Not Just Another Cordillera Day Celebration

Cordillera Day this year was not just another Cordillera Day. For the first time, it was celebrated in Kalinga, historic site of the Chico Dam struggle. As the CPA described in its invitation, it was like “going back to where it all started.”

By ROWENA CARRANZA

BULATLAT.COM

Photo by Oliver Garcia

For many Cordillera activists, the province of Kalinga, birthplace of slain tribal leader Macliing Dulag and main site of the heroic struggle against the World Bank-funded Chico Dam project in the 70s, was where the Cordillera mass movement started.

The murder of Macliing Dulag on April 24, 1980 – shot dead in the middle of the night in his hut by government soldiers – ignited, not dampened as hoped by the military, the protest movement in the region already fired up by the forced implementation of the Chico Dam project and attendant militarization of Kalinga and surrounding provinces. The Marcos regime in the end had to withdraw the project realizing how opposition to it had united the Cordillera tribes against the dictatorship.

Every year, militants in Cordillera commemorate Macliing’s death. In 1985, a year after the Cordillera Peoples’ Alliance (CPA) was formed, they declared April 24 as Cordillera Day, in honor of Macliing Dulag and other martyrs of Cordillera. Cordillera Day became an annual tradition for members of the progressive movement in the country. Thousands trek to Cordillera to attend the two-day celebration, which include discussions of issues being faced in the region and colorful cultural presentations.

Celebrating Cordillera Day in Kalinga this year therefore made the event extra special. It emphasized the historic role of the Kalingas and Bontoks in the Cordillera struggle and highlighted the fact that Kalinga continues to be the most militarized province in the region, confronted by the same issues of exploitation and repression it faced three decades ago.

Scenes during the two-day celebration: (Clockwise) Elders lead the pattong; Inter-province consultation; Banners up for party-list Bayan Muna; Foreign delegates express solidarity. (Below)The Cordillera mountain at the background was a silent witness to the Cordillera Day celebration

Photos by Oliver Garcia

Highlights

Cordillera Day’s host community was Dupag, a village in the mountainous side of Tabuk. Its center, called Dupag Proper, has a flat ground where a makeshift stage was built. It had the towering Cordillera mountains as backdrop and, at the same time, overlooks the majestic Chico River.

Manila delegates had to take the 10-hour trip to Tabuk, plus an almost two-hour jeepney ride and an hour-long trek to get to the site.

Participants to the 17^th Cordillera Day started arriving on April 22 and peaked at almost 5,000, the biggest in its history, on April 24.

Aside from the large number of participants, the celebration was made momentous by several other factors: first, the significant participation by the Kalinga tribes, particularly those who directly took part in the Chico Dam struggle; second, the significant number of foreign guests coming from 22 countries; and third, the special recognition awarded to former Congressman William Claver, the CPA founding chairman known for his defense of tribal rights and welfare. Half his body paralyzed, the lawyer-activist who himself hailed from Mountain Province was in a wheelchair and had to be carried to the site by friends.

Claver receives the shield and spear given to him by CPA during

a moving tribute to his contributions to the Cordillera people's struggle

Photo by Audrey Mary Beltran/CPA

Workshops

The Cordillera Day commemoration featured 13 workshops, among them workshops on tribal war and boundary conflicts; human rights and militarization; dams and waters; mining; the Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act (IPRA); and the US war of aggression.

Workshop groups demanded among others the: repeal of IPRA, disbandment of military and paramilitary detachments located within civilian communities, pull out of American troops from the Philippines, stop to destructive mining and dam projects, and end to manipulation by the military of tribal conflicts to divide the tribes.

Workshop group discusses the ill effects of mining in Cordillera

Photo by Audrey Mary Beltran/CPA

Community participation

Although there were many tents to accommodate the delegates, all the houses in the community opened their doors to the participants. Community members also took charge in providing technical needs for the preparation and actual celebration.

“When the community was first asked if it was willing to host the Cordillera Day celebration, many members, particularly the women, immediately agreed. They saw how it links their struggles in the past to their present situation,” said Letty Bula-at, one of the women-leaders in the area.

Photos by Oliver Garcia

Thus, after the community committed itself, its members held meetings to prepare. “Sa loob ng dalawang lingo, may tig-dalawang araw na nagboluntaryo ang bawat tao para mag-haul ng mga kinakailangang materyales para sa paggawa ng grounds na ito (For two weeks, each person spent two days to haul the materials used to prepare the site),” she said.

The successful celebration was also attributed to the support given by local government officials in Kalinga, the active participation of Church leaders and members from different denominations and close coordination between the CPA officers and the community leaders.

“It was a challenge for us,” said Markus Bangit, secretary-general of Binodngan People’s Organization, “to host the Cordillera Day celebration.” For them, not only was it a manifestation of their organization’s growing strength, but also another way of paying tribute to their pangat (leader), Macliing Dulag, and other martyr-heroes of Kalinga. Bulatlat.com

The majestic Chico River continues to flow unhampered, thanks to Kalinga martyrs like Macliing Dulag

Photo by Audrey Mary Beltran

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