biased to the use of machinery) but in terms of total productivity- ecological, human, ecosystem.  Example: multiple cropping systems are more productive than monoculture systems. Redefine the total biomass of useful harvest per unit hectare of land.

3. People in the uplands -- create post-harvest facilities in the village and municipal levels to address wastage and low prices. 70% of vegetables in Baguio are wasted by the time they reach Manila because of lack of proper refrigeration facilities in the transport system

4. The farmer him/herself-- the real factor in agri productivity. Need a total approach to reeducate farmers to respect indigenous knowledge and at the same time converge with modern agricultural, ecological technologies so that we have tremendous productivity even at small scale levels




Date Originally Posted:  September 3, 2009
About the Video:  Presidentiable Nicanor Perlas on Agriculture and Food Security during the Mindanao Coalition for Transparent and Accountable Governance (MCTAG)-organized Forum with the Presidentiables, August 27, 2009, Davao City 
Content summary:  Agricultural mobilization is a perfect example of a complex nature of addressing a problem. Has been an issue since the 1960s. The AFMA, which was enacted based on WTO agreement and contained what to do in agriculture in the context of globalization, unfortunately was never really acted upoon. The billions promised never came. We are in a weak position vis-a-vis our own food security as well as the globalization process. We are importing close to 2M metric tonnes--we're not supposed to do that. It's very difficult to reconstruct agri land that has been laid to waste--it's not a factory, it's a biological process.

2. We can't just rely on increasing land frontiers of production??
Methodology of farming is also important because we're wasting soil productivity. IRRI for example showed that nitrogen resulted in dramatic decline of fields.
If we don't take care of the ecological aspects of our farming, we can't achieve food security.

3. Food security should be in the context of eradicating poverty. 70% in rural areas. therefore we should have a program that addresses not only food but livelihood.  This is why microfinancing is increasing in such tremendous scale.  I would promote agri-microfinance, which many don't want to touch, but is one of the keys to get productivity up.  Research all over the world has shown that small farm productivity is much higher than plantation productivity if the proper inputs are there.  We should empower small farmers to the degree that we have not done before, and we should do this in the context of a local and globalist economy.

The whole thing is connected to corruption and governance. The solutions are so well known, yet the funds are not there, they end up in fertilizer and irrigation funds in Metro Manila.



Date Originally Posted:  September 3, 2009
About the Video:  Presidentiable Nicanor Perlas on Philippine Education during the Mindanao Coalition for Transparent and Accountable Governance (MCTAG)-organized Forum with the Presidentiables, August 27, 2009, Davao City 
Content summary:  There are three aspects to the education question:
1. Infrastructure support: number of teachers, schools, outreach
2. Quality of education: we need define what quality is
3. Social justice that involves both

Education is to draw out the full human potential. Modern educ science has shown there are 11 intelligences that the human being has, among them IQ..there are others! including existential,naturalistic, moral
These are neglected in mainstream education. So if you want equitable access...
question should be reframed, to what kind of quality education do you want equitable access? Modern education is based on a 19th century model that's totally outdated, and it does not prepare us for education in the 20th century. The global economy is moving to a knowledge economy. Robotics, artificial intelligence are going to mechanize IQ-related capacities. So if you're a lawyer, doctor, accountant--IQ based--these are going to be mechanized in the next 10-15 years. If we dont prepare for creativity and the other stuff that make us whole human beings, then we'll be continuing on a path where we'll be the marginalized of the world.






Date Originally Posted:  September 3, 2009
About the Video:  Presidentiable Nicanor Perlas on Not Being Corrupt When Elected into Office during the Mindanao Coalition for Transparent and Accountable Governance (MCTAG)-organized Forum with the Presidentiables, August 27, 2009, Davao City 
Content summary:  The best gauge is the character of the person. I have a passion for fighting against corruption. Since 18. What triggered my passion: my father was a public servant, after 40 years was charged with corruption by Marcos because he refused to be corrupted. The injustice of the system that would reward 40 years of professional service with a bribery charge was soemthing I wanted to transform in my life. So a few years later I had a chance to do this with the corruption involving the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant, with a 40M bribery. The construction was so problematic, all the subcontractors were corrupt. We managed through an international mobilization to stop the Bataan Nuclear Plant. An accident from a defective plant would cause 1/3 of the Phils to be radioactive.

The next journey to stopping corruption came when we fought against corruption the the Department of Agriculture. Top government officials were being paid hundreds of millions in commissions to distribute pesticides that were banned in other countries, but were being dumped in the Philippines. We stopped this corruption and saved the lives of millions of farmers from pesticide impact.

