Dancing into the Bosom of the Land: The Cultural Construct of Social Development of the Ambala Aytas in Sitio

Alibang
By Angelito B. Meneses

Abstract In todays era of developmentalism and globalism, the Ambala Aytas still hold the precolonial notion of a good life that is tied to the land. The cultural construction of social development of the Ambala Aytas in Sitio Alibang which they named kahampatan is a reiteration of the worldview that land is life. When Mt. Pinatubo erupted in 1991, development interventions also exploded. Different development agencies inundated the affected indigenous communities with various development projects. On the one hand, these development efforts which were driven by the sense of mission and best of intentions resulted to the assimilation of indigenous people to the industrial, capitalist and modern living. They were also became target of mission works by religious organizations that led to their Christianization. On the other hand, development interventions failed to recognize the indigenous knowledge and spiritual base of development since the development orientation is patterned from the western intervention philosophy, the proverbial the white mans burden. This paper addresses the issue by engaging the Ambala Aytas to participate in the process of indigenous research to determine their worldview of development with identity and culture. The study makes use of the fieldwork-immersion method and other participatory research approaches. Since development is also about power, the Ambala Aytas were asked to identify and make an assessment on the different development interventions and projects provided to them since the Mt. Pinatubo eruption and evaluated them along side with their notion of a good life they called kahampatan. In determining the most significant development that occurred in their community, the Ambala Aytas saw the use of modern technologies like electricity (light) as the most significant. It is because they considered light as an instrument to come together to socialize and strengthen their cooperation. The implications of this study especially on community development and social work practice are enumerated and discussed. It offers a decolonizing approach to development interventions taking into account the uniqueness of the indigenous communities. The study suggests and promotes decolonizing methodologies and approaches in working with indigenous communities. 1|D a n ci ng in to th e Bo s om o f the L a nd

Introduction

Take up the White Man's burden-Send forth the best ye breed-Go, bind your sons to exile To serve your captives' need

That above stanza from the poem The White Mans Burden by Rudyard Kipling which was published in McClures Magazine in 1899, whose subtitle is: The United States and the Philippine Islands had made a case for the justification of the spread of western civilization. For Frank (2008), he refers to the White Mans Burden as the perceived duty of Americans and Europeans to spread their culture onto the other people of the earth.

This intervention philosophy of the Eurocentric culture continues up to this time. Indigenous peoples have been struggling to liberate themselves from that intervention philosophy of colonialism implied in that literary work. For instance the Grand Council of American Indians in 1927 succinctly articulated: "The white people who are trying to make us over into their image, they want us to be what they call assimilated, bringing the Indians into the mainstream and destroying our own way of life and our own cultural patterns. They believe we should be contented like those whose concept of happiness is materialistic and greedy, which is very different from our way. We want freedom from the white man rather than to be integrated. We don't want any part of the establishment; we want to be free to raise our children in our religion, in our ways, to be able to hunt and fish and to live in peace. We don't want power, we don't want to be congressmen, bankers; we want to be ourselves. We want to have our heritage, because we are the owners of this land and because we belong here. The white man says there is freedom and justice for all. We have had "freedom and justice," and that is why we have been almost exterminated. We shall not forget this."

The 2009 film Avatar illustrates how development interventions into the indigenous communities, like education that will help them develop like humans have undermined the life ways of indigenous people. Chambers (1997) reiterated the same concept in Whose Reality

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Counts? as he quotes Paulo Freire saying: It appears that the act of extension, in whatever sector it takes place, means that those carrying it out need to go to another part of the world to normalize it, according to their way of viewing reality: to make it resemble their world.

In the Philippines like in many parts of the world, indigenous peoples suffer from a history of aggressions brought about by the dominant development that has further pushed them on the peripheries of the larger society in which they exist. As a result, their distinct cultures were undermined and their spiritualities and values were diluted as they are being assimilated into the mainstream development model.

Development does not only cause damages to the land, territories and resources- the very source of life of the indigenous people but also altered their collective consciousness and cherished values as Corpus (2010) articulated: These values include equity, reciprocity, solidarity, harmony between us and nature, collectivity and conservation of natural wealth for the seventh generation, among others. Our indigenous systems or paths of these and our traditional livelihoods still exist because we actively or passively resisted development, modernity and the violation of our human rights. We adapted to the changes which came into our communities and accommodated some aspects of modernity. But this does not mean that we have totally abandoned our systems, worldviews and values. Some of our perspectives and values resonate with the essence of the human rights-based approach to development and the ecosystems approach, thus we are partial to the use of these framework to promote self-determined development. We can see, according to Corpus (2010) that development, progress and modernity are issues indigenous peoples tackle head-on in struggles for survival, identities, basic human rights and fundamental freedoms. Likewise Robbins (2010) notes that it is widely acknowledged that the history of development is littered with astounding errors born of the very best of intentions.

Statement of the Problem

One of the highlights of the Focus Group discussion between UNDP and representatives of the indigenous peoples expert group on development with culture and identity held in New York in 2010 states that the question on human development and the review of 20 years can be turned around to reflect about the losses on: how much has been lost due to development

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projects?; how much land has been lost?; how many languages have disappeared?; how many forests have been destroyed and how much natural resources depleted (UNDP,2010)?

