List of Igorot Achievers: Part 2

Okay, let’s continue with our listing of Igorots that we should emulate. However, let’s now call it the List of Igorot Achievers or in short, "The List". The title we originally proposed, List of Igorot Firsts to Emulate a.k.a. LIFE, really sounds silly and corny, so let's settle for a simpler title.

FROM LEFT: BALWEG, CAPUYAN, SILANG, AND MASFERRE.

THE LIST
1. First woman national hero: Gabriela Silang. I am officially elevating her to The List after finding several sources which state that she is a Tingguian mestiza. Funny how history books describe her as the Ilocano Joan of Arc but never ever mention her Tingguian ancestry. If there’s anyone out there campaigning for more factual history textbooks, I will gladly hop on board. More about our Tingguian hero here and here.

2. First rebel priest: Conrado Balweg. Like him or dislike him, no one can deny that Balweg was the face of the Cordillera revolutionary at one time. He articulated the problems of the region, was once the CPP/NPA's poster boy, and was a source of inspiration for budding rebels. Balweg eventually made peace with the government, authorized a movie about his life (starring Philip Salvador and Tetchie Agbayani) that made money at the box office, became a government official, and waged war against his former comrades. He was assassinated in 1999 allegedly by some communist guerrillas. Balweg articles here and here.

3. First to popularize indigenous weave: Narda Capuyan promoted our culture by innovating on the traditional ikat art of hand weaving. Her products conquered high-end stores like Bloomingdales in the U.S. and are now displayed in different parts of the world. In 1999, Narda was selected as one of The 100 Women of the Philippines who have excelled in their work and contributed to national development. More here and here.

4. First to head a Government Owned and Controlled Corporation (GOCC): Rufino Bomasang headed the Philippine National Oil Corporation at one time. He resigned when news reports started questioning the scandalously high salaries of GOCC officials. (Most other GOCC officials whose salaries were questionned didn't budge from their seats.) Igorots should be proud of Mr. Bomasang for giving up a very lucrative position. Anyway, Bomasang is now the president of a power company, Sultan Energy. More info on him here. If I'm not mistaken (I still have to check), Bomasang's first claim to fame is his topping the board exam for mining engineers.

5. First to win a case against the Philippine government: Mateo Cariño. His case against the Philippine government which went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court (we were still a colony then) established the Cariño doctrine which states that possession of land since time immemorial is a valid basis for land title. Unfortunately, although the doctrine is often cited by activists it is also often ignored by the courts and is thus not applied where it counts. More here.

6. First to establish a community newspaper: The Hamada Siblings (Sinai and Oseo Hamada and Cecille Afable). The siblings started the Baguio Midland Courier which, in a lot of ways, connected the different Cordillera groups/peoples and helped bring about a pan-Cordillera consciousness. More about Cecille here. An interesting libel case filed by faith healer/politician Jun Labo against the siblings and the Midland can be found here. In acquitting Hamada, et. al., the Supreme Court said to Labo: "You have no proof that you are the one referred to as 'dumpty in the egg'." Okay, the Court didn't exactly use those words but that's the gist. [Note: This was edited on June 19, 2007 to reflect the comment below. Thanks to our anonymous commenter for the info.]

7. First photographer: Eduardo Masferre, widely acknowledged as the Father of Philippine Photography, preserved images of the Cordilleras through his pictures. More about him here.

8. First World War II guerrilla officers: Major Bado Dangwa and Major Dennis Molintas. I’m sure there are other guerrilla officers but for some reason Dangwa and Molintas are the most prominent. More about them here. Incidentally, the families of Dangwa and Molintas now are leading political forces in Benguet. Dangwa was also involved in transportation and his bus company, Dangwa Tranco, once dominated the Manila-Baguio line. Like the Baguio Midland Courier, Dangwa Tranco also brought Cordillerans closer as a people but this time in the geographical sense. Sadly, the bus company is now a shadow of its former self. For the trivia minded: The flower district in Manila is popularly known as Dangwa and the Cordillera police regional office is named Camp Bado Dangwa.

