OCTOBER is National Indigenous Peoples (IPs) Month by virtue of Proclamation No. 1906 signed on Oct. 5, 2009, by then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. This observance aims for the preservation of indigenous cultural communities as part of the life of the nation, and highlights indigenous peoples’ rights.
Yes, IPs are, first and foremost, Filipinos such as the much derided Badjaos. It is hoped that through the National Indigenous Peoples Month, people would view the Badjao migration phenomenon from Mindanao to other cities from a much larger perspective – the plight of IPs in general.
The Badjaos have had a long history of displacement due to the loss of their ancestral waters, armed conflict in Mindanao, poverty, and discrimination. Loss of livelihood and state neglect forced many of them to migrate to urban areas. Many have resorted to begging as a form of livelihood.
Discrimination against IPs comes in many shapes and sizes. It may be in the sniggers and loose comments when one sees the exposed posteriors of the loincloth-clad people in Baguio City. Or perhaps how, when one scolds in disdain someone who were inadvertently sun-burnt after soaking in the beach, use the name of a proud people in Central Luzon as if it is an insult. Or how people chaste their grimy kids after a day of playing in the hot sun and dirt by calling them the name of the people who climb jeeps and play peculiar beats on their tin drums for change. These give us a sense of how IP discrimination and chauvinism are ingrained in the minds of Filipinos.
IPs suffer the worst marginalization. Their villages are the poorest, with the least trickling of health and education services. Their lands, which they had protected and defended with the blood of their ancestors, are grabbed by mining corporations and other business. Landlessness and poverty force some of them to beg on the streets. Some become jesters peddling culture for entertainment. Some resort to shady sources of livelihood.
However, with public awareness we can counter the discrimination. The annual National Indigenous Peoples Month also reminds all of us to ensure that we provide the needed support for our IPs to strengthen their part in nation-building. We should include in public discourse the unique situation and needs of our IPs. We must ensure that they are afforded social services and are empowered to be productive citizens. We must press for policies and programs that give IPs the respect and opportunities due them as Filipinos and as human beings.
Yes, IPs can take part in the country’s development if given more opportunities and stronger support by the government.
