Learning from and about our Indigenous Peoples

Two recent events called our attention to our Indigenous Peoples (IPs).

One was the declaration of October 12, last Sunday, as the Day of our Indigenous Peoples. It was the article of Fr. Orbos as well as the sermon of our Parish Priest where I learned that finally our indigenous peoples are remembered and celebrated on a special day.

The other more recent event is the major decision of the Supreme Court declaring illegal the Memo of Agreement entered into by the government with the MILF related to their Ancestral Domain. This is more popularly known as the MOA-AD.

According to The Indigenous Peoples?Rights Act (IPRA), 1997, indigenous peoples are: 1) A group of people or homogeneous societies identified by self-ascription and ascription by others, 2) who have continuously lived as organized community on communally bounded and defined territory (referred to as ancestral domain), 3) who have, under claims of ownership since time immemorial, occupied, possessed and utilized such territories, sharing common bonds of language, customs, traditions and other distinctive cultural traits, or 4) who have, through resistance to political, social and cultural inroads of colonization, non-indigenous religions and cultures, become historically differentiated from the majority of Filipinos.

They are peoples who are regarded as indigenous on account of their descent from the populations which inhabited the country, at the time of conquest or colonization, or at the time of inroads of non-indigenous religions and cultures, or the establishment of present state boundaries, who retain some or all of their own social, economic, cultural and political institutions, but who may have been displaced from their traditional domains or who may have resettled outside their ancestral domains. (IPRA, Chapter II, Section 3h).

Three essential features are emphasized by the above definitions: Historical continuity, self-identification, and group membership.

IPs show historical continuity through their occupation of ancestral lands/domains, or at least part of them. They are identified in terms of their common ancestry with the original occupants of these lands, hence the issue of descent is very crucial for them. Indigenous Peoples also exhibit a particular, distinctive culture in general or specific manifestations of it. They also have their language and residence, whether in their lands of origin or evicted from it.

Varying estimates place the number of our Indigenous Peoples around 12 to 15 million or about 17 to 22% of our total population. They live all throughout the Philippines, especially in the interior parts of Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.

 We hardly notice them, often looking down upon them as tribes or the minority groups. The millions of Christian Filipinos think they know how to survive better than the IPs. The majority Filipinos have much to learn, however, from and about our indigenous peoples!

They have lived in our lands even before the Spaniards named our land after their king. They have survived by closely, harmoniously and sustainably interacting with nature and their community. They have proudly survived through centuries with their rich culture as the epitome of their independence and their beautiful interrelationships with nature and with people.

They make their own music, have their own instruments. They have such colorful, beautiful attire with rich adornments made from nature and personally crafted by them. And they have remained independent, able to feed themselves and generations after them. They have beautiful homes and they always remember to celebrate and feast, with graceful dances and prayers and rituals.The IPs have lived for their community. Their elders remain respected leaders and have successfully protected their peoples through centuries.

In the midst of this continuing global and local economic, political and moral crisis, the majority Filipinos may wish to turn to our IPs to learn their secrets of continuing to survive, proudly and independently.

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