We were active in getting Estrada out of office.
We were active trying to get Arroyo out of office.

Re character, if 40 years of one's existence has really been geared towards getting rid of corruption, I think it's so deep that the overwhelming bribery in office will not happen. I've been offered Cabinet positions which I've rejected because I did not believe in the integrity of the person that offered those positions.






Date Originally Posted:  September 3, 2009
About the Video:  Presidentiable Nicanor Perlas on Indigenous Peoples Act of 1997 during the Mindanao Coalition for Transparent and Accountable Governance (MCTAG)-organized Forum with the Presidentiables, August 27, 2009, Davao City 
Content summary:  It all begins in learning to respect the dignity and capacities of indigenous people. It's not too well-known a fact that one of the founding fathers of the new science of indigenous knowledge and systems, a new field of anthropology, was sent to the Philippines by the UN's FAO to give advice to the indigenous peoples in Mindoro. After 3 years, he said he had nothing to advice them, we have a lot to learn from them.
We have forgotten the profound wisdom that lies among indigenous people, not only in agriculture, medicine, ethno-veterinary aspects, art-- there's a whole wealth of indigenous knowledge that's there. This is a foundation modern society has lost, therefore we have a kind of society that doesn't appreciate what indigenous peoples can do. We look at them as indigents, marginalized to be reached out to instead of as co-partners in a developmental process, where we have a lot to learn. I've experienced this is the field--every time we install an ecological-agricultural process with indigenous people, we always start with their knowledge, and maybe add another 15-20% when the whole thing is finished. That is the foundation. Without this, all the technical approaches that have been done will become victimized to the same kind of political maneuvering that has victimized the Autonomous Regions.

This is the foundation. Then we can produce all the productivity, social health, education and all other appraoches that respect the culture of indigenous people, and then take it from there.





Date Originally Posted:  September 3, 2009
About the Video:  Presidentiable Nicanor Perlas on Indigenous Peoples Education during the Mindanao Coalition for Transparent and Accountable Governance (MCTAG)-organized Forum with the Presidentiables, August 27, 2009, Davao City 
Content summary:  Dapat baguhin ang edukasyon upang hindi one-way ang process of interaction. Kultura ng mga katutubo ay angkop. Hindi magagawa ang mga programa kung walang sariling pagtiwala sa sariling kakayanan at sariling pananaw. Nangyayari sa eco-tourism, halimbawa, karamihan ng mga katutubo ay nagiging cultural artifacts, one of the worst forms of commodification. Nakikita sa Luzon, increasing in Mindanao. Pagtingin sa katutubo ay wala silang sariling kultura, wala tayong matutunan sa kanila, spectacle yung musika, yung artistic way of living. Ito ay dapat mawala dahil yan ang preparasyon ng tunay na partisipasyon ng mg akattuob sa proseso ng pag-uunland, sa proseso ng councils. Kadalasang nangyayari for political purposes, yung mga liderato ay hindi tunay na representatives ng mga katutubo. Marami sa kanila pumupunta sa civil society para humingi ng tulong para makapasok talaga sa mga councils na para kanila. Only after that, na yung mga concrete programs para sa pag-unlad ay magagawa. Good news: there are billions of dollars of social responsible or sustainable development investments na sensitive sa kultura at mga karapatan ng mga katutubo. Naghahanap sila ng partnerships. Example: Norway nag-release ng billions of dollars para tulungan ang mga katutubo sa Brazilian forest para ma-maintain yung forest ecosystem nila sa pamamaraan na hindi yung dignidad ng mga katutubo ay hindi apektado. Pwede rin itong mangyari sa atin, kapag ginawa natin yung true empowerment, yung kultura in tact, may respeto on both sides, malawak ang pananaw.




Date Originally Posted:  September 3, 2009
About the Video:  Presidentiable Nicanor Perlas on Business Investments in Mindanao during the Mindanao Coalition for Transparent and Accountable Governance (MCTAG)-organized Forum with the Presidentiables, August 27, 2009, Davao City 
Content summary:  Nicky

Importance of the perception of the Business climate of the Phils. Surveys have shown that if a country is viewed as politically unstable--which is is being viewed now--and also the massive corrution in the country--we are perceived as the most corrupt in Asia, and on top of that we have increasing amount of fiscal deficit spending per government which in the past triggered macroeconomic instability, especially withdrawal of portfolio investments in the country-- if we cannot solve that problem, we will not be encouraging business people. You cannot encourage business people to come in unless you solve the business climate.
Therefore one has to have good governance, fiscal management,all the key infrastructure has to be in place to encourage business people--we have the highest electrical prices in Asia. It's a set of factors that have now been identified as the critical points for economic development in the country.
In the microeconomic or regional level in Mindanao, if the same factors prevail at the global/national level, then we'll experience the same thing. There's also the added perception in Manila, (and also outside) which may not be true, that the peace condition in Mindanao is not conducive for long term investment. This is the perception because of the ongoing conflict. I dont necessarily believe that this is widespread in Mindanao, it's located in specific areas.
So in addition to the challenges of the national level, there is the challenge of peace in Mindanao.
The new government has to set up policies that deal with changing the business climate and at the same time ensuring the equitable, participatory, transparent peace process in Mindanao is done and implemented.





