Kordillera Autonomy

P500,000.00 prov’l autonomy budget

2010-11-03T06:26:00.000-07:00

From the P15 million budget for regional autonomy with its spending term to end by December this year, each of the six provinces of the Cordillera is allotted P500, 000 for their respective consultation and information activities for the drafting of the third organic act for Cordillera regional autonomy.

A half million peso allotment per province would then be equal to P3.5 million pesos for all the six provinces of Apayao, Abra, Kalinga, Benguet, Ifugao, Mountain Province and Baguio City.
And the rest of the P11.5 million…where will it go? The answer my friend, is blowing in the wind with Regional Development Council (RDC) chair and National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) director Juan Ngalob calling the shots in how the autonomy money is allocated.

Back to the P500,000 allocation. Is this amount enough to reach out to some 150,000 voters spread out in 10 municipalities and 144 barangays in Mountain Province for example? Here in Mountain Province, this amount of half a million pesos means one consultation only per municipality.

The consultation on regional autonomy shall be done in a general manner with representatives per barangay and sectoral groups attending, as how the Mountain Province sub-committee on the drafting committee chaired by civic leader Franklin Odsey has come up with in their recent meeting. Forget about mass-wide barangay and sectoral consultations. Obviously, such budget amounting to only P500, 000 pesos can only reach one consultation per town with a limited number of participants even.

A quick calculation brings up to P50, 000 per town/consultation from the half million allocation allotted by RDC to provinces. Less secretariat and travel fees for facilitators including coordination expenses, leaves something like 15,000 to 20,000 allotment for meals per municipality. Anyone can come up with a quick calculation how many mouths to feed for P20,000 pesos only. Participants who attend trainings in posh hotels and resorts and even meetings know what P20, 000 means.

That is, one cannot gather people, get them out from their work and homes and families and not serve lunch with a piece of meat or some veggies or bilis (dried fish) and rice. While it is cultural to feed people during community gatherings, the activity has a P15 million budget to spend to reach the widest number of people as much as possible. Of course, meals are one of the major items to be budgeted aside from secretariat, travels, and coordination expenses.

So there it goes. A simple calculation with 144 barangays multiplied by at least P7, 000 per pig and one more to feed the entire barangay will come up with one million pesos. That is less rice, fuel, veggies, salt, kape and asukal. Add hundred thousands more for sectoral meetings and more for travels and logistics for operations and secretariat work.

An allotment of at least P1.5 to 2 million per province from the P15 million budget is then wanting to make this autonomy drive more intensive and broad than the previous consultation-information drives done in the past. It is a question if this third autonomy attempt has learned something or not from the previous two failed ones. Otherwise, this autonomy campaign is being done just to spend the 15 million pesos! Period.

With lack of information cited as a major reason why the previous autonomy attempts failed in the two plebiscites as noted in a RDC survey which noted that 40% don’t know what autonomy is all about, RDC’s very act of allotting a measly amount now from the total P15 million autonomy budget is remarkably absurd.

An honest to goodness information drive means barangay and sectoral consultations in mass attendance where every voter is expected to be informed and say what he or she thinks about regional autonomy to find incorporation in the proposed organic act.

It is another issue to discuss where the media comes in. With a P15 million budget, how much is allotted for media purposes? Is the radio utilized? How consistent are the radio plugs? How about the print media in the local and regional level? Saw only once an advertisement on regional autonomy in regional papers. Haven’t come across stories consistently written to spur a government led-autonomy campaign.

The autonomy drive was only trying hard to be visible during the celebration of the Cordillera Month last July with government staff doing an ethnic hataw and Baguio based students doing a debate on regional autonomy. Aside from these, there was not a pronounced celebration or a visible autonomy campaign in the provinces. Obviously, the P15 million budget is wanting of visibility to get evangelized in the provinces.

Now, RDC is scrambling and rushing to spend P15 million before the year ends. Such a big amount of money which should have been spent earlier or towards the 2nd quarter of the year and less money left to spend in the latter part of the year.

But anyway, with all these information and consultation activities for autonomy, are the people really interested to have regional autonomy in the first place? For those who are already closed with the idea of a regional autonomy, the road is open for those who may be wanting of information or persuasion. And this is where the P15 million should be spent ngarud to reach the remotest barangay because in the first place those who will vote are the people and not only government personnel doing the ethnic hataw or RDC officials and NEDA staff and pro-autonomy advocates to say yes to autonomy.

While such is the question, political leader Rafael Wasan asked during an earlier meeting chaired by organic act drafting committee chairman and Baguio Mayor Mauricio Domogan, why RDC is the only one budgeting the autonomy fund. The rest is history as Wasan asked further how the initial P33 million autonomy fund was spent to which RDC Chair/NEDA Director Ngalob said the answer is posted in the RDC website!

Northern Philippine Times

Cordillera Autonomy Part 3?

2010-07-12T07:17:00.000-07:00

This so-determined stance of the Regional Development Council to push through with regional autonomy for the Cordillera is already a boring campaign and has lost its flavor.

Unless the RDC is going to make the issue as enticingly beneficial in the current scenario to gain attention by all sectors in Cordillera society, then the bid for the third attempt may see fruit. A flashback on the beginnings for a regional autonomy in the ‘80s began with a highly political setting calling for changes in the region.

With the call for regional autonomy highly politicized, the public saw differing autonomy frameworks from two highly ideological groups - that within a self- determining people within a nation sparked by the militant Cordillera Peoples Alliance(CPA) and the armed Cordillera Peoples Liberation Army’s (CPLA) idea of federalism of a nation within a nation.

The political scenario then showed a heavily loaded transition from the Marcos years to the Cory administration warranting the need for a change of political system then. Intense militarization and an equally intense insurgency and high incidents of human rights violations coupled with poverty marked the transition period before President Corazon took the leadership from then deposed President Ferdinand Marcos.

The need for a responsive political system for the Cordillera was equally high.If the plebiscite happened during the intense political situation in the middle ‘80s, I guess, the plebiscite for regional autonomy may have been realized. With the plebiscite happening when the iron cooled and the political climate was dazzlingly smooth and comfortable already with the leadership of then President Cory, the quest for autonomy apparently sizzled with NO votes over whelmingly winning over the lone votes of Ifugao still hopeful that regional autonomy will make wonders for the Cordillera.

And so it went until the second autonomy attempt was foiled in 1998 when the political administration led by President Joseph Estrada was equally not as politically polarized in the grassroots level to warrant a political change in government for the Cordillera. And more so under the term of former President Gloria Arroyo, she has established a mellowed government among heads and officials bringing the region under her control.

Seemingly too, at the same time, the people are pre-occupied with economic needs rather than going political such that getting out of the country to look for better jobs and opportunities was the more pressing and better thing to do under the time when GMA brought the country to utter impoverishment.

Now comes RDC chair and NEDA Director Juan Ngalob inviting President Benigno Aquino 111 to be the guest speaker in the 23rd celebration of the birth of the Cordillera Administrative Region on July 15 marking the date when former President Corazon Aquino signed EO 220 creating CAR in July 15, 1987. Ngalob thinks that President Noynoy will support regional autonomy.

Why will he not? In terms of allocating budget, I guess he will. Yet, it is a different thing when regional autonomy gets to a plebiscite. I believe so.

At this times when the administration seemingly is promising and determined to rid the country of corruption and bring a better Philippines, rocking the status and calling for changes in the structure of CAR as well and vote for ‘regional autonomy’ seemingly will not gain acceptance among the people.

The present set up is good as it is. What is needed is to make existing beneficial and progressive laws work for the Cordillera and equally craft relevant and beneficial policies not there within the present system. For one, is a policy letting Cordillera provinces have their share from National Irrigation Authority collections on waters sourced from watersheds within Cordillera territory flowing to lowland irrigation. Surely, such proposed laws can be forwarded by our representatives in Congress.

Or do we need a Cordillera assemblyman to do this? By the way, how is that bill already forwarded by former Baguio congressman now mayor Mauricio Domogan for local government units to have their share from taxes of national corporations doing operations in respective territories of LGUs?

While national laws have a stronghold on the economic and natural resource base of the people, autonomy becomes a vacillating issue. So vacillating that autonomy gets half-bred and redefined on self-determination within the present system.

A look at the program of the 23rd celebration of the Cordillera Month makes me smile like a college student. Some of the activities- intercollegiate debate and a radio quiz – aside from tree planting and ethnic hataw make up activities of the celebration.

Perhaps, a sizable cut from the autonomy budget may as well be given to the Department of Education so they can craft consistent ways of letting students learn what autonomy is all about the whole year round.

Meantime, what do the rest of the people of the Cordillera do to take part in this month long activity aside from the debate participated in by Baguio-based students and ethnic hataw by government entities? While the government has beautifully crafted development plans done by development planners and technocrats, I yet have to see sectoral development plans crafted by farmers, fisher folks, artists, teachers, youth, business people, media, women, and professionals in their own fields.

Unless if there is one already, I would like to know. Before we dream of regional autonomy for the third time and end up unpopular, consultations and discussions on common terms and aspirations is wanting. And then perhaps, we can tell President Noynoy Aquino what kind and what makes up the regional autonomy that we want. Otherwise, let the remaining P15 million budget information drive be allotted for livelihood programs among the rest of the Cordillerans before another batch will fly out of the country to look for better jobs and leave their families.

From: Northern Philippine Times

Cordillera Day 2010

2010-04-27T01:01:00.000-07:00

By Fr. Rex Reyes Jr.
Secretary-General
National Council of Churches in the Philippines

Cordillera Day has a face — the face of Macliing Dulag. In his time Macliing Dulag personified the resistance of the lgorots to the Philippines systematic destruction of the forests and rivers of the Cordilleras in name of profit and development and without regard to the welfare of the Igorots and the ecological consequences of such destruction.

The resistance was not for resistance's sake. It was neither a resistance against development nor progress. It was a principled stand in favor of a development process that favors the empowerment of marginalized communities in this country. It was in favor of respecting the rights of indigenous peoples enabling them to be conscious of those rights, and giving them the opportunity to responsibly exercise those rights of citizens of this republic.

Deep in the consciousness of indigenous peoples is the reverence for the land and all that is in it and upon it. "Land is life!" is not a mere slogan. It is an affirmation of the unmistakeable relationship among human beings and between human beings and the land. It also affirms that the land and its resources are to be used with a deep sense of responsibility for the welfare of future generations. Thus, land and its resources cannot be seen mainly from a commercial perspective.

Today, the political structure of our country wantonly and continuously abandons this reverence for land and resources. In insisting that globalization and foreign investments are the way to economic progress, our government has acquiesced to the impositions of foreign business thereby compromising seriously the posterity of this country. Globalization stymies local industry as local production is no match to the mass production of other countries. We need only to see what is happening to the vegetable industry in the Cordilleras. The present dispensation hos gained notoriety for foreign investments that have become avenues for corruption.

Cordillera Day is all about change for the better and that includes systematic change in government. Cordillera Day is a time to send the message to the powers-that- be that we, the indigenous people and the rest of the people of this country deserve better. For too long we have suffered deceit and marginalization. For too long, promises of politicians have remained promises. We deserve a government which does not allow its people to work abroad under harsh conditions. We deserve a government that places premium and with clear platforms on education, health, agrarian reform, housing, decent wages and the rights of indigenous peoples!

We deserve a government that does not label principled dissent as terrorism, engage in extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances! We deserve a government that goes for principled peace process to resolve the long civil strife that has claimed the lives of women, children and foot—soldiers! We deserve a governmenf that is not corrupt!

We cannot leave the future of this country to politicians alone, much less to politicians who are accountable only to themselves, their families and their friends.

Cordillera Day is all about celebration. It is a celebration of the hope that is now turning to reality. The efforts of those before us to make us proud of who we are is something to celebrate. Their untiring labor to bring about critical thinking and vigilance among us is something to celebrate. The emergence of a new breed of principled politicians and credible party list groups is something to celebrate. Principled and credible because they serve the people and have been maligned and vilified for doing so.

Cordillera Day has a face — it is the face of every Igorot who loves peace and justice, freedom and abundant life for all. It is the face of every Igorot who resists those who would trade our birthrights for a pair of shoes. It is the face of every Igorot very much concerned with the welfare of future generations and who is not afraid to declare: "WE ARE THE STEWARDS OF THE LAND!"

From the National Council of Churches in The Philippines, accept our warm greetings and solidarity!

Padi Rex RB Reyes, Jr.
Sangguniang Pambansa ng mga Simbahan sa Pilipinas/
National Council of Churches in the Philippines

Health service a major need in remote villages- KATRIBU

2010-02-28T07:24:00.000-08:00

There is a breath of life in Katribu President Beverly Longid’s commendation to medical board topnotcher Marie Jo-Ann Beltran Cabanting’s decision to stay and serve the country. Folks from far flung villages not reached by doctors and nurses who suffer from lack of health services, would be happy.

Among health service-needy areas are places where ethnic peoples are found. Indigenous Peoples which account for 15% of the population compose 110 ethnolinguistic groups including the Isneg and the Igorots in the uplands of the Cordillera, the Bugkalot of northern Luzon, the Aetas of Southern Luzon, Mangyans of Mindoro to the Lumads of Mindanao.

On account of isolation, ethnic groups have generally been forgotten in the mainstream population in terms of socio-economic development. One of these features of government neglect is health service.

Katribu, a party list organization-candidate for a legislative seat in Congress for the 2010 elections, considers health as one of its major platforms in government.

Infant mortality rate for one is still high and varies throughout the country depending on socioeconomic and demographic factors. A high infant mortality rate is noted among infants of mothers with less or no education and those who receive no antenatal and delivery care. In most cases, those who suffer from infant mortality are found in remote villages.

The World Health Organization (WHO) reports the Philippines is one of 42 countries that account for 90% of global deaths among children under five.

Communicable diseases are also high. In 2005, there were reported cholera outbreaks in Catanduanes and Palawan, causing deaths among children and adults. Tuberculosis remains among the 10 leading causes of morbidity and mortality.

With health services devolved to LGUs and now managed by the municipal government through its rural health units and barangay health stations, persisting issues such as less access to health services by remote and isolated areas is still a major complaint. The mass migration of doctors and nurses to other developed countries is making health services doubly difficult for far flung communities.

Besides, personal spending of health services is still a major issue with government lacking provision of medicines and hospital fees.

Health remains to be a major concern in the country. The government's attention to provide the needed services and build a healthy base by uplifting the local economy instead of sending people out of the country remains to be a top call.

Stop labeling health workers as ‘communists’- KATRIBU

2010-02-27T06:36:00.000-08:00

KATRIBU president Beverly Longid says the military should stop calling the 43 detained health workers including human rights defenders as 'communists'.

This, during her visit to two members of indigenous tribes- Among, a 22 year old Mangyan from Manalaysay, Mindoro Oriental and Angela Manogan Doloricon from the Aplai tribe of Sagada, Mountain Province- at the military camp in Mount Capinpin, Rizal.

Longid also called for the immediate release of the detained health workers.

Among and Manogan are two of 43 health workers who attended a health skills training to provide services to needy communities, as conducted by Community Medicine Development Foundation and Council for Health and Development.

They were arrested on February 6 by heavily armed elements of the 202nd Infantry Brigade of the Philippine Army and the Rizal Philippine National Police on claims that the health workers were doing a training on bomb making.

Others who were illegally arrested and detained by the military are graduates from Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (PLM) who provide health services and training to needy communities.

The health workers are branded by the government military forces as members of the New Peoples Army (NPA).

