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The Lumad in these times

Aug 22, 2020
2 min read

Updated: Aug 27, 2020

by Angelo Castañer

A FIGHT FOR THEIR RIGHTS. The Department of Education has officially ordered the permanent closure of 55 Lumad Schools after President Duterte’s threatening statement, “I will bomb Lumad Schools”. © www.intercontinentacry.org, Quimpo

Ever since they were forced to move out of their native communities back in 2017 due to violent

conflict, a group of 68 indigenous students and their teachers settled in a state university located in

Quezon City. Coincidentally, that was the same year President Duterte threatened to bomb Lumad

(indigenous) schools on suspicion of harboring New People’s Army rebels.

“We are prone to coronavirus because we are evacuees,”

Beverly Godofredo, a teacher, says. The basement that the group is currently occupying serves as their bedroom, their dining area, and theirclassroom. “If one of us contracts the virus, we’ll all be infected in no time.” The group has been stockpiling on vitamins since, according to Godofredo, their only fighting chance is to strengthen their immune system.

The evacuees worry over their food and vitamins every now and then. If they do run out and

some of them have to go out to buy, then they pose a risk of infection to themselves and the group that

lives in the crowded basement.

Despite the evacuees’ dire situation, they continue to learn their indigenous practices such as

agriculture, sciences, native languages, and cultural practices. “Lumad schools are ‘a form of resistance’ against aggressive development projects encroaching on tribal lands,” Godofredo states.

"Education is our only weapon,"

16-year-old student Kat notes. The range has seen logging activities and mining exploration since the 1980s, and sections have been turned into acres of plantations of pineapples and bananas—all because communities have allowed it, Kat explains, adding that their lack of education has drove them into this situation. That is why we have been moving to Manila to begin our schooling. It’s a necessary sacrifice. If we don’t do this now, who will fight for our community? Who will protect our ancestral land?”

Kat, Godofredo, and their fellow indigenous people remain in a cramped basement with limited

food and vitamins, making do with instant foods which last longer. They also do not expect any relief

goods to come from the government. However, they continue to learn about their beloved culture,

equipping education as their weapon against projects that threaten to destroy their ancestral land and

empowering them to carve both their own future and the future of the Lumad people.