Mountain News: Mountaineers arrested for entering Mt. Banahaw
Hkers belonging to two groups were allegedly arrested yesterday, September 18, 2011, for climbing parts of Mt. Banahaw which have been declared off-limits since 2004. The arrest was reported in INQUIRER and was confirmed to us by Ms. Sally Pangan, the Park Superintendent of DENR in Mt. Banahaw. She also identified Tatlong Tangke as the trail that the said mountaineers took.
The hikers were released yesterday, September 19 but Ms. Pangan told PinoyMountaineer that “charges will still be pursued against the [mountaineers].” According to the INQUIRER report, “they will be charged with violating Republic Act No. 9847 or the Mounts Banahaw-San Cristobal Protected Landscape (MBSCPL) Act of 2009. The offense is punishable by a fine of P5,000 to P500,000 or imprisonment of one to six years or both.” .
This incident is not the first time that climbers were apprehended for making an illegal entry in Mt. Banahaw, and what might have encouraged the climbers is the fact that “backdoor entries” have been done with impunity in the past by other climbers.
In response to claims that some of the climbers have permits, Ms. Pangan told PinoyMountaineer: “The Office of the PASU in Pagbilao, Quezon is only one authorized to issue permits in Mt. Banahaw. Permits from other authorities are not officially recognized.” She reminded everyone to be wary of seeking/getting “permits” from other bodies.
Mt. Banahaw is scheduled to reopen on March 2012, according to our previous update about Mt. Banahaw. Meanwhile, Ms. Pangan reiterates that Mt. Cristobal and Mt. Banahaw de Lucban remain open and are not subject to any restrictions.
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8 Comments on "Mountain News: Mountaineers arrested for entering Mt. Banahaw"
to One of Them
The R.A.9847 or the Banahaw-San Cristobal Law aim is to protect both mountains, technicaly there are no provision as to where the "mountaineers" are allowed or not to climb the said mountains.
If you look at the RA into its limited capacity, we do not violated the law, that is why you and your friends were discharged without any cause.
But, should we look first into the law as to its general capacity, and that is to protect these mountains?, should we as the sentinels of nature be the one who promote, protect and be as a good example?, I am asking you these as a fellow mountaineers, I am not telling anyone here that you and your friends violated the law, but my point is if we are allowing ourselves to contest the full capacity of the said RA, are we not the one who openly inviting other people to do the same?…
i really do not know what really happens, dumaan ba kayo sa brgy/DENR/Local municipality office to log on as a courtesy call?…if you were allowed to pass thru, then why they still arrested you?…
as to the local or brgy official of these mountains, they should create their ordinance to support such law, pede naman kasi na d ka nga violated sa RA, pro harang ka pa din ng Local/Brgy Ordinace.
i can only see that they arrested you, to be as an example, bakit?..kasi ang pwede sa isa, pwede sa lahat, kapag pinabayaang makaakyat ang iba, pwede na rin umakyat ang lahat, so since hinuhuli na ang isa, then pede na ring manghuli sa lahat, anyone who will try to climb, not just a mountaineer,
and as shiela said, yes proper dessimination of information is the key here.
GBY
I'd like to post a reaction on one of the comments posted by an anonymous commenter who said that "ipagmamayabang lang nila yan sa iba pang mountaineers.." I think that comment is disrespectful to mountaineers or to climbers in general. Primarily, the reason why people do climb is to appreciate nature which is God-given. I for one am a newbie climber and I don't think that I choose to climb any peak for the sole purpose of boasting it to my friends. In this instance — one must not judge as we don't really know what happened there last weekend. DENR should not do a "selective" arrest, meaning they will arrest only if they feel like it, prior to this arrest, there were mountaineers who have already climbed Mt. Banahaw (during the this time that it was said that the mountain should have been closed) — how come they were able to climb the summit, I am sure not all of them have the proper permit. Lesson is, DENR should be able to inform the public about their laws or SOPs, and not shove it on the mountaineers faces after they have already climbed the summit. Even if the law states that "ignorance of the law excuses no one," public information is still very important. Does everyone know about the specific permits for these climbs? I don't think so. So please properly disseminate all information. Thank you.
i agree with edge, but the problem lies nowadays is that there are a lot of "monkeyneers" than mountaineers, the RA 9847 is about conservation of forest and mountain, and a true mountaineers are one with these campaign, we should be the frontliners, UG climb, d gawain ng mountaineer yan, courtesy call is a must.
if you are a mountaineer and you go Mt. Banahaw, you go climb with respect (and probably descent with a lots of garbage with you), pero kapag Monkeyneer ka…wala lang, umakyat ka lng dun at nagyabang na hanep naakyat ko na ang Mt. Banahaw. and malamang isa ka sa naglagay ng basura mo dun (which actualy one of the cause kung bakit naisara ang banahaw) then you proclaim yourself a mountaineers… and go to another mountains…and do the same….
I agree with "one of them" 🙂
a matter of self-preservation but not to be extend of prohibiting a mountaineer(i mean mountaineers,and not monkeyneers)
-edge
Great Job mula sa authorities ng denr jan sa banahaw area… Andami na kasing mountaineer na Pasaway these days… and of course pagpalagay natin na naging succesful ang underground climb nila sa banahaw… ipagyayabang lang nila yan sa iba pang mga mountaineers na makasasalamuha nila sa buhay nila.. which might ignite the idea para sa iba pang mga "MOUNTAINEERS" na mag UG climb din dun… Salamat at nagawaan ng aksyon ang mga ganyang bagay! 🙂