January is the month of new beginnings. It is a month of revitalization, a series of personal reflections, and planning of new resolutions. However, it is not the same for everyone. A new year might be good for some, but in the January of 2017, the Badjao (also Bajau, Badjaw, or Bajo) who are displaced from Zamboanga first set foot in our hometown due to the armed conflict between the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MNLF) and the Philippine Military in the said region. In our city, they live as beggars on the streets with no food, no access to clean water, or even a roof above their heads—above their children’s heads. They live on the side of the streets together with the smoke and dust of the city, living just to sustain their daily lives; one scratch, one peck. The protection of Indigenous Cultural Communities/Indigenous People (ICC/IP) in our country is deeply ingrained in our constitution, however, its implementation is nowhere to be found.

The Philippines has strict laws to protect the rights and cultural heritage of the Indigenous People, in the 1987 Constitution, multiple provisions are included such as Section 5 of Article XII, which stated that the state should protect the rights of the ICCs to their ancestral lands, or on Section 17 of Article XIV, which focuses on the recognition and respect of the state to preserve and develop their cultures, traditions, and institutions. Moreover, Chapter III Section 7(d) of RA 8371 or the Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act of 1997 supports the argument of the rights of the Indigenous people when they are displaced due to natural causes. It affirms that the state should endeavor to resettle the communities in suitable environments and to provide basic services and livelihood to the community. Another part of the chapter is their Right to Safe and Clean Air and Water, and the Right to Equal Protection and Non-discrimination. Were such laws well-implemented? These laws have been evidently contravened and violated by the Local and National Government, and perhaps even the citizens of our city by discriminating against them for being dirty and colored.

The Zamboanga Siege happened way back in 2013, yet seven years after, our community can still see the Badjaos in city Jeepneys and streets. This is another right of the Indigenous People that is violated; their right to return to their abandoned lands after achieving normalcy and adequate safety. The government then has zero prioritization for the pillars of the Mindanaoan culture and ultimately, the forefathers of our nation. The culture of the Badjaos that persist in our culture, their Vintas, and their methods of fishing, has become their heritage to our country. We gave recognition to this as our arts, yet the very artists, the Badjaos who brought us these arts are disregarded and are not given priority and importance. The Indigenous People has become the forgotten few of our nation.