From the steep lands and agriculturally rich soil of Kalinga exists one of the world’s indigenous governments called the Bodong. Fortifying it as a recognized institution is the pagta or “law of the Bodong” – meaning peace covenant or pact. As the traditional Constitution and By-Laws of the Kalinga society, it serves as the political guide of Bodong community called binodngan.
As a bilateral covenant mutually agreed upon by the peace pact holders, pagta contains provision on the setting of territories – “Buguis” for the villages of the north and “Kai-is” for the communities south. The established limitations define areas of responsibility where internal and/or external troubles are dealt with. Moreover, there are also punitive provisions that are concerned with settling inter-village or community feuds and ensuring security of people and their belongings. Violations, such as the Bug-uy and the Akaw, involving injuries, bloodshed, theft, and death are included in these provisions. Nangdon si Bodong or peace pact holders are the ones responsible for the avenging of the offended party and the negotiable settlement of the dispute. For some people who don’t see the wisdom on these provisions of pagta, they roughly translate it as “an eye for an eye, and tooth for a tooth.” Hence, this segment of the political code is proposed to undergo certain amendments especially the lex talionis (law of retaliation) provision. But since it has strongly governed the Cordilleran domain for many generations, modifying portions of it has proven to become a challenge.
In a broader view of pagta, Kalinga’s political compass fundamentally functions as the instrument in maintaining peace and order in every ancestral domain of the province. Adhered to by the locals since time immemorial, it’s more than just a thing of the past handed down by word of mouth, because pagta is considered as a significant contribution of Kalinga to national cultural treasures.
31 October 2021