The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) said some 100 ethnic groups will celebrate the annual “Indigenous People’s Sunday” today.
Laoag Bishop Sergio Utleg, who chairs the CBCP Episcopal Commission on Indigenous People (ECIP), said he is inviting the people “to value our own indigenous heritage as Filipinos. Instead of condemning and judging our IP brothers and sisters as backward or pagan, let us learn to listen to the presence of God in their life, ways and culture.”
In a statement, he said the indigenous people continue to struggle for ethnic and racial survival deep-rooted injustices against them.
Up to now, most indigenous people are still neglected, deprived, have become victims of injustice that have brought death to many of the native communities and cultures.
“These situations of violence have uprooted IPs from their territories, severing their life-giving relationships and sense of identity,” Utleg said.
He also noted the ongoing aggression against these tribal groups because they continuously become victims of land grabbing, human rights violations and militarization, which displaces those residing in indigenous communities.
In the legal arena, Utleg said, indigenous people triumphed in pushing the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act in 1997 and other international laws that let them gain recognition for their rights as a people and have been able to assert their title to their ancestral domains.
“They have been involved in bringing concerns into the national consciousness and the Church has partnered with them in advocating for more environment friendly practices,” he said. – Evelyn Macairan