For Lumad displaced by the quakes, will there still be a village to return to?

MAKILALA, North Cotabato (MindaNews) -- Bagobo Tagabawa Lumads (Indigenous Peoples) living in the hinterland villages here are among thousands of residents who have evacuated to the town center following a series of four above-magnitude-6 earthquakes between October 16 and 31.

When they will return to their villages, no one can say for now. When they do go back, repairing their damaged houses or building new ones to replace those that collapsed, will take time. For a still undetermined number of

Lumads, however, there may be no home and no village to return to.

Barangay Luayon, whose residents are predominantly Bagobo

Tagabawa, is one of four villages that have been declared as “no build zones” among Makilala’s 38 barangays. Kagawad Cornelio Damali, Indigenous Peoples (IP) Mandatory Representative, said 84% of 647 households of barangay Luayon, are Lumads (IPs). The entire village has been dispersed to various evacuation centers since the Magnitude 6.5 quake struck on Thursday, October 31. Damali said they average five “gyera” (wars) a year between government forces and the new Peoples Army (NPA) but “dili mi maapektahan sa gyera” (we’re not affected by the wars). He meant they have not evacuated because of the “gyera.” But the series of earthquakes forced them out of their homes and villages “kay wala na miy puluy-anan. Hugmak na tanan (because we have no more homes to return to. All have collapsed) “Walay balay nabilin sa Luayon. Pati among barangay hall nga lig-on kaaayo naguba. Eskwelahan -- elementary high school daycare, hurot. Hugmak. (No house stands in Luayon. Even our barangay hall which is a strong structure, was destroyed. The elementary, high school and day care schools, too), the Kagawad, also referred to as Datu and Pastor, said. Four earthquakes above Magnitude 6 struck the area between October 16 and 31: Magnitude 6.3 on October 16, Magnitudes 6.6 and 6.1 on October 29 and Magnitude 6.5 on October 31. A resident, Patricio Lumayon, was hit by “nagalupad na mga bato” (flying rocks) while tapping rubber when the Magnitude 6.6 struck on October 29. He was rushed to the hospital in the poblacion but died in the evening. “Dili na mi pabalikon sa Luayon” The residents of Luayon did not only lose their homes, they also lost their main source of livelihood: rubber tapping, and have just been told they have lost their village, too. Barangays Luayon, Bato, Buhay and Cabilao have been declared no-build zones, their residents evacuated to the poblacion. “Mao na ingon sa Phivolcs. Dili na mi pabalikon sa Luayon” (That’s what the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said. We cannot return to Luayon), Damali explained. He said their mayor told them government will relocate Luayon’s 647 households, more than 500 of that Lumads. Damali said they would negotiate to be allowed to still farm in Luayon even if they would be relocated elsewhere, explaining that’s where their lands are. He describes the land ownership in Luayon as fair. “Walay adunahan, walay pobre. Halos tanan naay yuta” (No rich, no poor. Almost all have lands). The lands are planted mostly to rubber. As of Tuesday, November 5, Damali said, the road to Luayon was still inaccessible. The only way to reach the place aside from hiking is on motorcycle. Damali said he asked Makilala Mayor Armando Quibod a question that has not been answered: if, for example they have are able to acquire five to 10 hectares of land in Barangay Malasila for a relocation site, “matawag pa ba nga Barangay Luayon” (can you still call it Luayon)? Luayon comes from word “Luay,” a kind of grass that that grows in their village. But will they still call their village Luayon if Luay does not grow in their relocation site, MindaNews asked. “Magkambyo na mig pangalan” (We will change our name), he said. Sheryl Orbita, municipal administrator of Makilala told MindaNews that the local government is looking for relocation for residents of the villages declared ‘no build zones.’ She said they have several options to choose from but they will have these checked by the Phivolcs and the Mines and Geosciences Bureau. In the areas declared as “nobuild zones,” Orbita said Phivolcs informed them farming can still be done at daytime but not when it rains. Living there,, however, will not be allowed. Waiting for verdict At the Makilala Central Elementary School, Datu Bienvenido Makalos told MindaNews that all households in Barangay Batasan at the foothills of Mt. Apo had fled their villages starting Tuesday, October 29, when the magnitude 6.6 and 6.1 quakes struck. Of this number, around 200 households or about 1,000 individuals are Bagobo Tagabawa, but they have been dispersed to three areas – in Kisante, Flortam and the school grounds where around 60 families have pitched tents. Datu Makalos said they fled their village after the Magnitudes 6.6 and 61. quakes on Tuesday, October 29, because they were afraid a lake in their ancestral domain might give way when another strong quake happens. Another quake did happen two days later, on October 31, at Magnitude 6.5. That quake killed their barangay captain when a beam in the barangay hall fell on him. He said they will wait for the government to declare their area safe or unsafe for return. But what he wants to know is, if the verdict is it is unsafe, “asa dapit ang among relocation area” (where will our relocation area be?)