Education for Life Foundation

A Young Aeta’s Voice

admin — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 09:25:28 +0000

I chanced upon this post on Facebook from Christopher Domulot, who is spending some time in Japan, studying sustainable agriculture at the Asian Rural Institute. Christopher, nicknamed “Butog” is a graduate of the Aeta leadership course run by the Education for Life Foundation.

LAKAS Pinatubo: our Ancestral Land, and to this place, we shall return

Many years have passed. I am 28 years old now. I have been to many places here to talk about my experience as an aboriginal youth. I spoke of our ancestral land, livelihood, culture and political experience. I have met with B’laan, T’boli, Igorot, Dumagat and even Australian Aborigines and many tribes in my country. Yet I still cannot erase from my mind the pain rendered by the eruption of Mount Pinatubo.

We were happily playing under the leafy banana tree in our vegetable garden at Villar, Botolan, Zambales. My father reprimanded us because we stepped on his sweet potato, ube, patani and corn plants.

Our garden had a good view of Mount Pinatubo. I didn’t know the exact distance for I was only eight years old. But I could clearly see the trees at the foot of the mountain and the clouds playfully circling around ‘GAYANG’, the huge rock seemingly planted atop Pinatubo. My grandfather said that at ‘GAYANG’ is where ‘APO NAMALYARI’, the name we give to the Almighty Creator, lives.

We suddenly stopped playing when father pointed to the dark smoke exhaling from a hole at the side of Mount Pinatubo. We also observed many birds flying away from the mountain. We felt the earth shake at once. I felt I was being swayed and at the same time, I heard a loud noise like a bulldozer in action. I fell on my bottom. I didn’t know what to do while waiting for Father to grab the water buffalo from the stream.

I walked and ran crying with my youngest sister while going down from the foot of Pinatubo. My Father and Mother stayed behind for a while with my other brother, sisters and other relatives. I didn’t mind the weight of the basket we call “lubon” which contained sweet potato and a few pieces of gabi taro. We found no one at all at Sitio Yamot. The stillness was like a graveyard except for a few domestic chickens wandering on the road. We rested awhile to wait for Father and Mother.

We went to Villar where we saw our other relatives who resided in other places. Villar had a barangay fiesta feel about it with the number of people who gathered there. We billeted ourselves there with a relative of my father for a few days. Then someone came who said, “You need to evacuate to Poonbato!” (”He is from Philvocs,” an Indigenous leader said.) “There is grave danger. Mount Pinatubo is having a tantrum.”

We hurried along on our descent to Poonbato. I noticed many dead fish in the Marawonot River. The water was fuzzy, smelly and tepid. The water was knee deep and I had difficulty walking, feeling exhausted from the experience of the last few days. Father built a tent at Poonbato next to the church, which served as our temporary home. Some sought refuge in the convent; others went into the church or into the new building owned by LAKAS (Negrito People’s Alliance of Zambales) next to the church. We stayed there for a month. Through the help of the LAKAS cooperative, we had ample food. Within a few weeks, help came from various groups, from the government but mostly from NGOs (non-government organizations).

As we were not at all used to this lifestyle, LAKAS leaders, along with the nuns – their counterpart, searched for a place where we could build huts and have a garden. It was decided to move to Sitio Ogik. This place is near Villar and has a view of Mount Pinatubo. The place was subdivided according to the number of family members. Everyone built their huts at about the same time. I helped do the weeding within the block of land that was allocated to us. We planted sweet potato, corn and other vegetables.

We felt happier there compared to Poonbato because it seemed like we were back to our own ways, having established our own vegetable garden. To have a semblance of order, we set up a temporary office which served as the LAKAS headquarters.

After a few months, news came that the ‘danger zone’ had reached Ogik and we were asked to evacuate once more. We fled to Mount Tumangan. Again we built temporary shelter for the LAKAS group. My father, the nuns and other leaders hardly had any rest. Everyone was busy planning what to do should Mount Pinatubo erupt. After a week at Tumangan, we felt the earth shake continuously. I was so frightened because the shaking was accompanied by lightning and thunder. The sky turned black, there was a rain of rocks and sand. Everything turned white. We were all thrown into confusion. We had no idea which way to run to be picked up by the vehicles.

