Still, the music continues!
Amidst recent events, the music of hope continues through a continuous play of indigenous and alternative tunes from that cultural night.
For these struggling folks, be it from the Lumad, Cordilleran, Moro, as well as its colleagues living in Metro Manila are in one with all its struggles invoked especially these past few days, that no water cannon, truncheon, tear gas, and even police trucks can destroy their commitment to social justice and self-determination as communities.
And in it, that unity is also being brought upon by the newly created organisation "Sandugo" and other supporting organisations showed a force to be with, rather than those from the system through its "groups" and "organisations" frustrating to be "concerned" towards the issue of these indigenous folks, its culture, struggle, even their community and the environment in which they're trying to preserve yet actually serves those of its own interests be it logging, mining, and plantations especially those owned by multinational and transnational companies.
But despite seeing these folks in every tourist sites as well as familiarised in history books, most people may still find it new to hear their plight as well as its assertions. They would even find the late Macliing Dulag of the Cordillera to those of Bai Bibyaon of the Manobo new names in their ears. And sadly, some would even find to ridicule, scrutinise badly, and even heckle them straight because of their beliefs especially after seeing them marching towards Manila, camped at UP Diliman, and even confronting both the military near Camp Aguinaldo at EDSA as well as the police near US Embassy at Roxas Boulevard (with an incident that hath brought by the police against them).
But as for yours truly and others concerned, "Lakbayan" is a yearly event that cannot be disregarded, for in fact, despite all attempts to divide and remain under repressive conditions, it is worth encouraging for these indigenous folks and other ethnicities, as Filipinos, to unite not just in common struggles but as a country trying to break free from both domestic and foreign repressions and injustices.
Besides that, also a time to learn about their culture far from the history books and mainstream descriptions, all from the views of these Indigenous folks.
Besides that, also a time to learn about their culture far from the history books and mainstream descriptions, all from the views of these Indigenous folks.
The way their instruments being creatively merged its tunes beautifully as such.