BAGUIO CITY (PIA) — The Regional Development Council will formally open the 37th Cordillera Month celebration on Monday(July 1) with the theme, “Multiculturalism Towards Regional Autonomy and Development.”
The National Commission on Indigenous People-Cordillera with elders will kick off the opening day with a traditional ritual at the Baguio Convention and Cultural Center. It will be followed by a multicultural parade from the newly opened Carantes Street at Lower Session Road going up to the BCCC for the program proper.
The multicultural parade will be participated by officials and representatives from different government line agencies, local government units, the academe, civil society organizations, and other sectors.
In the program, Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong who chairs the Development Administration and Good Governance Sectoral Committee, this year’s sectoral host, will deliver the welcome remarks, and RDC Chairperson and Apayao Governor Elias Bulut Jr. for the opening message.
RDC Vice Chairperson and NEDA-CAR Regional Director Susan Sumbeling will present the calendar of activities for the Cordillera Month celebration.
Cordillera congressional representatives, governors and heads of the multicultural groups are expected to deliver their respective solidarity messages and commitment of support to the pursuit of the regional autonomy and development.
Presidential Assistant for Northern Luzon Assistant Secretary Ana Carmela Remigio and Presidential Assistant for the Cordillera Administrative Region Assistant Secretary Antonio Tabora Jr. are also expected to grace the occasion and deliver their solidarity messages.
With Abra as the host local government unit for this year’s Cordi Month celebration, the main activity will be held on July 15 in Bangued with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. as the expected guest of honor.
Among the events lined up for the month-long observance are the Unity Gong Relay, the Cordillera Fun Bike, and the Multicultural Variety Show.
The culmination program will be on July 31 in Baguio City which will be highlighted by the State of the Region Address to be delivered by the RDC chairperson Apayao Governor Elias Bulut Jr. and the turn-over of hosting for the 38th Cordillera Month celebration.
The Cordillera Administrative Region was established in accordance with Executive Order 220, signed on July 15, 1987. The creation of the Cordillera region laid the groundwork for the creation of an autonomous region in the Cordilleras.
July of every year is celebrated as the Cordillera Month to commemorate a significant historical event and to promote greater awareness, deeper appreciation, and active participation among the people of the Cordilleras in the pursuit of regional autonomy. (RMC-PIA CAR)
SELF-DETERMINING AND SELF-GOVERNING AUTONOMOUS FIRST NATIOn
The Cordillera Nation
During years of development, it was the mountain province of Cordillera that was neglected by the Philippine government, exploited for its resources without consultation with the indigenous people who held the lands as sacred ancestral domain. Consequently, some felt compelled to join the insurgency as their only recourse.
The Cordilleran’s struggle centred on defending their land, families and way of life. In response, the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) was established through Executive Order No. 220 in 1987, aiming to govern the region, foster economic an social progress, and lay the groundwork for the Autonomous Region in the Cordillera
Years later, a subsequent administration sought to fulfil the Philippine Government’s commitment to a meaningful peace process by pursuing Cordillera’s autonomy through Congress.
On January 24, 2024, the Cordillera Administrative Region asserted its autonomy, by establishing the independent Cordillera Nation—a 200,000-plus square mile ancestral domain territory in northern Luzon. This desire for autonomy stemmed from the meager annual budget allocated to CAR by the Philippine government, merely PHP 1.00 ($0.018). The people through the principle of “Free and Prior Informed Consent” expressed their desire for economic independence and protection from exploitation and abuse.
Capitalizing on rights granted to the ICC/IPs by various laws and international conventions, including the 1986 Executive Order #220, the 1989 Republic Act 6766, the 1989 International Labor Organization’s Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention, and Section 26 of the U.N’s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and Sections 7, 13, 16 and 17 of the Philippine Republic Act No. 8371, the CORDILLERA NATION was established to address longstanding injustices against all indigenous people, the preservation of its culture and chart a new economic development path forward.