A Critical Appraisal of Poverty in the Context of Nature-Based Communities: Selected Cases from the Philippines

The Philippines is considered one of the wealthiest countries in both Southeast Asia and the world when measured by biodiversity, mineral resources and natural resources. It is also one of the most highly mineralized countries on earth. However, despite these natural endowments, when measured by established economic and human development indices the Philippines remains poor. Using critical perspectives derived from Marxist tradition, William Chambliss' theory of law and its dialectical nature, Immanuel Wallerstein's World Systems Theory, and Fred Block's structural mechanism of the state, this study aimed to critically appraise the persistence of poverty in nature-based communities in the Philippines. It focuses particularly on communities engaged in Artisanal Small-Scale Gold Mining (ASGM) in Barangay Pamintaran, Maragusan, Barangay Luklukan Sur, and Panganiban, as well as those engaged in Indigenous Almaciga Resin Tapping (IART) by the Pelawan Kenuy and Batak tribe located in Palawan islands. Results revealed emerging themes and contradictions. First, the domination of "petty entrepreneurs" (middle persons/financers) that subjugate workers in all cases. Second, the structural mechanisms of the state weaponize the law to oppress the working class through the following: a) the informalization structure and slow-paced processing of ASGM site application towards legalization and Almaciga licensing; b) bureaucratic, tedious and costly permitting/application systems for IART licenses and permits and the legalization of an ASGM mine site; and, 3) Neo-extractivism and world Systems theories are aligned with ASGM and IART cases. Theoretically, the results showed that the integrated explanatory power of the theoretical frames used in the study provided a cogent explanation of the persistence of poverty by understanding its structural, historical embeddedness alongside the socio-economic and environmental-political issues and critical junctures of society. The study invites us to account for a multifaceted view of the nature of poverty and the mediating role of law in nature-based communities, which confines IART and ASGM communities in the so-called inescapable poverty trap and working class exploitation.