It means that there has been a growing consciousness among the indigenous people on the effects of development introduced to them. Corpus (2010) argues that from colonization to the present, indigenous peoples in various parts of the world have struggled against the dominant development paradigm and the policies and projects enforced to pursue it. The awareness has led the indigenous people to devise strategies for ending colonial pattern. With that situation in mind, this study has looked into the worldview of the Ambala Aytas on development with identity and culture. Worldview means as cognitive, perceptual, and affective maps that people continuously use to make sense of the social landscape and to find their ways to whatever goals they seek. Thus, this study is about the Ambala Aytas worldview of

development towards decolonizing development interventions among the indigenous people. It sought to answer the following questions:

1. What is the Ambala Ayta notion of development with identity and culture? 2. What development interventions were conducted for the Ambala Aytas since the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo in 1991 up to the present? 3. How do they view about the outcomes of these development interventions in relation to the indigenous concept of development with identity and culture? 4. What are the most significant developments to have happened in their community in line with their view of development?

Research Objectives

Another highlight of the focus group discussion (2010) reiterates the importance of putting into the center of any discourses the indigenous worldviews especially if these have something to do with their life as indigenous people. In the document they assert their right to self-determination by way of self- definition: From an indigenous perspective, human development should be defined by indigenous peoples, from indigenous peoples, and for indigenous peoples. This is the essence of selfdetermination, its collective dimension and the recognition as peoples by the UN General Assembly 4|D a n ci ng in to th e Bo s om o f the L a nd

This study is anchored on that above assertion and therefore seeks to contribute to the process of centering (Smith, 1999) the Ambala Aytas worldview of development with identity and culture. Specifically it sought to: 1. Describe the Ambala Ayta notion of development with identity and culture. 2. Identify the different development interventions brought in to their community since the Mt. Pinatubo eruption in 1991 up to the present and examine the outcomes of these development interventions in relation to the indigenous concept of development with identity and culture. 3. Determine the most significant development to have occurred in their community in relation to their view of development. 4. Develop a decolonizing development framework that is based on the Ambala Aytas worldviews.

Research Methodology

The research methodologies of this study were greatly influenced by the idea put forward by Smith (2011) on decolonizing the methodologies of research projects being conducted in the indigenous communities. According to Smith decolonizing methodologies is not so much with the actual technique of selecting a method but much more with the context in which research problems are conceptualized and designed, and with the implications of research for its participants and their communities (Smith, 2011). The process of decolonization is about centering the indigenous peoples concepts and worldviews and coming to know and understand theory and research from their own perspectives and for their own purposes. The selection of methodologies in this study is also based in the context of indigenous research. Indigenous research as it differs from research on, with and about indigenous peoples means research done by scholars who develop indigenous theorizing, identify and use indigenous concepts, and build their projects on an indigenous research paradigm (Posanger, 2010).

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The study focused on defining development with identity and culture among the Ambala Aytas and on the analysis of development interventions being brought in to their community. Sitio Alibang, Subic, Zambales was selected as a site of the study because of the intention of the Extension Service Center of the College of Arts and Sciences of St. Josephs College of Quezon City to establish partnership with indigenous communities. It is primarily chosen because the Ambala Aytas have been beneficiaries of the development interventions of St. Francis Learning Center, Inc., which is managed by the SFIC sisters.

This research made use of several approaches in doing qualitative research to ensure the centering of the indigenous peoples worldviews. The first approach is doing fieldwork-immersion. Fieldwork and immersion go hand in hand with doing indigenous research. Yin (2012) noted that working in the field requires establishing and maintaining genuine relationships with other people and being able to converse comfortably with them. The fieldwork first approach was done for the purpose of defining the research problems. The researcher started the immersing himself with the Aytas of Sitio Alibang since 2012. During the fieldwork-immersion, relevant bits of information gathered from the qualitative interview were recorded in the researchers field notes, sketches and drawings and in a Sony digital voice recorder.

The second approach is qualitative interviews. Qualitative interviews are conversations in which a researcher gently guides a conversational partner in an extended discussion. The researcher elicits depth and details about the research topic by following up on answers given by the interviewee during the discussion. In qualitative interview the researcher learns from the people rather studying them. Thus the researcher follows the hints provided by Yin in doing qualitative interviewing such as: 1. Speaking in modest amount, 2. Being non-directive, 3. Staying neutral, 4. Maintaining rapport, 5. Using an interview protocol, 6. Analyzing when interviewing (Yin, 2012). In qualitative interviews each conversation is unique, as the researcher match the questions to what each interviewee knows and willing to share (Rubin and Rubin, 2005).

The third is the Focus Group interviewing. The groups are focused on two generations, the older which is composed of kalalakihan and kababaihan or adults and the kabataan or youth. In these focused groups, the participatory analysis as capability approach (Sen, 2009) was also applied. The capability approach in examining the different development interventions vis--vis development with identity and culture determined by the indigenous people have elicited confidence on their part to define what is and what is not development for them. Participatory analysis is a process of giving 6|D a n ci ng in to th e Bo s om o f the L a nd

the people the opportunity to see what is important to each member and enabling the community to draw its own conclusions. For convenience, the researcher would like to propose the term Participatory Interventions Analysis or PIA to provide specific name for the participatory analysis of the capability approach. PIA is a systematic process that engages the indigenous people in an indepth assessment of development interventions offered, brought and conducted by nonindigenous, they may be individuals, groups, organizations, agencies, institutions and corporations to the indigenous communities. The overall aim of PIA is to assert the indigenous peoples concept of development with identity and culture or self-determined development. PIA is a qualitative way of analyzing development interventions which involves participation of the indigenous people themselves. The analysis helps the indigenous people to understand development processes, ideologies and methodologies and to articulate their own path to development.

