edge davao 8 supplement 98

EDGE SPECIAL SUPPLEMENT

DAVAO

That rich Dabawenyo culture

Kadayawan Special

Photo by Lean Daval Jr.

VOL. 8 ISSUE 98 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, AUGUST 16 - 17, 2015S2

Lumads and theirgastronomic journeythrough time

IP CUISINE

By BAI FAUZIAH FATIMA SINSUAT AMBOLODTO

IN todays’ social scenario, we oftentimes forget to pay homage to our hum-

ble beginnings. For us, what matters most is the now – the present – and never the past. Although this is correct, we must not forget how the present evolved from the past.

As we celebrate 30 glorious years of bountiful harvest, the Kadayawan sa Dabaw Festival has become

one of the most sought after festivals in the country. Not only is it fun, colourful and festive, the Kadayawan has also become an avenue for educating the public on the significance of the past.

In every occasion, food is the inevitable star. From ex-perimental appetizers and main courses to desserts passed on from one gener-ation to another, any cele-bration won’t be complete

without food. In essence, many of these dishes have been forgotten and taken for granted. For one, our aim to be different and innovative has paved the way for us to incorporate flavors of the world to local cuisines.

The Lumad or Indige-nous People of the southern Philippines have an assort-ment of dishes that have formed part of who we are

FIP CUISINE, 4

Photo from the web

Photo from the web

VOL. 8 ISSUE 98 • SUNDAY - MONDAY, AUGUST 16 - 17, 2015 S3


today. However, the question remains: are their cuisines still present in today’s ever chang-ing times? Or have they been forgotten?

One study reveals that the term lumad is short for Katawhang Lumad and is un-derstood to refer to a collective group of indigenous (locals, aboriginals) people living in Mindanao. There are about 18 indigenous groups of Lumads in Mindanao alone. These groups live in a rather more traditional way – from their language, cul-ture, tradition, clothes and of course, food.

Their food preparations and ingredients used also play a significant role in their identity. Most often, they would be cook-ing with bamboo and clay pots. The use of herbs, curries, coco-nut milk, and exotic meat and finds from the forest and the sea is also a reminder that there is more to Filipino food than the typical sinigang and adobo we’ve grown up with.

Furthermore, their food or dishes are representative of oc-casions. There are different set meals for specific celebrations –

natal day, death, weddings, and the like. The variation is cultur-ally rooted, hence the reference to the past.

Yes, there are still those who prepare and cook just like in the old days. However, there are also those, because of the availability of present-day in-gredients, infuse the present with the past, thus resulting in a more appealing taste for today’s generation.

There is another side to that story. As much as they want to cook and relive the past with their dishes, the unavailability of resources is a hindrance that limits them to do it. If in the past there was an abundance of food from the sea, land, and air, nowadays there is scarcity. Hence, they tend to cook and eat what they can easily find.

Truly, we are blessed to live in a diversified community that respects each other. Although we are moving forward, it is not an excuse to let go of the past. The Lumads value their culture, tradition, and their identity. They stand out and make them-selves known for who they are and not just what they are.

Photo by Skippy Lumawag, SDD-CMO

IP cuisine... FROM 2

Photo from the web

Photo from the web

Photo from the web


By CHARLES RAYMOND A. MAXEY

“It’s all set and we are ready to stage the Tribal Games,” said Tommy Iñigo, chair of the Lumadnong Dula of the 30th Kadayawan sa Dabaw Festival.

To be staged by the Government of Davao through the Sports Development Divi-sion-City Mayor’s Office (SDD-CMO) for the sec-ond straight year, the 2nd Davao Indigenous Tribal Games is not only a competition among Lumads but a showcase of their tradition and culture.

A total of five tribes led by defending cham-pion Ata Manobo are competing in this year’s Games. Also set to dis-play their skills in 12 events associated with their culture and lan-guage are the tribes of Matigsalog, Obu Man-ovu, Tagabawa, and Kla-

ta Manobo. The events include

pana, sisibow, kakasing, bubuntug, solopot. bi-binayo, siklot, aakow/karang, totarngki/pan-ing, sosakoro/panikado, dagan (running), and tug-of-war.

