The Mt. Apo Indigenous Peoples Coalition for Biodiversity Environment and Cultural Integrity which are made up of the Bagobo Tagabawas in Sibulan and in Toril, the Klata, Obu Manuvu and Manuvu Tinonanon.
“Gibuo ang coalition para makapresent mi ug insakto nga polisiya sa atong government ug sa institutions nga kini ang policy sa tribu (The coalition was formed to present exact policies to our government and institutions that this is the policy of the tribe), Datu Joel Unad head of the indigenous political structure of the Obu Manuvu said during the P.E.P Talks Tourism and Lifestyle Media Forum held at the SM Lanang Premiere.
One of the aims is to prevent the selling of areas within their ancestral domains which according to Datu Joel Unad are done by migrants who settled during the operation of the logging industry decades back.
Datu Unad said the prohibition on selling of ancestral domain must be the policy of the barangays within the ancestral domain.
Jayson Ibanez, director of the Philippine Eagle Foundation said the forests within the ancestral domain are the remaining large tracts of forests in the region underlying the importance of these IP communities in preserving biodiversity, mitigating climate change and protecting the six breeding pairs of Philippine Eagles found in the ancestral domain.
“The size of the combined ancestral domain is more than 80,000 hectares and about 40,000 hectares is forested. The coalition will become a platform, a common voice so that our IPs can lobby for support and attention from the government agencies and the public,” Ibanez said.
The coalition will also plan what is their priorities and consolidate their programs and projects.
Datu Joel Unad said the IPs have their philosophy on environmental protection and biodiversity and thru the coalition will push these ecological principles down to the barangays. (PIA/RG Alama)
Photo from Rhealyn Pojas/SM
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