Hapa, Justin Edward M.

Eng 13 – WFX2

2018 – 08853 Ma’am Anna Felicia Sanchez

BS Molecular Biology and Biotechnology Reflection Paper

Guardians in Need of Protection

My home province Bulacan is also home to the Dumagat people, an indigenous ethnic

group concentrated in Norzagaray, San Jose Del Monte, and Donya Remedios Trinidad

[ CITATION Gut12 \l 1033 ]. Although I rarely see them as a group in my hometown Malolos, I

have encountered them in many occasions rather as individuals. My closest personal encounter

to them is when they beg for alms in jeepneys, where they introduce themselves as a Dumagat

and try to appeal to the passengers’ humanity, and then distribute small envelopes to ask for

donations. They only group together during special occasions such as Christmas and New Year’s

Eve.

The term Dumagat came from the word “rumakat” (similar to lumakad) that signifies

their nomadic way of living in the past (Reid, 1994). Others associate the term to “dagat” that

reflects their sea-faring ancestors. Historically, the Dumagat is a group of people whose ancestral

origin is traced from Negritos, which is one of the earliest inhabitants of the Philippines,

preceding the Austronesian migrations[ CITATION Rei13 \l 1033 ]. Today, they are considered a

sub-group of them. This relationship is manifested by their dark skin color and curled hair that

sometimes exhibit golden brown dyes due to exposure to the sun and the sea.

The history of Bulacan is deeply intertwined to the history of the Dumagat people. They

were the first to inhabit Bulacan, although they were later pushed to the mountain sides due to
the arrival of the Tagalogs[CITATION His \l 1033 ]. In World War II, they were part of the

Filipino cavalry that pushed back the Japanese troops. Today, many of their descendants have

now become part of the bantay-gubat, rangers who patrol the perimeter of the province’s forests

against illegal loggers and unwanted trespassers[ CITATION Zin18 \l 1033 ]. In a way, they took

on a role as guardians of the province, both in the past and present times.

But the guardians themselves experience several injustices. In Sapang Munti in Bulacan,

the Ipo Watershed – a dam part of the more extensive Angat Water System – houses a Dumagat

community. The government pays some of them to guard the Ipo Watershed against illegal

logging and burning, though reports say that these forest guards are victims to a history of

delayed and unpaid wages [ CITATION Ran16 \l 1033 ]. Also, the Dumagat themselves, ironically,

have little access to potable water.

Due to their occupation of lands with high commercial value, they are a frequent target of

harassment. Groups with interest on their lands sometimes forcibly take them through the use of

armed violence [ CITATION Bal18 \l 1033 ]. Others pose as military or police personnel to force

them to evacuate from their lands in the pretext of government project construction (Balbin,

2018).

Despite the government’s passage of laws that supposedly protect these people, it is

evident that the same government have continued to play blind and deaf to their real needs. The

Dumagat people still lack representation in government, particularly in the House of

Representatives [ CITATION Cru13 \l 1033 ] . Their right to ancestral domain is continuously

threatened by government projects (Ranada, 2015). At the extreme, military force perpetrate

human rights abuses against the Dumagat people, with allegations of torture and harassment

being forwarded in recent years [ CITATION Cal09 \l 1033 ].

 Their vulnerable status is further cemented by their lack of access to education. Low

literacy rates have been prevalent among the Dumagat people [ CITATION Val17 \l 1033 ] due to

lack of schools in their areas. Without a basic knowledge of reading and writing, they are

vulnerable to exploitation, especially the type that is enforced through paper.

The Dumagat people have been serving as guardians to the province’s strongholds,

protecting them against the Japanese in the past and illegal loggers in the present, but their

current status as an exploited people tell that they themselves are in need of protection.

References

Balbin, M. (2018, February 27). Army official orders probe on reported harassment of
Dumagats. Retrieved from Philippine News Agency:
http://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1026763
Calonzo, A. C. (2009, December 11). 5 Dumagats to file torture charges vs military. Retrieved
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dumagats-to-file-torture-charges-vs-military/story/
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