“It’s going to be big-ger,” Iñigo said.

The Tribal Games will also be highlighted with a ritual chanting to be performed by a Tagabawa and the play-ing of balakaw, the big-gest musical instrument of the Lumads, to signal unit and happiness, and cultural presentation by Datu Jaime Epi of the Obu Manovu.

For this year’s Games, the city gov-ernment has allocated P580,000 to cover cash prizes, transportation expenses, and food of the participants and guests.

PHOTOS BY: Tommy S. Iñigoand Skippy Lumawag, SDD-CMO

Tribal Games:Showcasing Lumad tradition, culture

FIRE making, water fetching, tug of war, and hitting targets using bow and arrow are just some of the

games the indigenous peoples of Davao City will be showcasing when the 2nd Davao Indigenous Tribal Games gets underway on August 20 at the People’s Park.

FTRIBAL GAMES, 11


Over the years, however, questions have been raised as to how much the city really values and protects its indig-enous peoples. Indeed, the Kadayawan itself has been criticized for paying mere lip service to the tribes and even of exploiting them for the sake of tourism. It has been point-ed out time and again that the performers at the street danc-ing competition are not even Lumad themselves but are city dwellers who have turned the event into a major pro-duction number. The average Dabawenyo is hard pressed to describe what indigenous art is.

For prominent Dabawen-yo artist Vic Secuya, art is the soul of a people. Man, he said, paraphrasing the Bible, “does not live by bread alone” but also by expressing what he sees around him through painting, music, dance, and other art forms. Unfortunate-ly, he added, indigenous art is dying, and perhaps with it the ethnic tribes are also beginning to fade away. “I once asked an antique dealer in Aldevinco where I could order an authen-tic Okir design. The old man told me that most of the artists are dead and no new genera-tion of artists are coming up. It shows that Okir as an art form will soon be gone,” he said.

Secuya said one of the problems is the current condi-tion of many Lumad communi-ties. This is perhaps best exem-plified by the 700 IPs currently living in the Haran compound of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP) in Davao City. They have evacuat-ed there because of militariza-tion in their homes, and while in Haran their only concern is how to keep themselves alive.

“If indigenous communi-ties are oppressed, destitute, and poor, they will have no opportunity to make art. In-digenous artists must be rec-ognized and supported finan-cially for them to be creative and productive,” Secuya said. He has been dreaming of the time when Davao City, given its diverse cultures and large

number of artists both indige-nous and modern, will become the center of the arts for the country.

For artist Dadai Joaquin, indigenous art comes mainly in music and dance – which are the ones highlighted in the Kadayawan – and in crafts and weavings. She said these should be preserved by en-couraging the IPs to continue their oral tradition and pass on their art to the younger gener-ations.

A foreign ethnomusicolo-gist studying indigenous Fili-pino music said as a foreigner, she sees indigenous art here as “being so beautiful, valuable and unique.”

“Unfortunately, I am con-cerned that a lot of it is in dan-ger of dying out. For example, I am studying Kalagan kulin-tang music, but I haven’t seen any young Kalagans playing it, and I’ve never seen any books or articles published about it or recordings released to the public. I’ve seen articles about Maguidanaon, Tausug and Ma-ranao kulintang music, but not Kalagan,” she said.

“I also think that the fu-sion art and music that uses indigenous elements is also very special. As a foreigner, I don’t want to hear Filipino im-itations of Western music. I’ve heard that all before. I want to hear original Filipino music. Unfortunately what is promot-ed on radio stations is usually either foreign music or Filipino music that sounds Western. It’s usually really difficult to find music that is influenced by Filipino indigenous music, you just have to go to live gigs and hopefully find some,” she added.

There are currently no or-dinances in Davao City specif-ically giving support to Lumad art, but councilor Mabel Sun-ga-Acosta pledged to do her best to create legislation that would give IP artists the much needed support they need and deserve. Perhaps only when such laws are instituted will we see the Lumad being honored not just during Kadayawan but every single day of the year.