Nominees to The List:

1. First to establish an indigenous evangelical church group: Moses Chungalao of the Free Believers of Christ Inc.?

2. First to ever hold office in Malacañang (not as president of course): William “Billy” Claver as consultant to former President Joseph Estrada on Indigenous Issues? I’m not sure if Atty. Claver actually had an office in Malacañang. If he did, then he pre-dates Mrs. Dominguez who now holds office there.

List of Igorot Firsts to Emulate or "LIFE"

So far, I have not come across any list that details the achievements of Igorots particularly those who, you know, did it first. Maybe we should come up with one and call it "List of Igorot Firsts to Emulate" or LIFE? Medyo korni ang title at acronym ano? ;-) This being the electronic age, this list is not written in stone. In other words, you can challenge it if you think an entry is questionable and if you have the facts to back you up.

Apart from the LIFE, I am also including a “nominee list”. The difference between the two is that the former contains entries who, we can say with some degree of confidence, really did it first. On the other hand, the nominee list contains those whose achievement still have to be confirmed by other, preferably official, sources. You are also invited to nominate anyone who you think should be included. Let us make this a project to show the younger generation that they have models to admire and, more importantly, to follow.

From top, left to right: DULAG, AYOCHOK
DOMOGAN, TAULI-CORPUZ, CIELO, & BIAG

List of Igorot Firsts:
1. First Olympian: Track and field athlete Hector Begeo (3000 steeple chase) is so far the only Igorot to have participated in the Olympic Games. His best finish? Reaching the semifinals in the 1988 Seoul Olympics. In other fronts, Begeo boasts of an Asian Games bronze medal which he won in 1982. He also bagged seven gold medals in different editions of the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games. Begeo is reportedly now based in Australia. Source here and here.

2. First Mr. Asia: Bodybuilder Samuel Ayochok placed third in the 1997 World Championships so you can call him, "Mr. Universe, Second Runner Up". His other achievements include: besting the field in the Mr. Asia competition for three straight years (1986 to 88) and winning a gold medal in the South East Asian Games. More about him here and here. You may want to visit his gym here.

3. First Igorot mayor of Baguio Mauricio Domogan. He was initially elected as vice mayor but the mayor-elect Jun Labo was disqualified so Domogan was elevated as mayor. The two politicians then faced each other in the succeeding elections and Domogan easily defeated Labo. [Note: Correction to this entry below.]

4. First to win in a national talent search: Marky Cielo of GMA-7's Starstruck. I’m not sure if he is the first Igorot artista because I think there were those who came before him. However, he is the most high profile (famous) and the most proud of his ancestry. Visit his website here.

5. First to be included in the wall of heroes and martyrs of the Bantayog ng mga Bayani: Macliing Dulag. He led the Kalinga-Bontoc opposition to the Chico River Dam during Martial Law.

6. First to head a United Nations (UN) body: Victoria Tauli-Corpuz who currently chairs the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. More here.

7. First ballet dancer: Biag Gaongen of Ballet Philippines.

8. First to land in the pages of the prestigious Time Magazine: Aning Andao who, along with other Igorot women, helped fight the Japanese during World War II. Time article here.

NOMINEES TO THE LIST:
1. First to be included in the pantheon of national heroes: Gabriela Silang? According to a forum entry in the Abrenian.com, Gabriela Silang is a Tingguian.

2. First to ride a plane: Gagaban? According to this site.

3. First Catholic Bishop: Bishop Francisco Claver? He last headed the Vicariate of Bontoc-Lagawe before he retired.

4. First Anglican/Episcopal Bishop: Bishop Edward Longid (RIP) of the Episcopal Diocese of Northern Philippines.

5. First to write as a columnist for a national daily newspaper: Juan Dait of Manila Bulletin?

6. First to ever hold office in Malacañang (not as president of course): Josephine Dominguez

7. First to record an album: Lourdes Gomeyac Fangki and Elmer Hull.

8. First Representative to Congress: Gabriel Dunuan, Jose Mencio, George Tait were all members of the First Congress. I’m sure Dunuan qualifies but I’m not sure if the others are Igorots. You might want to read an interesting Supreme Court decision regarding some properties of the late George Tait here.

This is the first installment folks. We will have updates in the future as we come across new information.