Branding human rights activists and now health workers as NPAs and ‘communists” have since been an age-old tactic of the government's military forces. Such an obsolete military method hounding on suspected members of the NPA is perpetuated at the detriment of human rights and social rights of needy communities.

While the world is moving towards a participatory form of governance, this illegal and obsolete manner of frisking health workers is absolutely not healthy nor is it helpful to making a better Filipino people nor a better Philippines. It is actually making people cry, angry, and more miserable in an already miserable country.

As a matter of fact, a number of young and potential leaders for the development of the country and suspected to be "communists' and members of the NPA had either been reported missing and worse died under conditions strongly suspected to have been perpetrated by government military forces. When will this government learn.

The military’s counterinsurgency program, Oplan Bantay Laya, continue to brand and terrorize human rights activists as “communist terrorists” which in fact have given way to cases of extrajudicial executions, enforced disappearances, illegal arrest, torture and illegal detention.

Conducted under sloppy circumstances, the health workers’ arrest was done without a valid search warrant as the arresting elements of the law blatantly ignored the rule of law which they in the first place should observe.

Reports say the victims were also subjected to torture-continuously interrogated while denied food and sleep, threatened bodily harm or beaten while blindfolded and handcuffed, and treated to indignities. Reports say they were also held incommunicado and denied visits by relatives, lawyers, physicians and human rights officials. And lately, the military’s defiance of a Supreme Court ruling that the detainees be produced in court.

All these on claims by the military that the health workers are members of the NPA. Where so, reports point out their sloppiness and intent to make it appear that the health workers are members of the NPA. The military must be running out of professionalism!

They are also running out of their duties to defend the people. As it is, the arrest and detention of the 43 health workers is stifling exercise of freedom and pursuit of humanity. Denying people of health services by arresting health workers is a crime of humanity in itself.

"It is precisely government’s neglect to provide basic services such as education and health that drove the health workers to serve poor communities. Now such State neglect becomes the crime of the health workers?” Longid asked.

The military better find other ways of making themselves relevant instead of picking on innocent civilians and branding them as NPAs.

Besides, if the health workers are NPAs, then they must be doing helpful service to the people to complement or answer to the gaps on health services the government should provide.

Freedom of the press stands endangered in Maguindanao massacre

2009-11-26T21:56:00.000-08:00

The recent massacre of 57 persons led by suspect-mastermind Maguindanao Mayor Andal Ampatuan Jr, is done at its most gruesome and bloodthirsty incident ever! Among the ones killed by the suspected private army of Ampatuan are 27 journalists, 2 lady-lawyers out of 14 women, and other men.

The motive of the massacre stands that Ampatuan Jr does not want any opposition to his candidacy in the upcoming gubernatorial race for May 2010 elections. The convoy was on their way to file a certificate of candidacy for Esmael Mangudadatu, vice mayor of Buluan town for governorship of Maguindanao.

The Maguindanao killing sends the message that it is ‘politically motivated’ for what else and how else will you consider such a barbaric and desperate act of one who wants to wield power to himself and his family. Former governor Ampatuan Sr had been grooming his son Andal to take over as governor of Maguindanao.

Mangudadatu who did not join the convoy was spared from the killing although his wife, three sisters and an aunt were killed in the bloody massacre.

The presence of journalists, including women, must have been seen as a protective shield for the convoy to proceed smoothly to file Mangudadatu’s candidacy to COMELEC. The convoy and its composition sends the message that things are not fine without the presence of the candidate to personally file his certificate of candidacy. Indeed, it says something is definitely wrong . Long time politicians of Maguindanao and other parts of Mindanao are known to have their own private armies to protect themselves and ensure their continuing power.

The recent case in Mindanao has demonstrated the selfish and inhuman arrogance of one who thinks that he is free from the rule of law. This kind of lot needs to be banished for they see the world according to their narrow and selfish interests that they own the world and that no one should mind their own business. Surely, the obvious practice of this barbaric thinking is best left to be discarded much more so that they hold public responsibility.

And for Mangudadatu and his obviously unarmed convoy, it says that private armies and warlordism is not the way to be.

Yet the obviously unarmed convoy was a costly trip. It cost their lives.

It also cost freedom of the press and expression a downturn in southern Mindanao. Two of the murdered journalists are reporters of a 5 year old pioneering local newspaper. Ten of the journalists came from General Santos City; two from Davao City, another ten from Koronadal City; four from Tacurong City; and one from Cotabato City. Five are freelance writers; 13 print journalists; three on radio DZRH, Bombo radio and DZRO; and two on UNTV.

When journalists are opinion makers are silenced, it is a dangerous world.

The powerful and the corrupt will further go corrupt and powerful. The oppressed and the helpless will be silenced and exploited.

For journalists and opinion makers compose the lot how information flows from the source to the world. From information, people will know how to address and analyze issues and make a better world. For what is life for but to make it better?

So we go down memory lane and note that information was shared by blowing the horn, drumming the drums and floating bottles on the seas, scribbling or tapping on the walls in order to get the news through.

In the present world, writers, journalists, columnists send the news and commentary through the internet, radio, TV, and print and help shape public opinion, like condemning a gruesome act.

Yet, in the line of duty, journalists face danger every day. The November 23 killings have increased the number of journalists killed numbering up to 81 already killed in the Philippines since 1986. Press Emblem Campaign reports 59 journalists around the world were killed this year. This, apart from those killed in Maguindanao.

Meantime, desperate Andal Ampatuan Jr who is currently detained and charged for multiple murder frantically pointed to the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) as the one behind the massacre, yet MILF told the public that Ampatuan’s claim is ‘absurd’.

Definitely absurd!

NCCP statement on the massacre in Maguindanao

2009-11-25T20:43:00.000-08:00

Sangguniang Pambansa ng mga Simbahan sa Pilipinas
National Council of Churches in the Philippines
879 EDSA West Triangle, Quezon City, Philippines

NCCP statement on the massacre in Maguindanao

A Massacre Most Foul, Gross, and Utterly Repugnant

It is a massacre most foul, gross, and utterly repugnant!

The National Council of Churches in the Philippines joins the people in mourning. We reach out in prayer and solidarity to the families of the victims of the massacre in Maguindanao. The death toll of 46 people as of this writing, includes members of the media and two lawyers known for their human rights advocacy. We also reach out to the relatives of those missing.

May the Holy Comforter be with them.

Yet even as we grieve and mourn, we are outraged. We are outraged that government has not acted with dispatch. Two days after news of the carnage broke out, the suspected mastermind has not been taken into custody. From day one, the spokesperson of the Armed Forces of the Philippines already identified the suspected mastermind – a known staunch ally of the President and undeniably a political warlord in Maguindanao. We join the demand for the Government to take action but, we are appalled that a state of emergency has been declared in Maguindanao. For so long, Mindanao has been militarized and used to justify more military hardware and budget. What other more powers does the government need?

This massacre is a grim reminder of the pervading culture of impunity and the lack of respect for human rights that has been in our midst and that has turned for the worse since 2001. We are indignant of this continuing culture of impunity and the lack of political will of the government to stop these killings. What government has been doing is the swift perpetuation of injustice and the slow if not hollow dispensation of justice.

The gruesome massacre of unarmed civilians is also a painful reminder that government
statements to the dismantling of political warlordism have been mere rhetoric. Government has either turned a blind eye or entered into alliances with these warlords for political expediency at the expense of creating democratic space.

Political warlordism is a manifestation of a feudal social order and we join the call that it should now be a thing of the past.

To our partners around the world, our deep gratitude for upholding us in your supplication and affirming our calls. We pray that peace and justice be given a chance in Mindanao and elsewhere in this country. We pray that all the resources that have been poured in Mindanao bail the people out from the mire of poverty, neglect and human indignity. We pray that we all rise from this blasphemy for the sake of the God who loves us all and calls us to be one people and for the sake of our children and the children yet unborn.

REV. FR. REX RB REYES, JR.
General Secretary

Bishop NATHANIEL P. LAZARO
Chairperson

Post Pepeng accounts and MP-Igorots' collective response

2009-10-27T00:54:00.000-07:00

(The following is an account by Presidential Assistant for Cordillera Affairs (PACA) Tom Killip on the recent Typhoon Pepeng's fury which hit northern Luzon especially that of Baguio City, Benguet, and Mountain Province. PACA Killip wrote this letter to US-based Archie Stapleton, member of yahoo egroups' Kotim ya Eta (KyE). The blogger, also a KyEr, deems the letter is of public interest so here goes.... )

Dear Archie and Ol,

Am back here in Baguio City for almost a week since we forced our way into half-cleared landslides that covered whole stretches of roads along the Benguet side of Halsema Highway specially parts of Tublay and Buguias in order to reach Baguio. But just to continue my long story which I believe is relevant up to this writing as the trauma and effects of the recent disasters hereabouts continue to affect entire communities:

(Oct. 13,2009)

I am e-mailing here at the Rural Bank of Sagada which is probably the only internet that is working in this town since the aftermath of Typhoon Peping and since that fateful evening of October 8, 2009 when nature struck with such fury ramming down the heaviest blows into the neighboring areas of Benguet Province , Baguio City and Mountain Province . I am lucky there is a generator running at this bank otherwise it is total brownout in the entire province as there is extensive damages to electrical facilities all over it may take more than a week to rehabilitate.

As of this writing information gathered thus far shows that Benguet Province and Baguio City suffered the most number of deaths at 182+. La Trinidad was hardest-hit as one area at Barangay Puguis gave in to mud, slime, and rocks burying alive more than 70 people and countless homes. At Abatan 90 in Buguias town, the edge-part of the public market area gave in causing a landslide that buried houses below it. Twenty eight (28) people many of them students were buried alive. In different towns of Benguet Province such as Bakun, Mankayan, Tublay, and Kabayan scores of people were also killed all contributing to the total number of casualties in Benguet Province and Baguio .

Meanwhile here at Mountai Province around 42 deaths were accounted for. The biggest tragedy occured at the beautiful village of Kayan, Tadian when at around 6:30 p.m. at suppertime on Oct. 8, 2009 a landslide occurred at the road just above Kayan East.The mix of rocks, soil, and mud gave in to heavy rains creating an avalanche that gained momentum as it bulldozed its way into a residential area from top to bottom until it reached the main avenue leading into to the main town. Entire families were lost in the rubble and landslide.A total of 35 people were listed missing as rescue and retrieval operations begun that very night. At Bunga, also a barangay of Tadian, 3 members of a family were killed by an avalanche which tore apart their home. In Barangay Betwagan, Sadanga, 12 houses were wrecked by a landslide but only one was killed as most of the residents noticed the danger and were able to evacuate to safer ground. At Talubin, Bontoc 2 people died as they drowned in a swollen river.All told Mountain Province has 40+ victims due to Typhoon Pepeng.

During the entire period of rescue and retrieval operations from the date of tragedy, most areas of Benguet and Mountain Province were cut-off, totally isolated by landslides, road washouts, destroyed electrical facilities, shortage of fuel, limited transportation, and limited communications. But as usual the finest quality and noble character of the Igorot rose up to the occasion during this whole period of disaster, a story of a people worth telling and re-telling. Of course it was expected that all agencies of government and churches had to come out as is their mandate and function. It must be to the credit of some local government units and government agencies that rescue, retrieval, relief, medical care, were forthcoming from the beginning.

The Municipality of Tadian through Mayor Constito Masweng should be commended for a very efficient disaster coordination and management work. We can likewise say the same to all provincial agencies and local government units involved as a matter of duty and function. Likewise, Col. Bismarck Soliba of the Philippine Army and Col Albas of the PNP mobilized their respective units to be actively involved in the rescue and retrieval operations. Meanwhile the youth from the college in Bontoc (MPSPC) with many of their teachers were among the first to respond. But what stood out as an outstanding feat of the outlying towns and communities was their collective heroism and the traditional practice to come out in situations of disaster to provide rescue, manpower,food, material support, and various types of services to the stricken communities.

From day one, hundreds of able-bodied men, womenfolk, and youths from nearby towns of Bauko, Sabangan, Sagada, Bontoc,Besao and other places arrived everyday to become part of the work shifts involved in the excavation and extraction of dead bodies. It was non-stop work even at night. You wouldn't miss to observe that this stream of faceless volunteers were mainly lowly farmers and laborers armed with shovels, picks, and garden hoes who did the brunt of the heavy work of extricating bodies from the muck and rubble.I have to take exception to this fact and the way that various mountain communities responded because usually the true accounts get lost in the jumble of media and political projections.

Three feeding stations were organized at the Municipality of Tadian which provided food for the family of the victims, for the volunteer brigades, and for relatives or friends of victims coming to see the situation. Carpenters from all over came to provide free labor by constructing beautiful pine coffins for all the dead with donated lumber and materials.

I must also take exception to the crucial role of some local leaders who initiated moves to trigger an effective and efficient response. Speaking about the involvement of Sagada, the person of ABC Jaime Tigan-o Dugao of Angkileng should be specially cited here. Although he does not hunger for the limelight I am still wondering why his name and his role in these events are never mentioned. (It must be recalled, if only to show how soon people forget that only recently Kapitan Tigan-o has been sitting on top of the peace negotiations between the affected communities of Sabangan, Taccong, and Tulgao as a result of the killing of a Tulgao vendor by a guy from Taccong who is married to a native of Sabangan.

The case is already resolved through the active mediation of the members of the Peace Executive Council of Mountain Province whose members include Mayor Franklin Odsey, Jaime Dugao, Bontoc elder ex-Mayor Kiat-ong, Fr. Pablo Buyagan, and a host of other peacemakers. The provincial government has supported the initiatives of this group. Peace has been finally restored last week as the parties concerned amicably closed the case. This is equally important because it prevented a violent social storm from erupting). If you read local and regional newspapers Tigan-o's crucial role does not appear. Truth to tell, the peace talks would not have advanced significantly without his involvement from the start.

Coming from Bontoc on the afternoon of October 9 where we had a brief conference with Mayor Franklin Odsey the president of the Mayors' League of Mt. Prov. about LGU mobilization for Kayan, ABC Jaime Dugao initiated an emergency meeting of all the barangay captains of Sagada.It was planned and agreed that all families in all barangays would bring out their donations and at the same time organize volunteer brigades for the arduous task of retrieval. That very same morning of Oct.9 the Sagada Police Force and local guides proceeded to Tadian via the circuitous route through Nacawang, Besao as the Sabangan route was blocked by a series of slides. All these moves ensured a steady supply of men and material support from Sagada which accounts for the sustained mobilization throughout the entire period of retrieval. I am pretty sure that similar conduct of mobilizations rooted in "ugali" were likewise carried out in other communities involved. (Pardon me but this is incidentally my dramatic way of introducing folk-leaders like Jaime "Tigan-o" Dugao to KYE)

At one point Undersecretary Tobias called up from Malacanang to inquire about the situation of the Mountain Province since what they knew from scanty information was that the entire provinces of Benguet and ours were in total isolation which was true at earlier days. The situation conjured images of death, devastation, hunger, and helplessness. She sounded unbelieving when I told her that the people of Mountain Province can take care of themselves even at this stage and that there are other calamitous areas and regions of Luzon specially in the cities where people are more helpless. I would understand why it took her some time to comprehend because in the cities the slightest floods could render entire populations helpless and looking up to government for help and relief. But hereabouts in the mountain communities whenever there are disasters of any type (vehicular accidents, fires, landslides, drowning, epidemics, etc.) whether natural or man-made, 'there are no strangers only friends".

And of course there were some comic relief in the course of the disaster operations. A military chopper came over to transport the five injured survivors from the Luis Hora Hospital , Bauko to Baguio for special surgical operations. At the same time the chopper brought in two sniff dogs trained for searching buried victims. The dogs went about for 3 days sniffing for buried corpses but only found dead mice and cats whereupon some elder volunteers suggested that they be better used for the "daw-es" (traditional cleansing ritual).

