‘New FPIC rules must empower IPs, not rush consent’, says ex UN Indigenous Peoples Mechanism Expert

‘New FPIC rules must empower IPs, not rush consent’, says ex UN Indigenous Peoples Mechanism Expert

Revised rules governing free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) for projects in ancestral domains are drawing concern from Indigenous rights advocates, with veteran human rights lawyer and former UN Indigenous mechanisms expert Jose Molintas warning that tighter procedures may sideline communities unless backed by proactive government support.

Approved by the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) on May 1, 2026, the revised FPIC guidelines seek to streamline development approvals through a four-category classification system and fixed timelines for community consultations and consent decisions.

But Molintas, an Ibaloy and currently sitting at the 14-member Baguio City council said, faster procedures alone would not resolve longstanding tensions among Indigenous communities, government agencies and project proponents.

“A guideline alone is never enough,” he said, calling for a government support program that would help communities shape development plans before projects are proposed.

Unlike the 2012 guidelines, which gave communities greater flexibility to reach consensus under their customary practices, the new framework gives the NCIP a bigger role in scheduling assemblies and managing procedures. It also allows certain approvals and Certificates of Non-Overlap to rely on land titles issued before the Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act of 1997, raising questions about safeguards for ancestral land claims.

Molintas urged the government to require early notification and provide relevant information as soon as an area is identified for development or resource extraction. Communities, he said, should not be brought into the process only after key decisions have effectively been made.

He also called on the NCIP and other agencies to actively help Indigenous Cultural Communities and Indigenous peoples formulate and update their Ancestral Domain Sustainable Development and Protection Plans, enabling them to map out their priorities before opening their lands to outside investors, partners or funders. Too often, he said, projects are cleared or areas declared open without properly integrating FPIC, fueling avoidable conflict.

The NCIP has defended the revised rules as pro-Indigenous and pro-development, saying they followed years of consultation and review. But the debate underscores a central question: whether streamlined approvals can deliver development without weakening Indigenous self-determination. For Molintas, genuine progress means allowing Cordillera and other Indigenous communities to define their own future from the outset—not forcing them to respond to outside proposals under restrictive deadlines.