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PHILIPPINES: Lumads Resist Inclusion In BJE

Prime Sarmiento

MANILA, Oct 3 2008 (IPS) - Ask Timuay Nanding Mudai how long he has been serving as traditional leader of the Subanon, one of the many indigenous groups based in Mindanao, Southern Philippines and he will tell you that he’s been holding this position “since birth”.

He was literally, born to lead, like his forefathers, and it’s a task that he takes seriously, especially now that he’s also the coordinator of the Federation of Subanons and has to contend with the many problems that threaten the Subanon’s way of life.

These days, Mudai is busy attending various fora and conferences expressing the Subanon’s resistance to the inclusion of the Zamboanga peninsula – the Subanon’s ancestral domain – into Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) under the Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD).

“We are not Bangsamoro. We are not Muslims. We are Subanons,” Mudai said, adding that while the Subanons respect the Moros’ claim to their ancestral homeland – such as Sulu and Maguindanao – that claim shouldn’t encompass ancestral domains that belong to indigenous peoples, commonly known as the Lumads.

Other Lumad leaders have expressed similar concerns. In a declaration issued in August and signed in Cagayan de Oro by over 200 leaders (including Mudai), the Lumads asserted that Mindanao “is not only inhabited by Bangsamoro people but also by Indigenous Peoples and the migrant settlers, 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.”

The inclusion of the Lumads ancestral domain in BJE is tantamount to “non- recognition of our distinct identities” and violates our rights to self- identification, our traditional customary laws, beliefs, governance and our indigenous ways of living.”

Amidst the ruckus surrounding the legality of the MOA-AD, with critics claiming that it’s unconstitutional and the Supreme Court itself issuing a temporary restraining order against the pact, what seems to be forgotten are the voices and rights of some important stakeholders.

Mindanao is a multicultural area and is home not only to Moros and Christian settlers but also to Lumads whose ancestors have lived there for thousands of years.

Wilmar Ampuan, one of the signatories of the Cagayan de Oro, said the government did not consult the Lumads when it was drafting the memorandum. This, he said, violates the provisions of Indigenous Peoples Rights Act (IPRA) which protects the indigenous peoples rights over their ancestral domain. Ampuan said the government should have obtained prior and informed consent of the indigenous peoples before it included the Lumads ancestral domain in the BJE.

The proposed MOA-AD allows the creation of BJE, which after a plebiscite would potentially give the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) political and economic control over 700 villages in Christian-dominated areas of the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). The ARMM currently covers four provinces in Mindanao.

The MOA-AD is part of the measures that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is implementing to end the decades-old, MILF-led rebellion that bedevilled Mindanao. The MILF, which broke away from the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) rebel group in 1981, has been fighting violently for an autonomous ancestral homeland. The MNLF signed an autonomy-granting peace agreement with the government in 1996 which led to the creation of ARMM. But the MILF continues to demand the establishment of an Islamic state in areas considered to be the Moros ancestral homeland.

The struggle for the homeland can be traced back to a wave of government- backed migration that started in the 1940s, with Christian settlers acquiring land in Mindanao that previously belonged to Muslims.

Lumads welcome the peace process in Mindanao but they believe that peace shouldn’t be achieved at their expense. Such concerns are understandable, according to Miriam Coronel-Ferrer, political science professor at the University of the Philippines. The Lumads are already marginalised and they think that their inclusion in the BJE may worsen their plight, she said.

“There will always be a minority in any political entity,” Ferrer said, adding that it is important for the government to create a mechanism which will ensure that minorities such as the Lumads will be represented in the BJE.

It’s still unclear, however, if the MOA-AD will be enforced anytime soon. Shortly after the Supreme Court issued a TRO last month, clashes between government and rebel groups erupted in Mindanao, killing 100 people and displacing thousands.

President Arroyo has dissolved the negotiating team and the government has announced that it will no longer sign the MOA-AD “in its present form”.

The Lumads, for their part, are urging both sides to resume the peace talks. But this time, they’re demanding that Lumads be included in the decision- making process.

They are advocating for the creation of an independent panel composed of tribal leaders or Lumad representatives “who will bring the voices of the Indigenous Peoples in any peace agreements.”