FOR more than a century after RA 8371 or the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act (IPRA) was enacted, the law still fails to recognize, promote and protect the rights of the indigenous peoples (IPs), a Subanen leader based in Zambosur said.
“Hinuon, misamot pa pagkalibog ang lumad sa kaanindot sa maong balaod [nga] lisod kab-uton ug puy-an,” said Joe Macarial, a Timuay who lives in Lacarayan, Tigbao.
Macarial, who belongs to the Mt. Pinukis Subanen Corridor, is one of the Subanen communities that pressed for their right to ancestral domain, self-governance, empowerment, social justice and cultural integrity, the privileges stated in the IPRA law.
In Zambosur, ancestral domain claims have been processed by the respective IPs of Dumingag, Mahayag, Lison Valley in Pagadian, Tigbao, Lapuyan, Bayog, Lakewood, Labangan and Midsalip.
Although Macarial claimed that their struggle was never ignored, what he only meant to say was that there are still unmet needs by many of the IPs and they are unwilling to wait, given the fast-moving development of modern society.
He cited, for example, the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) which reflect on the opportunities, challenges and strategies on how IPs and governments in Asia could fully and effectively implement the Declaration.
“Duha na ka tuig kini apan dili hisabtan sa mga anaa sa namunuan. Nagpabilin pa gihapon ang kahimtang nga walay pag-uswag, pag-antos sa kalisod, hinuon gigamit pa kini sa pamolitika,” Macarial added.
The Subanen leader said he was referring to the laws and policies set by the government on natural resource management such as those on mining and forestry that only supports state and private business interests but displaces IP communities.
He cited, again for example, the violation of IPs’ right to self-determined development with the failure to obtain free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) before any development project is implemented in Subanen territories.
“Wala gikonsulta ang katilingban alang sa mga proyekto nga ipatuman. Hinuon ang us ka tribal leader sa Sominot gidala sa laing lugar sa Bayog ug didto gipapirma sa pagtugot alang sa ua ka mining applicant,”
Macarial also lashed out at the office of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) whose people, he claimed, “are always busy processing mining applications” instead of providing redress and justice for the IPs.
He added that at times, “pulos gina-control ang buhatan sa NCIP sa mga politiko nga unta kini independente man nga buhatan alang sa tribo.”
The NCIP is the sole government agency that formulates and implements policies, plans and programs for the recognition, promotion and protection of IPs’ rights) and the recognition of their ancestral domains and their rights thereto.
“Mga hagit kini alang kanato alang sa pagpadayon sa pakigbisog nga ilhon ang maong mga katungod. Kay kon magpadayon ang pag-guba sa mga kabukiran palibot sa Mt. Pinukis sa mga mapahimuslanon, mawala na usab ang Subanen sa iyang kasaysayan,” Macarial pointed out.
In a separate interview with Henrico Gumibao, OIC chief of the administration and finance division of the NCIP in Zamboanga del Sur, he disagreed with Macarial on some points, saying the NCIP has always been impartial and independent.
And as such, they have continuously encouraged IPS to process their ancestral domain claims and develop their own programs on the implementation of the UNDRIP, Gumibao told this paper.
He likewise defended NCIP from its inability to draw the lines with respect to politicians saying it never was controlled by them even though some are proponents of development projects geared for IP community improvement.
Interestingly, he added that Macarial’s issue is legitimate and sees it as a challenge for their office to continue the mandate under which NCIP was founded, one of which is to give the IPs their priority rights over the resources within their ancestral domain.
Notwithstanding the sentiments stated by Macarial, Gumibao said the NCIP has its 12 Milestone Agenda wherein all comprehensive action plans and promulgations, including empowerment, fair representation, human resource development programs and public relations, among others, are well thought-out for implementation.
REPORT BY MICHAEL MEDINA