UPDATE: Domogan is not actually the first Igorot Mayor of Baguio. The distinction goes to Jose "Pepe" Carino, an Ibaloi, who was appointed city mayor from 1946-50. Carino is included in the List of Achievers here. Domogan is the first Igorot to be elected as mayor of the city.

UPDATE 2: Because it is quite hard to determine who among our kailiyans really did it "first", we have since changed the focus of this compilation to those who achieved something in their field, you can find more of them in the Igorot/iCordillera Achievers category. Thanks.

Excerpt # 2: Albert Ernest Jenks on Igorot Peoples

ALBERT JENKS: In several languages of northern Luzon the word "Ig-o-rot'" means "mountain people." Dr. Pardo de Tavera says the word "Igorrote" is composed of the root word "golot," meaning, in Tagalog, "mountain chain," and the prefix "i," meaning "dweller in" or "people of." Morga in 1609 used the word as "Igolot;" early Spaniards also used the word frequently as "Ygolotes" -- and to-day some groups of the Igorot, as the Bontoc group, do not pronounce the "r" sound, which common usage now puts in the word. The Spaniards applied the term to the wild peoples of present Benguet and Lepanto Provinces, now a short-haired, peaceful people. In after years its common application spread eastward to the natives of the comandancia of Quiangan, in the present Province of Nueva Vizcaya, and northward to those of Bontoc.

The word "Ig-o-rot'" is now adopted tentatively as the name of the extensive primitive Malayan people of northern Luzon, because it is applied to a very large number of the mountain people by themselves and also has a recognized usage in ethnologic and other writings.

…..

There are from 150,000 to 225,000 Igorot in Igorot land. The census of the Archipelago taken in 1903 will give the number as about 185,000.

…..

It is believed that all the mountain people of the northern half of Luzon, except the Negritos, came to the island in some of the earliest of the movements that swept the coasts of the Archipelago from the south and spread over the inland areas -- succeeding waves of people, having more culture, driving their cruder blood fellows farther inland. Though originally of one blood, and though they are all to-day in a similar broad culture-grade -- that is, all are mountain agriculturists, and all are, or until recently have been, head-hunters -- yet it does not follow that the Igorot groups have to-day identical culture; quite the contrary is true. There are many and wide differences even in important cultural expressions which are due to environment, long isolation, and in some cases to ideas and processes borrowed from different neighboring peoples. Very misleading statements have sometimes been made in regard to the Igorot -- customs from different groups have been jumbled together in one description until a man has been pictured who can not be found anywhere. All except the most general statements are worse than wasted unless a particular group is designated.

An illustration of some of the differences between groups of typical Igorot will make this clearer. I select as examples the people of Bontoc and the adjoining Quiangan district in northern Nueva Vizcaya Province, both of whom are commonly known as Igorot. It must be noted that the people of both areas are practically unmodified by modern culture and both are constant head-hunters. With scarcely one exception Bontoc pueblos are single clusters of buildings; in Banawi pueblo of the Quiangan area there are eleven separate groups of dwellings, each group situated on a prominence which may be easily protected by the inhabitants against an enemy below them; and other Quiangan pueblos are similarly built.

As will be brought out in succeeding chapters, the social and political institutions of the two peoples differ widely. In Bontoc the head weapon is a battle-ax, in Quiangan it is a long knife. Most of the head-hunting practices of the two peoples are different, especially as to the disposition of the skulls of the victims. Bontoc men wear their hair long, and have developed a small pocket-hat to confine the hair and contain small objects carried about; the men of Quiangan wear their hair short, have nothing whatever of the nature of the pocket-hat, but have developed a unique hand bag which is used as a pocket. In the Quiangan area a highly conventionalized wood-carving art has developed -- beautiful eating spoons with figures of men and women carved on the handles and food bowls cut in animal figures are everywhere found; while in Bontoc only the most crude and artless wood carving is made. In language there is such a difference that Bontoc men who accompanied me into the northern part of the large Quiangan area, only a long day from Bontoc pueblo, could not converse with Quiangan men, even about such common things as travelers in a strange territory need to learn.

Note: The dotted lines mean that I cut out some portions to make the reading less bulky. These portions refer to the location of the Igorots and their geographical distribution. Again, you can access the whole e-book at this website.

