The 2024 Miss Universe “The Light of Infinity” crown is made of “blood pearls” sourced from the Indigenous People’s (IPs) waters, which are controlled by powerful corporations in the country, the SAMBILOG Balik Bugsuk Movement said.
The Samahan ng mga Katutubo at Maliit na Mangingisda sa Dulong Timog Palawan (SAMBILOG) uploaded an open letter addressed to Miss Universe 2024 Victoria Kjaer Theilvig, appealing for her to shed light on the critical issues affecting the marginalized communities in the Philippines.
Theilvig’s victory as Miss Universe is a celebration of empowerment and hope, specifically for those fighting for justice and dignity, the group stated. Although likened to inspiration, the most coveted crown is also tied to the exploitation, displacement, and violence against the IPs in Bugsuk Island in Palawan.
“Your crown, while a beacon of triumph, carries pearls tied to the suffering of Indigenous Peoples in Bugsuk Island, Balabac, Palawan. These "blood pearls," sourced from waters controlled by powerful corporations, are products of decades of exploitation, displacement, and violence against the rightful stewards of these lands,” the group wrote in their letter.
Land Disputes and Displacement
Over 3,000 families were displaced in 1974 when former President Ferdinand Marcos Sr. permitted business tycoon Eduardo Cojuangco Jr. to plant seedlings of hybrid coconut trees in the premises of the said communities in Palawan. The approval was aligned with the government’s agrarian reform policy, forcing thousands of Indigenous individuals out of their ancestral territories.
Manuel Cojuangco (Eduardo’s sibling) partnered up with French businessman Jacques Branellec five years later, to establish Jewelmer International Corporation, the luxury brand that birthed the current Miss Universe crown.
“Today, corporations like San Miguel Corporation and Jewelmer continue to control and profit from these lands and waters, leaving Indigenous Peoples dispossessed and vulnerable,” SAMBILOG emphasized.
SAMBILOG has been fighting to regain access to their fishing grounds and ancestral lands since the year 2000.
The Persistence on Human Rights Violations
SAMBILOG claimed that human rights violations continue to persist today, as fisherfolks continue to get harassed for venturing to nearby company-controlled buoys. They added how armed guards intimate families who defend their homes and livelihoods at Marihangin Island.
Legal frameworks such as the Philippine Indigenous People’s Rights Act (IPRA) and the 2014 Notice of Coverage under the CARPER law for 10,821 hectares were made to protect the vulnerable communities in the area. Despite this, protections for such groups remain gloom.
The community’s application for a Certificate of Ancestral Domain Title (CADT), which covers 56,000 hectares has languished for nearly two decades, the group said. Moreover, the 1988 Fisheries Code which was supposed to allocate exclusive rights to small fishers, favored Jewelmer’s pearl farming and production.
“We implore you to lend your voice to amplify our calls for justice,” the group appealed to Theilvig.
SAMBILOG’s Call to Action
The group appealed to the Philippine government to reinstate the CARPER coverage and distribute the 10,821 hectares of land back to its previous owners and rightful claimants. They also pushed for the immediate processing of the Palawanen and Molbog community’s CADT applications. These documents were submitted in 2005, to ensure their rights over the ancestral lands and waters.
Aside from that, the group also called to end corporate aggression toward vulnerable communities like such. They are seeking to hold corporations accountable for the practices that have greatly impacted their communities and land.
They ask for an investigation to ensure “compliance with economic, social, cultural, civil, and political rights of indigenous peoples and local communities.”
“Your support will make a profound impact, exposing the injustices tied to these "blood pearls" and bringing hope to communities who have suffered in silence for too long,” SAMBILOG said.
“By standing with the SAMBILOG-BALIK Bugsuk Movement, you champion a cause of humanity, dignity, and justice,” it added.
