The Bayog ranger station, where Khukan and Melvin were shot, borders a full-fledged resort complete with swimming pools and cottages. Occupying protected land, the resort appears to be eyeing expansion, sending men to fence off more territory and tap into waterways from the reforestation site, Billie said.“The first thing I thought of was my family. I couldn’t just die like that because I have a young child.”
The Upper Marikina Watershed is crucial in protecting the Philippine capital Manila from floods. Photo: Noel Guevara via Masungi Georeserve Foundation
Sisters Billie (L) and Ann Dumaliang (R), co-founders and managing trustees of Masungi Georeserve. Photo: Noel Guevara via Masungi Georeserve Foundation
The encroachments and harassment continued, and the Masungi team kept reporting incidents to the authorities. They were promised action each time, but the follow through has been frustratingly slow.Knowing they’re up against “syndicated activities and organized crime,” Ann’s sister Billie said “there seem to be elements and entities that are trying to frustrate our efforts and projects.”“It’s alarming that one of the establishments within the protected area is owned by a former provincial environment officer,” she added.Earlier this year, the environment department ordered GSB Farm to explain allegations that it had illegally built a resort on protected land. The local government shut the resort down on May 30. In a Facebook post the next day, GSB Farm said it was complying with the order by requesting the mandatory government permits for building structures in protected areas.“We’ve been saying it again and again that our rangers are being harassed. Our lives are in danger. Which part of that is so hard to understand, when personalities like this are 300 meters away from us?”
Park rangers often discover parts of the forest destroyed by intruders, such as this scene photographed in June. Photo: Masungi Georeserve Foundation
Khukan became a Masungi park ranger in 2012, when he left his hometown in the restive Mindanao region to flee violent conflict. The calm and natural beauty in the geopark contrasted starkly with the chaos back home, where he had worked as a bodyguard for a local official.“When I started working in Masungi, I told myself I’d last long here,” Khukan said. Planting trees, pulling weeds, building trails and accompanying trekkers wasn’t a bad way to live at all. It took him three years to learn the local language, but his colleagues helped him and made him feel at home. Now, he is one of the leaders, training and guiding new rangers.“I have come to love our work here in Masungi,” he said.When he was shot, Khukan didn’t want to tell his mother back in Mindanao, but she found out through the other rangers. “She cried and cried for two days, so when I felt a little better, I put on a smile, took a selfie, and sent it to her to let her know I’m alright.”After the surgery, Khukan couldn’t work for a month. His wife asked him if he thought working in Masungi was still worth the risk.“Don’t be afraid, I told her. There’s danger, but I can take care of myself,” Khukan said. “I make sure to smile when we talk, to reassure her.”Regular police patrols around Masungi started recently, after some park visitors helped connect the managers with the right officers. The team is grateful for the patrols, Billie said, but it’s too early to tell if it’s enough to keep intruders out.Khukan, meanwhile, is back in the field.“We’re determined to keep working because we’re not doing anything wrong here at Masungi Georeserve,” he said. “I know we’re doing the right thing.”Follow JC Gotinga on Twitter.“I know we’re doing the right thing.”