Protection zones pushed for Baguio鈥檚 Ibaloys聽 deprived of land domain right
WAITING FOR LAND OF THEIROWN Members of Baguio’s Ibaloy community, shown during the celebration of Ibaloy Day on Feb. 23, 2024, is set to celebrate anew their day but their benefits under the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act are up in the air due to a provision that exempts the summer capital from the law. —NEIL CLARK ONGCHANGCO
BAGUIO CITY—The creation of tribal protection zones covering lands occupied by Ibaloys, Baguio’s indigenous community, is now being pushed by the city council as part of the local government’s comprehensive land use plan.
The council made the mode following the Supreme Court’s clarification that protections guaranteed by Republic Act No. 8471, the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act (Ipra), do not apply to Baguio’s Ibaloys.
Section 78 of Ipra exempts Baguio from its coverage because its townsite reservation is governed by the city’s charter.
Three separate SC rulings issued in 2019 and 2023 all stated that the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) should not issue ancestral land titles in Baguio due to this provision.
However, the city council, in its draft resolution, said there is legal basis to identify, delineate and classify the Ibaloy ancestral lands in Baguio as “special tribal ancestral zones” since both the Ipra and the 1987 Constitution also recognize indigenous Filipinos’ responsibility to manage ancestral land properties.
Article continues after this advertisementThe measure was sponsored by Ibaloy Councilors Isabelo Cosalan Jr. and Maximo Edwin (who also goes by the clan surname Bugnay) during the Jan. 27 council session.
Article continues after this advertisementThese zones would be incorporated into Baguio’s comprehensive land use plan (CLUP), which is currently being updated by city planners, said Cosalan, an engineer who conducted Baguio’s cadastral survey 15 years ago.
The city council and the NCIP, in a joint session here on Jan. 14, endorsed action plans to seek the repeal of the “unconstitutional” Section 78 of Ipra.
Sustainable programs
It calls for the CLUP to map out special tribal ancestral zones in order “to protect the rights of the indigenous communities of the City of Baguio over ancestral lands and domains and to preserve their culture,” among others.
The zoning plan will include “sustainable programs that promote economic development while ensuring environmental protection and cultural preservation, with traditional knowledge and practices integrated;” and measures for “cultural preservation and integrity, wherein activities such as traditional rituals, festivals, and other cultural expressions are respected.”
The plan also proposes to provide provision for ecotourism that “promote travel and visitation to natural areas, conservation, and support for the well-being of local communities,” as well as guidelines ensuring that tourism activities are “environmentally responsible, sustainable, culturally respectful, and beneficial to the indigenous community.”
The draft resolution also calls for the zoning plan to address agroforestry by designing a “land-use management system” for each respective zone, allowing trees to grow alongside food gardens and pasturelands.
