On July 2016, The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) reviewed the human rights violations by the Philippine State. The CEDAW Committee was notified that the Philippines is institutionalizing gender biases, patriarchal structures and violence against women to further interests, specifically those of mining corporations. Kakay Tolentine from the Durmagat Indigenous community and BAI (National Network of Indigenous Women) representative highlighted the increases in extrajudicial killings, including 90 Indigenous land defenders between 2010 and 2016. The killing of Juvy Capion was raised to the CEDAW Committee. Capion, a B’laan woman leader who fiercely opposed the Sagittarius Mines, Inc. project on her ancestral lands was killed by military men in October 2012 along with her two young sons. Despite the laws passed to protect Indigenous women, the government fails to fulfill its obligations. Photo credit: WLB
