The indigenous Aeta-Hunguey people in Capas, Tarlac are fighting the construction of the 9,450-hectare New Clark City, which has been promoted as a grand showcase of ‘sustainable’ and ‘environmentally friendly’ urban living.

Artwork from a primer on Bungkalan on the Aeta-Hunguey struggle for rights.
This project, initiated by the Bases Conversion and Development Authority in 2013, is masterminded by the Asian Development Bank and state actors from Japan and Singapore. This so-called ‘sustainable’ city project has already displaced farmers and Aeta communities in the Tarlac and Pampanga provinces.
The project has vested interests, including the Armed Forces of the Philippines that is entitled to a portion of project revenue in commercial development of these reservation areas. The principle of ‘Free, prior and informed consent’ was not followed; military presence in and control of the area serves to intimidate and repress residents in their opposition to the project. Intensive excavations have deforested mountains and rerouted river systems to make way for highways.
Construction has destroyed ecosystems and pushed entire communities off their land, resulting in them losing access to their banana plantations and fruit-bearing trees.