FACTORS AFFECTING SUBANEN DISPLACEMENT IN

BRGY. MONTOL, OZAMIZ CITY

A Research Paper Presented to

Mr. Benjiemen Labastin

In fulfillment of the Requirements

In Research Methodology

Submitted by:
Riza M. Gabaya

November 23, 2019

 CHAPTER I

Background of the Study

In the island of Mindanao, particularly in Zamboanga Peninsula, there exists a

group of lumad or non-Muslim indigenous cultural community called the Subanen.

They are also known as Subanon or Subano, derived from the word “ suba,” a

Visayan word meaning “river,” as most of their settlements can be found near rivers

or mountain streams.1 The Subanons regularly move from one location to another to

clear more forest for fields. They cultivate crops, with rice as the most important

crop, but they are also known to raise livestock including pigs, chickens, cattle, and

water buffaloes. There houses are built along hillsides and ridges overlooking family

fields. However, due to disturbances and competitions from other settlers like the

Muslims, and migrations of Cebuano speakers to the coastal areas attracted by the

inviting Land Tenure Laws, further pushed the Subanen into the interior. 2

In the mountainous area of Ozamiz City lies a cultural community that is rich

in culture and tradition. One of the barangays of Ozamiz City that has a huge

population of Subanen Tribe is Barangay Montol. Locating in the highlands, Brgy.

Montol serves as the prominent place of the Subanen tribe. In the recent years, the

Subanen tribe in Montol suffers from illegal displacement due to massive land

grabbing and infrastructural developments that continuously happening in their

place. In fact, some of them didn’t receive any help from the government. These

people were forced to move up to the highlands of Mt. Malindang for them to

cultivate another land to plant their crops and make a living. Also, they were forced

or obliged to flee to leave from their homes or places to avoid the conflict between

1
Ethnic Groups Philippines. The Subanen People of Mindanao.
Retrieved from http://www.ethnicgroupsphilippines.com/2016/03/21/the-subanen-people-of-mindanao/
2
Subanen History. (1981). "History of Subanon Tribe in the Philippines". Retrieved 2013-09-09.
the Military and Paramilitary like the leftist group. They were threatened by this

paramilitary group if the Subanens won’t be able to extent their help to them such as

proving them food, water, temporary shelter, and even asking for financial help. In

this matter, some of them were forced to give them what they want and the others

were forced to flee to the highlands in order to escape from these rebels.

On the other hand, infrastructure such as mountain roads, dams, bridges, and

even the construction of subdivision were also developed in the mountainous area of

the city. These infrastructures are created to facilitate access to natural resources, to

connect human communities, to move goods to markets, and to move people to

work. Nevertheless, these infrastructures led to the disturbance of the ancestral

domains of the Subanen tribe. Land grabbing and illegal displacement are rampant

in this place which leads to conflict in both parties.

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

The rapid development in infrastructure and land tenure in the Philippines

greatly affects the living condition among the indigenous peoples. These

developments lead to disturbances of their way of living and eventually resulted to

external and internal displacements of these people.

An online journal entitled The Philippine Indigenous Peoples’ Struggle for

Land and Life: Challenging Legal Texts authored by Jose Mencio Molintas 3

examined the struggle faced by the indigenous people in the country. He stated in

his paper the following struggles:

3
He is a member of EXPERT MECHANISM ON THE RIGHTS OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLES
(EMRIP), Human Rights Council, United Nations, Geneva, Switzerland – 2008 to 2011
 Numerous issues and concerns of indigenous peoples have
witnessed significant breakthroughs both locally and
internationally in recent decades. Various means of struggle
both within and without the formal legal system have been
employed. Defending ancestral lands and their resources
remains the major issue. Implicit in this battle to protect land
and resources is the struggle to preserve indigenous culture
and traditions that are so often inextricably linked to the land
itself. 4
He further added that there is a general consensus that distinct characteristics

of the indigenous peoples.

