For the past 23 years, the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) has declared about 250 protected areas across the country, covering a total area of about 5 million hectares, according to NCIP Chairperson Secretary Allen Capuyan.
Capuyan estimated that of the 30-million hectare territory of the Philippines, about 25% of the lands are ancestral domains or lands belonging to the Indigenous Cultural Communities/Indigenous Peoples (ICCs/IPs) since time immemorial.
Under President Rodrigo Duterte’s administration, an additional 250 ancestral domains are being processed for delineation.
In total, there are 1,400 ancestral domains and ancestral lands in the Philippines.
IPs and their ways of life
During an interview with Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Martin Andanar on Aug. 14 in a Cabinet Report episode titled “Katutubo, Kababayan” the NCIP chief reported its projects, engagements with the ICCs/IPs, as well as the challenges it faced during the Duterte administration.
“Unang-una sa totoo lang ay ako’y namangha… every day I am learning from them, kasi sa kanila, ang justice system is always restoration. Sa atin kasi punitive, sa kanila ay restoration,” Capuyan said.
He added that the ICCs/IPs have much respect for nature as they are serious about preserving their natural resources.
“Kung hindi sila marunong sa preservation, sa generation natin wala sana tayong maabutan ngayon. So, naabutan na natin ito,” Capuyan said.
Projects and accomplishments
The NCIP has been in constant review of the Indigenous Peoples Mandatory Representation Guidelines for it to be made relevant and responsive to the needs of the natives.
This further resulted in its engagement with different government agencies such as the Department of Agriculture (DA) to provide food security and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) to provide skills training, livelihood, and poverty reduction programs.
According to Capuyan, the NCIP has been strategically in control of its rural activities despite the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Hindi po natin hininto iyong ating mga gawain katulad ng pag-delineate ng mga ancestral domain, katulad ng pag-approve ng Certificate of Recognitions para makapasok iyong investors at other agencies. Ganoon pa rin ang ating ginagawa, in fact lalong nadagdagan ang ating mga gawain at hindi po naging limitasyon ang pandemic sa pag-perform natin ng ating mga mandato,” Capuyan said.
Capuyan emphasized that the IPs are not clients, rather development partners of the NCIP.
“The NCIP is here to facilitate, to help, to make sure that you (IPs) can freely express your (IPs) rights and you (IPs) can self-govern your community,” Capuyan said.
“Unang-una, ang komunidad po ng tribu ay may self-governance, mayroon silang sariling justice system, mayroon silang customary law na dapat i-preserve. So we approach them, [listen] to their narrative, pinapalakas natin ngayon ang kanilang self-governance,” he added.
Moreso, the NCIP established the “Project Epanaw” which records the number of ICCs/IPs in the Philippines.
To date, there are 101 groups with subgroups logged in the Project Epanaw’s three-volume coffee table books.
“Meaning to say, we are documenting our brothers and sisters. We wanted to tell the whole world and the Filipino people – this is our brothers and sisters Indigenous Peoples, so nakalatag ‘yan, iyong tatlong volumes na iyan,” Capuyan added.
“We wanted to make sure that we’re really covering anything and everything about the IPs and the need to mainstream it to the Filipino people and the general public, ano ang nangyari ngayon sa Indigenous Peoples,” Capuyan said.
As of writing, the NCIP said it is putting up a command center that will wire them to all NCIP offices nationwide.
Messaging groups via mobile application Viber were also created, Capuyan said, to communicate with commissioners, bureau directors, division and regional directors, provincial officers, and community service centers. – CF – bny
