Indigenous Leaders Forum held in Besao, Mountain Province

There were lively discussions addressing the challenges eroding Besao culture during the Leaders Forum held in Besao, Mountain Province. A majority of elders from all the four ancestral communities gave their insights into the dwindling community practices such as the use of the dap-ay as the traditional form of consultation and agreement, as well a lesser reliance on traditional agricultural practice. While representatives from the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) provided an understanding of the historical changes in land ownership and decision-making, the Planning Coordinator of the Local Government of Besao took to heart the role of culture-bearers in sharing knowledge and values, characterized by panagayew, panagbingay, awawni (sharing, caring, and keeping). Partners for Indigenous Knowledge (PIKP) likewise shared inputs on indigenous peoples as political actors. With a few young people present, a similar forum specifically for youth was suggested. A local school likewise invited indigenous elders to be part of its school activities. These were a few of the many suggestions to reviving Besao’s eroding culture.