CEBU CITY, Philippines—People used to laugh at him for having dolphins and sea mammals for clients in 2007.

But after almost eight years of court battle, environmental lawyer Benjamin Cabrido Jr., had the last laugh.

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The Supreme Court on Tuesday declared unconstitutional the “oil exploration, development and exploitation of petroleum resources” by Japan Petroleum Exploration Co. Ltd. (Japex) in Tañon Strait, which lies between the islands of Cebu and Negros.

Cabrido said the oil exploration in the strait from late 2007 until early 2008 affected dolphins and other marine species in the area, while the drilling damaged the protected seascape and displaced the fishermen.

“A lot of dolphins are in that area,” the lawyer explained. “During the oil exploration, they moved to another location,” he added.

In a decision penned by Associate Justice Teresita Leonardo-De Castro, the high court nullified the service contract awarded by the Department of Energy (DOE) to Japex for oil exploration and drilling.

The court also ruled that the contract violated Republic Act No. 7586, or the National Integrated Protected Areas System (Nipas) Act of 1992. Tañon Strait is considered an environmentally critical area, where exploitation of natural resources is restricted

Respondents

In the case labeled Resident Marine Mammals of the Protected Seascape Tañon Strait et al. v. Secretary Angelo Reyes et al., also named respondents were former Environment Secretary Lito Atienza, former Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap, Leonardo Sibbaluca of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources Central Visayas and Japex, represented by its Philippine agent, Supply Oilfield Services.

Ecology lawyers Gloria Estenzo-Ramos and Liza Osorio joined Cabrido in filing the case on behalf of the dolphins, toothed whales, porpoises and other cetacean species in Tañon Strait.

When Cabrido filed the case on his birthday on Dec. 20, 2007, people ridiculed him and said the case would not prosper.

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“There were questions raised on the legal standing of dolphins,” he recalled. “But then, I felt confident because I knew the oil exploration in Tañon Strait was absolutely unconstitutional,” he added.

The high court initially said dolphins and other sea mammals have no legal personality to sue, the lawyer said, but as guardians of the marine species, they eventually gave due course to the merits of the case.

Dumbfounded

When Cabrido learned he won the landmark case on Tuesday night, he was dumbfounded. It was the first time that marine mammals won a court case in the Philippines, he said.

“Now, vindication comes,” said the lawyer from the Philippine Earth Justice Center (PEJC).

It’s a victory shared with dolphins and sea mammals, Cabrido said. “They too won in the lawsuit.”

The high court’s ruling should serve as a lesson to those who intend to disrupt marine ecology through illegal means, Cabrido said of the decision that was more of a moral victory than a material one. Japex had voluntarily relinquished the oil drilling project in 2008, reportedly due to the lack of commercial oil and gas on the site, the lawyer said.

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