By SHERWIN DE VERA
www.nordis.net

BAGUIO CITY—City officials are urging the repeal of Section 78 of the Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act of 1997 (IPRA), citing its discriminatory impact on the city’s indigenous peoples.

This call was made during a special session with the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) on January 14.

Section 78 exempts the city from IPRA’s provisions, leaving its governance to its Charter and granting Congress exclusive authority to reclassify lands within the Townsite Reservation. Consequently, the NCIP is prohibited from issuing new Certificates of Ancestral Land Titles (CALTs) and Certificates of Ancestral Domain Titles (CADTs) for properties within the reservation predating IPRA.

In rulings issued in September 2019, April 2023, and July 2023, the Supreme Court upheld this provision.

While the NCIP has previously resolved to process ancestral land title applications for areas outside the original townsite, many indigenous peoples in Baguio remain unable to secure protections for their lands under IPRA.

Tool of injustice

Councilor Jose Molintas described Section 78 as a tool of injustice against indigenous peoples, emphasizing that courts have invalidated or restricted CALTs and CADTs within the city due to the provision.

“This provision goes against the principles of justice, non-discrimination, and equality,” Molintas said, referencing international standards such as the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

Molintas, a human rights lawyer and former member of the UN Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, has earlier raised the city’s “historical discrimination” against indigenous peoples, highlighting the practice of selling ancestral lands through various sales applications. He argued that efforts to monetize native lands have encouraged illegal settlers and worsened land disputes.

Councilor Arthur Allad-iw echoed this sentiment, describing Section 78 in June 2024 as “a historical injustice that continues to perpetuate the loss of ancestral lands of the indigenous communities in the city.” He argued that the provision undermines IPRA’s goal to protect indigenous peoples and their rights.

During a public consultation in February 2023, Joanna Cariño, a descendant of Ibaloi leader Mateo Cariño, criticized RA 11689 as “ahistorical” for failing to address the concerns of the original Ibaloi inhabitants. She called on the city to “intervene and take a stand.”

Mateo fought for the recognition of native titles. This struggle led to a favorable ruling by the US Supreme Court, resulting in the Cariño Doctrine, which became the cornerstone of the IPRA.

She pointed out that the American colonial government expropriated and sold the native lands of the Ibalois since the city was chartered in 1909. “In the process, the native Ibalois were displaced and lost their ancestral lands. This historical injustice to the native Ibaloi population has not yet been fully redressed,” Cariño said.

Steps toward amendment

Past consultations on the issue have consistently proposed two possible solutions—repealing Section 78 of IPRA or amending the City Charter.

Councilor Peter Fianza warned that delays in addressing the matter could lead to ancestral lands being repurposed for other uses, further marginalizing indigenous peoples. “Delays will only aggravate the problem, and immediate action is necessary,” he said.

Amendments to the city’s Revised Charter, or RA 11689, which lapsed into law in April 2022, have been a focus of previous discussions by the city council.

Authored by Representative Mark Go, the Revised Charter has faced criticism for provisions such as Section 54, which reinforces the restrictions imposed by IPRA on ancestral land claims.

The NCIP has supported amending Section 78 and agreed to draft a resolution with the city urging Congress to address the contentious provision. The NCIP also proposed treating ancestral lands within the city’s townsite reservation as private property, granting owners the same rights as holders of other land titles.

City and NCIP officials have decided to work on recognizing previously issued CALTs and CADTs without legal disputes. They also aim to streamline processes for registering derivative titles and issuing building and business permits to indigenous peoples.

A technical working group (TWG) composed of representatives from the city government, NCIP, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), and other agencies will be formed to implement these resolutions. # nordis.net