THE LUMADS OF MINDANAO
By Anton Antonio
September 17, 2015
There are persistent reports from mainstream media that
Lumads in some parts of Mindanao are being killed. Wanting to understand what is going on I did
a limited research on this issue and came up with the following new report…
“LUMAD IN GOLD-RICH MINDANAO TARGETED…
DAVAO CITY – Indigenous peoples in the provinces of Davao
del Norte, Surigao del Sur and Bukidnon share the same experiences of being
harassed, killed and displaces by paramilitary groups and government soldiers,
according to Kalumaran, a federation of different tribes in Mindanao. Aside from deaths and arrests, several lumad
schools ran by nongovernment institutions were also targeted by government and
paramilitary forces, Kalumaran added.
“It is a form of ethnocide, but it is worse because there are specific
characteristics of impunity and killings targeting the lumad. And what is alarming is that it is happening
all over Mindanao,” said Kalumaran secretary general Dulphing Ogan. Since May, more than 700 lumad have been
displaced from their homes in Talaingod in Davao del Norte after government
forces and the anticommunist paramilitary group Alamara targeted several
villages in the town, Ogan said.
Hundreds of students were also deprived the right to attend their
classes after at least 24 primary and secondary schools were shut down and the
teachers receives death threats. The
schools were operated by Salugpungan Ta Tanu Igkanugon Community Learning
Center and Mindanao Interfaith Services Foundation Inc. Academy. Several villagers from San Fernando,
Bukidnon, which shares borders with Davao del Norte, have been displaces since
May this year after the Alama paramilitary group and government forces
allegedly occupied their villages. Some
700 lumad from Bukidnon and Davao del Norte have been staying at the United
Church of Christ in the Philippines’ Haran Center in Davao City because of the
alleged militarization in their communities.
Last July 23, more than 500 policemen and government agents conducted a
“rescue operation” at the Haran Center to force the lumad to return to their
homes. The incident resulted in violence
after the police forcibly opened the gates of the center. At least 17 lumad and two policemen were
injured in the confrontation between the lumad evacuees and the “rescuing”
policemen. On Aug. 18, five Manobo
lumad, including a 13-year-old and a 17-year-old, were killed by the military’s
Special Forces in Pangantucan town in Bukidnon.
The military said those killed were rebels, but the New People’s Army
said the victims were civilians. On Aug.
27, at least 11 Manobo tribal and farmer leaders were arrested by government soldiers
in the town of Kitaotao in Bukidnon. The
military said the arrest was made after they served 57 search warrants in a
community of suspected communist rebels where they reportedly yielded an
improvised M16 rifle, an M79 grenade launcher, three rifle grenades, two
explosives and antigovernment documents.
Capt. Alberto Caber, public information officer of the Eastern Mindanao
Command, said the operation “liberated” the village from the New People’s Army. But Isidro Indao, spokesperson of the
Kahugpongan sa mga Mag-uuma sa Kitaotao, said the leaders and their
organizations were targeted because they were vocal in the campaign against
human rights abuses in the mountain communities and were calling for the armed
groups, especially the military, not to occupy civilian villages. On Aug. 28, several families also fled their
homes after the Bagani paramilitary group led by a certain Hasmin killed Manobo
lumad brothers Crisanto and Loloy Tagugol in San Miguel town in Surigao del
Sur. On Sept. 1, at least 2,000
residents from Barangay Diatagon in Lianga, Surigao del Sur, evacuated after a
paramilitary group, allegedly accompanied by soldiers, killed Emerico Samarca,
executive director of the Alternative Learning Center for Agriculture and
Livelihood Development (Alcadev). Alcadev
is a privately operated but government-regulated learning institution that
provides basic and technical education to lumad children in communities rarely
reached by government services. The
armed men, locally known as the Magahat, also killed Dionel Campos and his
cousin Aurelio Sinzo. Campos was a
community leader and the chair of the indigenous people group Malihutayong
Pakigbisog Alansa sa Sumusunod, which is known for its position on the protection
of ancestral lands and its campaign against human rights violations targeting
indigenous people. These are just the
major cases but it can provide a bigger picture that there is an ongoing
systematic, planned and deliberate attempt to destroy the lumad. The attacks focus on lumad areas with
established indigenous schools and peoples organizations,” Ogan said. There can be no other reason behind the
attack but the frustration of the military and companies on the persistence of
the tribes not to allow the operations of extractive economic activities in the
area like mining and logging, Ogan added.