Cordillera Roundup

DENR's schizophrenia: It's right hand says, "My God the mountains are balding. We should protect them." But its left hand says, "Come foreign mining companies. Come to the Cordilleras and rape our mountains." Heck! The DENR is as confused (sick?) as Gollum.

Only two of the six Cordillera provinces are not bald. Official of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR): “Apayao province has at least 80 percent forest cover while Abra has more than 50 percent. Ifugao, Kalinga, Benguet and Mountain Province forests have thinned.” Bulatlat reports here. Well, if the DENR’s Mining Geosciences Bureau would have its way, Apayao can kiss that 80% forest cover goodbye. And hey DENR, to protect the environment you should do more than conduct press conferences decrying the sad state of the Cordillera mountains. Logging and mining ban, anyone? Meanwhile, Kalinga is planting 8,000 trees along its roads. More here.

Glovax proposes apology for print ad that maligns Cordillera's tourists spots. The distributor of a meningococcemia vaccine sought to end a damage suit filed against it by the Baguio City government by issuing a public apology. The ad used the Lion's Head at Kennon Road and the Ifugao Rice Terraces as background images and stated: "Wherever you go, viruses are waiting to welcome you! Such as meningococcemia, which can kill you in 24 hours." The Baguio City legal officier is currently formulating a counter-proposal to the Glovax proposal before a final agreement is reached. Sunstar reports here. Cheers to Baguio for its balls in trying to make these drug “profitting out of the sick” companies accountable.

Who are Cordillera’s top tax payers? Power company Hedcor, Inc. tops the list paying P32 million in income taxes in 2005. Other top taxpayers are: Texas Instruments in Baguio City; the Rural Bank of Sagada in Mountain Province; the Rural Bank of Tabuk in Kalinga; Oscar Dugyon of Racso Construction in Ifugao; and Victorino Baroña Jr in Abra. More here. Yay, good private and corporate citizens! What about those mountain-destroying mining firms like Lepanto Consolidated and Benguet, Inc? Oh they are paying their taxes in Makati or in Pasig.


Links to Cordillera cyberspace:

Kalinga-owned Chico River Quest invites you to try whitewater rafting in Kalinga here.

Looking for nice pictures of Sagada, Mt. Province and Tinglayan, Kalinga? You can find them here and here.

Lastly, the Northern Dispatch does a Special Report on what should be Baguio City’s top three concerns. Insights from different people here. And the city prepares for its anniversary without Mayor Braulio Yaranon who has been suspended for one year. Reports here and here.

Excerpt # 1: Albert Jenks' General Impressions on the Bontoc Igorot

ALBERT JENKS: It seems not improper to say a word here regarding some of my commonest impressions of the Bontoc Igorot. Physically he is a clean-limbed, well-built, dark-brown man of medium stature, with no evidence of degeneracy. He belongs to that extensive stock of primitive people of which the Malay is the most commonly named. I do not believe he has received any of his characteristics, as a group, from either the Chinese or Japanese, though this theory has frequently been presented. The Bontoc man would be a savage if it were not that his geographic location compelled him to become an agriculturist; necessity drove him to this art of peace. In everyday life his actions are deliberate, but he is not lazy. He is remarkably industrious for a primitive man.

Me: This illustrates what I earlier said about the author’s love for the word primitive. We only have the first few sentences in the book and he already used it twice.

In his agricultural labors he has strength, determination, and endurance. On the trail, as a cargador or burden bearer for Americans, he is patient and uncomplaining, and earns his wage in the sweat of his brow. His social life is lowly, and before marriage is most primitive; but a man has only one wife, to whom he is usually faithful. The social group is decidedly democratic; there are no slaves. The people are neither drunkards, gamblers, nor "sportsmen." There is little "color" in the life of the Igorot; he is not very inventive and seems to have little imagination. His chief recreation -- certainly his most-enjoyed and highly prized recreation -- is head-hunting. But head-hunting is not the passion with him that it is with many Malay peoples.

Me: Hmmm. On second thoughts, maybe I should re-visit and change my earlier blog entry. Mr. Jenks does seem to be condescending here. What exactly is a “lowly” social life? That the Igorot does not attend opera concerts? Geeze, Mr. Jenks aren’t we being uppity here with our gradations of social lives? Isn’t talking to one’s neighbor already considered a social life?

