IN THE 60s, the wandering Filipinos in Negros were the “Atis” (black brothers… sisters also). Many of them came from Sibalom town, province of Antique. They were here to look for food, to look for herbs or plants that would contribute to their concoction of indigenous medicines for sale.
Our government found a way of helping them. They were encouraged to stay in one place and taught farming and were provided opportunities to learn crafts and trade. Majority of our brother “Atis” are in Marikudo Ati Settlement in the Municipality of Isabela. During Panaad sa Negros Festival, I do not miss to buy their products and drink their brewed coffee win an “Ati” punch.
Today, the wandering Filipinos are the Badjaos (Bajaws). According to their “long time ago legend,” many of them came in boats from Jahur (Indonesia). They mistook the giant stingray as a small island in the sea.
When the stingray was tickled by their poles, the sea creature scampered and they were dislodged from their boats. They were dispersed in several places: Sitangkay, Sibuto, Belatan, Sanga-Sanga, Jolo… to as far as Zamboanga. These are the traditional Badjao moorages.
The Badjaos have been romanticized as sea gypsies. They speak “Sama,” which is the lingua franca of Tawi-Tawi. During the treaty of Paris slicing up of territories, Tawi-Tawi went to the Americans and Sabah to the British. (This is why our claim of Sabah as part of the Philippines is not fiction.) The Badjaos of Tawi-Tawi are citizens of the Philippines, and the Badjaos of Sabah became Malaysians.
Life in Sabah is relatively better. That could be the reason why our Badjaos go in and out of Sabah for trade or employment. They are not required to carry Philippine passport. The Badjaos suffered most from the hands of the Tausugs. The Tausugs are warlike. The Badjaos suffer discrimination from the Tausugs and the Muslims. Not all Badjaos live in houseboats. Most of them live in the houses with posts dug into the sea.
Discrimination happens with their livelihood. Those who live in land dictate the price of the fish caught by the Badjaos. Why are the Badjaos like the “sands” scattered all over the Philippines? We have our share of Badjaos here in Negros. I want to pick out a place to be specific… Tungkalang in Sanga-Sanga Island. Their mooring place was peaceful with a Catholic School up to 1975.
The government had its war against the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) and the Badjaos were suspected to be allies of the MNLF. The “government’s ignorance” victimized the whole village. (The same thing happened to the other mooring places of the Badjaos.) What can the Badjaos do against the government troops? Some migrated to Sabah. Others went to Tawi-Tawi. The rest took refuge in places where there are Catholic churches.
Between Sanga-Sanga and Bongao, a concrete bridge was constructed by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to connect the two islands.
DPWH dredged the corals in constructing a dam. What the DPWH did was a “rape of the shoreline.” That was a kind of government program that destroyed environment and culture. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources should know this and do something.
The Badjaos were between the bullets of the army and the heavy equipment of DPWH. Either side is offering instant death. The old mooring place was gone. The currents of the sea change. The repair for political and ecological habitat is impossible. What can the Badjaos do know? Kneel… beg… commit suicide… what?
They are here in our towns and cities. They are being bullied by some “baptized Christians.” Some laugh at them because their language cannot be understood. It is hard for them to work because they cannot be fishermen in the middle of the sugarcane plantation. No mayor in towns and cities here would want to take them as “executive assistants.” The best thing they can do is beg for food and dignity.
Many of us have condemned them because they are like stray dogs that scatter their “discharges” at the center of our beautification project. They are dirty and smell like the “uncollected garbage.” The church goers do not even look at them with compassion. Their God is scarce like food that they cannot have. They amuse themselves while staying hungry in the midst of “Christian Community.”
When night comes… they are not alone but lonely. They can only comfort each other with empty stomach and that would be filled in their desire to feel the touch of a fellow Badjao who might offer a “piece of biological joy” to overcome loneliness. They lurk in dark places away from the eyes of civilized people. The Badjaos are very much at home… in their dreams, “in our Negros.”
The Badjaos are Filipinos. They deserve the Philippines. The Christians should believe that the Badjaos are also made in the image and likeness of God. They have souls and there is heaven reserved for them. The government officials should help these “refugees” in their own country. They need a place to dwell. They need a place in our hearts. Make them a part of your Christmas wish.