BALTIMORE, April 23, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Fr. Edwin Gariguez, executive secretary of the National Secretariat for Social Action-Justice and Peace (NASSA–the Philippines branch of Caritas) and a prominent activist against mining in his country, has been awarded the prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize. He is one of six "environmental heroes" selected from the six inhabited continental regions.
The prize, announced each year in April to coincide with Earth Day, recognizes individuals for "sustained and significant efforts to protect and enhance the natural environment, often at great personal risk." Each winner receives an award of $150,000, the largest award in the world for grassroots environmentalists. The awardees also travel to San Francisco and Washington, D.C. for award ceremonies and meetings with political and environmental leaders.
Fr. Edu, as he is affectionately called by most who know him, along with Caritas Philippines (NASSA), has been a longtime partner of Catholic Relief Services. The agencies most recently worked together closely during the devastating flooding caused by Tropical Storm Washi this past December. He is being recognized for co-founding the Alliance Against Mining (ALAMIN) in Mindoro, a major island in the northwestern Philippines, to oppose the opening of an open-pit nickel mine that opponents feared would cause major environmental damage.
"On behalf of CRS, I offer my congratulations to Fr. Edu, who has been a courageous and tireless advocate for the rights of workers in Mindoro," said Dr. Carolyn Y. Woo, CRS president & CEO. "His work is an inspiration to all who fight global poverty and advocate for social justice around the world."
The Goldman Prize citation noted that "uniting thousands of indigenous peoples, farmers and local and provincial political leaders, Gariguez and his ALAMIN coalition led Mindoro communities in numerous protests. Undeterred by threats of violence and verbal harassment from mining officials and the military—and reeling through the loss of a colleague at ALAMIN who was murdered because of his activism—Father Edu went on to broaden the grassroots movement beyond Mindoro."
Fr. Edu and his organization are best known for conducting an 11-day hunger strike in 2009 in which they demanded an end to the nickel-mining project. According to the Goldman Prize citation, the government "finally agreed to conduct an investigation into the mine's environmental and social violations." Ultimately, government officials suspended the mine's environmental compliance certificate.
"Meanwhile, the Philippines' president, who took office in June 2010, has stated that he will fight corruption and take a comprehensive look at mining," the Goldman Prize citation said. "Father Edu has made it clear that he will sustain pressure on the government to follow through with its pledges."
Catholic Relief Services is the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. The agency provides assistance to people in need in nearly 100 countries, without regard to race, religion or nationality. For more information, please visit www.crs.org or www.crsespanol.org.
The Catholic Relief Services logo is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=12002