Indigenous peoples in the Philippines have long been fighting to keep their culture and community alive.
Although they should be protected by Republic Act No. 8371 or the Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act, many face threats and harassment, with others being displaced due to development projects on their ancestral lands. Lumad schools have also dwindled, shut down by the Department of Education, and targeted in a military vilification campaign that claimed these were being used as training centers for New People’s Army (NPA) communist rebels.
These struggles were exacerbated by the pandemic, as indigenous communities struggled to access government services, and maintain their livelihoods. These were especially felt by indigenous women, who already face their own unique struggles on top of these.
As October marks National Indigenous Peoples Month, we take this opportunity to hear the stories and experiences of indigenous women. What are the unique challenges that indigenous women face during the pandemic? What can we do to provide more support to them?
In the seventh episode of the “#CourageON: Tumindig, Makialam, Kumilos” community show, we answer these and more with indigenous women from different parts of the Philippines and indigenous peoples’ rights advocates.
The community show, organized by Rappler’s civic engagement arm MovePH in partnership with Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom, aims to put the spotlight on pressing issues in the Philippines and the ways we can take collective action on them. This episode is co-organized by LILAK (Purple Action for Indigenous Women’s Rights).
Titled “#CourageON: The shrinking spaces for indigenous women in the Philippines,” the seventh episode of the community show features panel discussions with indigenous women and indigenous peoples’ rights advocates. It discusses struggles on the ground and possible ways we can help provide more opportunities for indigenous women to grow their skills and protect their rights.
The episode goes live on October 30, Saturday, at 3 pm. Participants can join the live session on Zoom by registering here:
The show features two segments:
SEGMENT ONE: The plight of indigenous women
- Jesmarie Dinyan – Member, T’Boli-Manobo S’daf Claimants Organization (TAMASCO) Youth
- Rose Hayahay -Volunteer teacher, Lumad Bakwit School
- Lenlen Morabong – Youth leader, Teduray and Lambangian Youth and Student Association
SEGMENT TWO: What we can do moving forward
- Lenlen Morabong
- Victoria Tauli-Corpuz – Former United Nations special rapporteur on indigenous peoples rights and executive director of Tebtebba Foundation
- Judy Pasimio – Overall coordinator of LILAK (Purple Action for Indigenous Women’s Rights)
This will be hosted by Rappler’s community lead Jules Guiang and Rappler’s membership lead Happy Feraren.
Check out the other episodes of the “#CourageON: Tumindig, Makialam, Kumilos” community show here:
- WATCH: #CourageON: Tumindig, makialam, kumilos
- #CourageON: From our ancestral heritage to elections, the issues we shouldn’t forget
- #CourageON: Climate crisis and a pandemic
- #CourageON: What Filipinos can do to watch the budget
- #CourageON: Lessons to keep our democracy
- #CourageON: How PAREX affects all of us
– Rappler.com