A Message Of Solidarity From IPMSDL For The 37th Cordillera Day

As we celebrate the 37th Cordillera Day, we recognize and honour the Cordillera Indigenous Peoples in their struggle for self-determination and defence of their land, life and honour.

We remember the brave leadership and historical role of Ama Macliing Dulag, assassinated on this day by military forces of the Marcos Dictatorship for defending indigenous territories and consolidating unity among Indigenous communities along the Chico River.

His memory and that of other heroes and martyrs of the anti-Chico Dam struggle lives on. A legacy passed on to new generations of brave and militant land and environmental defenders resisting militarization, resource plunder and state fascism.

At this time of worsening economic hardship, intensifying state repression and a seemingly never-ending global pandemic, the Cordillera Peoples collectively rise above these challenges. We acknowledge the Cordillera People’s Alliance (CPA), one of our founding member organizations, for its steadfast commitment to advancing Indigenous Peoples’ rights in this climate of worsening human rights violations by the state.

The CPA provided much-needed relief to indigenous communities during militaristic lockdowns that cut access to food and livelihood sources. And yet, they have been made targets of judicial harassment, denunciation, and red-tagging by desperate state officials. These public officials that only seek to justify the atrocities of Duterte’s dictatorship against activists, including peasant and Indigenous leaders.

This year, we celebrate the hard-fought victories of the Cordillera Peoples in their decades-long struggle for self-determination. We also honour the sacrifices made by Cordillera heroes and martyrs, including those who selflessly took the path of armed resistance.

The reactionary state tried to revise history. It dismantled the Monuments of Ama Macliing Dulag, Pedro Dungoc and Ama Lumbaya Gayudan. But the Butbut tribe in Kalinga fearlessly took it upon themselves to restore the monument and reclaim history.

The IPMSDL extends its warmest solidarity with the Cordillera Peoples. We salute the CPA in advancing the rights of the Indigenous Peoples not only within the region, throughout the Philippines and across the globe. We gained many lessons from your militant history and ongoing resistance against imperialist plunder and state oppression.

We join fellow IP rights activists and advocates to continue support to the CPA. Let us lend our strength to defend the Cordillera from foreign capitalist corporations and destructive developmental projects.

This year, we continue to rise and resist state fascism and resource plunder! So long as the state and private corporations threaten our right to land and life, the struggle for self-determination and liberation continues! The legacy of our Indigenous heroes and martyrs lives on!

Reference: 
Beverly Longid, Global Coordinator
info@ipmsdl.org

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