Bilang Tibak, tayo ay…
nangangarap para sa katarungan, kalayaan, at buhay,
nagmamahal ng sarili, kapwa, at komunidad, nagpoprotesta para maisakatuparan ang kinabukasang gusto nating matamo.
Ito ay ating kwento…
Tibak, is a slang term for “aktibista”, known and used by activists across different issues and struggles, and slandered and demonized by the Philippine government across administrations.
But to be an activist, is simply to take action—to speak out, educate, protest—towards change. And to be a human rights activist, a.k.a human rights defender, is to take action for human rights change.
And throughout our history, it is activists that are at the frontline of political and social change—workers unions marching on the streets to demand for 8-hour workdays, students writing articles and barricading classrooms to expose the cruelties and stand against the dictatorship, indigenous communities blocking cars to prevent the construction of dams in their ancestral lands, LGBTQIA+ organizations raised their placards together in the first-ever pride march in the country, ordinary people texting their friends and families to join in bringing corrupt government officials to justice, and artists performing in concerts and creating effigies to call for justice for the victims of martial law.
“There is no specific definition of who is or can be a human rights defender. The Declaration on human rights defenders refers to “individuals, groups and associations … contributing to … the effective elimination of all violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms of peoples and individuals”.
Spotlight on the struggles of TIBAK
Listen to Bae Theresa’s Kwentong Tibak, and learn the story of the Manobo Pulangiyon.
According to Manobo-Pulangiyon their ancestors have lived on Ancestral land, a property consisting of nearly-1000 hectares, since before the Spanish arrived. In their Statements they refer to several key landmarks that are not only easily identifiable but also significant to their culture.
However, in 1986 this ancestral land was placed under the control of Kiantig Development Corporation (KDC) (formerly known as Cesar Fortich Incorporated) via the awarding of the Forest Land Graze Management Agreement (FLGMA) No. 122. An FLGMA is a product-sharing agreement between a qualified entity and the government to develop, manage, and utilize grazing lands. This same FLGMA has since expired in 2018. In January 2019, a representative of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) acknowledged that property was no longer in their jurisdiction and that authority over the property had passed to the Natioonal Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP).
Why justice is awaiting them
The Manobo-Pulangiyon filed for their Certificate of Ancestral Domain Title (CADT) with the NCIP on 5 June 1998 following the enactment of the Indigenous People Rights Act (IPRA) in 1997. Twenty years later, prior to the expiry of the FLGMA, KDC forced them forced out of the contested area, driven away from their community near the banks of the Pulangi River.
On 28 August 2023, after an arduous legal battle, the tribe finally received a copy of CADT No.261 issued by NCIP in January of the same year, lawfully certifying their ownership over the land. However to date, the tribe’s peaceful reinstatement to their ancestral domain has not been fulfilled.
What Amnesty International is doing
Amnesty International Philippines became involved in the case when Task Force Detainees of the Philippines reached out for financial assistance through the Human Rights Defenders Protection (HRDP) project. At the time, Amnesty provided the community – who have been living in the back streets of Quezon with no assistance from the government – with sacks of rice and medical assistance to one of the wounded community members.
Aside from providing material resources to support their community’s ongoing survival, Amnesty has committed to assisting the Manobo-Pulangiyon with reclaiming their ancestral lands from KDC.