Still due to the efficient and determined work of volunteer brigades the last victim was finally recovered in a few days time.

Oct. 17 (Sat.)
I went to Sadanga to observe the search and retrieval of three folks from Talubin, Bontoc and Annabel, Sadanga that drowned in the Chico River . Village folks, both men and women from Betwagan, Sakasakan, Saklit, and all villages downstream towards the Kalinga territory were scanning the entire stretch of the river up to where God knows. Two drowning victims were retrieved that day close to the town of Tinglayan and the search continued. Food and manpower were provided by all the communities involved. It is a strong practice in these mountain communities that whenever there is a disaster people even warring communities stop hostilities to help victims no matter if they belong to an enemy tribe. This practice reflects our communities' very high value and respect for life. Ay waday maka-umat is kaneg todi? Only in these Igorot communities.

Oct. 20, 2009
Sagada
Here we are at the Municipal Hall with Mayor Eduardo Latawan and all Sagada folks who have gone to Kayan, Tadian to help in one way or another during those trying times. All vehicles used for the mobilization were likewise required to be grounded at the municipal premises for the "Daw-es" which was performed by town elders. This cleansing ritual is intended to protect the volunteers from nightmares and bad dreams, and to protect volunteers from any form of misfortune. Meanwhile the vehicles were blessed with holy water by the parish priest. After a sumptuous lunch with the people and towns officials we left for Baguio City .

The relief and rehabilitation continues. I am sure that post-disaster period requires very special approach and work among all agencies, organizations, and people concerned whether in the Philippines or from responses coming from outside of the country. The health situation, the emotional trauma, the damages to homes and infrastructures, and livelihood sustenance for surviving victims while they cope up with the next phases of their lives are important matters to consider. At this point as appeals for help are raised, donations and assistance should be channeled to legitimate bodies and agencies duly recognized. The church is one good channel at this point in order to avoid too much politics in the management and administration of relief and rehabilitation. Churches and missions are located inside most of these affected communities thus they can form part of the network for the post-disaster work and rehab as surely this will take a longer time to carry out.

Manong Champag

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(To add more details, the following is an account sent to KyE by Ray Fiar-od, Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Officer based in Sagada, Mountain Province. By the way, KyE is an egroup promoting indigenous language.)

P8 en ol,

Sagada consistently sent the biggest retrieval contingent from Day 1 until the recovery of the last body, aside from sending our firetruck to do flushing during and after the retrieval operations. At one time, we sent more than 300 people from all over Sagada. Incidentally, the firetruck of the Bauko Fire Station which was also utilized during the retrieval was manned mostly by firemen from Sagada. Col. Bismarck Soliba also led the Philippine Army contingent from the Montañosa Command.

During the entire duration of the retrieval operations, the old men from Sagada took turns doing the cleansing rituals every afternoon when our crew returned from Kayan. Ikkan da san sapon di danum sakbay ay sumaa nan naki retrieval isnan beb-ey da. Nin daw-es nan amam-a id kubaban. (They will do the water ritual before those who participated in the retrieval of bodies, proceed home. The elder men performed the daw-es ritual) The ritual was presided over by Councilor Joseph Capuyan. Kanan apo konsehal en men daw-es nan municipio ta makaan am-in di as-asi is inagwit nan inmey naki badang id Kayan dapay ta kumedse nan iSagada ta adi da en maamisan is dakes. Inmali da nan amam-a ay nagapo isnan tapi na ay barrio sunga napno nan opisinan Mayor Latawan is bishops ya nan Kayan crew tako. Idi madama nan daw-es, dinamag Lakay Polat nan crew no waday inlaw-an da is pinidit isnan inmeyan da id Kayan ta masapul maisubli. Gawis met tay umegyat tako od ay en men pidit tay lawa isnan kaugaliyan tako.

Inmali gedan si Padi Princel Balitog et siya abes nan nang bendisyon isnan am-in ay lugan ay nausal ay inmey id Kayan. Wada metlang si Pastor Ap-apid id Bugang ay nang bendisyon isnan kinan nan ipugaw.

Men bungsos tako is wakgat tay awnit iyalin Kapitan Dennis Lopez nan napawingan ay kawitan ta kasin mapalti id municipio. Siya di nan culminating activity nan daw-es.

Mabuhay nan heroes,

Polgas
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NCCP calls for State’s accountability on James Balao’s disappearance

2009-09-21T05:59:00.000-07:00

BAGUIO CITY- “Let us continue to search for James and the other disappeared. To search for them is to search for justice and peace. To continue searching is keeping alive the hope that we in the Philippines deserve better from those who lead in government. It is a struggle to make that hope a reality. A way is to call our leaders on their accountability”, National Council of Churches in the Philippines (NCCP) Secretary General Fr Rex Reyes Sr relayed on September 17 marking the day activist James Balao was abducted a year ago.

James Balao, 47, writer, social activist, and Indigenous Peoples rights advocate, had been missing for a year now. He is strongly believed to have been abducted on Sept 17 by elements of the Military Intelligence Group and Intelligence Service Unit of Region 1, in La Trinidad, Benguet.

Reyes said, “The list of victims of extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances which gets longer to this day is a testament to a government whose concept of national security is the elimination of principled dissent”.

Victims have cut across Philippine society – teachers, lawyers, media people, local civil servants, farmers, workers, students, indigenous people, members of civil society and people’s organizations and clergy and other church workers – all unarmed civilians, the NCCP head said.

Among other enforced disappearances are activists Romy Sanchez who disappeared in 9 March, Pepe Manegdeg in 29 November and Albert Terradano in 30 November, all in 2005 also believed to be abducted by elements of the government’s military forces. They are all young men full of dreams for the upliftment of justice and human rights, choosing a path not many would like to tread.

Very recently, 26-year-old Noriel Rodriguez was reportedly abducted by suspected military agents in Gonzaga town, Cagayan province, last week. Noriel is affiliated with the militant Akbayan which does medical missions, literacy classes and peasant
organizing.

Noriel is the 15th Anakbayan member who had either been abducted or killed
under the Arroyo administration, reports say. Among others were University of the
Philippines students Sherlyn Cadapan and Karen Empeño, missing since 2006.

The government’s Oplan Bantay Laya remains to provide the legal framework in this continuing political repression. “As long as the OBL exists, there will be continuing harassment and impunity against advocates of human rights and civil liberties”, Reyes added.

During the observance program held here in the city, the NCCP head also took the opportunity to thank the Baguio City government for the support in the campaign to surface James and for making this occasion a part of the wider city centennial celebration; and the other local governments in Benguet, Ifugao and Mountain Province for showing the same kind of support in the call for surfacing Balao.

James Balao: Pursuing indigenous peoples rights

2009-09-17T07:30:00.000-07:00

The disappearance of James Balao deserves the concern of every Igorot, every Cordilleran, every person concerned about human rights and Indigenous Peoples integrity. On the celebration of Indigenous Peoples month this October or any day for that matter, calls for identifying the selfless commitment of James Balao towards justice and recognition of Indigenous Peoples rights. If you are one, you have all the reason and cause to call for James Balao’s abductors to surface him now!

James Balao, 47, writer, social activist, and indigenous peoples rights advocate, had been missing for a month now. (He remains missing till now. This article is a reprint published October 2008). He was kidnapped on Sept 17 reportedly by elements of the Military Intelligence Group and Intelligence Service Unit of Region 1, in La Trinidad, Benguet.

Balao graduated1981 at the University of the Philippines College Baguio with the degree BS Psychology. He was a consistent honor pupil and topped the national exam maintaining his scholarship from secondary to college at UP. He served as editor-in-chief of the official student paper, Outcrop.

The idealist and the intellectual in him, Balao involved himself in research and writing for both academic and non-government organizations. One of Balao’s major research is "The land problem of the Cordillera national minorities."

Balao had also been a researcher with the schools-related non-government organizations NGO, Cordillera Schools Group which produced resource materials on socio-economic features of the Cordillera which serve as supplementary reading materials for secondary schools, now that the indigenization of the curriculum is widely recognized. He became a member of the Philippines’ Constitutional Commission where he drafted Constitutional provisions on Indigenous Peoples' rights.

“With his vast knowledge we hope and pray that he will not be harmed and set free as soonest so he will continue his work for the upliftment of the lives of the Cordillerans”, Fr. Arthur Balao, James’ father said in his letter to the public. The Balaos are from Atok, Benguet.

James’ many researches and writings and involvement in committees and commissions related to Indigenous Peoples issues has contributed directly and or indirectly, to provisions in the 1987 Philippine Constitution on the recognition of indigenous peoples rights. In one way or another, his researches, writings and concrete involvement on indigenous peoples issues has contributed to the creation of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples and land reform covering indigenous issues on ancestral domain.

He has poured his time and intellect in pushing forward the upliftment of Indigenous Peoples in policies beneficial to Igorots specially. Where NGOs only give subsistent allowances to their staff, James has opted to choose this path and work for dreams as his contribution, in one way or another, now enjoyed by Cordillerans/Igorots on the creation of structures, jobs, and opportunities for indigenous peoples of the Cordillera.

Along with other freedom loving ideologues and activists who push forward what indigenous peoples rights and justice means, his is a path which is rarely taken. His path is rare for a first child of the family to take and a family’s sacrifice to take.

It’s a sacrifice worth taking for dreams that can be achieved. For rights to be recognized. His path is extraordinary not everyone would like to take, not a materially benefiting one, for a talented and educated person who has much options to take. James’ father is correct. The knowledge of James is worth continuing.

Already a month since he disappeared, Balao cannot be reached. Nobody knows how he is except his abductors. Is he alive? How is he? Is he hurt? These are questions that need answers. For James’ abductors to kidnap him and deny him of his rights to move freely, and think they can get away from it is not taken lightly.

In news reports, military’s Northern Luzon Command Lieutenant General Isagani Cachuela urged militant groups to “file charges instead of launching propaganda campaigns” blaming them for the mysterious disappearance of Balao. The military commander tagged “search” campaigns by the Baguio-based Cordillera Peoples Alliance as “demolition campaigns” where “the accused have no chance to defend themselves.”

Balao’s disposition as a soft spoken and cultured person and his involvements in person and in work does not in any manner place him to be abducted by any one else, except for the government’s military forces, believed to have done James’ disappearance, the latter being involved with the CPA.

While Lieutenant General Isagani Cachuela says that the “accused“ (military) have no chance to defend themselves exactly puts James Balao in a position where he cannot defend himself. As of now, military authorities have not issued a statement where they categorically denied or admitted that they are responsible for James Balao’s disappearance.

The government’s Oplan Bantay Laya which has labelled progressive organizations such as the Cordillera Peoples Alliance as “sectoral fronts” of the Communist Party of the Philippines has practically placed CPA staff as “communists.” James helped found the internationally renowned organization Cordillera Peoples Alliance in 1984. He works for the Cordillera Peoples Alliance when he was abducted.

Where Balao’s abduction could have been that he is a suspected “communist”, puts a question of, is it wrong to act for the welfare of indigenous peoples and human rights? At this onset, we take recognition of the extra-judicial killings of activists Romy Sanchez in 9 March, Pepe Manegdeg in 29 November and Albert Terradano in 30 November, all in 2005, believed to be perpetrated by elements of the government’s military forces. They are all young men full of dreams for the upliftment of justice and human rights, choosing a path not many would like to tread.

Communism is a thing of the past. The Philippine government and its armed forces command is still stuck on the idea that such an ideology exists to the extent of implementing inhuman and illegal acts of enforced disappearances and extra judicial killings of suspected ”communists.”

Such a reason to exist and hound on perceived “communists” is an outdated figment of the imagination. It is an obsolete, unworkable and unlawful method to this present world which is moving to an international state of up-front, lawful, peaceful, and encompassing means to pursue understanding of basic and complex issues which cuts across politics and economy.

Since Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo assumed power in January 2001, there are now more than 903 reported cases of extra-judicial killings and more than 200 cases of forcible disappearances in the Philippines. It is now the 2nd most dangerous country for trade unionists. Despite this terror, the Filipino people’s resistance continues. I would like to express my deepest concern that James Balao, who has not been seen since 17 September, may have been subjected to enforced disappearance by the security forces.

Northern Philippine Times

Loving Baguio and watershed blues

2009-09-04T16:50:00.000-07:00

The city government finds a strong ally with the Supreme Court in its battle against squatters in the Busol Watershed area. The lingering scuffle on the Busol Watershed area between squatters and ancestral land claimants against the city government comes with the 2009 decision of the SC upholding the authority of city officials to demolish structures within the watershed area.

A challenging stance for the city government, the SC decision wields strong ammunition they can use against squatters and would be squatters including their supporters on further encroaching and supporting the intrusion of squatters into the major watershed source of the city.

City officials in their case elevated to the SC contended that the city is governed by its charter and “thus, (lot occupants) cannot claim their alleged ancestral lands under the provisions of the Indigenous People’s Rights Act (IPRA).”

Let us see what the Supreme Court say about their latest decision.

The Feb. 4, 2009 SC decision reversed an earlier decision of the Court of Appeals which upheld the jurisdiction of the National Commission on Indigenous People (NCIP) to issue temporary restraining orders and later a preliminary injunction to stop the implementation of the three demolition orders issued by then Mayor Braulio Yaranon for the dismantling of the illegal structures constructed by Lazaro Bawas, Alexander Ampaguey Sr. and a certain Mr. Basatan.

The Supreme Court maintained that the lot occupants’ ancestral land claim was not expressly recognized by Proclamation No. 15 which should have justified the issuances made by the NCIP. The highest court said Proclamation No. 15 “does not appear to be a definitive recognition of private respondents’ ancestral land claim.”

“The proclamation merely identifies the Molintas and Gumangan families, the predecessors-in-interest of private respondents, as claimants of a portion of the Busol Forest Reservation but does not acknowledge vested rights over the same. In fact, Proclamation No. 15 explicitly withdraws the Busol Forest Reservation from sale or settlement,” the decision reads.

“The fact remains, too, that the Busol Forest Reservation was declared by the Court as inalienable in Heirs of Gumangan v.Court of Appeals. The declaration of the (reservation) as such precludes its conversion into private property.

The SC decision is clear that the watershed reservation, meaning the lots within cannot be sold or settled on, obviously for reasons that the area is an endangered watershed. While that is so, the SC decision remains to be a question of how far it is going to be implemented and recognized.

Although SC’s ruling comes as a Johnny Come Lately decision since 2006 when the case was filed and led to further structures built through the years, it is highly relevant at this stage when NCIP regional hearing officer Brain Masweng filed TROs against the demolition notices issued by the City executive on illegal houses built at the endangered area. Masweng’s defenses rests on IPRA provisions that indigenous peoples have native titles to their ancestral lands and that Proclamation Order No 15 issued in 1922 grants ancestral claims.

NCIP’s position finds an ally with councilor lawyer Nicasio Aliping who was one in stopping the recent July demolitions despite the SC order which further stalled the embattled Busol watershed from settling to peaceful breezes. While that is do, the provisions of IPRA where indigenous peoples have a right to their ancestral lands stands tested on its superiority with the SC telling what should be and what should not.

At the onset, contempt charges were filed against Masweng for going against the Supreme Court ruling.

City Mayor Reynaldo Bautista said the city government tried to assist the settlers subjected for ejection by looking for relocation sites, but there are no available spaces for relocation. He said the settlers are not entitled to the law which mandates relocation in case of displacement, the city information desk reports.

