In an era where almost everything, if not everything, is driven by advancements and people fully adopting modern ways of life, indigeneity seems to be the only thing that is viewed with a backward lens, or worse, it may not be viewed at all. Indigenous people groups (IPs) are nearing obliteration as they continue to experience disparity and deprivation, preventing them from preserving their cultural identities in this fast-paced and capitalist-driven society.
Today, we celebrate the International Day of the World's Indigenous People, an annual event marked every 9th of August. This day is not only a celebration of the symbolic meaning that IPs bear with the formation of their cultures and as flag bearers of our hundred years old identity, but also serves as a reminder to everyone, especially those in power, to remember not to leave these marginalized and aboriginal groups behind. Rather, help them preserve their distinct characteristics and live up to thousands of succeeding generations protected and properly represented.
But just how much we actually do our best “to recognize and protect them” is the real issue at hand.
In our country, Republic Act No. 8371, or The Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act of 1997, claims to “recognize, protect, and promote the rights of indigenous cultural communities/indigenous peoples, creating a national commission on indigenous peoples, establishing implementing mechanisms, appropriating funds therefor and for other purposes”, mainly advocating for the rights of the IPs in the country, may it be access to medical assistance, education, or their ancestral domains. Despite this existing law that allows the members of indigenous groups to equally share the same opportunities and rights as those people in the civilized world, its weak implementation still visibly affects the reality and rights that our IPs, our own countrymen, are deprived of.
According to the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), a specialized agency of the United Nations, the incidence of the population sitting below the poverty line among indigenous people in the country, especially those who are living in the high-risk areas of Mindanao and the Cordilleras, is generally higher. With this distressing result, the different indigenous groups around the country thus suffer from poverty, which is possibly caused by unemployment, exploitation, and a lack of opportunities to thrive in life.
The exploitation they suffer at the hands of a capitalist society, in which people from the dominant group overstep boundaries, figuratively and literally, to gain authority over their ancestral domains to be made into mining sites or industrial development areas, is simply aggravating. This affects and compromises the everyday lives of the IPs, which were already in jeopardy in the first place. This must be one of the top priorities of RA 8371 to strengthen rule implementation, as the law recognizes the IPs who rightfully own these lands, but then again, the law is most generally decorative to their advantage.
And the exploitation does not stop there. Attacks against Lumads have made headlines over the years; the killings in Mindanao in particular have sparked a conversation among concerned groups. As a result, the Lumads have been displaced from their ancestral lands, lost their homes, and even their schools have been closed.
Moreover, one of the pressing issues confronting IPs is the lack of educational opportunities in the country. The Indigenous Peoples Education (IPEd) Program, which was established in 2011, is a specific program for IP Education within the Department of Education (DepEd). After a decade of implementation, the department claims to have served 2.529 million IP learners in 42,176 public schools across the country by 2021.
However, some of the challenges include a lack of sufficient instructional materials and classrooms, issues with the teaching approach, and, most importantly, the language used. The aforementioned challenges are not new to the mainstream classroom, so the challenge for the DepEd is how they can provide a better educational system for the following years for all learners, including the IPs from the minority group given the highest budget allocation and highest budgetary priority as mandated by the constitution.
Another pressing issue surrounding the talk about IPs is cultural appropriation, or the inappropriate use of clothing, tattoos, music, and such things related to the culture of certain groups. A good example of this is the recent 2023 State of the Nation Address (SONA), where Vice President Sara Duterte and Senator Imee Marcos were seen wearing tribal attire showcasing the Moro and Kalinga people, respectively.
This is more than just an issue of cultural appropriation, as this may result in the indigenous groups' culture being taken out of context. Given that they are not the first public figures to have worn traditional clothing and accessories, there is still something to be said as to whether these instances can either be blurted as a mindless and unaware appreciation, void of associations of the cultural backgrounds and history of the particular tribe being displayed, since tribal clothing, accessories, and even music and dances hold a particular and sacred story, symbol, and history of that tribe. Wearing tribal clothing and accessories should not just be in the name of fashion and parade, but one should also be aware of their cultural significance.
Moreover, controversy seems to ensue as these tribes belong to the number of indigenous groups that have faced violence under the regimes of both administrations under Marcos Sr. and Duterte.
When all these situations and issues continue to happen, it is not impossible that the richness of cultural practices, identity, skills, and such of these indigenous groups is bound to die away with its significance and will have a consequential impact not just on the identity of the IPs but also on the identity of the country in general.
It's imperative for IPs to live in a world where preserving their cultural heritage, enjoying their full rights, and having adequate access to their basic needs could exist at the same time as any Filipino does in this country. This is a challenge for the current administration; to not only "acknowledge", but also to take action.
May this day serve as a cornerstone in promoting the needs and rights of various indigenous groups around the world, to lend an eye and ear to their struggles and fight for justice and equality, rather than a commemoration merely to recognize their existence.