Cebuano environmental heroes

The tragedies linked to Monterrazas, the Mananga River, the Butuanon River, and the Cotcot River should tell us our Cebuano political leaders, government bureaucrats, and contractors have failed us.

- Atty. Josephus B. Jimenez [e-mail]

On one hand, there are despicable people in high places. On the other hand, there are a few stouthearted men we can be proud of. Two illustrious Cebuanos, both Ramon Magsaysay Awardees, should stand as our great pride: former chief justice Hilario G. Davide, Jr. from southern Cebu and Antonio A. Oposa, Jr. from northern Cebu.

In times of anger and anguish, we should remind ourselves that it was a great Cebuano, from Colawin, Argao, Hilario Davide Jr., who penned the landmark Supreme Court decision in Oposa v. Factoran, filed on behalf of the young Filipinos, by another great young lawyer from Cebu, Antonio Oposa Jr., president of The Law of Nature Foundation and a multi-awarded environmentalist, in fact, one of Asia's icons for the protection of the planet.

Davide's legal masterpiece started with an eloquent declaration: "In a broader sense, this petition bears upon the right of Filipinos to a balanced and healthful ecology which the petitioners dramatically associate with the concepts of 'inter-generational responsibility' and 'intergenerational justice. Specifically, it touches on the issue of whether the said petitioners have a cause of action 'to prevent the misappropriation or impairment' of Philippine rainforests' and arrest the unabated hemorrhage of the country's vital life support and continued rape of Mother Earth."