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NPA's ‘divide, rule’ ploy ruins traditions: IP leader

By Alexander Lopez

November 13, 2019, 3:33 pm

<p><strong>DIVISIVE TACTICS.</strong> IP leader Datu Jumar Bucales, who also serves as the Indigenous People Mandatory Representative of the municipality of Lianga, Surigao del Sur, laments the divisive tactics of the communist rebels that he says is destroying the culture and traditions of the Indigenous Peoples in the area. Bucales is shown in the photo during the dialogue with party-list representatives Carlos Zarate and Eufemia Campos Cullamat held in Barangay Diatagon, Lianga, Surigao del Sur on Oct. 21, 2019. <em>(Photo courtesy of the Army's 3rd Special Forces Battalion)</em></p>

DIVISIVE TACTICS. IP leader Datu Jumar Bucales, who also serves as the Indigenous People Mandatory Representative of the municipality of Lianga, Surigao del Sur, laments the divisive tactics of the communist rebels that he says is destroying the culture and traditions of the Indigenous Peoples in the area. Bucales is shown in the photo during the dialogue with party-list representatives Carlos Zarate and Eufemia Campos Cullamat held in Barangay Diatagon, Lianga, Surigao del Sur on Oct. 21, 2019. (Photo courtesy of the Army's 3rd Special Forces Battalion)

BUTUAN CITY – A leader of the Manobo tribe in Lianga, Surigao del Sur, has condemned the "divide and rule tactics" of the communist New People’s Army (NPA), saying the rebels are twisting the Indigenous Peoples’ (IPs) customs and traditions.

In a phone interview on Tuesday, Datu Jumar Bucales, a Manobo chieftain and the IP Mandatory Representative (IPMR) of Lianga town, said the NPA has managed to get a hold of their customs and traditions through some tribal leaders that the communist rebels have deceived.

Bucales said the NPA, often through its front organizations, "infects" their customs and traditions by inserting the ideology of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), and spread it to other IP communities.

The CPP-NPA is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, the European Union, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Philippines.

“They are dividing us,” Bucales said in the local dialect as he expressed sadness over IP leaders who allowed themselves to be "utilized by the NPA in spreading wrong concepts and ideas" of their customs and traditions.

He also lambasted the communist rebels for installing leaders with the aim of displacing the legitimate IP leaders "that truly serve the interests of IP communities in Lianga and the whole of Surigao del Sur."

“They (NPA) must stop these practices. They are dividing our tribe and at the same time dominating the traditional leadership structures of our communities,” Bucales said.

He added that most IP communities affected by the “divide and rule” tactics of the NPA are those in far-flung areas.

Bucales also urged the group Malahutayong Pakigbisog Alang sa Sumusunod (MAPASU) to respect the legitimate IP leaders in Lianga who truly exercise the traditional tribal governance system based on the customary laws.

“MAPASU should follow our traditional leadership practices. They should not dictate the members of the council,” he said.

Bucales also called for unified efforts of the government and other sectors to help the tribe to escape from the influence of the rebels.

“Development interventions of the government and private groups are blocked by the NPA,” he said.

Bucales said he, together with legitimate IP leaders of Lianga, is trying to convince those who were influenced by the NPA to go back to their cultural practices and traditions.

“The ideology of the NPA does not recognize the rights of the IPs. We are calling our fellow IP leaders to go back to our own customs and traditions,” he added.

Bucales also recognized the Indigenous People’s Rights Act (IPRA) that truly recognizes the rights of the IPs in the country.

He also thanked the government line agencies and the Philippine Army for the support to IP communities in their effort to win back NPA-influenced IP leaders and communities. (PNA)

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