By Ben Serrano,
Correspondent
BUTUAN City — Newly formed United Indigenous People of Mindanao condemned to the highest degree, the beheading of Canadian Robert Hall on Monday while it issued a warning to Abu Sayaff that the nearly two million indigenous people of Mindanao will be up in arms if terrorist acts continue and spread its kidnapping for ransom activities to indigenous people’s areas in Mindanao.
Tribal Supreme leaders Datu Mabayaw, Datu Sumidlak, Datu Sam Behing and Enrique Gavileno, head convenors of the United Indigenous People of Mindanao claimed areas where there are many lumads are here in Caraga Region and can be found in four provinces of the region mostly members of Manobos, Higaonon, Mamanwa and Talaandig tribes
Areas in Mindanao where there are heavy presence of Indigenous People were provinces of Misamis Oriental, Bukidnon, Misamis Occidental, Zamboanga and Davao provinces like Davao Oriental, Davao del Norte, Davao del Sur, Saranggani, General Santos City, and Compostela Valley provinces.
“Terrorist Abu Sayaff, according to President (Benigno) Aquino (III), even plan to kidnap Senator (Emmanuel) Pacquiao in their money-making kidnap for ransom activities. Pacquiao’s ancestry has lumad blood and so we will protect at all cost our boxing icon now a Senator. We warn Abu Sayaff that the 30,000-strong armed Bagani Forces of Indigenous People of Mindanao will go after this only 400- member terrorist Abu Sayaff if they will kidnap the good Senator which has lumad blood” warned Manobo Supreme leader Datu Mabayaw and Enrigue Gavileno in a statement.
They claimed the indigenes in Mindanao are expert in the terrain of entire Mindanao island including Jolo, Tawi-Tawi and Sulu.
“Sadly some of the people inhabitants in these islands of Jolo, Tawi-Tawi and Sulu are sympathetic to the Abu Sayaff because sometimes ASG are playing ‘Robin Hood’ and you may wonder why until now local officials of said islands have not taken initiatives and silent, Bakit nakikina-bang ba sila sa kidnap-for ansom?” says Gavelino.
Datu Mabayaw is Manobo Supreme leader of CADT No. 039 whose 10,000-strong member Manobo tribes are living in 51,000 hectares of ancestral domain whose lands transverse two provinces Agusan del Sur from the town of Sibagat and Cantilan, Surigao del Sur
Datu Mabayaw and Enrigue Gavileno were interviewed the other day by DXBR Bombo Radyo and yesterday morning by other local radio stations in Butuan City, DXIM and DXHP of Hope Radio Philippines for their incoming activities which were held here in Butuan City on Monday, the 1st Mindanao United Indigenous Peoples Forum.
Some 200 Supreme Tribal leaders from all over Mindanao gathered here in Butuan City for the forum to discuss issues and concerns of lumads in Mindanao.
According to Gavileno in radio interviews, the forum aimed to discuss the plight of the indigenous peoples in Mindanao particularly the destruction of their ancestral domains, 4Ps, and the anti-poverty programs of the Philippine government
Other issues discuss in the first ever United Lumads of Mindanao Forum also focused on revisiting R.A. 8371 otherwise known as the Indigenous People’s Rights Act (IPRA Law), Tribal Schools, Lumad Evacuees and R.A 1995 also called as the Mining Act of the Philippines.
The forum’s theme, “Is change coming for the Indigenous Peoples in Mindanao under the Duterte Administration? “
They claimed the lumads in Mindanao are already fed-up of failed government bureaucracy to stop destructive mining in Mindanao as exploitation and massive destructive activities in various ancestral domain in Mindanao continues.
The group claimed they are set to issue ultimatum to seemingly untouchable, abusive mining firms operating in Mindanao destroying ancestral domains, the environment, rivers which are source of their fish supply needs
Supreme lumad leaders also warned private companies building massive infrastructures like dams and other activities within ancestral domains who have not underwent proper consultations with the affected tribal communities.
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