The PIA approach will then be supplemented with the use of a combination of data gathering methods. The first method- a culture-sensitive tool for local people is the Participatory Rural Appraisal or PRA. PRA is described as growing body of methods to enable local people to share, enhance, and analyze

their knowledge of life and the conditions to plan, act, monitor and evaluate (Kumar, 2002). The use of PRA tools is meant to facilitate guided interaction (Calub, 2004) between the indigenous people and the researcher and it requires a change in attitudes and behaviors between and among the participants. The essence of PRA is changes and reversals of role, behavior, relationship and learning. Outsiders do not dominate and lecture; they facilitate, sit down, listen and learn (Chambers, 2003). In the study, the community will be asked to draw a map of different development interventions showing what types of interventions, who provided the interventions, what are the methodologies and what are the outcomes.

The second method used is a modified Most Significant Change or MSC technique. The most significant change (MSC) technique is a form of participatory monitoring and evaluation. It is participatory because many project stakeholders are involved both in deciding the sorts of change to be recorded and in analyzing the data (Davies and Dart, 2005). MSC is a process of collecting significant change (SC) stories emanating from beneficiaries and then panels of designated stakeholders or staff systematically select the most significant change story. In this study the most significant development will be used. The participants tell their stories of most significant development they consider to have happened in their community and then 7|D a n ci ng in to th e Bo s om o f the L a nd

collectively analyze using the identity and culture tool of analysis and select three most significant and rank them according to most cherished development. The most significant development must be linked to the indigenous people concept of self-determined development.

Since this study is a qualitative research, protocol was preferred over the classic research instrument. Protocol according to Yin (2012) is a broad set of behaviors the researcher is to undertake, rather than any tightly scripted interaction between the researcher and any source of evidence, such as field participant.

For the analysis of data, the researcher followed the five phases of analysis of qualitative data as presented by Yin (2012). Analysis means the process of breaking down something into components parts, which can then be addressed. Analysis started by compiling and sorting field notes amassed from the researchers fieldwork, qualitative interviews of key informants, focus group interviews and workshops. The data then were disassembled or broken down into smaller fragments and assigning labels or codes. It was followed by using themes. The themes were interpreted to create new narratives with accompanying tables and illustrations. Then the researcher drew conclusions and implications from the entire study.

Discussions

The Notion of Development with Identity and Culture

The researcher has noted during fieldwork the term hana guminhawa as the local term that describes the Ambala Aytas notion of development with identity and culture. The term then was used as a springboard for discussion during the Focus Group Interviews (FGI). However, the participants started to question the term hana guminhawa for its appropriateness to their notion of development. The Ambala Aytas, after exchanges of opinions during the FGI almost unanimously agreed that the right Ambala term to describe their notion of development is Kahampatan.

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It was observed during the discussion that the notion hana guminhawa is more related to the individual or the clans aspiration of development while kahampatan is articulated as a notion for the collective or the communitys development.

Kahampatan is an Ambala Ayta word which can be translated in Filipino as mabuting buhay and in the English language as a good life. There is parallelism in the Ambala Ayta notion of kahampatan to the notion of development with identity and culture among the indigenous people in Latin America. For instance Cunningham (2010) mentioned sumak kawsay in Qhichwa, suma qamaa in Aymara, sumak andereco in Guarani, laman laka in Miskitu and Buen Vivir Bien in Spanish. These are summed up in the concept that living well does not merely refer to per capita income or economic growth (Cunningham, 2010), which is almost exactly the same concept of a good life for the Ambala Aytas.

It is articulated that kahampatan is not a result of a planned change or an envisioned future but a series of phases showing the interlocking and interdependence of three elements namely kasaganaan (abundance), kagalingan (well being), and kaginhawaan (Freedom). The three elements are essential constituents of a good life, so kahampatan is further understood as pagtuloy-tuloy (continuity) and pagpapatagal (sustainability). Continuity is linked with their survival as people who are highly dependent on land and natural resources; and sustainability is associated with their relationship with the source of their continuity. Thus the ways of life of the Ambala Aytas like other indigenous peoples are rooted in the earth and their survival is rooted to land since land is the primary source of resources.

Kahampatan can be illustrated by the use of an indigenous symbol of continuity and sustainability like the pako (fern) (see figure 1). This symbol of a good life for Ambala Aytas marks commonalities with other indigenous people symbols for instance that of the Mori of New Zealand called the koru. The koru is a spiral shape based on the shape of a new unfurling fern frond and symbolizing new life, growth, strength and peace.

