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Published: 2006-11-05 14:22:37 +0000 UTC; Views: 372; Favourites: 4; Downloads: 0
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Cordillera: Fury From the Mountains Series | 2/26Members of the Cordillera People's Alliance (CPA) standing by. Preparations for the Peasant Month mobilization. Baguio City, October 2006.
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In the Cordilleras, Peasant Month is a particularly complex celebration. In general, the Cordillera people's struggle is highly unique in the Philippines: they successfully resisted Spanish occupation, but now, their lives, land and traditions are threatened by US-led globalization. Policies of privatization, deregulation and liberalization have proved dangerous to the Cordillera people; their culture is exploited to boost tourism, and their environment is destroyed by foreign-owned mining corporations and new dam constructions.
As farmers, they are threatened by government promotion of genetically-modified strains of rice, dubbed suicide seeds , which has effectively destroyed traditional farming practices and made local farmers poorer . The farmers themselves go hungry . It is even more ironic that an agricultural nation like the Philippines is one of the world's top importers of rice , further worsening the farmers' plight.
Those who choose to fight back are met with bullets. The peasant movement has suffered the most casualties under Oplan Bantay Laya . Farmers , as well as indigenous people , are blatantly targeted by the military.
The situation of indigenous people under Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is harsh. But as we can see, they remain firm in their struggle--and I believe it is a fight where they will emerge victorious.