His religion is at base the most primitive religion known -- animism, or spirit belief -- but he has somewhere grasped the idea of one god, and has made this belief in a crude way a part of his life.

Me: There’s that word again. And he uses it again in the next paragraph. This author seriously needs a thesaurus he he.

He is a very likable man, and there is little about his primitiveness that is repulsive. He is of a kindly disposition, is not servile, and is generally trustworthy. He has a strong sense of humor. He is decidedly friendly to the American, whose superiority he recognizes and whose methods he desires to learn. The boys in school are quick and bright, and their teacher pronounces them superior to Indian and Mexican children he has taught in Mexico, Texas, and New Mexico.[1]

Me: Why do I have the feeling that this is somewhat flattering but at the same time supercilious?

Briefly, I believe in the future development of the Bontoc Igorot for the following reasons: He has an exceptionally fine physique for his stature and has no vices to destroy his body. He has courage which no one who knows him seems ever to think of questioning; he is industrious, has a bright mind, and is willing to learn.

Me: A bit “Oh the development of the world is the white man’s burden” aren’t we here Mr. Jenks?

His institutions -- governmental, religious, and social -- are not radically opposed to those of modern civilization -- as, for instance, are many institutions of the Mohammedanized people of Mindanao and the Sulu Archipelago -- but are such, it seems to me, as will quite readily yield to or associate themselves with modern institutions.

Me: Hey Mr. Jenks the correct term is Muslim not Mohammedanized. My brother and sister Muslims will be offended when you call them Mohammedans. They do not worship Mohammed in the same way that Christians worship Christ. I also don’t quite understand what your sentence mean, are you saying that Muslim institutions are radically opposed to modern institutions? If that is what you meant, then you are plainly wrong.

I recall with great pleasure the months spent in Bontoc pueblo, and I have a most sincere interest in and respect for the Bontoc Igorot as a man.

Me: Ha ha. Flattery. No wonder I was flattered. But as I said, I may have to revisit my earlier review.

BACK TO NORMAL PROGRAMMING :-) Okay folks, so that’s the first installment. I wonder if I am being disrespectful of a scholar by doing this commentary? But then, he was writing about my ancestors so I feel that I must do it. I also think that good scholars, like Mr. Jenks, are always prepared to be critiqued and would welcome it if someone does critique their work.

If you want to read the whole book without me getting in the way you can access an electronic copy here.

Reading Albert Jenks’ The Bontoc Igorot

Before I started reading Albert Jenks’ book on the Bontoc Igorots, I was ready to be offended. I was also prepared to write a snarky review and to bash the book with the righteous rage of an Igorot whose ancestors were slandered by an American writer.

I assumed that since Mr. Jenks is a “modern” American writing about the “primitive” Igorots in the early 1900s, he will be paternalistic and judgmental. In other words, I was prepared for him to say things like “Ugh, this people are really uncivilized. I’m glad we white people are here to save them.” Or “These people will all go to hell because they are not Christians.” You know stuff like that.

I must now admit that I was mistaken. Overall, the tone of the book is neither paternalistic nor judgmental. In fact, at some points, the book is respectful of its subjects and we are not talking here about the “Oh they are noble savages” kind of respect.

In my defense, it is still good to read things written about us Igorots/Filipinos by our colonial overlords with a healthy dose of skepticism and a critical eye. I guess what saved Mr. Jenks from my bashing is the fact that he is an academic. (You can check his short biography here.)

His role was not to bring the Igorots under the governance of the state. Neither was he tasked to save the heathens and bring them under the reign of a Christian God. Because of this, the author wrote about the Igorots with less tendency to be condescending than would a government functionary or an evangelist. [Here’s a question for you folks: In a truth-telling activity with a group composed of a politician, a priest, and an academic, who is most likely to tell the truth? It’s the academic according to my former boss who happens to be an academic.]

I am not saying that the book is not faultless. Actually, it has its silly parts. In one chapter, the author goes on and on describing the body parts of Igorot men and women that I was surprised he didn’t go to the extent of measuring his subjects’ private anatomies. Maybe, he did but didn’t say anything about it in his book. But let’s give Mr. Jenks some slack. Anthropologists are strange folks and Mr. Jenks -- with his avid interest (fetish?) in his subjects’ noses, inward toes, heads, and armpit hair -- is no exception.