Date Originally Posted:  September 3, 2009
About the Video:  Presidentiable Nicanor Perlas on the Future of the Youth in Mindanao during the Mindanao Coalition for Transparent and Accountable Governance (MCTAG)-organized Forum with the Presidentiables, August 27, 2009, Davao City 
Content summary:  Ang imagined future ko for the young people of Mindanao is a Mindanao
where the young people truly understand ano yung kahalagahan at kahulugan ng buhay nila within the Mindanao, national, and global context. Sa age ng globalalization, ang tama sa kabataan ay dalawa:
All over the world, ang globalization process sinisira ang base ng ating cultural identity. Tumatama ito at the time na yung mga kabataan ay naghahanap ng identity nila. Natural tendency ng mga kabataan is to reexamine, to reflect upon the present and past reality na naharapan nila. It's very important na yung mga proseso in society bukas sa deeper question of identity and culture ng kabataan. Mga proseso that have to do kung anong klaseng trabaho ang aking makakamtan, kung ano ang industriya. Ang kahulugan ng stage ng kabataan--lahat tayo dumaan dito--ay hanapin kung ano yung sapat na kahulugan at kabuluhan ng ating buhay. Pag hindi natin nahanap yon, mawalala tawa sa complex system ng pamahalaan at lipunan.
Ang question of identity ay mahalaga sa question of globalization process. Kapag hindi klaro kung sino tayo bilang isang bansa, ang globalization process ang mag-dedefine ng identity natin. Ito ang nangyayari sa karamihan ng kabataan dahil hindi sapat yung proseso sa edukasyon.

Lahat ito ang tinatalakay ay kung anong yung identity natin sa Pilipinas at sa mundo. Ang nangyari, we are formed from the outside, hindi sa loob. Hindi natin dini-define.

So nakikita ko isang youth dignified, klaro, may vision, multiple intelligent yung skills--hindi lang science, technology, logic, linguistics. Merong emotionally smart, socially smart, naturally smart, may moral integrity, merong existential intelligence, at merong spiritual intelligence, na ito yung magiging batay para pagtransporma ng lipunan. Wala tayong inner power kung hindi natin alam kung sino ba talaga tayo, ano yung mga kakayahan natin para baguhin and isang lipunan na ang daming problema t grabe ang korupsiyon.





http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tXwiQz1VDSY

Date Originally Posted:  September 3, 2009
About the Video:  Presidentiable Nicanor Perlas on the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity during the Mindanao Coalition for Transparent and Accountable Governance (MCTAG)-organized Forum with the Presidentiables, August 27, 2009, Davao City 
Content summary:  Nicky

The Bangsamoro Juridical Entity can be reconsidered in a totally new renegotiotaion, with greater transparency,clarity, participation and decision-making, including its relationship with MILF and ARMM. We need to have among the Muslims their own process where they can agree to a larger situation. One of the things they have to agree upon, also on the Christian side, is what is the relaitonship of the BJE to the central government. This was one of the key issues that wasn't framed, and how do we resolve the strong sense of self-determination within the context of our own destiny as a nation.
I am open for constitutional amendments if necessary but not in the context of ConAss, never in the context of ConAss, but in a properly constituted Constitutional Convention, with the proper consultation of our Moro borthers and sisters.




http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nA6PX0RP_G0

Date Originally Posted:  September 3, 2009
About the Video:  Presidentiable Nicanor Perlas on Laws to Protect the Environment during the Mindanao Coalition for Transparent and Accountable Governance (MCTAG)-organized Forum with the Presidentiables, August 27, 2009, Davao City 
Content summary:  The whole problem is actually the political will to implement our laws. Clean Air Act, Solid Waste Act--we have the whole range of legislation, but it's not being implemented. This is one of the areas where it's very clear that we have a governance problem. There's no political will to carry this out. That why there has to be real dramatic change in 2010.





