Lumads, like these ones at a recent feast in Malasag in Cagayan de Oro to celebrate their rich culture, have a key role in the road towards lasting peace in Mindanao. (Photo by Ma. Cecilia Rodriguez)CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY (Philippimne Human Rights Reporting Project / September 18, 2008) – “No one informed us, nobody consulted us.”
Timuay (tribal chieftain) Nanding Mudai was adamant as he explained why his people refused to come out in support of the controversial Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) which would have created the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity, a sub-state led by the local Muslim community in Mindanao.
The proposed entity would have covered most of the Subanen ancestral domains in Zambonga del Sur, Zamboanga del Norte and elsewhere in Western Mindanao.
Timuay Nanding’s complaint is not an isolated case. On August 27, more than 200 other tribal leaders representing 18 major ethno-linguistic groupings in Mindanao and Palawan have signed up to a joint declaration opposing the BJE at a tribal gathering here.
But the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) insists there was proper consultation among the indigenous peoples who would have come under the BJE jurisdiction.
In news reports, MILF vice chairperson for political affairs Ghadzali Jaafar maintained that consultations went on for two years as part of the process that finally led to the jointly-initialed MOA-AD.
The MOA-AD was effectively scuttled by local political opposition after the Supreme Court in Manila ordered a temporary restraining order on the eve of its scheduled signing in Malaysia on August 5.
Now as the government rethinks its framework in forging peace in Mindanao and the MILF crying foul over what they claim to be an internationally-binding agreement that the government suddenly dumped, the bigger issue for the Lumads now is: will they be granted real recognition, rights and respect in their ancestral land?
Right to self-determination
In their declaration called the ‘Cagayan de Oro Declaration,’ the 200 tribal leaders asserted their rights to their ancestral domain while calling on the MILF leadership to respect an ancient pact between their ancestors.
“We assert that Mindanao is not only inhabited by the Bangsamoro people but also by indigenous peoples and migrant settlers,” they said. “Thus we call for the respect to the right to self-determination of the indigenous peoples, the right to use our traditional governance systems, our ownership of our ancestral domains and our rights to the resources therein.”
“We promote and accord the highest respect to various traditional peace pacts done through D'yandi, Sapa, Tampuda hu Balagun, Pakang and Kandugo/Sandugo between the ancestors of indigenous peoples and of the Bangsamoro peoples,” tribal leaders said. Higaonon tribal chieftain Maticadong Angkong Limikid explained the ancient pact as the unwritten agreement between the Lumad and the Moro on territorial boundaries.
“The pact governed our ancestors on delineation of territories. It also sealed the peaceful coexistence of the Moro and the Lumad through centuries and ensured that no blood will again be spilled between our peoples,” said Limikid in the local dialect.
“It seems that the leadership of the MILF has forgotten our sapa (pact) when they enlisted our ancestral domain in the BJE,” he said.
When asked if the situation could lead to violence, Limikid said: “We are afraid to break this ancient pact because we know that breaking this will lead to further misery to our people.”
Timuay Nanding says the Lumads have always been for peace. “We have peacefully coexisted with our Moro brothers for a long time. There is always a way to dialogue.”
The tribal leaders maintain that the Lumads and the Moros have the same aspiration: self-determination.
In their declaration, the tribal leaders also recognize the right of the Moros to claim their ancestral lands in turn: “The right to self-determination of our Moro brethren is also enshrined in laws and in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and that we recognize their struggle and efforts to achieve recognition of this right as a legitimate cause and has historical basis.”
But Timuay Nanding sums up the apprehension of the Lumads: in drawing up the BJE, the MILF would encroach in their territories.
Respect and recognition
The word Lumad, which means ‘grown to a place’, is a generic term that refers to members of the 18 major ethno linguistic groupings in Mindanao. The tribes are the Subanen, Manobo, B’laan, Ata, Mandaya, T’boli, Higaonon, Tiruray (Teduray), Mansaka, Bagobo, Bukidnon, Dibabawon, Tagakaolo, Banwaon, Ubo Manobo, Manguwangon, Lambangian and Mamanwa.