We fled to St Augustine’s School at Iba. I was sad because we left behind our water buffalo and other household items. The next day, the earth shook again. The building where we were temporarily staying swayed. We were all scared and decided to flee yet again to Sta Cruz, at a school near the priest’s presbytery. We had a hard time over there as there were not enough toilets. We were saddened to hear that we had to move again because the administrators of the school said classes were about to begin. The Franciscan Missionaries of Mary (FMM) nuns and LAKAS leaders tried hard to persuade the administrators to let us stay at this school but to no avail. We were again forced to move to look for another place. Apo Namalyari took pity on us and pointed us to a school at Candelaria, Zambales. This school was run by a foreign priest, a friend of the nuns and LAKAS. We were warmly welcomed.

Everyone got busy putting up tents. My Aunt undertook the role of healer, using “panganganito” or indigenous traditional healing methods. My task was to care for my younger brothers and sisters. While rocking my sibling to sleep, I observed my parents and other families build their shelter. I was saddened by what happened to us, our constant moving. Some people welcomed us; others didn’t. With what had transpired, we remembered our old home. We yearned to return to our own ancestral land at the foot of Mount Pinatubo, where no one forbade us from doing what we wanted, where we were free to live and plant our gardens.

After many weeks living in this school at Candelaria, we moved to Bulawen, Palauig, Zambales on the invitation of the Provincial Governor Amor Deloso, then the incumbent governor. More and more families moved in there and many tents were erected so it was called “Tent City”. We experienced more hardship there because of the congestion. The tents were cramped next to each other, the heat was suffocating, the toilets were scarce, and everywhere you went was full of flies. An epidemic ensued. Many died! One of the victims was my youngest cousin. Often three to four children died at the same time and were buried on the same day. This situation led our companions to decide to resettle elsewhere.LAKAS leaders were convinced that we should find a place near Mount Pinatubo where we could physically see the mountain. Bihawo, Botolan, Zambales was such a place. From the moment I stepped into it, I felt light-hearted. The wilderness was thick with trees, home to many birds and other animals. The mountainous terrain of Bihawo reminded me instantly of the place of my childhood.

All the families were given a block of land to build their home and plant a variety of vegetables and trees. Apart from this, my father was given an additional garden plot we call gasak. I helped weed the thick grass. We turned the earth and planted rice. At the same time, we planted tree markers to indicate the boundary for each family’s block of land.

I always got myself involved in weeding in between the rice seedlings so they would grow quickly. It was so hard to care for the rice, and we were thankful to Apo Namalyari to have received plentiful harvest. We made an offering. My Father and Mother made a pinipig5 and put it into “halakang,” a container for an offering made up of boho.

The second harvest wasn’t as good as the first despite the fact that the method of care used was the same. The invasion of balang6 was no doubt the reason why the plantation was partly wrecked. On the other side, we continued to plant fruit trees like mangoes, cashew, langka, bananas and others.

While the plants were growing steadily, our knowledge was broadening in literacy, reading, numeracy, and cultural awareness through the education for liberation program conceived by Paulo Freire. We were taught how to stand on our feet and achieve self empowerment. We were able to learn how to mould and shape ourselves through practices such as leadership and administration of our community.

We did not forget our formal education. I enrolled in Primary School along with other children. This is when I started to experience the oppression of my fellow ‘straight-haired’8 students who insulted us with words like “kulot salot” (kinky hair), “Itah… Itah… Itah… Maitim” (Ayta… Ayta… Ayta… Black), and if we could not answer a question, they’d say, “they don’t have that in the mountains”. They laughed at us when we wore our native garments.

All these insults and put-down remarks for Indigenous students I experienced until I reached High School. I was hurt but I fought back. I tried to be strong inside and often near tears, I tried to let the teacher know. I didn’t expect the teacher to listen but the teacher talked to the rest of my fellow students about my concern.