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Figure 1. The sketch of pako as a symbol for kahampatan and as a decolonized development framework

The Three Fronds of Kahampatan

1. Kasaganaan as Abundance

It was observed from the descriptions and articulations of the Ambala Aytas that the first frond to unfurl to have a good life is abundance. Interestingly, abundance for them refers to as the source rather than the resource. The source is the land where it naturally produces the forest and the forest becomes the lifeblood which provides the necessary resources for their survival. For them, land guarantees kasaganaan which is a requisite for a good life. It reflects what Macliing Dulag, a Kalinga pangat leader forcefully articulated the worldview that land is sacred and land is life (Bennagen, 1998). As it was also observed by Shimizu (2001) he said that the first step for the Aytas toward restoring their self-sufficient way of life with their ethnic dignity and cultural heritage starts, by all means, with the secured land. For land to be the producer of abundance the two notions about it as sacred and secured are to be sustained. For abundance to unfold the indigenous culture should be affirmed and strengthened. For instance, there is a need to sustain, in their consciousness as indigenous people, the worldview that land is sacred to deter them from doing abusive and destructive activities that destroy the source. At the same time, there is a need to secure their land from outside influences to maintain its 10 | D a n c i n g i n t o t h e B o s o m o f t h e L a n d

primary purpose in providing their needs and sustenance. Cultural development should be focused on the land since it has material, cultural and spiritual dimensions for the Ambala Aytas.

For them kasaganaan can be attained through the paggagasak (fixed cultivation) and pangangalap (gathering). There are cultural meanings and dynamics attached to these. Paggagasak does not only mean the productive work they employ on the land but it is a symbolic expression of the relationships among them, and, between them and the land. For instance, when asked about how they do the paggagasak, they explained Tulong tulong kami sa paglilinis, halimbawa magpapagasak ako, tatawagin ko ang mga kasama ko para tulungan ako sa paglilinis ng bahagi ng lupa. Walang bayad iyon, pakakainin ko lang sila kasi kung sila naman ang may kailangan, tutulong din ako ng buong puso. (We help each other in the cleaning, for example I want to have my swidden, I will call my comrades to help me clean parts of the land. I will not pay them; I will only serve them with food because the moment they are also in need, I will also help them with all my heart.) Reciprocity and collectivity are the reinforced values in paggagasak.

The pangangalap is the harvesting of wild products in the forest such as boho (type of bamboo) cogon grass, orchids etcwhich are supplied naturally by land. Fascinatingly, they recognize the role of other creatures in producing the resources such as the bees for honeys and the birds for banana blossoms. For instance, they owe the birds a sense of gratitude for planting wild bananas in the mountains. The birds greatly contribute to their livelihood. They explained it more succinctly Ang mga maliliit na ibon ang natatanim ng mga saging. Kinakain nila iyong bunga at itinatae nila yong buto, at iyong buto tumutubo kaya maraming saging sa bundok na pinagkukunan namin ng puso (The little birds plant the bananas. They eat the fruits then poop the seeds and the seeds grow that is why there are many bananas in the mountain where we gather banana blossoms). As a reciprocal way to show their respect and gratitude, they do not trap or harm these birds. However, they have expressed the need to educate their children so to appreciate the symbiotic connection between them and the birds because the birds became a fun target of some of the Ayta boys with their slingshots.

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2. Kagalingan as Wellbeing

Kagalingan as the second frond of a good life centers on the processes of economic development. The cultural development that is taking place in kasaganaan is meant to re-affirm the indigenous worldviews on the source- the land. It is the same concept of resource management articulated by the Tbolis that without land the culture will not survive (Awed, 2010). It is observed that kagalingan for the Ambala Ayta is all about the re-production and management of resources the yields from the land. The stable and sustainable flow of resources ensure their welfare such as food for daily life and surplus to sell to buy for other food necessities like salt, coffee, sugar. The Ambala Ayta economic development is not geared towards absorbing them into the cash and throw-away economies but on re-affirming subsistence economy. Subsistence economy is best for the land (source) as a counterbalance to the effects of over exploitation and consumption of resources. Kagalingan can be attained if the kasaganaaan is well in place. Kagalingan is further conceptualized into four economic activities namely, pagtatanim (planting) of different root crops, fruit bearing trees, pangangalap (gathering) of wild crops such as pulot (honey) and puso ng saging (banana blossoms) and pagaalaga ng hayop (animal husbandry) like kalabaw (water buffalo), kambing (goat), native chickens and pigs, and pag-uuling (charcoal making).

Another interesting concept among the Ambala Aytas economic activities is their notion of pag-iimpok (savings). Raising domesticated animals like goat, chicken, carabaos are in themselves could be considered savings. According to them, during emergencies like in case of illness that requires hospitalization, they can always withdraw the animals. They sell whatever available raised animals to have cash to cover the hospitalization expenses.

The frond of kagalingan in their notion of kahampatan can be said to have taking place when their economic activities are sustained and remained consistent to their cultural ways that will bring wellbeing described as happiness, peace of mind and prosperity.

Table 1 shows the economic-related activities of the Ambala Aytas from gathering, planting, animal raising, manufacturing, and the products they buy from the market. According to them, if only these needs become sustainably available in their community, then the general 12 | D a n c i n g i n t o t h e B o s o m o f t h e L a n d

wellbeing characterized by contented state of being happy, healthy and prosperous will be attained.
Table 1. Economic-related activities of the Ambala Aytas Gathering Pulot Puso ng saging Boho Kawayan kugon Isda Planting Taro Ube Talong Kamoteng kahoy Kamoteng baging Papaya Langka Mangga Kasoy Animal Raising Kambing Manok Kalabaw Manufacturing Uling Products bought from the market salt coffee sugar spices cooking condiments mantika, suka, patis tinapay bigas

3. Kaginhawaan as Freedom

Kaginhawaan as the third frond of kahampatan is social development characterized as freedom. It was explicitly articulated by Opener Ayson: Para sa akin maginhawa ang buhay kapag malaya kang nakakapaghanapbuhay, may kalinisan sa kapaligiran at nagkakaunawaan kami dito (For me there is good life if you are free to work for livelihood; there is cleanliness in the environment; and we understand each other here). Kaginhawaan reflects the state of freedom where the emphasis is on both an individual and the social nature of humans. When an individual promotes his or her own development properly he or she cannot help but promote the development of the society to which he or she belong;, conversely, when a society develops itself properly it cannot help but contribute to the development of the individuals who comprise it (Montemayor,1980). And for the Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen (2000) this is development as freedom -the ability to do and to be.