My other beef against the author is that he keeps on referring to the Igorots as a primitive people. My blood boiled the first time he does this and he didn’t help matters by his repetitive use of the term. Nonetheless, I am willing to concede that maybe his offense is not unforgivable partly because maybe the word/term back then didn’t have the very negative connotations that it now has and partly because, as earlier mentioned, the overall tone of the book is not disrespectful. [So what’s an unforgivable offense, you ask? The St. Louis Exposition where Igorots were displayed like animals in a zoo is an unforgivable offense in my book. It should also be unforgivable in your book.]

At any rate, this rather lengthy blog entry is meant to introduce you to Albert Jenks’ book, The Bontoc Igorot. I will be publishing excerpts of the book with some of my comments thrown in. Let’s bear in mind that this book is the impressions of a man who lived with his subjects for a short period of time. It is not definitive of the Bontoc Igorot and the author, Albert Ernest Jenks, does not make that claim.

Baguio City

Boating in Burnham

Ifugao

Batad Rice Terraces

Kalinga

Tiglayan


VIDEO CREDIT: Natsm16 of Kalinga Tambayan.

Benguet

Mt. Pulag

Mt. Province

Marky Cielo's Starstruck Days

And Ye Shall Know Them by Their Websites

Okay, this is an attempt to evaluate the websites of the Cordillera provinces and Baguio City. First off, I would like to say that I have no idea how to design a website. If I knew how, I wouldn’t be using this blogger template. Nonetheless, just because I am ignorant of the how-tos doesn’t mean that I can’t tell the difference between a good website from one that needs improvement. A movie critic need not know how to direct a movie. A coach need not be an athlete. And you don’t have to be a president to say something about President Arroyo’s (mal)administration of the country’s affairs. Now that you get my drift, let's look at the criteria that we will be using in making our judgment:

First, overall website design, (40%): This refers to how the website looks or its visual impact.

Secondly, website content, (40%): Refers to the information that a visitor gets from the website particularly the relevance and usefulness of said information.

Lastly, other factors (20%): This takes into account factors like navigability of the website as well as feedback mechanisms, regularity of updates, etc. etc.

The above criteria are, admittedly, personal and arbitrary but then maybe some can come up with suggestions on how we can refine it the next time around. Here’s how the websites stack against each other. To see and judge the provincial (and city) websites for yourself, click on the links.

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BENGUET: www.benguet.gov.ph



Web Design, 35%; Content, 35%; Others, 20%. TOTAL, 90%

COMMENTS: The website is excellent. It looks great, the photo gallery is fantastic. There is enough information for those merely browsing, those doing research, and for the Ibenguet’s outside the province who would like to relieve their homesickness. On the other hand, this website may only make them more homesick and head for home. The website appears to be regularly updated and it has discussion groups, information on Benguet munipalities, a directory of schools, churches, hospitals, etc, etc. Navigation is also a breeze. Whoever designed this site and whoever took those photographs deserve the highest kudos.

* * * * *

BAGUIO CITY: www.baguio.gov.ph

Web design: 25%; Content: 30%; Others: 10%. TOTAL, 65%

COMMENTS: This website is a letdown. It can’t compare with the Benguet website. Its main page looks like a mimeographed newsletter designed by a high school student circa 70s/80s. Okay, I know I’m being unfair but I had high expectations for Baguio considering its financial resources and the talent pool that it can draw from.

* * * * *

MT. PROVINCE : www.mtprovince.gov.ph

Web design, 20%; Content, 23%; Others, 8%. TOTAL, 51%

COMMENTS: I’m from Mt. Province and so it is embarrassing for me to give the above barely passing score. (50% is the passing grade by the way). Nonetheless, this critique is meant to encourage the province that it is now high time to improve its website. The main page looks okay but the other pages are ho-hum. Content wise, there’s only a very basic information about the province and some tourist spots. It’s also kind of embarrassing that the site displays the governor’s Yahoo email address. He he he. I’ve nothing against Yahoo and it's perfectly alright for the governor to have a Yahoo email but to have that email address displayed in an official government webpage is something else. It’s sort of uncool. There are better ways of getting feedback through the website if that is the intent for displaying the governor’s email.