“These areas are the best spots to extract gold, nickel and copper. And these areas are also the remaining
forests in Mindanao,” Ogan said. Surigao
del Sur Gov. Johnny Pimentel earlier blames the paramilitary Magahat behind the
fillings in Lianga, but he disclosed that this group was created, trained,
funded and armed by the military for its counterinsurgency campaign. The military denounced the killings and vowed
that it would fully support the ongoing investigations.” --- Karlos Manlupig,
Inquirer Mindanao
“MILITIA IN LUMAD KILLINGS A MOSTER CREATED BY MILITARY…
DAVAO CITY – Surigao del Sur Gov. Johnny Pimentel on Friday
said the Magahat-Bagani paramilitary force that recently killed a school
director and two Manobo lumad residents in Lianga town was a “monster created
by the military.” A least 2,000
residents from the village of Diatagon fled their homes after members of the
Magahat-Bagani --- allegedly accompanied by soldiers --- killed Emerico
Samarca, executive director of the Alternative Learning Center for Agricultural
and Livelihood Development (Alcadev) in the morning of Sept. 1. Samarca was found dead inside a classroom. He had a stab wound and his throat was slit
open. Alcadev is a privately operated
but government-regulated learning institution that provides basic and technical
education to lumad children in communities rarely reached by government
services. After killing Samarca, the lumad
men gathered the residents and killed Dionel Campos and his cousin Aurelio
Sinzo. Campos was a community leader and
chair of the indigenous people’s group Maluhutayong Pakigbisog Alansa sa
Sumusunod (Mapasu), which is known to fight for ancestral land and campaign
against human rights violations targeting indigenous people. The Magahat-Bagani also razed the building of
a community cooperative not far from the school compound. Pimentel said the Magahat-Bagani force, which
is composed of at least 30 heavily armed men, had been a persistent security
problem in the province. “They killed
people including barangay leaders. They
are the same people creating chaos in at least four towns,” Pimentel told the
Inquirer by phone. The four towns,
Pimentel said, include Lianga, San Agustin and Marihatag. Pimentel disclosed that the people and the
government knew very well that the paramilitary group was created by the Armed
Forces of the Philippines. “This is the
creation of the military. But they
created a monster that they could no longer control,” Pimentel said. The governor explained that the creation of
the Magahat-Bagani Force was part of the military’s counterinsurgency
campaign. “The Bagani is being used by
the Army for counterinsurgency,” Pimentel said.
“I know how it works,” said the governor. “Before the group was created and before
training started, I already learned about that.
The same thing happened in Patukan (in Compostela Valley) and other
areas. Where will they (Bagani) get the
money? An Armalite rifle cost at least
P150,000. The firearms came from the
Army,” he said. The governor said he has
been pleading to the military to disband the Bagani. “For the past two years I have been asking
the military to disband and disarm them but nothing happened,” Pimentel
said. On Aug. 31, Pimentel said he had a
meeting with the 4th Infantry Division commander Maj. Gen. Oscar
Lactao, 401st Brigade commander Col. Alexander Macario and 402nd
Brigade commander Col. Isidro Purisima about the Bagani because militiamen
killed two lumad brothers in the town of San Miguel on Aug. 28. “When will you act on it? The Bagani should be disbanded,” Pimentel
recalled telling the military officers during the meeting, warning of the
Bagani going on a rampage. Just as
Pimentel had predicted, the killings happened in Lianga. Pimentel identified the leaders of the
Magahat as Marcos Bocales, Bob Tejero and Loloy Tejero, while the leader of the
Bagani force as Calpet Egua, who is based in Agusan del Sur. The governor said he ordered the arrest of
Bocales in 2009, but local authorities could not catch up with him and his
followers, despite them usually being “seen inside the camp” of the
military. “If only I can, I would
declare war on them,” said Pimentel. “I
want Bocales and Tejero dead because the people are pitiful. It’s too much already,” he added. The military had denied allegation it was
behind the militia and even vowed to support an investigation. Purisima, in an earlier press statement said
more soldiers had been sent to help investigate the killings in Lianga and “go
after the perpetrators.” “We shall not
let these criminals roam and threaten the peace-loving people of Surigao del
Sur. We will let then face the crimes they’ve
committed,” he added. For his part,
Lactao said the killings had affected the peace programs of the provincial
government. “We condemn the crime
committed by this armed group. It is
very unfortunate that this situation happened,” Lactao said. “We will support and participate in the
conduct of this fact finding mission and the ongoing investigation by PNP to
give justice to the victims of this crime,” Lactao added. But Pimentel said the support that he needed
from the military was the immediate disbandment of the militia and the prosecution
of those behind the fillings. The
provincial government is also asking AFP chief of staff Gen, Hernando Irriberi,
who is from Surigao del Sur, to intervene and exact accountability over the
alleged abuses of the militia and the role of the military in its operations. “The people are also appealing to
presidential adviser on the peace process Ging Deles to also intervene and help
resolve the issue,” Pimentel said.” ---- Karlos Manlupig, Inquirer Mindanao
Peace and order in the countryside is a critical component
to rural development. This is one of the
problems that made upland communities the poorest of the poor. Poor and relatively uneducated, upland
dwellers as well as isolated rural communities are suckers to exploitation and
intimidation from armed elements (within and outside legal and constitutional
structure). The lumads are part of these
communities. Unless something is done to
keep the lumads and indigenous communities safe and secure, they will remain
economically undeveloped. Peace and
order is the initial and starting condition to improving the lives of the
lumads of Mindanao.
Thoughts to
promote positive action…
(Please
visit, like and share Pro EARTH Crusaders on Facebook or follow me at http://antonantonio.blogspot.com/
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REFERENCE:
Inquirer.net, (2015). “Lumad in Gold-Rich Mindanao Targeted”. Retrieved on September 17, 2015 from http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/719751/lumad-in-gold-rich-mindanao-targeted
Inquirer.net, (2015). “Militia in Lumad Killings a Monster
Created by Military”. Retrieved on September
17, 2015 from http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/719658/militia-in-lumad-killings-a-monster-created-by-military#ixzz3kw1qiKc7
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