Promoting T'nalak

MANILA, Philippines - You Against Corruption and Poverty (Yacap) party-list Rep. Carol Jayne Lopez is fighting for the preservation of the unique way the T’boli women of Mindanao are making their cloth by pushing for its incorporation in modern gowns and dresses. Photo shows Lopez wearing the tribe’s multi-colored t’nalak weavings in her dress during Monday’s State of the Nation Address. Lopez fears that the t’nalak-making tradition will soon fade away with the old people doing it as the young pursue modern interests. Counting the T’boli tribe of Lake Sebu, South Cotabato among her constituents, Lopez has joined the Association of Designers of the Philippines to help promote the use of t’nalak weavings in modern dress and to promote such product here and abroad.