August 9, 2021
In commemorating today’s International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, we in CDPC reaffirm our commitment to march along with the Cordillera Indigenous Peoples in our quest for a development that is founded on human rights and indigenous peoples rights. We reaffirm the declaration we have forged in November 7 – 13, 2013 on a “genuine development that builds upon the existing indigenous values of community solidarity, collective over individual interest, labor cooperation, volunteerism, and service to the people as opposed to dole-out projects that breed corruption, dependency and divisiveness among the people. The indigenous values of community over individual interest, and of nurture and management of resources for present and future generations are further nourished, as opposed to profit and the exploitative regard of resources. Our vision of self determined sustainable development incorporates development justice, that of redistributing the fruits of development to the most impoverished sections of our society, comprehensively addressing inequality, and using resources for the people’s welfare.”
In addressing our development vision, we stand by the indigenous communities and their organizations in challenging the completely immoral infringement on the right to access international official development aid in support of community self-determined development interventions. We decry the persistent red-tagging of the communities and POs we are working with and for.
We decry the apparent conditionality where our social services and projects and that of our networks have to be eliminated before the Barangay Development Program under the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict will be funded. Several of our projects were turned down while existing ones are being asked to be taken out. Our partner POs are being pressured for dissolution or renamed with the leaders being pressured to have their names be “cleared.” These conditionality that bars communities from accessing support from NGOs, disrupting POs and coercing leaders to be “cleared” is patently anti-development, anti-social and degrading. It is a program that may deliver welfare for the people, but ultimately contradicts the basic foundation of human development, that of cultivating community dignity, happiness and security.
As we commemorate this Indigenous Peoples Day, we share our voice with the louder voice calling for defunding the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict, in particular its Barangay Development Program. Such Barangay Development Program is better placed under the mandated development agencies of the national government and local government units and should truly address development agenda bereft of military and political objectives.