Page 7 - Empowerment and Protection - The Philippines

EVELOPMENT 3
PhiliPPines
A tAPestry oF IP VoICes
the text below is a synthesis of the viewpoints of many IP leaders, including traditional leaders such as datus, (IP leaders) and bae, (traditional women leaders), who wish to remain anonymous for safety reasons. It includes perspectives from such people as C. b.,
an IP woman in her forties working as a volunteer organiser in the hinterland communities of various IPs. Her work brings her in contact with IP realities and issues from poverty, hunger, land-grabbing and conversion, to illegal resource extraction, counter-insurgency and arbitrary killings. While staying true to their words, the narrative below paints a composite picture of the complexities facing IP communities.
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Caught in the middle
It would be fair to say that IPs have reached the end of their patience, or their boiling point. They feel anybody can take advantage of them with impunity. How can IPs feel secure when they are the ones being killed in their own territory because of the struggle of forces they are not part of? The army and guerillas were accepted as guests, yet wound up killing and marginalising their hosts.
In a 2010 meeting of some 17 IP leaders and organisers, we noted the number of IP leaders and key persons killed since the 1997 promulgation between the government and the NPA [meant
to ensure adherence to human rights principles
and international humanitarian laws, and protect civilians during the conflict]. By our count, we tallied more than 500 individuals killed from 1997 to 2010. These killings were purportedly done by military forces, the NPA as well as unidentified killers, and for various reasons.
Ironically, as many as 70 percent of the NPA in our territories are IPs, and 80 percent of those were recruited from the youth. Why? Because they never had the opportunity to go to school. These conflicts are just reflections of these realities and the lack
of attention given to root causes. To establish our security, we need to be educated – in our culture, in our rights, in our identity. But the reality now
is that there is little access to that education. Who should provide it for us?
Traditional spirituality and leadership
Among lumads or IPs, we treat all things as interconnected; nothing exists on its own. Our history, our territories and the land interconnect
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us. Human security is comprehensive and it is a given right to us as well as an obligation. I give it and I expect it at the same time. What we IPs are basically saying is that in the same way that all things are interconnected, anything you demand or any privilege you ask for requires a corresponding obligation on your part.
In tribal history or lore, there are lineages that are historically blessed with leadership. In the areas where the traditional leaders still prosper, there
is a capacity to relate the traditional ways and means to current realities. For example, there are traditional folk leaders, who also serve as very good church leaders, and they perform these tasks with equal respect for both sides. They also help in a rediscovery of the traditional ways, or at least show the merit in these practices and beliefs.
In our culture, the highest women leaders are
the ones we call Bae. They have authority in the community that even men must respect. Women play an important role as culture-bearers, nurturers of peace and the essential cultural elements of a tribe. With the absence of security, stresses that affect women ultimately have a negative effect
on almost all aspects of IP life such as continuing education, on traditional cultural practices and on the life rhythms of the communities overall. ‘Pretender’ Datus picked to represent IP communities by the NPA, the mayors, governors and politicians do not last because their lineage does not have the required blessing from the Magbabaya or Creator, a God-given blessing granted to their lineage and ancestry. Communities will not fully support someone like this. Political actors find it difficult to penetrate and sustain their call among the IPs, as they basically deny the spiritual aspects important to the IP way of life.
Threats to identity, challenges to security
Nowadays, traditional beliefs, our interconnectedness, our need to care and share as a result, are no
longer honoured. This leads to insecurity for many. The trend is more to acquire and exploit without responsibility or accountability. Many have forgotten that human security, particularly for IPs, emphasises that all is interconnected.
The strongest of forces now dominating this discussion is driven by the need to secure economic rights. Historically, IPs survived and prospered in a non-cash economy. But they failed in dealing with the introduction of a cash-based economic system, where what had been interconnected was reduced to commodities and their value pegged in cash.
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