CORDILLERA heroes will be remembered anew in simple rites next week.
Cordillera Peoples Alliance vice chairperson Jill Carino said the long list of Cordillera heroes and martyrs include men and women, elders, defenders of land and resources, pioneers of organizations, development workers, organizers, human rights defenders, lawyers, teachers, artists and youth.
The CPA said it will remember and pay tribute to all indigenous peoples and advocates who dedicated their lives for the defense of land, life, resources and self-determination.
"The lives of the Cordillera heroes and martyrs are a testament to the rich history of resistance and defiance of the region against colonization and the incursion of multinational corporations into the territories of the Igorots," Cariño added.
Among the Cordillera heroes who will be remembered include Macliing Dulag who died on April 24, 1980 when soldiers belonging to the Philippine Army's 4th Infantry Division under Lt. Leodegario Adalem fired at two houses in their village in Bugnay, Kalinga.
The attack was meant to kill Dulag and Pedro Dungoc, prominent leaders of the Kalinga and Bontoc people opposed to the World Bank-funded Chico River Basin Hydroelectric Dam Project.
Macliing, from the Butbut tribe, died from multiple gunshots while Dungoc survived. Since the 1980's the CPA organized villages along the Chico River that would take turns hosting the annual Macliing Memorial organized by the KBPPHA (Kalinga-Bontok Peace Pact Holders Association).
In a book by the Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact (AIPP), described the martyrs and heroes of the people were ordinary people yet they led extraordinary lives and made significant contributions that will never be forgotten.
The book went on to describe them with different personalities, yet common traits among them stand out such as humility, selflessness, bravery and compassion. Many of them led simple, hard, even frugal lives, yet they were rich in the respect, love and honor that others poured upon them.
"The stories of our heroes and martyrs inspire us to carry on the struggle and live out the legacy of our Cordillera heroes and martyrs. Their stories are continuing narratives of a people's movement that has not diminished in strength nor capacity to persist despite changes in regimes. Their stories and heroism are portraits of the Filipino people who refuse to be cowed by repression," Carino closed.