Preserving theart of the Lumad

THE Kadayawan is a festival celebrating Davao City’s indigenous peoples and their rich cultures. Each year the Ka-

dayawan Festival revolves around the cul-ture of the city’s 11 tribes – Iranun, Sama, Bagobo-Klata, Bagobo-Tagabawa, Maguin-

danaon, Kagan, Matigsalog, Maranao, Ata, Tausug, and Ovu Manubo – and one of the

highlights, the street dancing competi-tion, showcases the movements and

colorful traditions of each. The artistry of the Lumad both in dance and visuals is beyond compare, and every year tour-ists from all over the world flock to watch the revelry and take countless photos that tell of the vibrant diversity in these parts.

By JON JOAQUINPhotos by LEAN DAVAL JR.


Invited during the staging of the Tribal Games are Department of Transportation As-sistant Secretary Arturo Boncato Jr., City Adminis-trator Atty. Jesus Melchor V. Quitain, SDD-CMO of-ficer-in-charge William “Butch” Ramirez, and

Councilor Halila Y. Su-dagar, IP Representative to the City Council.

The activity is one significant occasion for the Lumads and this also reminds everyone of the United Nations (UN) dec-laration protecting their existence. The United Na-

tions, during its 61st ses-sion at the UN Headquar-ters in New York in Sep-tember 2007, adopted the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

The Declaration sets out the individual and collective rights of indig-enous peoples, as well

as their rights to culture, identity, language, em-ployment, health, edu-cation and other issues. It also “emphasizes the rights of indigenous peo-ples to maintain and strengthen their own in-stitutions, cultures and traditions, and to pur-

Tribal Games... FROM 6

sue their development in keeping with their own needs and aspirations.” The identity of the Lumads was aptly depict-ed when the city govern-ment of Davao first staged the Tribal Games last year

also at the People’s Park.For this year, around

300 Lumads will converge once again at the same place to display their tra-dition and culture.

This is their way of life.


San Isidro’s women hog raisersDavao Oriental’s game-changers SAN ISIDRO, Davao

Oriental -The re-mote village of

Cambaleon in San Isidro town in Davao Oriental is the recent beneficiary of a com-munity-managed live-lihood project through the Sustainable Live-lihood Program (SLP) of the Department of Social Welfare and De-velopment (DSWD).

Rich in marine re-sources and agricultur-al products, San Isidro was selected for the na-tional pilot run of the then CIDSS (Compre-hensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Ser-vices) in 1993.

Most of its baran-gays have also been included in the Core Shelter Assistance Pro-gram (CSAP) in early to mid-1990s.

Apart from SLP, the municipality present-ly enjoys other DSWD programs such as Ka-lahi-CIDSS, Pantawid Pamilya, Supplementa-ry Feeding, and Social Pension.

Organized in No-vember 2014, the Cam-baleon Hog Raisers SEA-K Association is composed of 20 wom-en who obtained a cap-ital assistance of Php 200,000.00 following several social prepara-tion activities.

Joining the women recipients at the turn-over program were lo-cal officials and DSWD officers led by SLP pro-vincial coordinator Ju-lius Duterte.

Municipal Social Welfare and Develop-ment Officer Elna G. Arenal expressed op-timism on this latest DSWD engagement.

“At this early, I fore-see the success of this all-women venture. I am very positive that they can do it given their sheer enthusiasm and the technical in-puts being provided by DSWD project develop-ment officers.”

I am just so excited because in the past, San Isidro has exten-sively worked with

DSWD on the core shelter units construct-ed in several barangays here. Now, we still have Kalahi-CIDSS, Pan-tawid Pamilya, Social Pension, Suplementary Feeding, and others. In a way, our town is blessed with a lot of social protection pro-grams from DSWD and we are grateful for this, Arenal shared.

ABC President Rey-naldo Peñafiel and some members of the barangay council also conveyed their hap-piness and pledged to support the project.

Association Pres-ident Renefe Quili-sadio delivered her message of acceptance and promised to take good care of the fund entrusted them and committed as well to deliver the roll back payment in a quarterly basis.

“Initially, we will start working on 40 piglets with an aver-age weight of 10 kilos each,” she said.

