To live in peace and social security with the belief of advancing towards economic prosperity and social stability if peace is achieved has always been the end goal of tribal communities in the Cordilleras. Empowering the members of the tribe whilst embracing peace was Benedicto’s way of leading their tribe towards reaching greater heights.
Benedicto Sugguiyao of the I’Kalinga, Lubo subtribe has borne the title of Nangdon si Bodong for more than two meaningful decades after inheriting the position from his father. Benedicto believes that Bodong has been the primary peace institution from practices by certain ethnic groups in Kalinga that governs the relationship between two tribes with the specific territorial jurisdiction.
To enforce the provisions of the PAGTA and exercise stewardship over the tribesmen of the counterpart village has been Benedicto’s cardinal duty as the Bodong holder. It is stipulated in the ethnic constitution that the leaders of both tribes should protect each other’s members as their own. As a matter of fact, the host tribe shall be held responsible should there be any unfortunate instances that may arise during their stay in the territory.
For so long, Benedicto’s journey of being the peace pact holder has not been smooth-sailing at all. According to him, there are various trials and tribulations he faced in maintaining the peace and harmony between the two tribes. Collectively, he believes that there are two striking obstacles he defied in his decades of serving. It is, first, responding to the need of maintaining peace and amity by and between two tribes and looking for peaceful solutions whenever there is conflict, and second, finding ways on how to balance the indigenous way of settling disputes and the local statutes and national laws.
Opinion about Women Peacepact Holders
Benedicto believes that men are more capable of becoming Bodong holders because men are more physically-equipped to maintain the balance of terror and to protect the village from incursions in case of tribal conflicts. This belief stems from the ancient and conservative perception of their elders that being the Nangdon si Bodong should only be held by men. Traditionally, Bodong has always been only for men. Women, on the other hand, carry the responsibility in food, pots, and merrymaking. Women only join in celebrations as food servers and entertain the guests with songs and dances during the rituals.
However, Benedicto takes a rapid paradigm shift and considers women being peace pact holders; only that, there are no women ‘takers’ in his tribe. He dreams of seeing women taking up space in a once male-dominated environment in the future, although he is not sure whether women are interested in being Bodong holders.
Young Generation of the Kalinga
Contrary to popular belief that the younger generation of indigenous people tends to ignore their cultural values, Benedicto sees a bright future for the Kalinga community. He believes that the interest among the youth in participating in the Bodong process is increasing. This is due to the fact that indigenous knowledge systems and practices are now a mandate of the curriculum enshrined among secondary and tertiary learning institutions.
Benedicto further emphasized that the placement of representatives of the Mandate of Indigenous Peoples in all regional legislative bodies has also made an impact on the resurgence of attention in culture and the arts. Convincingly, he feels that it has aroused considerable interest among the younger generation considering the Bodong celebration as a major cultural carrier.
31 October 2021