Only underprivileged settlers can avail of relocation facilitated by the local government and the National Housing Authority, city officials explained.

What about “peaceful co-existence” where new settlers will not be allowed and the current settlers to stay in their premises? Vice Mayor Daniel Fariñas said this is “possible but remote because each party has to be in good faith and approval” of other stakeholders such as the DENR, Baguio Water District and Baguio Regreening Movement and the Supreme Court.

Mayor Reynaldo Bautista in news reports advised the occupants “to voluntarily dismantle their houses.” While the issue of ancestral claims is being decided opun, squatters are coming in fast and building their 2-3 story houses. Some are overseas contract workers.

Some are employees of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources who have acquired properties at the endangered watershed area. This prompted the city government in the past to request Malacanang to probe reports about this. SunStar learned that 32 houses up for demolition are abodes of still unnamed DENR employees.

This, aside from other private individuals. There are some 900 illegal structures in the Busol watershed area with only 33 houses identified for demolition at the moment. Do we see some more numbers coming?

If the city government is not going to act tough, expect more structures creeping in at the watershed area in the next months and years. Surely, the city officials would not want the next set of officials to inherit resolving the issue until groping for solutions is chronically late already. If you are one who wants a safe and assured water supply and a healthy environment with its cool breezes for you and your children and children’s children to enjoy in the city of Pines, you would want to halt this encroachment.

Much as there are sacred spots not culturally set as places for settlement, clearly, there are endangered spots which should not be inhabited lest it be a danger for the welfare of each and everyone.

Where two laws get pitted against the other, the law is meant to be for public interest and public welfare. This lingering claim for environmental protection of Busol watershed area deserves a second and third look. If you love Baguio and want to enjoy living in the place as well with the rest of the community, get squatters out of the watershed.

Northern Philippine Times

The ‘evolving’ definition of Indigenous Peoples

2009-08-20T20:22:00.000-07:00

It was on the occasion of a recent courtesy visit of some IP rights activists including Indigenous Peoples Rights Monitor representative Atty Mary Ann Bayang, to the Philippine Embassy in Geneva, Switzerland when Ambassador Erlinda Basilio told the group that “all Filipinos are Indigenous Peoples.”

The diplomat’s statement comes as an encompassing and limited view on how she sees Indigenous Peoples. Her view tells that all Filipinos are the first settlers of a given territory. This means even migrant Filipinos are IPs and they also have ancestral lands. The Ambassador’s statement tells that all Filipinos preserved their culture at the face of a colonizing force. It tells that all Filipinos have a historical continuity with pre-invasion and pre-colonial societies that developed on their territories.

True? Of course, as anthropology and history tells, the Ambassador’s statement is technically erroneous.

The Philippine Ambassador’s statement likewise finds similarity in the Bangladesh delegate’s statement to an earlier UN Assembly meeting.

The position of the Bangladesh government delegation at the UN Working Group on the Draft Declaration of Indigenous Peoples (WGPD) in 2006, says, “The government of Bangladesh supports the Draft in its present form. However it will not be applicable in Bangladesh as there are no indigenous peoples in the country” (The Independent, November 24, 2006).

The recent UN position of Bangladesh government abstaining from the UN Declaration on Indigenous Peoples Rights aligns its earlier position to the Bangladesh government’s report submitted to the UN Committee on Elimination of Racial Discrimination in May 2000 which categorically denied the distinct identity of Indigenous Peoples. The report reads:

“Bangladesh’s geographical location and history have made it a home to people of diverse origins, races, colors, and descent. The assimilative character of Bengal civilization combined with the intermingling of inhabitants has resulted in a composite society which has racially and culturally turned into a melting pot over the millennia.”

Lest we go turning a blind eye that there are no Indigenous Peoples, it would be good to refer to some descriptions of who IPs are.

Anthropological usage of the term “indigenous” refers to the early or even first settlers of a given territory. This usage corresponds to usage in international human rights law.

United Nations Special Rapporteur to the Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities, Indigenous communities, referred to:

“Indigenous peoples are those which having a historical continuity with pre-invasion and pre-colonial societies that developed on their territories, consider themselves distinct from other sectors of societies now prevailing in those territories, or parts of them. They form at present non-dominant sectors of society and are determined to preserve, develop, and transmit to future generations their ancestral territories, and their ethnic identity, as the basis of their continued existence as peoples, in accordance with their own cultural patterns, social institutions and legal systems.”

The World Council of Indigenous People, 1993 came up with this definition:

“Indigenous People are such population groups as we are, who from old-age times have inhabited the lands where we live, who are aware of having a character of our own, with social traditions and means of expressions that are linked to the country inherited from our ancestors, with a language of our own and having certain essential and unique characteristics which confer upon us the strong conviction of belonging to a people, who have an identity in ourselves and should be thus regarded by others.”

Indigenous peoples are the descendants - according to a common definition - of those who inhabited a country or a geographical region at the time when people of different cultures or ethnic origins arrived. The new arrivals later became dominant through conquest, occupation, settlement or other means.

Further descriptions of indigenous peoples say that Indigenous Peoples inhabited a land before it was conquered by colonial societies and who consider themselves distinct from the societies currently governing those territories.

They (Indigenous Peoples) have a historical continuity with pre-invasion and pre-colonial societies that developed on their territories, consider themselves distinct from other sectors of societies now prevailing in those territories, or parts of them.

Further universal descriptions of Indigenous Peoples say, they, the IPs are very diverse. They live in nearly all the countries on all the continents of the world and form a spectrum of humanity, ranging from traditional hunter-gatherers and subsistence farmers to legal scholars.
In its Operational Directive 4.20, the World Bank views that no single definition can capture the diversity of Indigenous Peoples. However identifying few characteristics, World Bank tries to single out Indigenous Peoples as having: a close attachment to ancestral territories and to the natural resources on these areas; self identification by others as members of a distinct cultural group and indigenous language, often different from the national language; presence of customary social and political institutions; and having primarily subsistence –oriented production.

International Labor Organization (ILO) Convention 107 of 1957 defined indigenous or tribal or semi tribal populations in independent countries. According to this definition, “indigenous tribal, or semi-tribal population of a special category who inhabit in a particular region and have specific historical experiences.”

This definition describes the distinct cultural identifies and geographical concentration of the Indigenous Peoples from the rest of the society and they have special relationship with the land which they live in and with the environment surrounding therein.

Yet, with all these descriptive definitions, there seems to be no standard definition of who an Indigenous Person is.

The United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) says, “there does not seem to be one definitive definition of indigenous people, but generally indigenous people are those that have historically belonged to a particular region or country, before its colonization or transformation into a nation state, and may have different—often unique—cultural, linguistic, traditional, and other characteristics to those of the dominant culture of that region or state.”

Considering the diversity of indigenous peoples though, an official definition of "indigenous" has not been adopted by any United Nations-system body. Instead the system has developed a modern understanding of this term based on the following: self-identification as indigenous peoples at the individual level and accepted by the community as their member; and historical continuity with pre-colonial and/or pre-settler societies.

Source: Discourses on Policy Perspectives on Land Rights and Adibashis of the Plains of northwest Bangladesh, by Gina Dizon, Published by VSOB, 2008

SMSS’ers abroad renew ties, help build school

2009-08-13T06:04:00.000-07:00

Once again, self-determining alumni of Saint Mary’s School of Sagada (SMSS) manifested their moral and financial support to the school which continues to serve hundreds of students in Mountain Province, especially those located in the immediate town of Sagada. Nearly 150 SMSS alumni living in Canada and the US, and other SMSS resident- alumni of the Philippines gathered at St. Michael's Church, Vancouver, Canada last August 6 to 9, 2009 to observe the 4th SMSS Alumni and Friends Conference.

With theme, "We build our school on you Lord; to you we bring our common need", financial contributions poured in terms of coin collections in sponsoring an SMS faculty.

SMSSInc is a non-profit institution committed to extending affordable quality education, particularly to children of indigenous communities in the hinterlands of the Cordillera. It was incorporated in 2003 as an autonomous entity from the former management of Episcopal Church in the Philippines. SMSSInc was then called Saint Mary’s School established by American missionaries of the Philippine Anglican Church in 1904.

The school enjoyed financial capacity until the Philippine church’s conversion to an autonomous entity in 1990. Since then, SMS suffered financial setbacks along with the autonomous church which experienced similar financial woes.

SMS since 1990 was able to thrive on donations from alumni and friends and other institutions like subsidy from the Department of Education. As of this time, alumni are still supporting the financial sustainability of the school through donations via scholarships, sponsoring salaries of staff, and material donations such as books, and infrastructure.

To raise funds for the school during the Vancouver event, Sponsor a Golf Hole was launched
with sponsors giving in their financial commitments. The golf tournament which was
participated by SMSSer gold enthusiasts was chaired by SMS alumnus Erwin
Killip.

Lambert Sagalla, President of the US-based St Mary’s School Sagada, Alumni and Friends Foundation (SMSAFF) said, ”The Vancouver SMSS conference was the first to be held outside of the United States and the enthusiasm and excitement it created particularly to the younger alumni will definitely help advance the message that: "We are engaged in an undertaking far greater than ourselves; greater than the physical confines of St. Mary's School; greater than the Sagada community.We are engaged in an undertaking vital to the survival of our very own people - the indigenous communities in the hinterlands of Northern Philippines.” (reports from SMSyahoogroups.com)

Photo by Ceasar Castro

Link here

Charismatize Cordillera autonomy

2009-08-08T18:03:00.000-07:00

As we observe the World's Indigenous Peoples Day on August 9 and conclude celebration of Cordillera Month (July) by the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), we are again reminded on the quest for regional autonomy among the indigenous peoples of the Cordillera generally referred to as Igorots.

Being subjected to a plebiscite 19 years ago and lost, elusive Cordillera autonomy is still as elusive as ever. Only 29% of respondents positively favor autonomy, says a survey conducted in 2008 by CAR's Regional Development Council (RDC).

And for the rest of thousands of Cordillerans with voting age, autonomy still sounds strange. As strange as a shooting star which disappears all too sudden. As strange as Jennifer Hewitt or the Prince of Wales. As strange as Tobleron or Kenny Rogers to an elder in the dap-ay until you give or show him a roasted chicken straight from Kenny Rogers Roasters. It is as strange even as the golden kuhol introduced by technologic Department of Agriculture who says the snail serves a multipurpose function so these were sown on rice fields, but practically grabbed space for rice plants to grow normally in some parts of the Cordillera as experienced by most farmers a decade ago.

Why….? What is wrong with this beautiful concept of being self determining like a matured, independent and empowered woman or man?

Why can’t it get through and be accepted by the rest of the Cordillerans or the Igorots for that matter?

Obviously, there must be really something wrong of why it is not that popular like Michael Jackson or Robin Padilla and Sharon Cuneta among Filipinos.

What does Michael Jackson and Robin Padilla have in common which makes them popular and liked by multitudes of people. Of course they are both guapo and both are celebrities. They identify with the common masa (people) and feel their sentiments. You can sense in the songs of Michael Jackson and for Robin, you can sense him identifying with u in his movies and the way he talks. While Jacko comes from humble beginnings, Robin da Idol goes along with people on the streets.

And what do people like? Obviously, people like things and ideas and people which/who jibe with what they feel and need and relate with, on day to day life. People associate ideas to what they can grasp. Ay makan sa? Ay mabalin ma-i- tono? Ay tet-ewa’y toma sa? Ineee, kampot ubpay dis toma…etc… (Is that eaten? Can it be roasted? Is it truly a flea? Oooooh, that was one lie of a flea etc...)

A dream, we make autonomy land on earth concretely to the psyche of the practical Igorot so that autonomy plebiscite Part 3 will at least see better ratings.

Best as how the best advocate and autonomy campaigner can explain what autonomy is, IF it is far from the psyche of the non-airhead Igorot, this beautiful ideal for autonomy will not see reality. You cannot ram down the throat, autonomy until it is digestible, eatable, edible, or guapo and irresistible.

So, ‘show me’ what it means. Show me the money says Tom Cruise in Jerry Maguire.
How much money and jobs can we get if we are autonomous?

Can a son or daughter have better chances of being employed after graduation if we are autonomous? Shall there be increased daily wages to cope with rising costs of almost any commodity?

So we see what givens we have. Because we go autonomous and rely greatly on what we have, we ask what moneyable potentials do we have? First of all, we have a very industrious, ingenious and ingenuous people who can make things happen. We have the mountains full of gold. Do we like these to be mined? Can we turn these mountains into livelihood ventures if we are autonomous? (And by the way , how much are we getting or have taken from the Lepanto Mines through the years? As we watch Mankayan sink apparently because of the many underground mining which is happening, and sons and daughters from Mankayan areleaving their home sweet home out as migrant workers to wherever richer country there is, LCMC rakes in millions of money from those mountains of gold.)

We have nature and environs showing big potentials for ecotourism. Do we like these to be transformed into sources of livelihood? Can we make enough money to feed our family out of tourism from these towering or rolling mountains of Mt Kanip-aw or Mt Pulag?

How much can the government of the Republic of Philippine my Philippines help out in making industries happen for the Cordillera without asking for big cut in taxes? How much Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA) and development funds can the national govt give while we are gaining a fully autonomous region, or give as part of its regular accountability to give in the very first place, the Cordillera being part of the country?

We have the mighty headwaters of Chico and Siffu Rivers, serving as sources of hydro-electrical energy for NAPOCOR. How much income are we getting while NAPOCOR and the national government controls the proceeds? Are we really getting money from these powerful sources of energy? Do we have the enabling law to take our share? If so, are we getting our share?

We have a number of telecommunication relay stations in our localities. How much are we taking in terms of percentage shares? Or are they just there sitting on our land as big companies rake in money for those millions worth of texting and calls that we do?

How far can we control what we have at the moment? Can we control our own resources given that we have the Regalian Doctrine and national laws which dictate how much we can or cannot receive? Let us make this interplay of national laws and prospective autonomous laws very concretely clear to be understood and how much we are entitled so to know.

At the same time, we also deal with corrupt politicians who muddle the concept of what autonomy means, that they also need to get their corruptitious tendencies off their system so that the rest of the people of the Cordillera will believe in what they are blabbering about.

Because as we see Ifugao who was optimistic at first turned negative on the second plebiscite. Why oh why?

So I ask, what autonomous situations have we as Igorots exercised or can exercise in daily life, as individual persons and in cohorts or rather in partnership with another?

When transportation costs go five pesos higher, do we see protesting commuters or do they just accept it as the will of the supernatural or whatever it is? Or do we just shrug our shoulders and do nothing about it while enjoying the ride anyway and pay whatever amount it is?

How autonomous and assertive are we as individuals and as peoples in a wider community do in demanding for our rights and making a better place to live in? For sure, we know what our rights are. Unless we don’t , that is very very, very bad news indeed.

How autonomous are we as individuals in the very first place? Or to use politically loaded words, “self determining” and “empowered”.

I guess there are better chances of Cordillera getting autonomous if the autonomy information campaign will show what the Cordilleran can get out of being autonomous and how to reach there. With this basic info, we can be part of the “vision”, as we reflect also on how autonomous our individual and collective psyche is in the very first place. Then we can say, at least, we are ready for Autonomy Plebiscite Part 111.

But of course there still other factors to consider like a culturally diverse Cordillera inhabited by ethnolinguistic groups with ethnocentric prejudices.

Cordillera autonomy, being part of the vision

2009-08-07T06:01:00.000-07:00

"......so that we can say at the end of the day that the people of the Cordillera are part of that vision. And for as long as they are part of that vision I am sure that our people will not just be recipients of development but they will become a dynamic force for meaningful developments for the region."