Based on SLP Pol-icy Memo 04-2013 from the Office of Sec-retary Soliman, Cam-baleon Hog Raisers SEA-K Association will serve as the SLP-Sup-plementary Feeding Program Commodity Cluster Model (CCM) in San Isidro, Duterete shared.

Hence, the group is responsible in supply-ing the pork meat re-quirement in the con-duct of Supplementary Feeding Program in the town which provides nutritious hot meals to children in day care centers, Duterte added.

DSWD contin-ues to empower poor families nationwide through SLP, a com-munity-based capacity building program that seeks to improve so-cio-economic status of family recipients, in partnership with local governments, nation-al government and non-government agen-cies. (DSWD/Carmela C. Duron)

Distribution of hogs to members led by association president Renefe Quilisadio [in violet].


THE National Commission on Indigenous People (NCIP) aims to intensify

its campaign among national government agencies to bring their respective government services for health and educa-tion to geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas (GI-DAs) this year. “Only through partnerships with other agen-cies can we deliver govern-ment services to IP communi-ties in the region,” NCIP techni-cal and management division Chief Shirley B. Iguianon said.

Regional health director Abdullah Dumama Jr. earlier described IPs as the most vul-nerable sector. With limited ac-cess to health services because of their location, they are part of the marginalized popula-tion.

For 47-year-old Benito D. Bay-oo of the Ata Manobo tribe from the hinterlands of Ba-rangay Talaingod in Kapalong, Davao del Norte, hospitaliza-tion is not a priority. Not even the time when his wife de-livered their 10 children. His

wife did not experience any pre-natal checkup because of the kilometers-long walk to the nearest health center. She delivered all her unborn child all by herself. “I only attended to my wife when I heard the baby cry,” he said.

It was not un-til their baby was stricken with mea-sles in 2010 that they found the need to go for a medical checkup. “Kuyaw na to na sakit mao-ng gidala na namo sa ospital,” he said, recounting how he was asked by hospi-tal personnel for his down payment before his child was attended to.

This is not a unique scenar-io to the indigenous groups of Talaingod. Dumama said first semester data for maternal death for the Davao del Sur re-vealed that of the 25 deaths, 15 were IP women, 13 of whom were from Malita while the re-

maining two came from the IP community of Jose Abad San-tos.

“The number one cause of death among IP women was hemorrhage,” he said, adding

the irony that the region is one of the areas in the country that have high blood supply in different blood banks. He said some IP women died because of complication in labor and delivery.

Nurse Elegyn Balonga of the community health pro-gram for Davao del Norte and

Compostela Valley said young Lumads in Talaingod often die from dehydration and measles. “The lack of basic health train-ing among Lumad mothers and the distance from health facili-

ties usually contrib-ute to the death of a young lumad,” she said.

Balonga, who has been a nurse for 10 years in Talain-god and its nearby communities, said Lumad communities only receive medi-cal attention from government through medical missions that happen once in a while.

EducationIt is not just health services

but also quality education that is limited for IPs. “You can bare-ly count with your fingers those young Lumads who can finish elementary,” Iguianon said.

She said there are tribes in the region that have large

number of professionals rang-ing from teachers, lawyers and doctors. But in some groups, many members remain at the elementary level, or worse, have no education at all. “It is crucial to educate Lumads be-cause it is the first step you can empower them,” Iguanon said.

Iguianon said the NCIP ex-tends financial assistance to only 700 young IP dreamers yearly out of more than 2,000 applicants. “As much as we want to accommodate them all, our office only has P11 million for education of college stu-dents,” she said. She said she herself belongs to an IP group and through perseverance was able to send herself to college while working as a student as-sistant.

She said the region is still “kilometers away” from attain-ing 100 percent literacy rate among IPs in the region. Even with the government interven-tion, she said it is necessary for members of the IPs community to help themselves even in little ways.

Healing and educating the LumadsBy CHENEEN R. CAPON

It is crucial to educate Lumads because it is the first step you can

empower them

Photo by Skippy Lumawag, SDD-CMO

edge davao 8 supplement 98

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