Life at the ‘Tarima’

MANILA, Philippines - Deep in the mountains of Davao del Norte lies the ancestral domain of the Manobo tribe. The families get by with help from the produce of the vast expanse of land. But planting alone cannot support even the basic needs of the community.

Most of the Manobo families survive the daily grind by eating boiled root crops like sweet potato and cassava. For 12-year-old Arnel, providing for his family is a priority. His parents can only cultivate corn and other root crops since they don’t have jobs. Wanting to help his family, Arnel takes responsibility for his younger siblings because the older ones are married.

Looking for other means for his family to survive, he wakes up early in the morning to earn a living by cutting trees in the forest. The logs are then carried down the mountain on foot for at least an hour. But carrying them is not easy. Each log weighs at least 40 kilos. He has to collect as many logs as he can to earn a few pesos.

Together with the other kids in the remote neighborhood, Arnel painstakingly carries life’s heavy burden.

Jay Taruc’s Tarima airs tonight on GMA 7’s I-Witness after Saksi.