Read more on the MESSAGE OF SOLIDARITY delivered by Presidential Assistant for Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) Thomas A. Killip during the Closing Program of the 2009 Cordillera Month Celebration Baguio Convention Center , Baguio City, July 30, 2009.

FIRST OF ALL, MY WARM GREETINGS TO EVERYONE on the occasion of the 22nd Anniversary of the Cordillera Administrative Region as a distinct political region in the Philippines. I am deeply honored this morning to give a few thoughts and a message of solidarity for this occasion.

My Distinguished Brothers and Sisters of the Cordillera, Ladies and Gentlemen!

One hundred ten years ago upon the demise of the Spanish colonial regime in the Philippines and the entry of America as the new colonial master, it would be of great interest to imagine how both the previous and the new colonial powers regarded the people of the Cordillera mountain region at that stage of Philippine history. It is for certain that there was a common observation, a common perception, and also a common description.

From the northernmost tip of Apayao to the southern fringes of what is now Benguet Province we can be sure that we were all regarded as Ygorrotes which is an ancient Tagalog term for “people of the mountains” (sad to say that over the years this term has been used, misused, and abused). Likewise, from the terms that were used to describe us, both by the Spanish and by the early American authorities and missionaries, we could be sure that both colonial powers at that time regarded us as uncivilized. This must have been the beginnings of the “making of a cultural minority”. For us people in the Cordillera, while it is true that there were many things in common, there was as much diversity and differences in our way of life.

On one hand, we were all the same half-naked people wearing loin cloths, we had the same musical instruments, we had the same type of wet rice terraced culture, we had similar forms of animist religion and conversely, we had different dialects, different architectures, different weaving designs, and many countless differences. We were all fiercely independent tribal communities living side by side with each other but we were likewise neighboring communities that warred against each other. Thus among the different native communities in the region, the fact is that we were as different as we were similar in various ways and respects. Politically each village had its own council of elders that administered its own particular governance. And socio-politically there was no pan-Cordillera nation to speak of. We were a paradox of sorts. We could be one and the same, and we could also be one but different.

And yet despite all these differences among the various communities in this mountain region and all the perceptions attributed to us we hold the proud distinction alongside our Muslim brothers in Mindanao as one of the unconquered peoples during the more than 300 years of Spanish rule in the Philippines. We have read of the great Mayan and Inca civilizations of America which were decimated to extinction in a few years under the weight of the Spanish conquests. But here in the small island of Northern Luzon are half-naked people who fought tooth and nail for more than 300 years to defend their domains and their independence.

Thus while the rest of our Filipino neighbors were made peons of Spain for three centuries, we were living a life of freedom- we were singing our own songs, we were dancing our own dances, and worshipping the way our ancestors did. Some historians may attribute our successful Igorot independence as mainly the result of geographic circumstance but early Spanish written accounts would describe the many armed expeditions waged by the Spanish army to force the native communities of the Cordillera to submit to Spanish rule.

The latest and last of these expeditions was led by Colonel Guillermo Galvey, the so-called “Butcher of Cuba” in the 1800’s who burned entire villages from Kapangan all the way to the Ifugao side of the Cordillera in order to force the people into submission. Coupled with these armed conquests was the Spanish Policy of Reducciones that justified the Spanish colonial government to compel the native inhabitants of the Cordillera mountain region to go down to the plains and to live a Christian life. All of these failed to the embarrassment of the Spanish Crown. This Ladies and Gentlemen, is one of the great success stories that have never been told.

Why do I have to share these historical accounts? Because this is one of the basic reasons for our existence as a region. It speaks of our collective character that has made us survive in the worse of times. The fact that we share a common historical process and experience in our history have helped carve a distinct collective personality, a distinct color and a socio-cultural bond that sum up to make our peoplehood and our identity.

Next, this whole journey towards national integration for the people of the Cordillera from the time of the Commonwealth to the present Republic is another historical process that must be evaluated and weighed objectively in order to steer development towards a more sound, a more just, and a more sustainable development for us in our region. This is in fact saying that the integration of the Cordillera region and its people into the mainstream over the past century have resulted in not a small measure to the socio-cultural, political, and economic disintegration of our region. We should recall that at one time, a slice of the Cordillera Region was integrated into Region I while the other half of our region was integrated into Region II.

Many of our political decisions are being made above and outside of the region for us. Most of our natural resources which include our mineral resources, our trees and forests, as well as our rivers were transferred into the control of big interests. Our region in the Cordillera has virtually been used and treated as a resource base by and for bigger interests to our disadvantage. Integration and development in its many faces for us has meant disadvantage. Meanwhile under the present set-up our region continues to receive one of the lowest allocations from the national budget. And so this is what we get for all the wealth of natural resources that is being taken away from us. If this is the type of development that will remain with us for the years to come it is not difficult to see where this will lead us to.

The creation of the Cordillera Administrative Region which is what we are celebrating now on its 22nd anniversary was supposed to prepare the way for an autonomous region of the Cordillera as government’s recognition and response to correcting a past imbalance and an unjust set-up. It should not therefore come as a surprise if the Regional Development Council should sound out the call for the continued “quest for autonomy” because it is only fulfilling a constitutional mandate. The issue therefore should be focused more on what kind of autonomy do we want and the best way that the exercise should be conducted.

Thus, in previous and initial discussions, formal and informal, some points and consensus have become clearer:

(a) That the concept of autonomy for the Cordillera Region should never be discriminating in any manner against any particular person or group of people but should consider all people living in the region as natives and citizens of the region with equal rights, privileges, and opportunities. If Cordillera autonomy does not carry this principle then it should not even be discussed at all.

(b) We belong to a new order. We do not intend to go back and live like the way our ancestors lived because that is a thing of the past. While we preserve the good things of the past, the beautiful aspects of our culture, and the important values, what we are trying to develop is a set-up that should respond more effectively and efficiently within the context of a new order. It must be concept that is better than a previous one. If it does not, then there is no sense pursuing that kind of concept and aspiration.

(c) Autonomy should mean a greater local control of plans and political decisions in matters that affect the region. Imperial Manila has the tendency to dictate plans for us in the region. Autonomy should be able to reverse that process.

(d) The development of an autonomous concept should be participatory down to the grassroots levels. The subject of plebiscite should not be the primary goal of this process. Only the people can clamor for such an exercise if they grasp the essence of this concept. A process should be designed to effectively involve the widest participation of people and of different sectors in our region. We know that this process will take time but that is the reality of this type of political exercise so that we can say at the end of the day that the people of the Cordillera are part of that vision. And for as long as they are part of that vision I am sure that our people will not just be recipients of development but they will become a dynamic force for meaningful developments for the region.

In fact at this time of unparalleled global economic crisis, it is but proper that the discussions for regional autonomy should be expanded and intensified to enrich the concept even more. We have to be empowered for the worse.

At this juncture let me encourage that those at the helm of development for our region should really sit down occasionally to study and assess what this exercise and quest for autonomy is and what it means for us, specially the greater majority of people in the Cordillera Region.

Having said these let me thank you once again. It was a great privilege!

CPA through the years

2009-06-25T03:54:00.000-07:00

"Upon the ascendance in 1986 of the initially popular government of Corazon Aquino, CPA pursued its call for the creation of a Cordillera region as one geopolitical entity, in recognition to its character as the homeland of the Cordillera indigenous peoples and towards the formation of a Cordillera autonomous region.

CPA successfully lobbied for the inclusion of the Cordillera peoples’ right to regional autonomy in the Philippine Constitution of 1987. However, the Organic Act approved by the elite-dominated Congress – the enabling law that would have created the Cordillera autonomous region – did not embody the substance of self-governance and indigenous peoples’ control over their resources. Thus, CPA called for its rejection which was supported by the people during the referendum held on this law.

It became clear that the struggle for genuine regional autonomy could not be achieved, unless there is truly a democratic and sovereign national government that will recognize the collective rights of indigenous peoples for self-determination and governance."

Read more here on CPA through the Years

RDC’s information plan and P15 million report

2009-06-24T03:45:00.000-07:00

The Regional Development Council (RDC), the regional policy making development body of the Cordillera region, currently implements information and education campaign for regional autonomy.

The IEC targets four sectors- general public, the youth and academe, government agencies, and other groups.

Capability-building activities will focus on empowering local authorities to effectively and efficiently deliver basic services to the people through improved generation of resources.

Local authorities would be given trainings on how to implement programs on areas of regional development, which include administrative governance, ancestral domain and natural resources, education, and resource generation.

The project steering, program monitoring, and evaluation are focused on improving the region’s tie-up arrangements with national agencies with the aim of formulating plans and programs on how to undertake limited autonomy on the local and regional levels.

Read more here on the original post by Dexter See and here for RDC's mandate.

You may also want to take a look on RDC’s financial and physical accomplishments here on its autonomy-related projects and see how it spent the P15 million IEC fund.

Elusive Cordillera autonomy

2009-06-23T03:05:00.000-07:00

Following the Mt. Data Peace Accord of 1986 with the Cordillera Peoples Liberation Army (CPLA), the Cordillera Bodong Administration (CBA) and the government then led by former Philippine President Corazon Aquino, the peace talks gave birth to the aim for regional autonomy. CPLA considers autonomy or self-rule as managing the region’s land and resources.

CPLA was formed in 1986, when its pioneers led by CPLA Chief, Fr Conrado Balweg broke up with the New People’s Army due to political and ideological differences.

Read more here Elusive Cordillera autonomy

The dog, a symbol of death and protection

2009-06-22T23:33:00.000-07:00

Dogs are both guardians and harbingers of death. They are portrayed so in different cultures, places and era.

An Indo-European ritual has the dog as the symbol of death. In the beginning of the New Year at the winter solstice, boys were initiated into manhood and became warriors according to Indo-European mythologists. At the mid-winter initiation ceremony, young men witnessed the death of both the old year and their old identities, while as warriors they would become men who fed the dogs of death by killing enemies. The priests who officiated over the midwinter rite were called dog-priests, the Vrâtyas.

There is the 'black dog' also known as 'spectral hound', 'death hound', 'hound of hell', 'Black Angus'. A howling dog is also interpreted as an omen of death. With the powerful sense of smell of dogs, these animals can smell chemical changes that take place in the body before death. Perhaps leading them to howl.

The dog’s appearance also meant flooding of the river Nile in Egyptian mythology. Orion, the great hunter, had a dog named Sirius seen in the constellation of the same name. Sirius, who played a role in Egyptian mythology, heralded the annual flooding of the Nile. Sirius’ signal was shown in a light having blended with the morning sun.

The dog as a symbol of death is also manifested among the indigenous Igorots of the Cordillera. The dog is offered as a sacrifice in a ritual to guard the spirit of one who killed somebody whether in a battle or other encounter. The ritual is called ‘daw-es’ or ‘sumang’.

A soldier from ethnic tribes’ populated Mountain Province, who served in the Philippine Army years ago had to practice ‘daw-es’ when he went home after military duty. Based now overseas, he say "daw-es is done to protect or strengthen his spirit (ab-abi-ik) in case he is harmed or killed by somebody”. It is also the belief that the spirit of the ones harmed or killed won't be able to defeat his spirit, in case they come back for revenge. The subject is not also allowed to partake in eating the dog meat used for the ritual.

The butchering of dogs then is not just done to appease the appetite of one who wants to eat dog meat as what is happening in the current world. Butchering dog talks of death or misfortune having happened prior to the ritual. In such case, a firm believer of the ritual would not like to be butchering a dog just to appease an appetite to eat dog meat.

It the highlands of the Cordillera region of the Philippines, the practice of ‘daw-es’ is also done in cases where there is misfortune or pestilence which afflicted a person or a village. Butchering a dog means warding off evil and bad luck.

That is, the dog while it portrayed a symbol of death also portrayed a symbol of protection. This is portrayed in mythologies and in ethnic culture of some indigenous tribes.

In Greek and Roman mythology, Cerberus is a multi-headed dog who guards the gates of Hades, to prevent those who have crossed the river Styx from ever escaping; or rather, guarded the entrance to the Afterworld.

Hounds, in Celtic cultures, have been known for seeing into the Otherworld and perceived as guardians of the World people are now in. And in Chinese mythology, the part lion and dragon Fu dogs are meant to guard homes and businesses.

So sacred an animal that the capital city of Manila, Philippines, passed an ordinance specifically banning the killing and selling of dogs for food. The ordinance is based on the Philippine Animal Welfare Act 1998, ‘prohibiting the killing of any animal other than cattle, pigs, goats, sheep, poultry, rabbits, carabaos, horses, deer and crocodiles’ except in some instances.'. One exception is when it (dog) is done ‘as part of the religious rituals of an established religion or sect or a ritual required by tribal or ethnic custom of indigenous cultural communities’.

The Province of the Benguet homeland of indigenous Ibalois and Kankanaey tribes in the Philippines, passed a resolution declaring, among other things, "it has been an evolved cultural practice of indigenous peoples of the Cordillera the butchering of animals, dogs included, as part of their rituals and practices leading to its commercialization to a limited extent…’

While this is the case, some dog meat eating Filipinos consume around 500,000 dogs killed annually, reports Dog Meat Trade.com, an organization working in the Philippines to eliminate dog meat eating in the country.

Meantime in Iran, the dog symbolizes the West. One can be charged for ‘moral corruption’ for owning a dog and a dog is caged for ‘walking on public’. Interesting.

While that is so, it is despicable to note how some 50 Igorots were displayed and made to butcher and eat dog meat during the 1904 St Louis Fair in Missouri, 1909 Alaska-Yukon-Pacific (AYPE) Exposition in Seattle and the 1913 World’s Fair in Ghent Germany. How the indigenous Igorots were made to eat dog meat on almost a daily basis talks of exploitation of a sacred ritual.

Igorots say 1909 display was ‘wrong’, as Fil-Ams demand public apology in 2009 AYPE

2009-06-11T08:02:00.000-07:00

BIBAKNETS- “It was wrong of the United States government to allow the display of peoples from the Philippines for amusement,” Editor John Dyte of ‘The Igorot’, official publication of Igorot Global Organization (IGO) said.

Some 50 Igorots were exhibited as “dog-eating” Filipinos during World Fairs as St Louis Fair in 1904 and the Alaska Yukon Pacific Exposition (AYPE) in 1909. The Igorots were made to eat dogs almost every day in the exhibited Igorot Village in 1909. Same scenario was seen earlier in the 1904 St Louis Missouri Fair. The Igorots were part of a thousand Filipinos who were displayed during these early 19th century Fairs.

Australia-based Steffani Murray who traces her roots from the Mountain Province reminded fellow Igorots to heed the 1909 event, saying , “ no one should have to be paraded like freaks be they humans or animals. We’ve come a long way since then.”

During the 2009 centennial celebration held in Seattle recently first week of June, Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels was quick to acknowledge the wrong done in 1909. In his speech during the opening AYPE ceremonies, Nickels said, “what our people did to your people in 1909 is an embarrassment to us and had it happened during our time, we would have never stood for it”.

As the event proceeded, Seattle-based Fil- Ams affiliated with Anakbayan demanded for public apology from the University of Washing ton and the City of Seattle for a ‘historic wrong’ done in 1909. They called the event as ‘racist’ which created stereotypes of Filipinos.

However, while she acknowledged the statement of Mayor Nickles, Mia Apolinar- Abeya, descendant of one of the Igorot participants to the 1904 and 1909 Fairs, said in her letter to Anakbayan- Seattle, “to ask a society that was not even present a hundred years ago to apologize for “displaying” our ancestors in a degrading fashion is a moot point by now”.