This part of the frond to complete the picture of kahampatan focuses on harmonious relationship with fellow indigenous and non-indigenous people. Their concept of peace and justice for instance reveals that the Ambala Aytas are peace loving and they value peaceful coexistence. It has been noted that lowlanders have encroached their territories. Currently, 18 families of lowlanders have settled in Sentro ng Allibang. Sentro ng Alibang as the name connotes means the center of the village and yet the lowlanders dominantly occupied the place. 13 | D a n c i n g i n t o t h e B o s o m o f t h e L a n d

The reason why they allow this to happen, at first, was that the lowlanders have developed friendship with them. And so out of friendship and pity (based on understanding the lowlanders situation) they allow the lowlanders to build their houses inside their village until more and more lowland families continue to arrive and settled in Sentro ng Alibang. The Aytas gave up the area and moved to the other side of the mountain they called Alibang Bugaw which literally means to drive away. They have been driven away from their own territory yet they maintain peaceful relationship with the lowlanders. The processing of their claim of ancestral domain made them aware of the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act or IPRA law and their rights as indigenous people. Susan Cohig, the present chieftain, explained that they are not going to drive the lowlanders out of their village but have warned them to stop from where they are and never attempt to encroach on the ancestral lands. They made a similar decision of not taking back the vast parcel of land which was taken by a lowlander for his mango and dragon fruits plantation. It is because they aspire to have pakikipagkapwa tao (good human relation) and to live without away (trouble), nagkakaisa (united) and nagkaka-unawaan (there is understanding).

Analysis of Development Interventions

The eruption of Mt. Pinatubo in 1991 had displaced the Aytas in Zambales. The ethnic lifestyles were also affected. Followed by the eruption was the outbreak of development interventions by individuals, groups, organizations, agencies and institutions in the form of outreach programs, extension services, mission works etc which were intended to help the Aytas of Central Luzon recover from the ashes of the disastrous event. More than two decades passed, the Ambala Aytas in reminiscing the past recounted that in the past there was kahampatan. The Mt. Pinatubo eruption in 1991 brought hardship because kahampatan was disrupted and became elusive after then.

During the focus group interviewing, they were asked to identify the different development institutions, what projects they have provided and what were the outcomes of these development projects. They identified several major organizations or agencies which provided development interventions. The KAPISU (which they are not certain about the meaning) then later became Saint Francis Learning Center, Inc. brought in development projects such as housing, livelihood and school. The DSWD, a government agency has provided them 14 | D a n c i n g i n t o t h e B o s o m o f t h e L a n d

with relief goods and the 4Ps or known to them as pantawid. The NCIP, another government agency mandated by the state to look into the concerns of indigenous people has assisted them in the application of their ancestral domain claim. A Korean missionary constructed water tank, day care center, toilets and church. The municipal mayor of Subic provided water hose and set up the hanging bridge. ZAMECO, the electric company in the province of Zambales installed electricity in the area.
Table 2. Development interventions as viewed by the older generation Development Projects
Pabahay Hanapbuhay

Who provided
KAPISU KAPISU

Description
16 na sementado na bahay na yero ang bubong 2 kalabaw na aalagaan Kambing

Process and Outcome

Nasira na sa kalumaan at di makabili ng yero Hindi napaunlad kasi matatanda na ang kalabaw Namili ng mga buho sa halagang 4.00 piso bawat isa at ang piso ay kinakaltas para maka-ipon ng pambili ng kambing. Kaya ang pondo na pinambili ng kambing ay galing din sa amin. Tumubo pero hindi namumunga dahil walang pampa-spray. Nagawa pero hindi naman tumakbo Di nagamit dahil di angkop ang araro sa bundok. Nawala ang mga araro. Hindi nagtagumpay kasi mahirap isustine ang pagkain. Di rin nagtagumpay kasi mahal ang kinakain na commercial feeds. Nagsanay manahi ng basahan at pagpapahiram ng 2 makina pero ibinalik din kasi mahina ang kita. Sinira ng mga Bisaya na nakatira sa bundok Di na gumana simula noong umalis ang pastor Nagagamit kaya lang kulang Hindi pa tapos

Mga puno ng mangga Palaisdaan Araro Pag-aalaga ng baboy na hybrid Pag-aalaga ng 45 days namanok Pagtatahi

Patubig

KAPISU Pastor Mayor NCIP

Paggawa ng tangke Paggawa ng tangke Pagbibigay ng hose Pagsusukat sa nasasakupan ng lupaing ninuno na may sukat na 42 ektarya Pagkakaloob ng tulong pinansiyal sa pamilya Pagbibigay ng mga relief goods

