“Who are bombing our communities? Who are killing our fellow students and teachers? Who are massacring the community? The military. The state itself; they are the terrorists. Not the organizations, not the New People’s Army (NPA), not us who are fighting to defend our ancestral lands. The government itself is the terrorist because they are the ones violating our human rights,” said Katkat Dalon, a Lumad Manobo student and spokesperson of SABOKAHAN (Unity of Lumad Women).
Various groups gathered at the Commission on Human Rights to hold an indignation rally following the conviction ruling by Tagum Regional Trial Court Branch 2 against 18 Salugpongan teachers and delegates of the National Solidarity Mission. The mission was joined by former Bayan Muna Party-list Representative Satur Ocampo and ACT Teachers Party-List Representative France Castro, who were convicted of kidnapping and child trafficking.
The conviction stemmed from the solidarity mission’s efforts upon rescuing the Lumad Manobo children and teachers at the Salugpongan Ta’Tanu Igkanogon Community Learning Center Inc. (STTICLC) campus in Sitio Dulyan amidst the relentless attacks by the paramilitary group Alamara, in cooperation with the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), in their community in the hinterlands of Talaingod.
What happened in Talaingod last November 28, 2018?
It was late evening when teachers cried for help to Rep. Castro and Ocampo, informing them that they were being harassed by the Alamara paramilitary group.
In their joint statement, Rep. Castro and Ocampo noted that the decision ignored the testimonies regarding the continued harassment of Lumad schools by military and paramilitary forces and the danger that the students faced. It added that even the prosecution’s own witnesses testified that it was out of fear that the teachers decided to leave the community for a safer area. Both Rep. Castro and Ka Satur’s presence was only on the highway where they met the teachers and children.
“Since Ka Satur and I were also guests there, we offered our help for the emergency situation. I knew that as a government official, nothing would happen to me. We rescued the children, and we didn’t expect to be charged,” Rep. Castro shared.
At that time, two Salugpongan schools remained operational amid relentless paramilitary and military harassment, until only one was left in Sitio Dulyan.
Ocampo noted that the schools became sanctuaries for Lumad Manobo children and teachers, as they were established as formal learning institutions aiming to provide basic education to the Manobo. They were also accredited by the Department of Education in 2007.
However, during the Duterte administration, more than 216 Lumad schools were ordered to shut down following allegations that the schools had been infiltrated by the New People’s Army and taught students to rebel against the government.
In 2017, Duterte made pronouncements that he would bomb the Lumad schools and that the indigenous peoples should evacuate their communities.
The Lumad Manobos have since refuted such claims. Dalon further noted that more than 10,000 Lumad Manobo have been deprived of basic education following the closure of Salugpongan schools.
“Many of my classmates were forced into starting families early; it became common for us to go to the city to become housemaids,” Dalon lamented.
Dalon also criticized the red-tagging, bombings, and illegal occupation or camping of the AFP in their communities.
“If you become a student at Lumad schools, you are automatically labeled as NPA. That’s why, even now, the military is still hunting us, telling us in our community that we need to go to the detachment to clear our names because they say we are NPA. But in reality, we are not because we don’t carry any weapons. We are trained in Lumad schools to be mass-oriented, nationalistic, and scientific students who will serve the communities,” Dalon added.
“The persons who are actually responsible for the forcible closure of the schools, as well as the threats and harassment, have never been investigated. This is a clear miscarriage of justice, and we will strongly question this decision in all venues possible,” said Rep. Castro and Ka Satur in their joint statement.
The continuing struggle for ancestral lands
According to Dalon, the heightened paramilitary and military presence in the communities in Talaingod is due to the establishment of mining companies and logging concessions in the Pantaron mountain range, one of the largest remaining old-growth forests in the Philippines.
“Up until now, from the Duterte regime to Marcos, our community, especially in Talaingod, remains militarized,” Dalon said.
Three mining companies operate in Talaingod: One Compostela Valley Minerals, Inc., Phil. Meng Di Mining & Development Corporation, and Metalores Consolidated, Inc. The latter has the largest coverage, occupying over 15,000 hectares of forests and mountains in Talaingod.
According to Dalon, Lumad groups and farmers have long been resisting these mining operations and their accompanying deforestation because of the serious damage they cause to their communities, the environment, and the people of Mindanao.
“The Talaingod Manobo, led by Bai Bibiyaon, have already succeeded in their fight against militarization. And we will continue our struggle to defend our ancestral lands and our human rights,” said Dalon.
Dalon also noted that there is an undeniable presence of the NPA in their area, especially in the hinterlands.
“We know that the NPA exists and that there are soldiers. We welcome both the NPA and the military when they come to our community because it is our Lumad, our indigenous culture, to help. As long as they leave afterward. But the military sets up camp in our communities,” said Dalon.
She added that their communities bear the brunt of military counter-insurgency offensives that trigger massive evacuations.
“There have been many incidents where our fellow students in Talaingod were strafed by the military. In Surigao del Sur, at ALCADEV, minors were hit because drunk soldiers were firing. When there are military personnel in the communities, the children are not safe, the women are not safe, the entire community is not safe,” Dalon lamented.
Condemn the unjust verdict
Rights groups and defenders denounced that the case against Rep. Castro and Ocampo is politically motivated orchestrated by the current Marcos Jr. administration against the Makabayan coalition, which has recently announced plans to vie for Senate seats in the upcoming elections.
“This conviction from the court is a challenge for me, and it will not weaken my resolve to pursue the desires of our teachers and the people for me to run for the Senate. This case will strengthen my courage to continue fighting for their rights and the meaningful demands of the people,” said Castro.
Castro also reiterated the Supreme Court’s major ruling regarding red-tagging.
“The Supreme Court ruling should be respected, upheld, and the rights of those who are fighting especially those who are speaking out must be protected,” said Castro.
“We haven’t finished our fight in the case and we expect it to be dismissed,” she added.
According to Castro, their legal counsels are still deliberating on the case, whether to file a motion for reconsideration to the local court in Tagum or appeal the decision to the Court of Appeals.
“We remain steadfast in our support for the indigenous schools and communities who continue to bear the brunt of the fascist attacks by the Marcos regime. We persist in our call that those who ordered and orchestrated the attacks against the Lumad schools, specifically former President Rodrigo Duterte and the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), and endangered the lives of indigenous children must be brought to justice,” stated Castro and Ocampo in their joint statement.