With the conduct of Fairs which apparently were meant to educate the public on the existence of ethnic tribes from different parts of the world, racial discrimination continues to be experienced especially amongst colored races through the stretch of the 19th century on to the early part of the 20th century. Critics say these freak Fairs instead legitimized racial discrimination.

Racial discrimination rears its ugly head at this present times such that Seattle Fil-Ams in their public campaign said, “many Filipino-Americans in Seattle and across the United States continue to be called racial slurs such as “dog-eaters”.

In the hope that the Igorot will be better appreciated of who he/she is and that she/he is one among the rest of the peoples as human with a distinct culture, the Igorot village was re-enacted as part of the three-day annual Pagdiriwang event of Seattle, with activities as rice pounding, rice-wine making, basket weaving, and woodcarving, and showing of an Igorot legend called Sleeping Beauty.

This year’s theme, "Igorot Village Revisited, honors the Igorot people of the Philippine island of Luzon as a tribute to the centennial of the tribe’s participation in the 1909 Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition”.

Dyte and other members of an Igorot panel who discussed related issues during the AYPE centennial celebration said, Igorots who were led to the 1909 AYPE in Seattle entered so under an employer-employee relationship. They said the Igorots were paid for their services. Dyte and the rest of the panel including Maria Luz Fang-asan and US –based Fred Cordova, Albert Bacdayan and Petra Angpao-Durrance were one in saying the Igorots were “were not coerced.”

The 2009 centennial celebration of the AYPE Centennial Celebration was jointly celebrated by the Filipino American Historical Society, the Filipino Cultural Heritage Society of Washington,
BIBAK Pacific Northwest (PNW), BIMAAK District of Columbia (DC) and BIBAK British Columbia.

The City of Seattle gave a city grant in the amount of $5000.00 to fund the building of five huts for the Igorot Village, Gloria Golocan, PRO of BIBAK Pacific NW reports.

Michael Herschensohn from the Mayor’s office and Chair of the AYPE celebration said that BIBAK “efforts should be recognized by the larger Filipino community which in my view must make absolutely sure that there is an Igorot presence at every Pagdiriwang.”

The $5,000 is part of the 2008 proposed budget of Seattle Mayor Nickels which provides $200,000 to begin preparations for the 2009 Alaska-Yukon-Pacific-Expedition (AYPE) centennial celebration.

The 1909 event opened its doors to the world with the first AYPE bringing Seattle worldwide recognition as an ambitious port city and commercial center of the Pacific coast. The 1909 AYPE was the first event to feature the Pacific Northwest on the scale of a World’s Fair and attracted 3.7 million visitors to what has since become the University of Washington campus.

It was in 1909 when the harsh realities of World War I and the Great Depression were years away that civic leaders decided it was ‘time to put Seattle on the map’ and stage the global AYPE to attract more residents and trade in both national and international dimensions.

Note: Thanks to BIBAKNet, MountainProvince, and KotimYaEta yahoo group members for sharing in an animated discussion on the AYPE event, which served as source of information on the above article.

1909 AYPE Pic link from here
2009 AYPE 2nd and 3rd Fotos by Sandra Kollin-Baldo

Fil-Ams Demand Apology for 1909 Igorot Village at Seattle’s AYPE

2009-06-08T21:23:00.000-07:00

So its good to know Fil-Ams are demanding the University of Washington and City of Seattle for a public apology for having displayed Filipinos as "dog -eaters"during the 1909 AYPE. A way to go!

Read more about it in:

Seattle Fil-Ams Demand Apology for 1909 Igorot Village at Seattle’s Alaska Yukon Pacific Exposition

Seattle, WA – Filipino-American community groups in Seattle are launching a campaign seeking a public apology from the University of Washington and City of Seattle for the 1909 Igorot Village during the Alaska Yukon Pacific Exposition (AYPE). In 1909, Seattle hosted the AYPE with the most popular exhibit being the “Igorrote Village” which displayed a recreated village where Filipinos were made to eat dogs and act out indigenous practices for entertainment. On the centennial of the AYPE, the groups are calling for a public apology for this historic wrong where the racist event created stereotypes of Filipinos. Many Filipino-Americans in Seattle and across the United States continue to be called racial slurs such as “dog-eaters.”

Its more than an Igorot dance

2009-05-31T21:27:00.000-07:00

It was in 1904 when some Igorots of the Bontoc tribe formed part of the 1000 Filipinos who were led to the St Louis Fair of 1904. At Louis, they were displayed in an Igorot Village for seven months and made to butcher and eat dog meat on a daily basis, historical records say.

After St Louis, a veteran of the Filipino-American War named Richard Schneidewind contracted some of the Filipino group and displayed them again in Ghent , Germany in the World’s Fair in 1913.

It was also in 1909 when 50 Igorots were showcased during the Alaska-Yukon- Pacific Exposition in Seattle.

In those early years of the 1900s , World Fairs must have been too exotic a show not to be missed by any curious person who is interested to know how a “ dog –eating naked savage” looks like as pictured in earlier writings in the late 1800s. And so we read of Fr Francisco Antolin’s description of Igorots as “hardly different from wild beasts”.

So it must have been a curiosity to look at an Igorot alive at St Louis or at Ghent and see for one’s self how the Igorot eats a dog. Does he eat it raw? Does he eat it cooked? Does he tear it with his hands? Does he set it apart with his teeth? Such possible questions must have been in the minds of the curious onlooker, the curious researcher.

Seemingly devoid of any humanity, the Igorot must have been an object to be scrutinized of how his arms or eyes or legs look like. Like a piece of figurine which is held from one to hand and felt of its texture. Is it warm? Is it cold? Like a statue, the Igorot was a thing of curiosity which was exhibited for any curious person to satisfy his curiosity. So it may have been in the mind of actress Candy Pangilinan, a century after when what she was supposed to say as she claimed was “statue” and not Igorot.

So less than human is the impact upon the person of the Igorot that, as historians note, American missionary Bishop Charles Henry Brent of the Anglican Church based in Bontoc then in the early 1900s, discouraged Igorots from joining “freak shows’ in the United States, but he was not successful enough.

While Fairs are nobly intended to “educate” the world of an ethnic tribe and his way of life, it is a standing question of a venue legitimizing racial discrimination at the same time. That is, as more and more of bigotry and prejudice have been experienced in the whole stretch of the 19th century to the 20th. We ask now how much of defeating the legitimization of racial discrimination shall be seen in the upcoming 100th anniversary of the AYPE in Seattle this June of 2009.

The event will re- enact history of setting up an Igorot Village. The Igorots of today will perform Igorot dances and songs, rituals, backstrap weaving and show who an Igorot is.

Yet who is an Igorot? Is it changing the dark skinned Igorot to a fair skinned one as she dances the Igorot dance in high heels? Is it to show that he is now educated with an MBA or a PhD degree and that before he was uneducated and illiterate? Is it changing who he is before and presenting a modern Igorot now? Is it showing the same rituals and cultural practices that the Igorot had been doing for years?

The Igorot will dance his dances and play his gongs during the AYPE in Seattle this June the same dances that he played in 1904, 1909, and 1913, the same sound and the spirit of the Kaigorotan. So what difference does it make now?

While he dances with his/her gateng (skirt) or wanes ( G-string) with the tune of the gangsa (gongs), it is an affirmation of who he is, in spirit and in soul. He/She is the noble savage in /her his time and territory. Former mayor of Bontoc and septuagenarian Alfonso Kiat-ong portrayed in spirit, a long-haired proud Igorot who danced in the streets of Bontoc with his dinagta G string as he twirled his gayang (spear) , during the opening Lang-ay Festival in 2005 I couldn’t help being so emotive then, sent shivers down my spine.

The Igorot survived in the jungles of the Cordillera with his spear and his noble savagery. “Hardly different from a beast” as the western and urban man has looked at him, that “savage” (noble savagery to be exact) in him, kept him who he is: a people who trace their roots to the strong and resilient Igorot in each generation.

And now, a conscious part of the organizers of a show, a far cry from the 1904, 1909 and 1913 Fairs where the Igorots were hustled and hassled and God-knows-what if they were promised a dollar or two while the organizers had their tobacco concessions in the deal.

The AYPE 2009, for one, is being co-organized by Mia Apolinar-Abeya from Bontoc, one of the descendants of the Igorots who was part of the St Louis Fair in 1904.

And it is only when he/she affirms his consent and be part of the show, and know that he is not discriminating nor exploiting his own humanity, that the Igorot will proudly dance. And that, the Igorot knows he/she is not a show, per se!

And so we have the Igorots dancing to the beat of their gongs during provincial festivals. the Lang-ay of Mountain Province, Adivay of Benguet, Imbayah of Ifugao, Arya Abra of Abra, Mataguan of Kalinga and Wow Philippines. And so during these local contemporary celebrations, while the Igorots congregate and enjoy the fellowship, they profit from tourism while promoting the name of their own localities. This, a far cry from the 1904, 1909 and 1913 fairs where they were left helpless in the streets of Ghent to fend for themselves, the organizer having gone off with the proceeds after the show.

The Igorot is a living person, a race, an ethnicity to be lived with. Much as he hunted with his spear, danced with the rains, prayed under the trees, the Igorot will live the essence of who he was years ago. A race in tune with the harmony of the spirits of the trees and gurgling waters, one with the spirits of his ancestors, protecting his people and rugged territory much as he lived and protected his life from invading and oppressive forces alien to the essence of his soul. One who continues to live amongst many, a distinct ethnicity, a distinct person, a distinct soul , who has a place in this world of diversities.

Pic from Here

No to Racism

2009-05-15T06:31:00.000-07:00

May 16, 2009

To:

Hon. Mauricio G. Domogan
Representative, Lone District of Baguio City
Rm. N-217, House of Representatives, Quezon City
Philippines

Hon. Samuel M. Dangwa
Representative, Lone District of Benguet
Rm. S-517, House of Representatives, Quezon City

Hon. Solomon R. Chungalao
Representative, Lone District of Ifugao
Rm. S-219, House of Representatives, Quezon City

Hon. Cecilia M. Seares-Luna
Representative, Lone District of Abra
Rm. S-608, House of Representatives, Quezon City

Hon. Elias Jr C. Bulut.
Representative, Lone District of Apayao
Rm. N-111, House of Representatives, Quezon City

Hon. Manuel S. Agyao
Representative, Lone District of Kalinga/
Caretaker-Representative for Mountain Province
Rm. N-502, House of Representatives, Quezon City

Respectfully requesting your attention to pass a special law against racism and the accompanying sanctions that go with it with respect to artists, entertainers, movie/TV and station managers, and those in the entertainment industry.

On May 9, 2009 during a show at SM Baguio City, actress Candy Pangilinan said, “Tao po ako. Hindi po ako Igorot” ( I am a human being. I am not an Igorot) =. She said this remark twice. Once, when she walked down the run-way after greeting the audience, and the second time when she appeared on stage.

The ethnic slur happened in Baguio City, homeland of a number of Igorot –Ibalois, Igorot – Kankanaeys, Igorot- i-Montayosa, Igorot –Kalingas, Igorot-Ifugaos, Igorot- Apayaos and Igorot-i-Abra .

Candy Pangilinan’s remark gathered angry and hurt reactions from Igorots and other non-Igorots as well which jammed her blog, http://candiva.multiply.com/, demanding for her public apology.

While Ms Pangilinan issued a personal apology in her blog and also a public apology on national TV, SNN, ABS-CBN, and TV Patrol last May 13, we specially forward that Ms Candy Pangilinan’s act and foregoing consequences, serve as a living reminder for artists to imbibe social responsibility in their chosen career, respect cultural diversities, observe human and collective rights of peoples, sustain the molding of relevant Filipino and sound cultural values while maintaining artistic freedom and expression.

The relatively same incident happened in1999 when actress Lucy Torres- Gomez said to another character in an ABS-CBN show, “Ang pangit mo naman, Igorot siguro parents mo” (You’re so ugly, maybe your parents are Igorots).

Pangilinan’s statement was a manifestation of racism where she strongly implied that Igorots are not human beings and that she is human. Similarly, in Torres’ remark, obviously said that Igorots as a people are ugly- looking, thus implying that non-Igorots are good looking. The attitude of superiority is very evident over a tribe which is made inferior.

Espousing racial slurs breed hostile and/or uncomfortable environment where one is made to feel inferior while the other is superior. And with this, such would not be a healthy community to live in as it eats away the sense and the right of equality among humans.

And while this continues, propagated by some artists in Philippine cinema, ethnic bias will alarmingly disrupt good community relationships between and among anyone regardless of race, ethnicity and color.

We, signatories to this petition, members of the Igorot ethnolinguistic tribe who come from different parts of the Cordillera region, are one among a number of Philippine ethno-linguistic tribes, who have distinct and diverse culture which commands respect

We invite other non-Cordillerans as well to join this petition.

Considering the above, we seek your appropriate action, especially in the passage of a special law to curb racism, to this petition in your continued role to promote camaraderie among all Filipinos, uphold human rights and people’s cultural rights, promote good Filipino values, preserve cultural heritage, while upholding freedom of expression.

Respectfully,

Please enter your name, email address/street address in the COMMENTS section.

or you may sign in to

PETITION

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/notoracism/

Candy's rotten taste

2009-05-12T01:02:00.000-07:00

Wow! What a way to get noticed.

Seemingly, this Candy Pangilinan knows that Igorots will react and notice her when she says, “Tao po ako. Hindi po ako Igorot” ( I am a human being. I am not an Igorot) during her show here at SM Baguio, May 9.

Cheap shot.

With her obvious intention of sounding ignorant, she nonetheless commits discriminatory acts and violates equality rights by strongly implying that Igorots are not human beings.

Stop it, Ms Pangilinan. Being a UP alumna, you disgrace your alma mater, the University of the Philippines, a prestigious institution which is known for its academic and intellectual excellence and strong positions against injustice. As well, you disgrace noted and distinguished UP graduates and where, among them are a number of Igorots. You may have come across some of them when you were studying Theater Arts in UP. Though, even if not because Igorots are not that much inclined to study theater arts, there is the tendency for you to meet this member of the human species in your college days. And if you haven’t, you must have led a miserable school life not to know the existence of an Igorot. Besides, being in the entertainment industry, you already have come across Igorot actors, one of whom was the late Starstruck winner, Marky Cielo. May he rest in peace.

And you say you’re joking? Ha ha! Making miserable , stupid and ignorant remarks on stage to catch attention? You think you’re being funny?

Making tribal slurs is downright discriminatory where it violates the basic human rights of people to their equality rights, whether such is said jokingly or intentionally. You think you’re human and the Igorot is not? You espouse a hostile and dangerous environment where humans will think ill or be wary of another just because one thinks one is not a human being. So who do you think Igorots are?

Coming here to Baguio which is largely populated by Igorots and saying such an off-hand, careless and stupid remark is a brazen and ill-mannered act to do. And before this piece gets longer, the best thing for you, Ms Candy Panglinan to do, is to give a public apology before some law –abiding Igorots would ever think of suing you to court, or calling on the anitos to give you a piece of their advice.

Write you comments at her blog.

Transferred from Travels and Events ( http://travelprints.blogspot.com) May 12, 2009.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...: for what Candy said, I will not vote for Kiko, unless Kiko scolds her in public. I don't care if they are relatives hehehe

nandi ayahao; May 12, 2009 3:34 AM

Gina Dizon said...: Hi Nandi
Elections is just a few months away. A good comment to float Kiko's name ha ha! Anyways, do join the discussion in the komedyante's blog. Click at the bottom of my Rotten Candy post.
Gina; May 12, 2009 5:31 PM

‘Tao po ako, hindi po ako Igorot’

2009-05-10T23:18:00.000-07:00

It was in 1999 when actress Lucy Torres- Gomez said to a character in an ABS-CBN show, “Ang pangit mo naman, Igorot siguro parents mo” (You’re so ugly, maybe your parents are Igorots).