Lupaing Ninuno

4 Ps

DSWD

Relief goods Paaralan St. Francis Learning Center

Sa 25 pamilya na mga katutubo, 10 lamang ang napiling grantees ng 4Ps. Pinili ang 10 pamilya na ito sa pamamagitan ng raffle sa computer. Ibinigay ito noong pagkatapos pumutok ang Pinatubo Nagpapatuloy ang paaralan sa Sentro ng Alibang at nag-aaral ang mga anak namin. Masaya kapag may ilaw nagkaka-ipun-ipon kaming mga katutubo

Paaralan pang matanda

Ilaw

ZAMECO

Paaralan pambata na mula unang baiting hanggang ika-anim na baitang Pagkakabit ng kuryente sa Sitio Alibang

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Table 3. Development interventions as viewed by the younger generations Development projects

Simbahan

Who provided
Pastor Pamanila

Description
Nagpatayo ng simbahan ng Born Again sa Alibang Bugaw Nagpatayo ng paaralan mula grade 1 hanggang grade 6 sa Sentro ng Alibang Nagpatayo ng day care center sa Alibang Bugaw katabi ng simbahan Pagpapagawa ng hanging bridge sa ilog ng Alibang

Process and Outcome

Tinuturuan kami ng magandang asal. Kaya lang natigil na noong umalis na si pastor. Nagpapatuloy

School

SFLC

Day Care Center

Pastor Cho

Di na nagagamit ang day care center simula noong umalis sina pastor. Nagagamit pag tumatawid sa ilog papunta sa bayan

Hanging bridge

Mayor

In terms of analyzing the outcomes in relation to kahampatan, the participants said that projects such as kalabaw, kambing, mangga, patubig are very much in line with their notion development with identity and culture. However, they raised the question in terms of the process and the quantity and quality of the project. For instance, they were provided with just a pair of carabao, as far as their analysis is concern, the carabaos were already old and incapable of reproducing offspring. If they were only consulted, they said, they would have preferred younger ones and at least more than one pair. The projects they perceived to be not at all aligned to their kahampatan were the raising of 45-day broiler chickens and hybrid swine, and sewing of pot holders. The raising of hybrid animals required commercial foods, things that cannot be produced by land. According to them, in raising hybrid chickens expenses spent for their food and vitamins have exceeded the expected profit. The outcome of the sewing project was not successful because only two sewing machines were lent to them and the income from sewing pot holders is lesser than they go for gathering banana blossoms and manufacture charcoals. For the adults, the school provided them the opportunity to learn how to write, read and compute which are skills they needed in their transactions with the lowlanders. For the kabataan (younger generation) they consider the school as an escape to the economic poverty being experienced by their family. According to them when they finish school they will easily get a job and the job provides them with the means (salary) to buy what they want like stereo, television sets, mobile phone and even motorcycle. However, they opt to do the pangangalap (gathering ) over schooling because in gathering boho for instance they can earn money faster than in attending school.

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The Most Significant Development

Table 4 presents a summary of the most significant changes to have occurred in Sitio Alibang. After telling their stories about the most significant development that occurred in their community, the older generation selected the time when they became literate that is learning to read and write so that they can read and write their lives, and when they learned to communicate with others, first in the rank of the most significant development. They see their being together now in one place as the second significant deve lopment and by having light generated by electricity in their place as the third most significant. The lighting project according to them made them come together for socialization in the evening.

For the youth, they identified the court (playground) where they can play basketball and other ball games as the first significant development to have occurred in their community. The second most significant is having electricity that resulted in coming together in one place. Pangangalap or gathering of boho is the third significant development for the youth.

The most significant development when compared as perceived by the older and younger generation shows more similarities than differences. For instance, the two generations are well oriented on the importance of coming together for socialization and they both mention like light for older and electricity for the younger as significant means to socialize. The purpose of becoming literate for the older generation and having a court for the younger is also to socialize, for instance the term pakikipagkapwa tao and to play ballgames are ways of socialization.
Table 4. Responses on the Most Significant Development among the Ambala Aytas

Older Generation
1. 2. 3. Natutong sumulat at bumasa at makihalubilo sa kapwa Nagka-ipon-ipon ang mga katutubo sa baryo na dati ay kalat-kalat Pagkakaroon ng ilaw 1. 2. 3.

Younger Generation
Pagkakaroon ng court para sa libangan Pagkakaroon ng kuryente na dahilan ng pagkakalapit-lapit ng bahay Kahalagahan ng pangangalap

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Conclusion and Implications

Kahampatan is the path of development with identity and culture among the Ambala Aytas. As described, kahampatan covers the holistic dimensions of human development. It is symbolized as a fern in its continuous unfurling. This notion of development includes three fronds - the kasaganaan (abundance), kagalingan (wellbeing) and kaginhawaan (freedom). These fronds can be interpreted as the cultural, economic and social aspect of their selfdetermined development. The study suggests that from the Ambala Ayta perspective the path to development with identity and culture should be defined by them, from them, and for them.

The results of the study have implications to community development practice and social work practice with indigenous people. Interventions can be helpful or undermine the cultural identities of indigenous people.