I was surprised that my teacher showed concern for Indigenous students. I was encouraged to persuade my brothers and sisters and fellow Indigenous students to form a party which we called LAKAS to participate in the Student Body Organization at our school. Out of the 15 positions, six of us won the positions of Vice President, Treasurer, two Business Managers, Press Information Officer and a representative in fourth year. I was delighted along with my fellow Indigenous students to see that gradually we are being acknowledged as people endowed with rights.

We strengthened and deepened the organisation of our community and the various sectors within it: Sektor Uybon-uybon (Children’s Sector), 5-9 years old; Sektor Uybon (Junior Youth Sector), 10-14 years old; Sektor Kabataan (Senior Youth Sector), 15-19 years old; Sektor Kababaihan (Women’s Sector), 20 up; Sektor Kalalakihan (Men’s Sector), 20 up; and Sektor Tua (Elder’s Sector), 65 up. Each sector has its own role to play based on capacity.

Our organization LAKAS recognizes and acknowledges the dignity and rights of women equal to those of men. Each position of responsibility is occupied by a leader represented by each gender. Little children and the youth also play a significant role in our organization as the foundation post for the future. As a member of the youth sector, I was given an important position. I am currently both Adviser Senior Youth Sector and Leader for the whole of LAKAS.

During our organizing, we are given training in leadership, the law, rights of Indigenous peoples, gender awareness, financial administration, making organic fertilizers, how to attain self sufficiency, improve our livelihood and farming methods at the University of the Philippines, Los Baños and Education for Life Foundation and many others.

At the moment, I am one of many young people giving training to both Indigenous and non-Indigenous brothers and sisters. We have trained our fellow Indigenous peoples like the Dumagat, B’laan, T’boli, Kalinga, and Indigenous people from Bougainville, sister farmers in Botolan and fellow ‘straight-haired’ students from Botolan Community High School and others.

We are gradually waking up to our rights to our ancestral land. We have learnt to speak in public about various issues such as: Ancestral Land, The Law and Rights from the perspective of our Ancestral Land and many others. I am one of the spokespersons representing Indigenous youth along with those representing other sectors – farmers, fisherfolk, workers and employees. We also assist and link up with government agencies, and NGOs in other countries.

Many youth in our organization was invited, along with one girl and two boys, to visit Australia and Singapore. To saw our fellow Indigenous peoples in Australia who call themselves Aborigines. The programs are talked about our culture, education, ancestral land, our experience during the eruption of Mount Pinatubo and how we picked ourselves up from this disaster, and the current situation among Indigenous peoples in the Philippines.

The eruption of Mount Pinatubo did not prove to be a real disaster, it gave us opportunities to show the ‘straight-hair’ that we too have the ability to empower ourselves, walk with dignity and have the skills to govern and administer our own community.

While we have reached this level of progress and education, I am myself currently finished in college and return to our organization to give service and continue to help our community progress. I shall continue to let our culture flourish and never forget the past and our desire to return to our ancestral land, Mount Pinatubo. This is our life and to this place we shall return and also to build our dream.

What will help us protect our forests?

admin — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 03:45:36 +0000

Our forests are now dwindling fast. Many of the floods, disasters and droughts we are experiencing have a strong link to our disappearing forests.

What can education do?What can ordinary citizens do to save our forests?

In many fora and conferences, we hear the buzzword “biodiversity”.

What does this mean in our daily life?

It is the web of life. Nature and people are one. We can have many many species of animals and plants in this planet. The living species thrive with us, humankind. We could all live in support of each other but the problem is when humans look at everything as their domain, not as a steward, but as source for power and profit. Many animals are raised, hunted and bought for feeding the population that can pay for it. Many plants are produced for feeding nations that want diversity in their menu.

Many forests are decimated for their monetary value and not conserved for their biodiversity.

To make this issue dramatic let us review a movie, Avatar.

In the movie Avatar, the indigenous people of planet Pandora live in harmony with all the plants and animals.

They live under a great Tree of Life, and they fly with dragons who bond with them for life.

Everything they have is in tune with everything. They are very much part of nature and nature cares for them.

Then one day, aliens – the humans – swoop on them in search of valuable minerals.

The earlier humans, who were scientists and anthropologists, had been studying the indigenous culture via dreaming states because humans cannot breathe naturally in Pandora. This is why the term- avatar – became useful.