While Lucy Torres’ comment then was not as popularly criticized as what happened to Candy Pangilinan very recently, Lucy Torres was summoned to Congress to give an explanation to her remark, following public reaction from some outraged Igorots. ABS CBN also apologized saying there was no intent to demean.

They also ensured that it will not happen again in future shows, Blog of the Sagada Igorot reports. But the incident happened again. And worse, the relatively same racial slur happened in Baguio City, homeland of a number of Igorot –Ibalois, Igorot – Kankanaeys, Igorot –Kalingas, Igorot-Ifugaos, Igorot- Apayaos and Igorot- Tingguians.

Actress-comedian Candy Pangilinan uttered twice, “Tao po ako. Hindi po ako Igorot” ( I am a human being. I am not an Igorot) during a May 9 show at SM Baguio City. Once, when she walked down the run-way after greeting the audience, and the second time when she appeared on stage. Surely. Pangilinan’s statement was a manifestation of racism where she strongly implied that Igorots are not human beings and she is human.

Similarly, in Torres’ remark, she obviously said that Igorots as a people are ugly- looking, thus implying that non-Igorots are good looking. The attitude of superiority is very evident over a tribe which is made inferior. Espousing racial slurs breeds hostile and/or uncomfortable environment where one is made to feel inferior while the other is superior.

And with this, such would not be a healthy community to live in as it eats away the sense and the right of equality among humans. That was clearly proven in the two artists’racial slurs when Igorots all over the world were outraged and rammed angry remarks to both Torres and Pangilinan.

Like corruption which has ingrained in Philippine society and has alarmingly spread in the whole stretch of its hierarchy and seemingly got unstoppable , racial slurs go in the same thread. And while this continues, propagated by some artists in Philippine cinema, ethnic bias will alarmingly disrupt good community relationships regardless of tribe, color, or race.

It may happen again. Yet artists or anybody else with a racist mind gets away with it, without being made accountable to his/her actions and getting penalized. As we can see, apologies can happen. And it can happen over and over again. Explanations in Congress can also happen and it can happen over and over again. Heaviersanctions are needed much as it erodes the self- esteem of a people, posesthreat to healthy communities from developing, poses dangerous relationship of ill feelings and distrust to another, and violates equality rights. In furtherance of public welfare, ethnic slurs need to be regulated if not, prevented from happening.

It has to stop somewhere while we recognize one major cause of ethnic bias.

Jerry P8 Abeya, moderator of a Kankanaey tribe Kotim-ya- Eta Yahoo forum says Candy Pangilinan’s remark “is basically a symptom of the mis-education of the mainstream Filipinos about their own brother and sister- Igorots. That she represented at one instance the mis-educated Filipinos who continue to be discriminatory; and that hopefully the apology of Candy for realizing to respect the dignity of any tribe, would be a lesson to learn from.”

I wonder what the Katipunan ng mga Artistang Pilipino Sa Pelikula at Telebisyon
(KAPPT) is doing to discipline their own members. I also wonder what special sanctions are there for TV stations and the entertainment industry have for artists and managers who commit ethnic slurs in their own TV stations and productions.

While people forgive and let live, a special law is needed to control and sanction
racism which is eating healthy relationships from growing. What you say Baguio Congressman Mauricio Domogan and the other Batasan representatives from the Cordillera?

Reprinted from Northern Philippine Times

Candy Pic from Cordillera Virtual Newseum

Regional autonomy is doing, not academic

2009-05-06T17:47:00.000-07:00

Regional autonomy makes me think of Macliing Dulag, the slain, militant Kalinga chieftain who resisted government troopers who tried to ram Chico Dam in his hometown in Bugnay, Kalinga in the 1970s.

Dulag’s act of defiance is a concrete living example of what autonomy means -- a self-determining act of asserting one’s rights for public interest. A principled act to stand up to what one believes in, despite whatever rules there are. He made his rules and the rule is his life. Despite whatever law or policy there was, his land should not be touched by the government because land is his life.

Yet, he was law abiding by being true to what the Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights provides the right to life. The odds were against him, a threatening military force who bulldozes their way in his own backyard and a government policy dictated by the late President Marcos, to build the Chico River Basin Development Project. Some people were scared, some apathetic, some skeptic.

Yet, with his followers and others who supported him including international friends, Dulag stuck to his scruples and resisted the dam which led to the people of Kalinga and Mountain Province sourcing their food from their precious lands till now. What did he gain in the process?

For sure, he was not promised a Mercedes Benzor a palace, or a trip to the Alps or a load of money from anybody who wanted him to resist. He had a load of a living example he passed on to people of Kalinga and the neighboring provinces of the Kordillera on what is regional autonomy.

Now, we are not saying, you also do ala-Macliing Dulag and be a chieftain, resist the army, and die a hero. In your own backyard, you could have noticed injustice going on like a fishy infrastructure being built which was not built according to budget, or excessive transportation rates, lack of school buildings and teachers, an abusive authority, or a
good for nothing elected official who is not doing his job.

What are you doing to check the situation? I would like to mention Juniper Dominguez who despite threats to his life, consistently attacked engineer Mariano Alquiza, former Cordillera Dept. of Public Works and Highways director, of corruption on SONA projects along the Halsema Highway, where, through the press and the courts, contributed to the eventual replacement of Alquiza.

Now, Natonin native and Bontoc-bred engineer Roy Manao is the Cordillera DPWH Director. The credit goes to other supporters and silent movers who wanted to rid the regional DPWH of corruption. Meantime, most of the public particularly from Mountain Province who regularly cross the Halsema Highway are silent on the sidelights and either pessimistic, apathetic, skeptical, or just too busy with their own lives to care as to what Juniper is raving about.

I also appreciate the people of Guinaang, Bontoc who resisted the excessive transportation rates of their own jeepney drivers a year ago. So to drive home their point, they walked the one hour-ride Bontoc-Guinaang route to spite the drivers that they can walk anyway, and that drivers will not have any money for the day.

And so further on, the Guinaang people wrote CAR-DOT and LTFRB asking them to clear the issue and tell the drivers to lower the rates as diesel has already gone down from P60 to 40 per liter. The people got what they wanted and the jeepney drivers lowered the fare. Juniper and the Guinaang people are but some of the few autonomous individuals who stand up, amidst threats, for what they believe in to try and change ugly situations for a better and fairer place to live in.

This encouragement and admiration include other individuals who, as a group actively petition abusive authorities. Meantime, other neighboring people in Sagada for example, grumble and mumble about excessive fare rates yet did not do what the Guinaang people did. I don’t know if the rate is still P45, and not lower than that, which is supposed to be 27.00 for the 18 kilometer Bontoc-Sagada road, as what it should be according to LTFRB computation. Most people do grumble and mumble about what is wrong.

What am I saying? What had the people done so far in making themselves self-determining and actually exercise what regional autonomy means in their very own places? We have laws which support self- determining rights like freedom of the press, freedom of expression, freedom to assemble, the right to recall officials as provided for in the constitution. Yet, I never heard of a politician who was recalled due to the action of people against one who is corrupt and abusive or good for nothing opisyal who closes his mouth and rarely forwards a resolution during the entire Sangguniang sessions and gets his monthly salary anyway.

Also, the Local Govt Code RA 7160 also provides for Special Bodies and NGOs to be represented in deciding bodies in Development Councils in government. Yet, very few NGOS had themselves accredited in government to be part of local governance. In the provincial LGU of Mt Province for one, there are only six accredited NGOs last year. And the rest?

Either the NGOS are busy with their own interests or fed up with the corruption and inefficiency of government. Even the government is not fully facilitating local governance involving the people. Barangay assemblies are not that observed in most barangays, as noted in a consultation on local governance conducted last year. Ask yourself if you know or were part of a barangay consultation/assembly a year ago or just recently. The law says there should be at least two barangay assemblies in a year.

What more, municipal Sangguniang sessions are nearly closed to the public by the non conduct of public hearings on issues which vitally affect them? The people also care less. What the heck. Life goes on. While this is the case, the drive for regional autonomy is just around the corner. Where people are not that enthusiastic and involve
themselves in political activities in their own backyards, what does regional autonomy mean to their lives? Seems to be only a concoction of dreams and ideals of a few ideologues which got modified by government technocrats and now finding itself offered to the people whether to accept or not.

So the government now through the Regional Development Council conducts these so-called IECs to inform the people about regional autonomy because as the survey says, 40% don’t know what autonomy is already about. Can regional autonomy be achieved in conducting IECs? How much of IECs are needed by the way? Seemingly, autonomy is seen as an academic problem where people have to know the definition of homogenous and heterogenous.

Yet, a major factor is experiential. Regional autonomy needs to be lived and people and government have to do it, breathe it in order to know about it, and do it more. Otherwise, it would just be like any other electoral exercise where people cast their votes whether to write Juan or Jose in the ballot. Either the people vote for Juan in exchange for a kilo of rice, vote anyway, or boycott. After the elections, what are the people doing to involve themselves in the promises of Juan the Politiko?

In most cases, people don’t care less and let Juan the Politiko do his thing while Juan dela Cruz will also do his thing also: work, feed his children, sleep, wake up the next day, work again and the cycle goes on until the next election comes again with Politiko’s boring and repeated promises for a better future. So again, what do we expect for this quest for regional autonomy?

Where people are not even autonomous to exercise their basic constitutional rights. Where people are apathetic to political life and get busy with their own economic lives because Maria needs 25,000 for her tuition fees in college and the government anyway can’t help in her nursing course fees. Where the youth who are the hope of the Fatherland, are busy playing Counterstrike, getting in Friendster, or chatting in the Internet. Many adults are busy with their own lives in order to feed a family or feed themselves.

Many people leave for HK or UK or EU or USA because there are not enough decent paying jobs in this country swamped with a dearth of employment. People are alienated from government as if the government has nothing much to do with their own lives. Yet people mumble when there is a problem on fare increase, high tuition fees or low pay. But it is only until there. Grumble. We need more Dulag Maclii-ings, Junipers and Guinaang people.

Reprinted from Northern Philippine Times

Ist Pic. Macli-ing Dulag
2nd Pic. Halsema Highway

2009-04-30T07:18:00.000-07:00

So, so you think you can tell Heaven from Hell,
blue skies from pain.
Can you tell a green field from a cold steel rail?
A smile from a veil?
Do you think you can tell?
And did they get you to trade your heroes for ghosts?
Hot ashes for trees?
Hot air for a cool breeze?
Cold comfort for change?
And did you exchange a walk on part in the war for a lead role in a cage?
How I wish, how I wish you were here.
We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl, year after year,
Running over the same old ground.
What have you found? The same old fears.
Wish you were here.

Pink Floyd

Cordillera Day gathers 5 Thousand

2009-04-27T20:56:00.000-07:00

Cordillera Day was held April 23-25, with groups from various sectors gathering in five places of the Cordillera.

In Mountain Province, delegations from people’s organizations gathered in barangay Ankileng, Sagada, as one of five simultaneous and decentralized celebrations of the momentous event.

More of this in Northern Dispatch

Thanks to Patrick Pooten for the photos. The group photo shows some members of the Alliance of Concerned Teachers and QC Public School Teachers Association who joined the event in Ankileng.

Who informs who on regional autonomy

2009-04-24T01:04:00.000-07:00

SAGADA, MOUNTAIN
PROVINCE- This time, with
NEDA Director and Regional Development Council (RDC) Chairman Juan Ngalob as special guest during the Cordillera Day held here at barangay Suyo, both the militant Cordillera Peoples Alliance (CPA) and the government sing a happy tune as they join hands to celebrate the momentous event.

RDC conducted an information-education campaign on regional autonomy with the Movement for the Advancement of Inter-Tribal Unity and Democracy (MAITUD), an organizational member of CPA last April 23. MAITUD is an organization of elders in Mountain Province.

Kind of interesting. RDC informing the elders about what is regional autonomy or is it the other way around?

CPA and some MAITUD members including Fr Edwardo Solang, one of the CPA pioneers of regional autonomy in the 1980s, were in the forefront pursuing Cordillera autonomy in the halls of Malacanang. Eventually, the Cordillera social activists’ moves gave way to the inclusion of regional autonomy for Cordillera and Mindanao in the 1987 Constitution.

As it is, the Cordillera Day held here in the village of Suyo was attended by Fr Solang also a former Mountain Province board member, and MAITUD elders Peczon and Nelson Yocogan who graced the occasion during the MAITUD –RDC session on regional autonomy. MAITUD officer and Suyo barangay captain/ ABC Chair Jaime Tigan-o Dogao delivered his message commemorating the event. Other special guests also included Sagada mayor Eduardo Latawan aside from RDC Chair Juan Ngalob.
Cordillera Day now is being separately celebrated per province of the Cordillera with discussions of similar related issues on human rights violations, environment and agricultural liberalization.

Back to the question. Who will do the teaching this time? Is it RDC? Is there something new that CPA or MAITUD has to learn from RDC about regional autonomy? For the past two plebiscites on regional autonomy held in 1990 and 1998, CPA opted to stand in the sidelights and maintained a critical stand. The RDC-led campaign now implies that CPA or MAITUD has to learn something new, or wants to get in the government’s version of what it initially did not support.

Or is RDC going to be the one to be enlightened about what is regional autonomy?

We see the government through RDC and the CPA through MAITUD, forging a reconciliatory position on how to go about the government ‘s version of regional autonomy.

Whatever way, the drive for regional autonomy will be a plus factor in favor of the government with RDC being favorably welcome in the 25th celebration of the militant Cordillera Day held by the Cordillera People’s Alliance.
***

With the P15 million autonomy fund not having been approved by the Senate for the General Appropriations Act (GAA) 2009, yet earlier passed by the House of Representatives, we see the drive for autonomy in the dark. Yet, Ngalob is hopeful to wait for the finalization of the 2009 budget. If the Senate did not approve it, chances are, it will have a hard time getting some approval in the final 2009 budget.

And to wait apparently, is an endless wait which seemingly ends in a nowhere result of which might be. And so obviously, the practical way is to realign the savings in RDC’s 2008 budget, otherwise, the information campaign for regional autonomy gets stalled.

Which will however set a precedent that realignment of funds can be done again next year and budget allocation for advocacy of autonomy will not be a ready act of the Senate or the President.

And so the best way is to lobby for the funds to be specially allocated, much more so that the move for regional autonomy is constitutional anyway.

Which brings us back to the question of how the initial P15 million educational funds for autonomy were spent. It would be good if RDC Chair Ngalob come out with a statement how the initial P15 million was spent. This way, the public will be enlightened of how autonomy funds are being spent and the public may come out with better ways to advocate autonomy than how the government -led advocacy is being done.

Reprinted from Northern Philippine Times

Note: As I write this post, I am thankful to Patrick Pooten, principal of Ankileng National High School, and also a former and still a social activist for Cordillera rights and welfare, for providing the photos here which set basis for me to write the above. From right in the first above photo, is Sagada Mayor Eduardo Latawan, ABC Chair and Suyo barangay Captain Jaime Tigan-o Dogao, RDC Chair Juan Ngalob, MAITUD elders Fr Eduardo Solang, Lakay Peczon and Nelson Yocogan. The other photo shows a cultural number called Manbabanog meaning eagle dance in Bukidnon.