Sub-tribes have been formed by tribal intermarriages over the years.
Latest statistics show that the population of indigenous peoples in Mindanao is around 2.5 million, or 5 per cent of the island’s population. This estimate however includes only those who have registered with the authorities. Many Lumad families do not formally register births.
The 1997 Indigenous Peoples Rights Act (IPRA) or Republic Act 8379 recognizes the inherent right of the indigenous peoples to own and possess ancestral domains, the right to self-governance and self-determination, and the preservation of their culture, traditions and institutions.
These rights are also embodied in United Nations declaration on the rights of indigenous peoples (UNDRIP) which specifies that indigenous peoples can “freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, social and cultural development” (Article 3).
No common stand
But, in asserting their right to self-determination, the Lumads face the dilemma of unifying all tribes towards one course of action.
Janette Serrano, commissioner of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) for Central Mindanao, said groups representing the IPs have different political persuasions, as reflected on their stand on the MOA-AD and the BJE.
“One group cannot claim it represents the sentiments of the Lumad because there are others who have different beliefs, different points of view,” she said.
Lumads within the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), for instance, fully support the scrapped agreement.
In their two-page statement on MOA-AD on August 17 (which MILF chief negotiator Mohaqer Iqbal allegedly received on August 18), members of the Teduray, Lambangian and Dulangan Manobo in Upi, Shariff Kabunsuan said the MOA-AD should be seen as “an opportunity to safeguard interests of the majority against erroneous systems.”
Calling themselves Lumad-ARMM, the tribal leaders also said in their statement that self-determination does not imply separating from the Moros. “Our free choice would help us preserve our self-determination, governance and ancestral domain within the BJE.”
Another Lumad group, the Kusog sa Katawhang Lumad sa Mindanao (Kalumaran), also said they support the Bangsamoro’s call for self-determination and ancestral domains but doubted the motives of the Philippine government in “rushing” the MOA-AD with the MILF.
“The pact affirms and acknowledges the Lumads’ right to self-determination by recognizing Lumad territories under the BJE. But Mrs. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, the big landlords, big businesses and imperialist power have used the MOA-AD to further their interests,” Kalumaran said.
It also said that the government “took advantage” of the confusion on the MOA-AD to renew offensives against the MILF. The clashes, now in its seventh week, have already displaced more than 500,000 persons in Central and Northern Mindanao.
Victoria Tauli-Corpus, chair of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNDRIP), called on the tribes at the Mindanao-Palawan indigenous peoples’ consultation to organize themselves.
“Do not let your political affiliations get into the process of shaping you own broad network. The main basis of your unity will be the UNDRIP,” said Corpus.
Serrano said that the challenge to tribal leaders now with regards to the MOA-AD is to overcome political differences and unite on one definite stand.
Pursue peace talks
Despite their criticism on the MOA-AD, the Mindanao-Palawan tribal leaders said they were saddened by its cancellation and called on both the MILF and the government to return to the negotiating table.
“We are not thankful that this [scrapping of MOA-AD] happened. It would have led to peace in Mindanao. What we wanted was to be included in the review and consultation, not to scrap it,” said Limikid.
Norma Capuyan, a Higaonon babaylan (woman leader or priestess) was especially critical of the authorities in Manila.
“This only shows the insincerity of the Arroyo administration,” she said. “They have been talking for years now, and then they drop everything just like that.”
The tribal leaders admitted that the MOA-AD is a tangible expression of the right to self-determination and would have been a first step for the Moro and the indigenous peoples in Mindanao towards peace. What they merely wanted, as their declaration states, was to be included in the process.
Timuay Nanding said it was regretful that the tribal leaders knew the details of the MOA-AD belatedly. “It would have been a very good springboard towards achieving peace,” he said.(Ma. Cecilia L. Rodriguez)
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