(1) the conservation (to some extent) of their vernacular

languages, traditional socio-economic institutions,
and cultural and religious practices; (2) self-
identification as distinct societies; (3) subsistence-
oriented economies; and (4) a special relationship
with their ancestral lands. The last two
characteristics are crucial because they define the
struggle of the indigenous peoples for self-
determination.5

Moreover, this journal emphasizes the importance of land for the indigenous

peoples. As the author stated:

What essentially distinguishes the indigenous peoples

from the rest of the population is their concept of land
as granted and entrusted by one Creator for everyone
to harness, cultivate, sustain, and live on. This land
concept has become distinct because it adheres to the
spirit of collectivism and rejects the idea of private
property. Land is a central issue to indigenous peoples
because it defines their very existence. Because of this,
the similarities and differences of their concept and
world view of land and the conflict arising from it will be
discussed extensively to show the significance of land
and its complexities to the indigenous peoples.

4
JOJO GUAN & ROS B. GUZMAN, IPRA: LEGALIZING DISPOSSESSION. IBON Special Release
42 (1999).
5
Ibid.
 In the book written by Laura Westra entitled Environmental Justice and the

Rights of the Indigenous Peoples, it was stressed the International law that protects

the rights of the indigenous peoples. He further stated:

The declaration of Indigenous People’s Rights in

International Law provides an excellent starting point from
which to evaluate other regimes pertaining to the rights of
indigenous peoples. One of the major instruments that
supports those rights is the Declaration of Human Rights
which has been viewed as an ‘expression of general
principles of law.
In addition, Principle 14 states that indigenous peoples
have the right ‘to control their lands and natural resources
and to maintain their traditional way of life.6

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

This study aims to identify the factors affecting the internal displacement of

the Subanen group in Brgy. Montol, Ozamiz City. It aims to answer the following

questions:

1. What were the living conditions of the Subanen tribe prior to their

displacement?

2. What are the factors affecting the displacement of the Subanen Tribe?

3. What are the difficulties encountered by the Subanen tribe after being

displaced?

6
Westra, Laura. (2008) Environmental Justice and the rights of the Indigenous Peoples. London: Earthscan. Pp.
10.
SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The Philippines is a culturally diverse country with an estimated 14 –

17 million Indigenous (IPs) belonging to 110 ethno-linguistic groups. One of these

Indigenous groups are the Subanen living in the mountainous area of Ozamiz City

particularly in Barangay Montol. According to the 1987 Philippine Constitution, in

recognition of this diversity and under the framework of national unity and

development, it mandates every Filipino to state recognition, protection, promotion,

and fulfillment of the rights of the Indigenous Peoples. However, these rights were

not acknowledged by some other people who continuously grabs the land which

leads to the displacement of these indigenous Peoples.

Hence, the aim of the researcher is to give insights about the living conditions

of the Subanen before and after their displacement, to identify the factors which lead

to their displacement, and how they respond to these factors. Moreover, the

researcher would like to emphasize in this study about the major role or the

intervention of the Local Government Unit of Ozamiz City to address this issue.

SCOPE AND LIMITATION

The scope of this study spans from the year 2010 – 2015 in which these

where the years wherein the Subanen displacement were greatly observed. The

researcher only focuses in Brgy. Montol, Ozamiz City because most of these cases

were happened there and it is the nearest place for the researcher to conduct the

study. This study utilizes books that discuss internal displacement of the indigenous

peoples in the Philippines. There are also informations about the history of Subanen

tribe extracted from published materials such as journals, online articles and e-
books. Likewise, several interviews were conducted by the researcher. The

interviewees are Subanen and descendants of Subanen displaced in Brgy. Montol.

Due to time and resources constraints, the researcher only interviewed 10

households in Brgy. Montol, Ozamiz City and few focal persons from the barangay

agreed to have an interview regarding the sensitive topic. Moreover, the researcher

encountered difficulties in gathering the data since there are only few studies being

conducted in relation to the topic. Specifically, there are only few journals, articles,

and books about Subanen displacement in Ozamiz City found by the researcher.
 CHAPTER II

RESEARCH DESIGN

Research Methodology

In gathering the data of this study, the researcher conducted a survey of all

the available and relevant sources from e-books, online journals, personal interviews

and other published works. Likewise, the researcher collected all possible secondary

sources found in the library and extracted online journals from the internet and also

from the interviews conducted. The researcher also visited the Center for Subanen

Studies at La Salle University to get some information to be used in this study.

The presentation of the gathered data is basically descriptive, with a

short analytical discussion utilizing the usual historical methods like documenting,

interpreting, and analyzing the collected data.

Respondents

Series of interviews were conducted during gathering the data of this study.

Only 10 households from Brgy. Montol, Ozamiz City were interviewed by the

researcher.