The humans would go into dream chambers and their surrogates- avatars- would enter Pandora. To make the story short, the humans who became avatars started learning from the indigenous people but those who funded the research were arrogant and in a hurry to destroy Pandora.

The alien leaders’ goal was to extract the minerals under the great Tree of life. For humans, war was the logical way to get what they want. All the drama of war and peace, love and betrayal, have been created in this movie and we encourage people to see it for it is not just edifying but exhilirating as a 3D movie.

You can see the movie with new eyes.

Where does this message bring us? To a paradigm shift in seeing the forest outside and inside us.

When the forest lives, we live with clean air, clean water and safe climates.

A tree is a gem and it serves us by giving clean air, clean water and safe climates. A modern resort does not produce natural oxygen, doesn’t produce clean water, doesn’t feed animals and people for free.

Every inch of forest soil yields the vitamins and minerals that go into the seeds. Thousands of flowers, trees, butterflies, birds,deer and wild mammals in the forest are fed by the forest .

So when roads, cities and resorts plunder forests in Indonesia,Philippines, and Brazil, more disasters will come our way.

Girlie Villariba

Rising from the Ashes

admin — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 07:44:40 +0000

When the volcanic Mount Pinatubo erupted in 1991, its lava and ashes destroyed many surrounding villages – including the traditional homeland of the Ayta, indigenous people descending from the first inhabitants of the Philippines. Today, resettled elsewhere on Luzon island, they are trying to preserve their traditional culture and community integrity through education and theatre. These efforts are supported by the Ayta organisation PBAZ, part of the Education for Life Foundation. Going back to the abandoned village is one way of keeping memories alive.

New Year, New Hopes

admin — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 02:24:38 +0000

Yesterday, Ka Carling of LAKAS and PBAZ called me on the celfone: “The ceremony granting us the CADT to the 15,000 hectares will happen in the Botolan town plaza on January 14. Please come.”

Unfortunately, I won’t be able to go, since I have a previous engagement. But I and the rest of ELF will be there not only in spirit, but in other ways.

It’s one thing to get the title to their ancestral domain, which significantly includes Mt. Pinatubo. It’s another thing to be ale to develop it to benefit the Aeta communities while conserving biodiversity and protecting the forests and watersheds.

ELF and PBAZ see the granting of the CADT as an opportunity, but even more, as a challenge. “Let us check if there have been previous CADT which have been conserved and developed to the benefit of the indigenous communities,” I told our staff meeting.

I teased Carling: “Unfortunately, there is greater global appreciation for the 15,000 hectares and its forests, than for the Aeta communities. But since you are the legal stewards of the area, whatever you do will be appreciated; it will also offer lessons not just for other places in the Philippines, but even for other places in the world.”

When ELF entered into a long-term partnership with PBAZ, the association of Aeta leaders who have graduated from our grassroots leadership course, we did not anticipate that they will get their CADT. But this new opportunity will need a large “community of leaders and learners” to insure not only that the area is protected but that it is developed in a way that benefits the Aeta communities while conserving biodiversity.

During the first six months of 2010, ELF and PBAZ will develop and implement a new leadership course for community-based “biodiversity conservation and sustainable development” to build the capability of the Aeta communities to protect and develop their ancestral domain.

The possibilities are exciting, but the challenges are daunting.

We have picked up a lesson from the protection and reforestation of the La Mesa Watershed. Corporate sponsors were convinced to commit 20,000 pesos per year for three years, which supported the planting of 400 trees per hectare, from the nursery to forest guards. From the Foundation for Philippine environment, we learned that 600 trees per hectare is a better number, but following the principle of “rainforestation,” only indigenous species must be used, and there should be no monoculture.

Carling thinks that instead of relying on paid forest guards, we should support households not only to gather wildlings and set up community nurseries, but also to take care of the newly planted tress for at least three years, assigning a hectare per household. The households should also be helped to practice organic agriculture in between the growing trees, so they have alternative income to cutting trees, and have added reason to visit their assigned areas regularly.

But where to get the needed cash? In one brainstorming session, we dreamt of a different “carbon trading” scheme, where individuals and communities with large footprints inside the Philippines and friends in other countries could support the cost of nurseries and reforestation, and occasionally help in the planting of trees, since there are thousands of hectares that await.