* * * * *

KALINGA: www.kalinga.gov.ph

Web design, 19%; Content, 24%; Others, 8%. TOTAL, 51%

COMMENTS: Overall, the website looks very much like the Mt. Province website mainly because they appear to have been designed by the same person/group. However, the main page (but only the main page) for the Mt. Province website is better because it comes across instantly as an official government website. The problem with Kalinga’s main page is that it looks like an advertisement for the 1990s movie, “A River Runs Through It”. I know they are trying to promote, Kalinga as a river rafting destination but this should be secondary to promoting the provincial government and the province itself. Also, what is the penguin doing in that page? It is so culturally inappropriate. Still the Kalinga website contains more information so it beats Mt. Province content-wise.

* * * * *

IFUGAO: www.ifugao.gov.ph

Web design, 25%; Content, 25%; Others, 10%. TOTAL: 60%

COMMENTS: This website looks very promising. The homepage is dramatic with those rice terraces. The website is still under construction so I might revisit it in the future and give it a new score. It might beat Benguet if the designer is going to continue what s/he is doing and, additionally, get clues from the Benguet webpage.

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APAYAO: www.apayao.gov.ph

Web design, 25%; Content, 18%; Others, 10%. TOTAL, 53%

COMMENTS: The website looks good but it has the least content of all the websites. It looks professionally designed but it doesn’t evoke any emotion like the professionally designed Benguet webpage. Okay, if the Benguet website could either make an I-Benguet homesick or cure his/her homesickness, the Apayao website would not do either for an I-Apayao away from home. The forum is nice though. However, because it is not moderated, it has tons of spam messages promoting Viagra, gambling, and pornography. Governor Bulut should spank whoever is managing this site for allowing/not deleting such kinds of messages.

* * * * *

ABRA: www.abra.gov.ph

Web design, 32%; Content, 20%; Others, 8%. TOTAL, 60%

COMMENTS: The second best in terms of overall design but there’s not much information here. In fact, the information only pertains to the 2005 Arya Abra festival. I remember visiting this site three years ago and back then it had much more information about the province. I think someone changed the website to promote the Arya Abra festival but then forgot to restore the original content when the festival ended. It is also quite a turn-off that the homepage prominently features the pictures of Abra Governor Vicente Valera and Mayor Zita Valera. I know that the practice of putting one’s face in government websites is very common but in this case, the pictures really dominate the page. The effect? It comes across as a personal website rather than an official one.

How to Spot an Igorot.

So what clues/signs/evidence do you see in people that makes you exclaim, “Aha! Igorot ka anya?” It takes one to know one, ika nga.

Here are some interesting insights from “forumers” of Cordillera Online on “spotting” an Igorot:

1. Medyo singkit.

2. Nakaleather piman uray summer.

3. Best in English.

4. Na ehteng ti rupa na.

5. Pati nan dapan na.

6. Pag cowboy ang dating!!..can sit anywhere!!..walk a long mile..bilog ang binti..at magaganda syempre...hindi sila guwapo!!..TARAKI sila

7. Long hair, leather jacket with a pointed boots like the cowboy style..with the hat...for girls naman the braided long hair...they talk ibaloy, kankanai any cordillera dialect. of course..old folks still use the g-strings along with the skirts na strips with different colors. I used to see a grandpa using a coat and a g-string oh one thing more, you guys walk differently.

8. Nakabarong, ngem adda paylaeng na-inayun nga inabel idiay sango. (Diay barong ni APO DOMOGAN.)

9. Sagada or other native woven bags, accesories.

10. No mapanda diay lowlands ket reddish ti rupa da haan nga blush ah rosy cheecks kano.

11. Agsisinnurot da nga magna.

12. Their jeans mostly are "PADA-IT", with most guys they wear fitted jeans, and u can easily recognized them because they are "BADOY" though they’re good looking para makabawi ako.

This is my contribution: Ti Igorot, ammo da nga ag-yodel. You want proof? Here's an Igorot yodeler over at You Tube.