http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WfsrdXPO_nE


Date Originally Posted:  September 3, 2009
About the Video:  Presidentiable Nicanor Perlas on the top 3 women's rights to protect and promote during the Mindanao Coalition for Transparent and Accountable Governance (MCTAG)-organized Forum with the Presidentiables, August 27, 2009, Davao City 
Content summary: Ang base ng universal human rights, na ang batayan rin ng Magna Carta of Women, ay ang ating universal divine, dignified nature.
Ang number 1 right na susuportohan ko ay ang right of participation ng mga babae. Dahil sa right of participation, lahat ng mga polisiya, mga batas, proseso, resolusiyon at executive orders ng lahat ng government agencies ay magiging sapat sa pananaw ng babae, hindi lang ng lalaki, kasi equal na. Usually nagdadala ng ibang perspektibo ang mga kababaihan sa proseso ng paggawa ng batas at mga programa. Itong participation na ito ay hindi nangyayari, especially sa operational level. Ang daming hadlang, ang daming hindi nasusunod.

Number 2: economic rights ng babae
Usually grabe ang discrimination sa workplace-- sa plantation, labor conditions. Mahalagang ang mga babae ay may karapatang pumewesto kung ano ang kakayahan nila. Hindi lang sa worker process, kundi sa decision-making process, head of business. Kadugtong ito ng participation.

Number 3: social rights ng babae
Ang definition kung ano ang Social services, kasama dito reproductive health, nutrition, education, para magawa ang equitable sustainable development sa Mindanao na gender-sensitive. Ang batayan nitong lahat ay kung yung babae kasama sa proseso, participatory, siya mismo ang nagde-define kung ano ang mabuti para sa kanya.





http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X97gdtqtzmE

Date Originally Posted:  September 3, 2009
About the Video:  Presidentiable Nicanor Perlas on Another Woman to Become President
during the Mindanao Coalition for Transparent and Accountable Governance (MCTAG)-organized Forum with the Presidentiables, August 27, 2009, Davao City 
Content summary:  Re Gender issue sa politics, mas importante ang qualifications. Gusto kong banggitin yung aking binahagi sa isang pagpupulong ng mga delegato sa Beijing Women's Summit. Tiningnan nila kung ano ang nangyari/accomplishments 10 years after the Beijing Summit. Hindi natin dapat ipagkamali ang difference ng male-female vs. masculine-feminine. Ang masculine-feminine traits ay nandiyan whether you're a male or a female. I'm partial for a woman leader for this country, but not Arroyo. Importante na dapat mangibabaw ang quality of the feminine sa ating pulitika. Ang feminine consciousness is more inclusive, mas nakakikita ng kabuuan, therefore mas mahalaga para sa problemang hinaharap natin ngayon. Meron tayong tinatawag na dynamic complexity dahil hindi na nagkakaugnay yung cause and effect relationships through time. May social complexity, na may iba't-ibang klaseng mga factors na aktibo sa political system natin. Meron rin tayong power complexity. The nation state, historically was constructed by masculine force, which is focused on one aspect to the detriment of the whole.





http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BO0cGiD7uyg

Date Originally Posted:  September 3, 2009
About the Video:  Presidentiable Nicanor Perlas on a Peace Agreement with the MILF during the Mindanao Coalition for Transparent and Accountable Governance (MCTAG)-organized Forum with the Presidentiables, August 27, 2009, Davao City 
Content summary:  I've been involved in several peace processes. I participated in some of the Muslim-Jewish peace process in Israel. At the same time also here in Mindanao I was involved from a techinical perspective in the MILF-GRP Peace Agreement of 1996. From my perspective, I would be supportive of a continuation and a rehabilitiation of the peace process. But we should learn from the mistakes and achievements--both sides-- of the process. How are we going to allow the larger christian population to understand the importance of a peace process? Look at the statistics of ARMM--50-70% poor, least number of roads, least number of electrical connections, least number of health facilities and hospitals as compared to the rest of the country. Then we can see that there is a real social injustice that's being done not only by the larger government, but by elements within the Moro leadership that do not allow the funds to reach the people in the countryside in the barangays. It's clear we need to address the historical and social justice issues that have been ongoing in this country for a long time. My understanding from conservations with both the Christian and the Moro side, that that MOA will go a long way towards something meaningful. The process should be totally transparent, there should be consultations on both sides. They have to also resolve or connect the relationship with ARMM, MILF and MNLF, which is something really important, and also the Christian side, for those christians who see this as a threat to them. If properly construed, there should be no conflict between the right to self-determination and the right of the nation-state. This is part of the process that would need to be clarified. If we want to have peace in Mindanao, we have to resolve this historical, long-term social justice issue.