For the four barangays of Villar, Belbel, Morza, and Burgos, their dream is to re-establish small settlements in the mountains from which they were dispersed by the Mt. Pinatubo eruption. These will also be the places for the main nurseries, and community facilities for the various training programs that we will be offering to lowlanders and outsiders who want to learn with the Aetas about biodiversity conservation and sustainable development.

Carling tells us about hot springs two kilometers from the peak of Mt. Pinatubo, where he once bathed and cured some skin disease he suffered from. “We should develop a sacred grove nearby, where we plant our indigenous trees and herbal plants,” he suggests. “Perhaps that will also be the place where we can combine our indigenous healing practices and the new healing methods that Girlie is studying.” Who knows, that may be a future healing spa.

I am reminded of a saying we had in prison which we applied to ELF: “Happy are those who dream dreams, and are willing to pay the price to make their dreams come true.”

Good News from Our Aeta Partners

admin — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 09:45:11 +0000

The Aeta leader-graduates and educators who have formed PBAZ – Paaralang Bayan ng Ayta sa Zambales, are the main strategic partners of ELF.

ELF met with some Aeta leaders a few years after the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo in 1991 displaced the Aeta communities from their homeland and dispersed them to different resettlement areas. Since then, they have struggled to sustain their livelihood, and their culture and identity. Integral to this struggle is their effort to have their rights recognized to their ancestral domain.

It has been a long struggle, and will continue for a long time for most of the Aetas. But there is some good news, with the granting of the first CADT (Certificate of Ancestral Domain Title) to four Aeta barangays, including many of our leader-graduates and PBAZ leaders.

Here is the news item as reported by the Philippine Daily Inquirer:

It’s official: Pinatubo is now owned by Aetas

By Tonette Orejas

Philippine Daily Inquirer

CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, Philippines—Mt. Pinatubo, including the three-kilometer wide crater lake left by its 1991 eruptions, is now officially lutan tua (ancestral land) of Aetas in Botolan, Zambales.

Carlito Domulot, chair of the Lubos ng Alyansa ng mga Katutubong Ayta sa Sambales (Lakas), shared this piece of information with the Inquirer on Thursday as he received confirmation from the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) that at least 15,998 hectares have been registered at the Registry of Deeds in Zambales as a Certificate of Ancestral Domain Title (CADT).

NCIP Commissioner Rolando Rivera confirmed Domulot’s information, saying CADT RO3-BOT-0708-073 indeed includes the volcano.

“Their CADT really covers Mt. Pinatubo,” Rivera said in a telephone interview.

He said a CADT registered with the Registry of Deeds “perfected the tribe’s ownership and stewardship of their ancestral domain.”

Registered on Oct. 3 and issued on Nov. 9, the CADT is entered as Original Certificate of Title No. CAD-0-1.

The application originally covers 20,567.89 hectares. The size was reduced to 15,998.4748 hectares after government agencies recognized and segregated private titles within ancestral domains.

The final CADT spans the villages of Burgos, Villar, Moraza and Belbel in Botolan and portions of the towns of Cabangan, San Felipe and San Marcelino, the title showed.

Domulot said the volcano straddles Villar and Belbel.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) refers to Mt. Pinatubo and its environs as located in the tri-boundary of Zambales, Tarlac and Pampanga. The volcano’s crater lake and lahar canyons have drawn local and foreign tourists.

“Before the CADT came, we, Aetas of Pampanga, Tarlac and Zambales, have an understanding that Pinatubo is on the Botolan (Zambales) side and the lands there belong to us, Botolan Aetas,” Domulot said.

Helping Aetas protect their domain from Korean and other foreign and local business ventures, the Botolan council issued in August 2008 a resolution recognizing the ownership and management of Botolan Aetas over Mt. Pinatubo.

Although vigilant against Korean firms on the Tarlac side, the Aetas have not built gates or watchtowers to ward off illegal settlers.

The Aetas returned to the volcano about five years after the eruptions to cultivate lands there.

