The small scale mining industry employs thousands of men and women in Benguet. It's a source of regular controversy given the fact that a lot of these mining operations are done outside of the confines of the law. In other words, a lot of them are run illegally. The government doesn't seem to have the capabilities to regulate legit operations and curb the proliferation of illegal ones. A common defense from the authorities is that if these small scale mining operations are to be halted, thousands of families will lose their source of livelihood.
These are among the talking points of an upcoming documentary by filmmaker Ferdie Balanag. Simply titled Agbalbalitok (The Gold Prospector), the documentary chronicles the plight of small scale miners in Itogon, Benguet and told through the story of John Ray, a young Ibaloi who is among the hundreds of men who toil in the dark tunnels of Itogon. Watch the trailer for the documentary below.
Agbalbalitok will be
screened along with ten other documentaries this coming September at the
CINE TOTOO: Philippine Documentary Film Festival. The festival will run
from September 24 to 30 at the Trinoma Mall in Quezon City. Also to be
screened in the festival is the Cordillera-based documentary Walang Rape sa Bontok by Carla Samantha Ocampo.
