Doctored graphic falsely claims Philippine Catholic Church 'expressed support for dam project'

This article is more than one year old.
Published on March 27, 2023 at 11:39
2 min read
By Faith BROWN, AFP Philippines

Multiple Facebook posts have shared a doctored graphic that falsely claims the Catholic Church in the Philippines pledged its support for a controversial dam project that primarily aims to supply water to people living in the capital Manila. In fact, the church said in response to the posts that it remained opposed to the dam because of its potential impact on the environment and indigenous communities. The original graphic -- published in 2021 -- said the church opposed the project.

"The Catholic Church in the Philippines is not against development as long as it does not sacrifice the common good in the name of progress. We support Kaliwa Dam project," read part of the false graphic shared on Facebook in the Catholic-majority Philippines on February 24.

It misleadingly appeared to show support from an assembly of Catholic bishops for the Kaliwa Dam, a Chinese-funded development in the archipelago nation set for completion in 2026.

The project has met resistance from rights groups, indigenous peoples and church leaders for its feared effects on the environment and the communities living on the Sierra Madre mountain range, which lies east of the capital Manila and acts as a barrier to severe weather in the island of Luzon.

According to the Philippine government, the dam will provide 600 million litres of fresh water per day, primarily to people living in Manila.

Despite the resistance, local media reported in February 2023 that the Philippine government said the dam was "22 percent completed" and it had paid compensation to those affected by the project.

Screenshot of the false post taken on March 24, 2023.

The same false graphic was shared in Facebook posts here and here.

Reverse image searches and keyword searches found it was doctored from a graphic published by Caritas Philippines, the advocacy arm of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP).

Original graphic

In a statement on Facebook on February 24, Caritas Philippines said the graphic in the posts had been "photoshopped".

"Fake news strikes again! Caritas Philippines is strongly against the Kaliwa Dam project, contrary to the edited post," the statement read in part.

The original graphic was shared on June 10, 2021 alongside a CBCP statement that welcomed the issuance of a cease and desist order against the dam's construction.

Below is a screenshot comparison of the doctored image (left) and the original graphic on the Caritas Philippines website (right):

Screenshot comparison of the misleading post (left) and the original post (right).

Valentin Dimoc, head of the CBCP's Commission on Indigenous Peoples, criticised the dam project in October 2021, saying the lives of indigenous groups were "being threatened by this kind of project".

The CBCP previously expressed its opposition to the project in a statement in February 2020.

"The ongoing Kaliwa Dam project of the government, in the guise of providing water to Metro Manila, is to our mind against inclusive development," the earlier statement read.

"We, therefore, call on the concerned government agencies and other proponents of the Kaliwa Dam project to stop the implementation."

Is there content that you would like AFP to fact-check? Get in touch.

E-mail