MORE LINKS

Advisory for Cordillera Day 2009

Regional autonomy once more with feelings

2009-04-23T22:03:00.001-07:00

What do Cordillera people think about autonomy? Attempts by officials to make the region autonomous was voted down in a plebiscite in Jan. 30, 1990 when the four provinces of Kalinga, Abra, Benguet, Mountain Province and Apayao voted no with only Ifugao saying yes. The second attempt was also foiled with only Apayao voting yes on March 7, 1998.

What is autonomy? The people must have been right in their decision at the very first and second take. What chances do the third take give? Have the people become wiser, more informed, or they are already wise and informed in the very first place?

This politically hankered state of autonomy, I understand, refers to that state of being a free and independent region governing its economic, political and social life. If the Cordillera would become autonomous, would it be free from region from oppressive national policies. Government laws give us a framework on how to exercise this seemingly lofty state of regional autonomy following the peace accord entered into between the Cordillera People’s Liberation Army led by Fr. Conrado Balweg in Sept. 13, 1987 and then Philippine President Corazon Aquino giving birth to Executive Order 220 which sets up a regional administrative body while preparing for a Cordillera regional autonomy.

This, following Section 15, Article 10 of the Constitution which provides an autonomous region in the Cordillera with “common and distinctive historical and cultural heritage, economic and social structures, and other relevant characteristics within the framework of the Constitution and the national sovereignty.

With moves for an information drive on Cordillera regional autonomy purportedly being done, I am curious to see what attractive features an autonomous animal the Cordillera would be, otherwise, the P15 million info drive is just another futile attempt gone to kingdom never come.

I consider autonomously palatable the position of the late Fr.Balweg who pushed for a federal state of autonomy for the Cordillera. In a federal set up, the Cordillera people shall make their own laws, Constitution and policies yet still be a part of the national state.

What degree of autonomy will the Cordillera enjoy if it becomes autonomous according to what EO 220 will prepare? Will it be just the same setup where people will exercise their political, cultural and social affairs the way things are under the present laws and political structure? Or will there be a strikingly distinct set up where people can say they are autonomous?

Just what structure and laws will be created in order to make autonomy realized somehow? If there be a collective decision for example among Cordillera leaders, just how strong will this be as an autonomous policy? What measures are in place to make this so?

Where policies are concerned, can the envisioned autonomous region provide policies where it can go against a national law or policy? The Mining Act of 1995 for example was given judicial mandate by the Supreme Court when the application for Financial and Technical Assistance Agreement of a foreign mining firm in Mindanao legally upheld its constitutionality despite opposition from tribal B’laan communities.

Can the envisioned regional autonomy say no to a Supreme court decision? Can it come up with its own judicial laws? What policies can the envisioned autonomy come up with and not being considered contrary but rather supplementary to national policies? On the other hand, national policies and practices are already in place for a semi-autonomous state. The Local Government Code already provides a system of devolution where LGUs could exercise some relatively autonomous control on generating taxes for one. Congressmen are in place to represent their respective provinces and people in Congress. Structures are already in place where LGU representatives can lobby for their share in income derived from the natural resources located in their own territories for one. Although it is another story when representatives and government officials cannot deliver.

Where the people in the region with more or less similar cultural and distinct culture could come up with their own policies about their own economic and political existence without the sword of Damocles hanging over their head, would be considered autonomous. Meanwhile, Baguio Rep. Mauricio Domogan and other political leaders are reportedly pressing the implementation of a permanent Cordillera administrative setup. This move may make some people push the Cordillera Regional Assembly and the Cordillera Executive Board as overseers of Cordillera affairs in the regional level. Just what happened to the former CRA and the CEB are things of the past which cannot be forgotten with a yearly P5 million budget cost of a lesson to draw from.

Creating a bloated policy-making structure “to articulate and harmonize the interests and aspirations of the people of the Cordilleras” was the supposed role of the Cordillera Regional Assembly composed of not more than 250 appointed from each municipality of the Cordillera, 10 from Baguio City, 18 representatives from NGOs and a tribal representative each is also a question.

Granting that these envisioned representatives have articulated and harmonized the aspirations of the Cordillera people, where shall these articulations be forwarded to? To the President? Congress? What sizable vote will these collective articulation bring to Congress or the Office of the President? How strong are these articulations in influencing national policy or when these challenge national policies? Is this the kind of self-rule that original proponents to Cordillera autonomy envisioned that EO 220 prepared for? How will Cordillera regional autonomous policy be in consonance to national policy-making? We maybe creating one bloated, overlapping body which is far out from original intentions of what self and autonomous rule means.

Another EO mandated body is the Cordillera Executive Board which is the implementing arm of the CAR is composed of 29 regular members of the board to name the Baguio city mayor, 5 governors, 6 from the Cordillera Bodong Administration, 12 from the different ethno-linguistic groups in the Cordillera, and 5 representatives from NGOs. Under EO 220, the CEB is headed by an executive director appointed by the President. Aside from questions of criteria to membership, what difference will this implementing arm make from departments and offices currently doing envisioned functions. Where it is a matter of codifying laws for example, or “promotion of indigenous institutions and processes for conflict resolution and dispute settlement, preservation and enhancement of indigenous customs, traditions, languages and culture? Isn’t this the job of the National Commission on Indigenous People where it has its provincial branches? Where it is a matter of looking at agricultural development, there is also the Department of Agriculture who takes care of this, as well as health and tourism.

Seemingly, this bloated CAR body and its supposed functions are a repetition and overlapping of what the regular departmental offices are doing. Unless, this CAR body will do something distinctly independent to further policy for indigenous peoples rights will it become relevant. As talks go on about this third attempt for Cordillera autonomy, responsibility falls on the shoulders of the Regional Development Council to come up with real good, authentic, representative and people-based information of how and what true and genuine regional autonomy really means.

The people have become wise, I guess, and know if they are being taken for a ride or not and the third attempt may just become kaput. This P15 million budget might as well be de-programmed or re- aligned for livelihood support activities for the farming and struggling folks of the Cordillera.

Reprinted from Northern Philippine Times

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Concretizing Autonomy

2009-04-23T21:57:00.000-07:00

The results of the survey on Cordillera autonomy just says one thing: What is autonomy? It is strange that 40 percent of Cordillera respondents don’t know what autonomy is.

With 60% of respondents categorically answering Yes (27.9%) or No (34.6%) to the question of the readiness of the Cordillera to become autonomous, it implies they are informed or assertive on their categorical responses. Whatever arguments they have, they can neutralize or persuade others to their sides – those who do not know or are still undecided whether or not to go for autonomy.

Obviously, saying Yes is a move which could be termed as daring or risky. If not now, then when? is the question for the Yes mover. A sound and feasible rationale based on concrete potentials needs to be presented to the public -- what regional autonomy means other than a Yes vote. It is a question on how firm is this position with regards to financial and administrative capacity of the Cordillera to go into autonomy. It basically asks how politically relevant is the move to push for regional autonomy.

The No position obviously implies a cautious step in going for an uncertain administrative or political set-up for the Cordillera which could be categorical or conservative. Why go into a set up when there is already an administrative and political structure in place?

An unsure and shaky setup on how financially and administratively capable the envisioned administration will be is one major consideration in taking a No position, apparently. And as said earlier, what is the importance of going into this political exercise considering national laws and policies which may contradict what regional autonomy means in its genuine meaning?

Preparations for an autonomous regional state is based on what Executive Order 220 provides. With this, one question is how politically objective administrative systems will be in place with Cordillera autonomy.

Many lessons need to be learned from the the setting up and operations of the flawed Cordillera Executive Board before going into an autonomous set-up. From here, we could understand the position of those who took No as their answer.

While Yes presents itself as an aggressive stance, caution and careful study still needs to be done on how to approach a seemingly highly politicized administrative autonomy for the Cordillera.

For the Yes movers, it would be good to ask why the need for Cordillera autonomy. What pressing issues are there at the moment that autonomy could solve for the Cordillera? How receptive are people on political and economic issues which affect their lives?

It is from a politicized mind that a resounding Yes will be generated from the populace. From the results of the survey however, extensive and intensive political work still needs to be done on the ground level. A half-baked autonomy cannot be rammed down the throats of the people who still have doubts and questions un-answered on the matter. A mere 27.9 percent who answered Yes is an isolated scenario.

Going into apparently, a forced movement with no visible and felt reason for such a movement at this time would be a futile exercise. Groundwork for a political atmosphere to set the motion into a strong movement for autonomy needs to be done.

It is the job of those who are voting for Yes to galvanize a conducive political atmosphere and work fon pressing issues which need to be highlighted in order to create the atmosphere for a Yes vote. And this needs time and work.

Issues on economic unrest and development are classic examples in setting up a political movement, that is, the autonomy movement to get going. Add to this Baguio Rep. Mauricio Domogan’s bill on direct appropriation of taxes by local government units from corporations operating in respective LGU territories, including pressing issues against corruption and the autonomy move may go an inch further. Perhaps, the Yes votes will increase as No advocates will be persuaded to vote Yes.

In much the same way, those who voted for No should state their reasons for saying so and come up with sound and viable answers why No is the better option. Perhaps the present setup is fine and going for another administrative political set up would be a frustrating exercise. Is autonomy relevant and feasible at all for the Cordillera?
***
The approval of the House Bill filed by Baguio Rep. Mauricio Domogan on direct remittance of national taxes by companies operating in respective LGU territories comes as a welcome development from the House of Representatives.

The amendment if finally approved as law will add to income of local communities if the Senate approved it. It shall be recalled that the same Bill along with other introduced House bills had been pending in the Senate before elections were recently held last May. The bill was refiled with the resumption of Congress this year.

While this comes as a welcome development the second time around for the Bill to be approved in Congress, further lobbying needs to be done on members of the Senate for their approval. Just how receptive are senators and the President to the proposed law remains to be seen.

Reprinted from Northern Philippine Times

What are we celebrating in Cordillera month?

2009-04-22T02:00:00.000-07:00

That was 22 years ago when rebel priest Conrado Balweg signed a peace accord with then President Corazon Aquino at Mt Data Hotel in September 13, 1986. A year after, Aquino signed Executive Order 220 in July 15, 1987 which gave birth to the establishment of Cordillera Administrative Region paving the way for Cordillera autonomy. Republic Act No. 6766 followed on October 23, 1989 which provided an Organic Act for CAR and policies set for the proposed Cordillera autonomous government to exercise governmental functions including tax generation.

On the Cordillera region’s 21st anniversary and its ideals of what it purports to be, what do we see now? As we can obviously note, the dream of slain rebel priest Conrado Balweg to see a freely determining and progressive Cordillera is yet far down the road. For one, the region’s natural resources are still within the absolute control of the State.

Consider Magat River which flows in the jurisdiction of Isabela and Ifugao. While rules provide that the share of local government units in taxes which accrue from the use of respective territories will be provided to LGUs, this does not come automatically.

Ifugao Gov. Teddy Baguilat has to lobby for the release of Ifugao’s share in taxes from SN Aboitiz due the province from operations of the Magat Power Plant. The amount of P28 million share of Ifugao still awaits legal mandate from the Department of Energy for them to release the tax share of Ifugao.

As it stands, Ifugao and Isabela where Magat Dam sources hydroelectric energy from Magat River stands to profit from the company’s taxes with a 50/50 share from the 114 million transfer tax accrued from the sale of the Magat Hydro Electric Power Complex to the SN Aboitiz Power from the National Power Corporation.

And that is true with other hydro-electrical plants of the region. Benguet is still claiming for its due on taxes from Napocor and the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corporation for the use of its water resources.

Recently, P11.9 million was released by the national government for Benguet’s share in wealth taxes due operations of San Roque Dam after years of battling for this. San Roque Dam sources its hydroelectric energy from Agno River located in Benguet. But that is not all of the amount of what Benguet is claiming. Still, such taxes are claims years back which have not been given to the LGU. If not claimed, then it follows that the government will not be remitting these amounts due the province.

Benguet Gov. Nestor Fongwan and the people of Benguet are set to collect P198 million in taxes from Napocor -- P116 million in national wealth tax for the San Roque Multipurpose Dam in Pangasinan, P56 million in franchise taxes and P26 million in real estate taxes for the operation of Binga Dam. Such a big amount of money which could uplift the lives of hundreds of the province’s constituents.

Benguet suffers in Napocor’s refusal to pay franchise taxes for Binga Dam. Benguet LGU has to file a case in court to collect franchise taxes since 2001; and power sales Napocor made from 1992 to 2007.

Meantime, GMA ordered the release of P124 million national wealth tax for Benguet due the province from the operations of Philex Mines Corporation at P71 million, Lepanto Consolidated Mining Corp. worth P15 million since the last quarter of 2005.

The amount of P38 million is due from the Hydro-electric Development Corp. and the Northern Luzon Mini-Hydro Corporation since 1992.

The province’s share dates years back and the law is not facilitating an automatic share of the LGU’s share from the wealth of its own resources such that it needs the President of the State to bless the release of funds which rightfully belongs to the LGU and its respective constituents in the fist place.

In the same manner, SMART and other telecommunications facilities also are built on the towering peaks of Mountain Province. Yet, companies continue to pay their taxes straight to the national coffers as what the State’s commercial laws provide.

We still have to hear from respective local government units their shares in taxes due these giant multinational companies who continue to use the local resources at very measly arrangements.

Now comes the bill of Baguio Rep. Mauricio Domogan calling for the direct remittance of taxes of companies operating within the territories of local government units. Refiled by Domogan in the 14th Congress, these bills are pending. Control of natural resources is directly related to a region’s autonomy. Yet, income from these resources are not within the peoples’ control. That is, not within the Cordillera Administrative Region’s control.

The region abounds with rich natural resources where income could be generated. Consider rivers of hydro-electrical potential including Magat River, Agno River, Chico River, Sifu River. Consider towering mountains where giant telecommunication companies have to set up their relay towers to reach the farthest that its cell site can reach.

It is a pity that poverty in the Cordilleras is still a glaring reality. Poverty worsened in the Cordillera between 2003 and 2006. As per the latest estimates of the National Statistical Coordination Board, poverty incidence of families in CAR rose from 25.8 percent in 2003 to 28.8 percent in 2006.

Similarly, poverty incidence of population increased from 32.2 percent in 2003 to 34.5 percent in 2006. While we have the resources to get out from poverty and not let human and brain resources leave the Cordillera abroad for greener pastures, these income from natural resources remained out of our hands for years. Regional autonomy was touted as one answer to these woes but it dragged on for 22 years until now.

How serious is the government in facilitating autonomy for the Cordillera? And, how serious are the people in seeing autonomy happen? While we celebrate Cordillera Month, what are we celebrating for? Where is our passion for what Cordillera and what does autonomy mean? ]

Since two plebiscites had been rejected by the people of Cordillera on regional autonomy in 1990 and 1998 and, this move for autonomy is still vague in the minds of the people. Obviously, the survey some months back says 40 percent don’t. Yet, first the people have to do their practical part in acting out what self determination means.

Claiming for what is due is one’s right, an indication of being conscious about autonomy. Yet, I haven’t heard of tribes in the Cordillera claiming for their taxes due from Napocor or tribes from Mountain Province claiming for their taxes due from SMART. It’s only the enlightened officials who are claiming what is due their respective jurisdictions like governors Fongwan and Baguilat. The others?
Meantime, we ask: Where did the P30 million fund drive for autonomy go? It would be good for the regional development council to explain where the money went and let the public know what autonomy is all about.

Also, what did the defunct Cordillera Executive Board do? After a few years in operation, it is interesting to ask what it had done for the Cordillera and the preparations it did in paving the way for regional autonomy. Perhaps we can learn from there. Then, we can celebrate.

Reprinted from Northern Philippine Times