If you have suggestions on Igorot-spotting, join the Cordillera Onliners here.

The Mountains are Sinking!

Photo courtery of morgagni from this site.

The rice terraces in Sagada are sinking. Well, okay, not all of them but the ones that tourists usually view (see photo above) en route to Sumaguing Cave are. As yet, there has been no study to explain why this is happening so I can only guess that the river below the terraces has been eroding the foundation of the lower fields, and this naturally makes the whole terraces unstable. Geologists would have a better chance of explaining the problem and, hopefully, in coming up with solutions.

Incidentally, this problem is not limited to Sagada but is occurring in other parts of the Cordilleras. Ground subsidence and unstable ground hazards have also been reported in Pantikian, Balbalan, Kalinga and Butac, Natonin. It is also happening in the towns of Buguias, Mankayan and Atok, all in the province of Benguet. More information here and here.

Kabenguetan Rules!

Benguet is Number One. Well, that’s according to the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in its ranking of the country’s provinces using the Human Development Index (HDI). Instead of focusing on income alone, HDI also measures other development indicators such as life expectancy, school enrolment, and literacy. In 2005, Benguet emerged as the top-ranked province with a score of 0.738. Other provinces in the top ten are: Batanes, Rizal, Cavite, Nueva Vizcaya, Pampanga, Bataan, Bulacan, and Ilocos Norte.

Meanwhile, Ifugao improved its performance and is recognized among the “top gainers”. It also graduates from the bottom ten provinces -- it was ranked 72nd among 77 provinces in the 2000 HDI. More here.

I’ve been trying to download the whole 2005 Philippine HDI Report to see how the other Cordillera provinces fared but it’s difficult to download.

In the meantime, this is how the Cordillera provinces ranked in the year 2000: Benguet, 10th; Abra, 24th; Mt. Province, 40th; Apayao, 50th; Kalinga, 54th; and Ifugao, 72nd. To see how the Cordillera provinces fared vis-a-vis other provinces, click here .

Rankings and indexes are not infallible evidence of what is “best” since it depends too much on the variables that one decides to measure. Nonetheless, HDI has been accepted as a good indicator of the areas that states, and in this case provinces, should improve on. It is a good guide to government officials who are serious about improving the lives of their people.

So how is the Philippines faring in terms of human development? It ranks number 84 out of 177 countries. Not so bad but nothing to boast about either. We are not at the bottom but we might be in 20 years.

Yohoo! Amerikanos Eating Kalinga Rice.

Kalinga farmers are preparing a third shipment of Unoy rice to the United States after demand for said rice variety increased. American consumers are said to prefer hand pounded rice because of its nutritional content; research has reportedly shown that hand pounding preserves the iron content of the rice. The bad news is that the growing demand for Unoy rice might encourage people to resort to a slash and burn farming system to expand their planting areas. Full report here.

Maybe we should continue with this "reverse cultural invasion" by sending dog meat to the Americans. It’s supposedly good for the skin, according to Koreans anyway. More here.

GMA's Minitrue: "My Father Built the Halsema Highway!"

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in this year’s State of the Nation Address: “My father built the Halsema Highway from Baguio to Bontoc, and the Bagabag airport in Nueva Vizcaya to access the Ifugao rice terraces, which by the way, the UNESCO has recently praised for the way we have carried out our heritage preservation policy….” (Emphasis supplied.)

Huh? Really, Mrs. President? Last time I checked the Halsema Highway (also known as the Mountain Trail) was built in the 1920s by Eusebius Halsema and by the Igorot people [and some Japanese and some Chinese workers too] who helped him. Or maybe the more correct way of saying it is that the Halsema Highway was built under the guidance/leadership of Mr. Halsema.

You should fire your speechwriter for putting you in a bad light. But maybe the speechwriter is not to blame. As a presidential daughter I would suppose that you are privy to the correct information on whether your dad really built said highway. Your father might have improved the Halsema Highway (I’m just guessing that he did) but in no way did he build it. It is not called Halsema Highway for nothing. Credit grabbing is so uncool.

For more information on the person who built the Halsema Highway, visit www.halsema.org.

Photo courtesy of: www.sfbotanicalgarden.org

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