Are Lumads Left Out in the Quest for Peace in Mindanao?

By Ma. Cecilia L. Rodriguez

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – “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.