ONE of the resource persons in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Multi-Sectoral Forum recently held in Benguet urged the need to harness elements of culture among Cordillerans for the promotion of the region’s ethnicity within nations.
Professor Felipe de Leon Jr., also former National Commission on Culture and the Arts (NCCA) chairman, said these elements of culture includes arts, craftsmanship, traditional techniques and practices, environmental protection.
But he cautioned the need to pass culture from one generation to the other as culture is about bearing and teaching. Culture does not pass through blood but need to be taught, he said.
One of the specialized craftsmanship de Leon appreciated is the “kabite” or traditional rip-rap, which the Cordillerans are good at. The Cordillera way of rip rapping is proven through ages as structurally sound and aesthetically interlocked.
He broached the idea of having it be incorporated in the school curriculum to preserve such indigenous skill and practice.
Another high skill of craftsmanship de Leon believed, which needs to be sustained, is wood carving. However, the practice is limited due to regulation of tree cutting activities. He suggested government should allow the establishment of mini-forest as source of wood for carving ventures.
De Leon also urged the promotion of the Cordillera culinary arts through the showcasing of indigenous food delicacies practiced in other areas.
Indigenous way of resolving conflicts is also one practice the former NCCA official cited as this is anchored on protection of peace and stability, which the primary aim of the establishment of Asean.
Environmental protection of water sources and forest protection are also practices which need to be harnessed, he added.
“The cultivation and wise utilization of our cultural assets; our ethnicities or indigenous knowledge systems, skills, and practices, is our comparative advantage in global society. Our indigenous wisdom is an inexhaustible resource and, thus, the basis of sustainable development,” de Leon said.
“It is high time we take a different path, not one where the obsession with power kills the goose that lays the golden egg but one that harnesses to the full the strengths of our ethnicities and sharing these with other countries as the best foundation for building our societies and promoting harmony of civilizations,” the Professor said. (PIA)