Although the lands were made fertile by volcanic materials, Domulot said the lack of farming and fishing tools make it difficult for the tribe to grow more cash crops.

“Our elders have been fighting for our lands since the time of [the late former President Ferdinand] Marcos,” he said.

Rivera said the NCIP had registered at least four CADTs covering 25,615 hectares in Pampanga, Tarlac, Zambales and Aurora.

Pending registration are CADTs for Dumagats in Karahume, San Jose del Monte City in Bulacan (1,817 hectares) and for Kalanguyas in Carranglan, Nueva Ecija (25,373 hectares).

NCIP records showed there are still 11 pending applications for CADTs over 247,261.19 hectares in Central Luzon.

Literacy, Power, and Violence

admin — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 04:09:42 +0000

November 24, 2009, I was in Sultan Kudarat to speak at a literacy conference organized by the Literacy Coordinating Council (LCC), the Education Network (E-Net), the provincial government, and Congressman Pax Mangudadatu.

For a while, we thought the conference would not push through, since the day before, a horrific and gruesome massacre happened at the neighboring province of Maguindanao, just one hour away.

Despite his grief over the killing of members of his clan, and his urgent efforts to restrain his clan members from launching an armed retaliation, Congressman Pax still found time and energy to address our conference.

He had an interesting comment on literacy, power, and violence.

He said that when those who are in power are illiterate, the result is a deadly combination, of which the massacre in Maguindanao is an example. That is why he reiterated his long-term commitment to promoting and supporting education among his constituency.

He said that when he first run for mayor in Buluan (in Maguindanao), there were only 5 Muslims who had finished elementary education.

When he campaigned (and eventually won) as governor of Sultan Kudarat, he was a Muslim seeking votes from a majority (80%) Christian population. He narrated an amusing anecdote, meeting some Ilonggo women. They expressed their fear of him as a Muslim. “They tell us that if you win, you will send us back to Iloilo. Also, that you will forbid the raising of pigs.”

The fact that he won three terms as a Muslim governor of a predominantly Christian population is a tribute to the education of the electorate and of the candidate.

Of course, it is not as simple as that. There are highly educated people who also use power to perpetrate violence. But his equation is persuasive: Illiteracy+Power = Violence

A New Home for ELF

admin — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:51:08 +0000

Last September 26, typhoon Ondoy caused unprecedented flooding in MetroManila. The raging flood waters entered the ground floor of ELF’s administrative office, and drowned not just our paper files, but even those in the desktops and laptops that were submerged for hours. The same fate was suffered by E-Net Philippines, with whom we have shared the office for over a year.

It was Saturday, and no one was at the office. We took comfort that no life was in danger.

But after the flood receded, we decided that it is time to move elsewhere, to higher ground. Although many factors caused the destructive flood, the message of climate change was forcefully delivered, and like other residents in MetroManila, we had to integrate risk reduction in our post-typhoon reconstruction plans.

Fortunately, within a few weeks, one of ELF’s senior partner, May Cinco, saw a newly posted sign “For Rent” as she was walking down Marunong Street in Quezon City. After a series of negotiations we arrived at a rental agreement, initially for a year, with possibility of renewing our lease.

The two-story apartment is too big for ELF’s current needs, so we invited partner organizations to share the place with us. One is ECAP, the Electric Consumers Advocacy of the Philippines, whose national president is also ELF’s president. The other is La Liga Policy Institute, a co-convenor of ELF in Go Organic! Philippines.

As we discussed the sharing of space and house rules, we some up with the idea of going beyond a shared office to building the place as a resource center for our focus issues – Education, Energy, and Ecology.

Just this afternoon, while we took a break from arranging our files and books, painting furniture, and clearing the backyard, ELF staff brainstormed about climate change and renewable energy, and how we will develop learning modules for the grassroots community leaders who are our strategic partners. The idea of a resource center expanded to include our plans to set up vermicompost beds and developing our backyard into an organic garden and an outdoor meeting place.

Next Friday, we will host a small gathering to mark the global launch of the “Charter for Compassion” which grew from the TED wish of Karen Armstrong. Our initial translation into Filipino is “Kartilya ng Pagmamalasakit.”

