Cabazares, Ray C.

Dynamics Society, Politics and Development in Mindanao

B.S.-EE 2nd yr.

Stop the Lumad Killings

The Lumads are indigenous communities in the southern region of Mindanao. There are
18 Lumad ethnic groups here in Mindanao. The word Lumad is short for Katawhang Lumad, it
literally means “indigenous people”, and it is a concept that officially adopted on June 26, 1986
by delegates by the founding assembly. The Lumad Mindanao Peoples Federation is an
assembly to provide political stand for the lumads, the key goals of the assembly were to
establish sovereignty and governance within their ancestral territory for their member-tribes
according to the culture and traditional laws. They have a traditional ancestral idea of land
ownership that is private collective property. Thus, ever member of the community have the
right to utilize their own land with the boundaries of the group. Ancestral lands such as
subterranean rainforests, hunting for source of food, develop the land and essential mineral
resources.

Lumads had been forced to fight for the jurisdiction of their ancestral land against
Business Company’s exploitation and militarization. They are no match to the militaries of the
government and pay the money to drive them out of their land. Multinational mega
corporations seized their territory for logging, mining and agricultural purposes. With the
conflict is still uprising in Mindanao, Lumads established school for their youth and teach them
how to defend and protect their rights, possessions and culture. President Rodrigo Duterte
constitutes their education system as a threat. The president ordered the Department of
Education to shut the school down and incited to kill their Lumad teachers. The conflict is still
uprising until today, violence and extrajudicial killings of Lumad in the hands of the government
or private forces. They’re force to settle in evacuation shelters to escape from inevitable war.
Lumads have organized protest against killing their own people from the corporation who stole
their lands. They unify with other tribes or groups to stand out against this opposition against
their right to claim their own territories.

Lumads are people like us; they have their own home and own culture. They just want
to preserve their ancestral lands for the youth in the future. Killing them is just killing our own
people; it is unjust to drive them away from their territory. They have a voice to prove their
rights of their land and compensation for the loss of their people. Some humanitarian
organizations help them to be heard by the government and private corporations so that they
would know how to preserve their natural habitat and resources.