The findings imply the following:

Good intentions for interventions should be coupled with capability approach . The capability approach developed by Amartya Sen views development as a process of expanding peoples human capabilities or their ability to achieve things they have reason to value. Sen highlights the need to refocus development on people and points out the necessity of viewing human beings as ends in themselves and never as only means to other ends (Sen, 1990). Do fieldwork first for the purposes of knowing their condition before intervening by bringing in pre-packaged development projects and assistance. In this study for instance, the profiling process was done by the Ambala Aytas with the participation of the researcher. Community participation in indigenous research means that the researcher should participate in the indigenous peoples activities. This is one way to decolonize the methodology of research by breaking away from the usual approach of making a profile of a community for instance where the people participate in information giving and the outsider -researcher analyzes and interprets the data. Research done in the indigenous communities such profiling should be initiated by the indigenous people so that they will take pride in discovering that they can do research through indigenous methods like drawing and storytelling. We all have

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the good intentions but we should always be circumspect that our good intention brings with it the extension of our own prejudices and ways of knowing and looking at the world. The danger of this might be that the transfer of outsiders ways of life would result to further colonization and enculturation of the indigenous consciousness.

Development should be defined together with the indigenous people. It is very evident that indigenous people have their own way of defining the concept of development based on their identity and culture. In the case of the Ambala Aytas, development is good life which they called kahampatan. There is no way for us, outsiders to appreciate and understand their worldview of development if we keep on imposing what we know is good for them. The development initiatives that we are bringing in to indigenous communities are rather counterproductive and counterintuitive because with the outsiders development framework instead placed the Aytas in socio-economically disadvantaged position. For an Ayta to live like the unat or lowlanders way of life would mean poverty. An Ayta starts to look at himself/herself as poor when he cannot afford to buy a television, a radio which can be owned only through transaction by the use of money. Economic development for the indigenous people differs in contents and values from the economic development perspective of the outsiders. For instance, economic development for many outsiders generally aims at getting the indigenous people to be converted from subsistence to cash economies and thus to increase their participation in the capitalist economy. This is very evident in the outsiders wishes for the Aytas to be educated. Educated for what? To improve their future through education is a capitalist driven economic idea. When the Aytas expressed the desire to become literate especially after the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo, they mean they want to read and write their own life. Education here means to expand their capabilities to communicate into the text world that they find significant in their socialization with other people. But outsiders define education for them as just enrolling in a formal school and study subjects like English, math, science etcoffered by the mainstream curriculum. So they become schooled not educated.

We should start on what the indigenous people have and build on what they know. If we really want to help the indigenous people as our sense of mission directs us to do,

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then enter with just an exit plan on hand. The indigenous people know how to analyze their issues and problems as they also know how to articulate their needs and the solutions to their problems. In this study for instance, the Aytas know what they want to do with their life to have a good life i.e. kahampatan by simply ensuring good relationship with the source (land) that yield for resources they need for survival and sustainability. Most often they are left at the sidelines and mere recipients in the development process. Starting from where they are and building on what they know are strategies to decolonize development interventions. By this approach in development work, we are centering the indigenous articulations of what it means to have a good life. And we should even be honest to accept that we are learning a lot from them.

Indigenous people do not oppose development as long as development is deeply rooted in their social context as people with distinct mindset and lifestyle . It is contrary to the perception of outsiders that indigenous people tend to be resistant to innovation which they even attached a name they called tribalism. As discussed by Kling and Schulz (2012) for instance that people in isolated villages view new productive techniques as threats. In part, this is because innovations are associated with outsiders. Moreover, innovations threaten to disrupt local traditions that have sustained community cohesion for many generations. This study reveals the sentiments of the Ambala Aytas with regards to the approach and outcomes of development interventions. What they had been articulating about kahampatan was not being addressed because outsiders already have prior beliefs that what they have brought in, are what the indigenous people need to take them out from poverty to prosperity.

In decolonizing development interventions, organizations, agencies and institutions who are called to serve (because most often intentions to help the indigenous people are driven by religious, ideological or nationalistic persuasions) in the indigenous communities should not just intervene armed with the models of modernization or

evangelization and act like the white people who are trying to make the indigenous people over into their image, they want the indigenous to be what they call assimilated, bringing them into the mainstream and destroying their own way of life and their own cultural patterns. In decolonization, we have to rewrite and reright (Smith, 2012) 20 | D a n c i n g i n t o t h e B o s o m o f t h e L a n d

history. By doing this we remove the status attached to the indigenous people as specimen as what Merata Mita being quoted by Smith (2012) pointed out: We have a history of people putting Maori under a microscope in the same way a scientist looks at an insect. The ones doing the looking are giving themselves the power to define . For faith-driven development interventions, the new evangelization framework proposed by Leonardo Boff will make sense in decolonization. According to Boff (1991), evangelization that occurred among the indigenous communities entailed the transposition of the institutions, symbols, concepts, and oral habits of European Christian culture. In decolonization process, new evangelization should bring the good news which is good only if transformations occur in these miserable social realities: if instead of unfair they become humane, instead of being unjust they become social relations productive of justice and participation (Boff, 1991). Finally, in decolonizing development interventions, we must use the indigenous capabilities, strengths and talents to address issues and concerns that they deem relevant, so that they will own the whole development process. In this case we are getting off the grip of the colonial history of development.

