Higaûnon Resistance and Ethnic Politics in Northern Mindanao¹

Abstract

The root causes of armed aggression among Higaûnon people in northern Mindanao, Philippines, have changed over the centuries. Prior to the 20th century, its primary aim was raiding for slaves and for redress of personal grievances. At the turn of the 20th century, armed aggression became tied to the loss of ancestral lands, an issue which grew more acute as Mindanao became the target of government resettlement policies and economic ventures. In the 1970s, Higaûnon aggression culminated in the ‘Higaûnon War’ against commercial logging on their ancestral lands. Rhetoric employed in this ‘war’ changed over the years, from limited personal grievances to Marxist ideology to radical environmentalism, all of which have engendered violent responses from the government. Recently, Higaûnons have conflated environmentalist rhetoric with expressions of their ethnic identity, and emphasised their economic as well as cultural dependence on the land. This peaceful strategy has produced some positive results but, because of continuing land insecurity, it has not completely eliminated the prospect of armed aggression in the future.

Citizenship and Democratization in Southeast Asia

“…This is in part due to the extensive adaptations to dumagat society and to the Philippine state that Higaunons have made over the past few decades. Despite their historical resistance to state and settler encroachment on their ancestral lands (Paredes 1997), Higaunons have made deliberate efforts since the 1990s to cultivate what they consider to be 'proper' citizenship in an effort to identify themselves as Filipino. For the most part this has involved assimilating where possible into dumagat culture, to make themselves appear less 'savage' and more 'citizenly' to dumagats.…”

“…Such inadequacies have driven some IP's to break out of the ncip's bureaucratic constraints and fight for inclusion in mainstream Filipino society. But as IP's have more actively embraced and demanded their citizenship rights, they 8 See Paredes (1997). The presence of logging and mining operations in Lumad areas has long been a political and environmental problem.…”

Custom and Citizenship in the Philippine Uplands

“…SeeParedes (1997). The presence of logging and mining operations in Lumad areas has long been a political and environmental problem.…”