We look forward to a housewarming and inauguration of our resource center in December. Visit us at 25 Marunong Street, Central District, Quezon City.

Aeta Resilience

admin — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 13:38:38 +0000

When ELF decided on a strategic partnership with PBAZ, Paaralang Bayan ng mga Ayta sa Zambales, I proposed that we name our program “Developing Aeta LEADERS.”

I explained that LEADERS is an acronym for Leaders, Educators, Advocates, for Development, Empowerment, Resilience, and Sustainability.

All the key words are part of the standard development NGO vocabulary. The only word that is relatively different is “resilience.” And yet, it may be one of the most central concept for the Aetas.

I thought back to this when Carling Domulot, president of LAKAS and vice-chair of PBAZ asked to meet with me last night. He updated me about the floods that destroyed part of the highway leading to Botolan, and especially the waters that uprooted all their growing crops of sweet potatoes and vegetables.

The LAKAS community had offered their six-hectare field to their fellow Aetas who had been displaced by the floods. They all planted root crops and vegetables on small plots,. While waiting for them to grow for the harvest, he has asked ELF for any funds we could collect, to buy rice that they could eat in the meantime. Although the LAKAS community was not flooded (it was built on slightly higher ground), all its residents, like the displaced Aetas, were without their daily income, which they earned by working as day workers in nearby fields. But these had all been flooded.

Carling and his fellow Aetas were looking forward to the harvest to meet their food needs. But the recent flood washed away their crops.

He was disheartened, of course. But rather than dwelling on their latest tragedy, he went to the local government to ask for help. Some of the students who had visited them also brought relief. Carling was grateful for the help, but he also worried that the vulnerable state of his fellow Aetas would set back the years of “empowerment” that he and other Aeta leaders had helped bring about.

“I remember when Mt. Pinatubo erupted in 1991,” he said. “There were so many relief agencies who came to help us. They were competing with one another. We even experienced more divisions among the Aeta communities because each agency wanted their own partners.”

More important, prolonged dependence on relief weakened their tradition of self-reliance. This sense of dependence, plus the added divisions among them, were the focus of their education work and leadership over the past decade. He expressed his concern that the current disaster will bring back those old problems.

One small measure he suggests to those who bring them help is to avoid using the term “relief.” Instead, he suggests that the help offered should be like “food for work.” In exchange for support, the Aeta communities should clean up their settlements, plant trees, and plant food crops in between the trees.

Above all, he asks that outside agencies should work with the existing Aeta organizations and leaders, instead of creating exclusive partnerships.

Carling remembers 1991 vividly, and the many trials and challenges they had to overcome in order to rebuild their dispersed communities. Given the degradation of the forested mountains, and the siltation of rivers, he expects more disasters to occur in the future. He also has heard of the discussions on “climate change” and how they aggravate vulnerabilities.

But so long as their communities remain intact, and their leaders remain faithful to their interests, he trusts that the Aetas will recover after every trial, and will continue to pursue their vision of sustainable development. he even hopes to eventually return to the places which have been covered by the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo. He had visited some of their original settlements and was happy to see that plants have started growing where there was only barren soil.

That is an apt image of Aeta resilience.

Saving the Planet: Rising from the Ashes

admin — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 04:11:05 +0000

Join us in the Education Nation

admin — Wed, 20 May 2009 16:24:21 +0000

May 18, at the University of the Philippines, the Education Nation had its MetroManila launch. Similar launch activities will follow in Baguio, Pampanga, Cebu, and Davao.

E-Net Philippines, of which ELF is a founding member, is one of the convenors of Education Nation which seeks to bring together all the groups and institutions campaigning for education reforms.

The Philippine Business for Education, PBEd, acted as the lead convenor. The idea of Education Nation was hatched at a workshop organized by PBEd in Cebu in early March.

Although the focus of the campaign is on improving the formal, school-based, basic education system, Education Nation has accepted the advocacy of E-Net (and ELF) for building ALS or alternative learning systems for out of school youth and adults.

Education Nation sees its work as long-term and strategic. But because of the May 2010 elections, it seeks to make education reform one of the main issues in the election campaign, especially for the presidency. Hence its call for “an education government” and “an education president.”