Implications to the Social Work Practice with Indigenous People

Non Directive Approach: Social workers work for the development of people. The development process should also be the realization of social justice in itself. Development is very vague and general term which every person will interpret according to his or her own ideas of what is good. Thus what the social worker regards as development for the people with whom he works they may not regard as betterment for themselves. As what was found out when the Ambala Aytas evaluated the different development interventions. The non-directive approach goes along with the concept of cultural competency. Cultural competency describes the set of knowledge and skills that a social worker must develop in order to be effective with multicultural clients (Lum,1999). Social workers working with indigenous people should not try to guide or persuade them to accept his values or ideas, but focus on helping them to find their own values for themselves.

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Entervention Strategy: For purposes of this study, it makes sense to use the term entervention to illustrate a strategy of the non-directive approach in working with indigenous people. It is contrary to the intervention model of social work in casework, family and groupwork. Entervention strategy should not start with a pre-packaged with pre-determined goals development projects. How much our intervention becomes undermining in working with indigenous people? In entervention strategy social

workers should not work for further assimilation of indigenous people to the mainstream development paradigm, instead journey with them to know and understand the idea of betterment or a good life by the indigenous people and from there start to work with them. This strategy emphasizes the participation-indevelopment rather than participatory development. Kumar (2002) explains it as a bottom-up form of participation in the sense that the local people have full control over the process and the project provides for necessary flexibility.

Searchers not Planners: Among the indigenous people, the context a good life is not a unilinear progress. Social workers should consider the disempowering implications of the traditional approach as planners, so to change the role as searchers especially in the context of working with indigenous people. As planners we have good intentions to help but dont motivate the people to help themselves. As searchers we find things that work (Easterly, 2006) because we start from what they have and what they want to do with their lives. Indigenous people have the capacity to determine their own path to development and all we have to do is to search this path and journey with them. And we stop acting out the white mans burden.

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References Awed, S. (2010). Dunong at Batas: Documenting Indigenous Wisdom and Customary Law. Tebtebba Foundation. Bamba, J. (2010). Self-determined Development: Lessons from Kalimantan Credit Union Movement. Tebtebba Foundation, Philippines. Bennagen and Fernan. eds.(1996).Consulting the Spirits, Working with Nature, Sharing with Others: Indigenous Resource Management in the Philippines. Sentro Para saGanapnaPamayanan. Boff, L. (1991).New Evangelization: Good News to the Poor. Orbis Books. Maryknoll, New York. Calub, B. (2004). Participatory Rural Appraisal Guidebook. 2nd ed. University of the Philippines Los Banos. Chambers, R. (2003). Whose Reality Counts? Putting the First Last. ITDG Publishing. London.Uk. Corpus,V.(2010). Indigenous Peoples Self-determined Development: Challenges and Trajectories. Tebtebba Foundation, Philippines. Easterly, W. (2006). The White Mans Burden: Why the Wests Efforts to Aid the Rest Have Done So Much Ill and Si Little Good. Penguin Books. USA. Hall, Tony (2003). The American Empire and the Fourth World: The bowl with one spoon. McGill-Queen's native and northern series, 34.. Montreal; Ithaca: McGill-Queen's University Press. Hernando, M.V.A.(2009). The Development Planning Process from Indigenous Peoples Perspectives. Rooted to Land: Strengthening Indigenous Peoples Community Processes. REDO-CSWCD. Human Development and Indigenous People: Focus Group Discussion between UNDP and Representatives of the Indigenous Peoples Expert Group on Development with culture and Identity.New York, 2010.pdf. Kling, A. and Schulz, N. (2009). From Poverty to Prosperity: Intangible Assets, Hidden Liabilities and the Lasting Triumph Over Scarcity. Encounter Books. New York. Kumar, S. (2002). Methods for Community Participation: A Complete Guide for Practitioners. Vistaar Publications. Delhi. Lum, D. (1999). Culturally Competent Practice: a Framework for Growth and Action. Brooks/Cole Publishing Company.Canada. Manalili, A. (2013). Pag-oorganisa ng Pamayanan: Tungo sa Kaunlarang Mula sa Tao Para sa Tao. Sentro ng Wikang Pilipino. University of the Philippines. Quezon City. Perry, R. (1996). From Time Immemorial: Indigenous Peoples and State Systems. University of Texas Press, Austin. Posanger, J. (2011). Self-determination and indigenous research: capacity building on our own terms. Towards an Alternative Development Paradigm: Indigenous Peoples Self-Determined Development. 2011. Tebtebba Indigenous Peoples International Centre for Policy Research and Education.

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Rubin,H. (2005). Qualitative Interviewing: The Art of Hearing Data. 2nd ed. Sage Publications. Salonga, J. etal. (2010). Dunong at Batas: Documenting Indigenous Wisdom and Customary Law. Tebtebba Foundation. Sen, A. (1999). Development as Freedom. Anchor books. New York. Shimizu, H. (2001). The Orphans of Pinatubo: The Ayta Struggle for Existence. Solidaridad Publishing House. Manila. __________ (1989) Pinatubo Aytas: Continuity and Change. Quezon City, Philippines: Ateneo de Manila University Press. Smith, L. (2012). Decolonizing Methodologies: Research and Indigenous Peoples. 2 ed. London: Zed Books. Yin, R. (2011). Qualitative Research from Start to Finish. The Guilford Press. New York.
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Internet The Whites Man Burden by Rudyard Kipling McClure's Magazine 12, Feb. 1899. Wikipedia. http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/2422/the-koru Film Avatar.2009 written and directed by James Cameron. Agno. Produced by Cordillera Peoples Alliance and ST-Exposure

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