Group believes Pax Silica initiative can be ‘shot down’
Students, teachers, and university personnel staged a Black Friday protest dubbed “Walang Makalilimot! Iskolar ng Bayan, Walkout Na!” at the University of the Philippines Diliman on Friday, September 18, 2026, demanding accountability over corruption and impunity and calling for higher state funding for education. Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News/FileMANILA — A progressive group believes the Pax Silica initiative in the Philippines can be “shot down.”
Pax Silica is a US-backed initiative that seeks to build artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure, among others. The proposed Pax Silica hub in Capas, Tarlac has been facing criticisms over concerns on its anticipated impact to indigenous peoples and the environment.
“There’s already been pronouncements that investors are spooked because of the mass outrage against the Pax Silica in the Philippines,” BAYAN USA chairperson Nieves Delgado said in a forum on Sunday.
“It’s kind of alluded to that American people are also very anti-AI,” she added.
However, for International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines – US’ Copeland Downs, the initiative would still stand despite the domination of Democrat candidates during the midterm elections.
“I think that by and large many US Congress people still have a very business-oriented view and they’re very aligned with the ideal that the American economy needs to grow and this is one way that that would happen,” Downs said.
“I think that we would expect that Trump would still advance whatever he can at this moment,” he added.
US Ambassador to the Philippines Lee Lipton recently said there would be no announcement about the Pax Silica proposal during the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit this month.
BAYAN USA’s KC Adonis, however, believes it would still be discussed during the event, wherein US President Donald Trump is expected to attend.
“I’m sure that will still be a topic of conversation, an important one, especially due to the fact that more number of the ASEAN member states are also signed to WAICO (World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization), the Chinese government’s equivalent,” he said.
Progressive groups are mounting protests leading to the ASEAN Summit to oppose Trump and the Pax Silica deal.