Creative Pathways to Peace
by Nestor Horfilla and Geejay Arriola
Mindanao: land of promise, land of broken promises
A popular Spanish-influenced song (the Philippines lived under 300 years of Spanish rule) which originated in the Spanish fort in Mindanao—Zamboanga City and which focused on welcoming visitors to Zamboanga City, evolved and became a welcome song for visitors to Mindanao. In the early 80s the cultural movement in Mindanao re-wrote this Welcome to Mindanao song. The original version goes like this:
We welcome you, we welcome you to Mindanao
The land of promise, the land of wealth
Bukidnon pineapple factory, Agusan is lumberyard
Zamboanga is fishing ground
and Cotabato rice granary
Davao offers you its banana plantation
Misamis provinces its coconuts
Surigao is known for its gold mine
Sulu is pearls, Lanao is fruits
The early 80s revised version goes like this:
Bukidnon denuded country, Agusan deforested
Zamboanga has lost its fishes,
and Cotabato always has drought
Davao offers you its Alsa Masa,
Misamis provinces its fanatics
Surigao is known for its landslides
Sulu is ratatatatat! Lanao is boom!
As we write this paper, bullets and bombs are raining in Pikit, North Cotabato where many of our colleagues in development work have gone to help the evacuees. The Arroyo government has decided to finish off what the Erap administration and long before that the Marcos government and long before that the Japanese and the Americans and the Spanish conquistadores have started—to feed the people with bombs and bullets, not with rice; to respond to the call for sovereignty with domination.
Twenty years ago, the song was true. Today, change a few names (e.g. change Alsa Masa to Davao Death Squads) and the song holds more truth than it did 20 years ago.
Children's stories in refugee centers
Which brings us to the experience the Kaliwat Theatre Collective had in August 2000, when Camp Abubakhar, the MILF territory, was taken over by government forces. When the "all-our-war" policy of the government was implemented, refugee camps swelled overnight. These camps or "tent cities" were populated by mostly Moro children and women. That year, Kaliwat was invited to conduct several psycho-social debriefing activities for children and caregivers in Matanog. Ironically, the Office of Civil Relations of the Department of National Defense was one of the sponsors of the project which was conceived by a private foundation based in Manila in collaboration with some volunteer students from the Graduate School of the University of the Philippines.
That engagement was special because it was our first time to work on a project organized by a government agency. We designed a process of five-day creative interactions for the more than 100 children evacuees (6 to 17 years old) and their caregivers most of whom came from the areas surrounding Camp Abubakhar.
At that time, the sponsors wanted to showcase images of the military giving gifts to children. However, we suggested that the project focus on preparing the "victims" to face the perceived "aggressors" and handle "aggression."
Prior to the actual project implementation there were several consultative meetings with the community, the families of children, core of caregivers from the various line agencies and the representatives of the LGUs.
The children participants came from various ethnicities, the majority are Iranun, Maranao, Maguindanon and a few Bisaya-Ilonggo and Bol-anon. They drew vivid images of war: helicopter gun-ships, bombs, dead carabaos, destroyed houses, abandoned crop fields, closed school buildings, among others. Likewise, all the children in chorus signified that the military must pull out from the area immediately. It was a very strong sentiment.
We converted a dilapidated gymnasium in Parang as an improvised "Art Center", where the creative outputs of children were exhibited and the performance showcases were presented to the community and to the more than 1,000 men-in-uniform headed by then Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado together with a core of AFP Generals. The showcase included among others:
1) Exhibit of Children's Visual Artworks, some of which were turned into "Peace Greetings Cards";
2) A variety of children's games and song compositions by children;
3) One-hour interactive theatre performance showcase; and
4) Several children's letters sent to the Armed Groups-to both the military and the rebels.
During the creative encounter, energy and enthusiasm among the children were so high and signs of hope painted their faces. On the last day, when the military almost outnumbered the children participants, there were no expressions of fear or aggressive behavior. After the performance, the children were celebrating a sense of victory, albeit symbolic.
At the end of the one-week cultural journey, while we waited for the vehicle that would bring us to Cotabato City, Nasser, one of the more aggressive and aloof children came to us slowly. He burst into tears, "Hindi na rin kayo babalik…(Even you will never come back again)!" We felt a sense of deep guilt.
Before the project began, we had proposed that the activity not end in evacuation camps, that it be institutionalized as "Children's Arts-for-Peace." We have yet to follow-up the response of other stakeholders.
Web of Life
Through the years, Kaliwat has had the blessing of having worked with a vast number of Christian, Moro (sultanates, mostly Islamized), and Lumad (indigenous) communities in Mindanao.
In its partnership with these communities, Kaliwat is guided by the most basic web-of-life principle. The Creator provides the source of food (land, animals, plants, trees) and provides oven (sun, moon, stars, sky) with which to cook the food. The people must learn to grow and sustain their food sources and learn to keep the oven well-oiled and fully gassed up so that the oven can efficiently and sustainably cook the food that the people will eat TO L IVE. This process of learning to grow and sustain food sources, keeping the oven efficient, and thanking the creator for providing the food and the oven is called CULTURE.
Culture, therefore, IS and MUST focus on sustainability so that humans may continue to live on earth! And sustainability is making all resources available, and continuing to create and re-create resources. When resources dwindle mostly because of greed, and people lose their food sources, people begin to eat their own kind. That is what war and invasions are all about—people eating people.
Theatre-in-Development attempts to do that exactly: to help develop the capacity of the people to create and re-create resources in a sustainable manner.
Because of this guiding principle, Kaliwat does not look at theatre work as merely an art appreciation class. It involves learning basic agriculture and environmental protection, studying the feasibility of livelihood programs, and understanding community rituals, among others. It provides a holistic perspective at development work with theatre and other arts as an enabling methodology.
Six Dramaturgical Experiences Towards Building a Culture of Peace
"Kaliwat Theater Collective was formally established in 1988. It exists as a cultural organization in Mindanao that actively engages in popular theater for empowering the culturally "silenced" majority. Over the years, Kaliwat directed its efforts at enhancing the creative capabilities of the grassroots through a creative process and a liberating methodology. Using various art forms, Kaliwat encourages the articulation of social issues within the community. Theater is utilized as a socially binding device and as a tool for community dialogue."
In its 14 years of existence, Kaliwat has produced several plays which deal with the issues of peace and un-peace. The plays are products of the myriad forms of interactions between Kaliwat members and the sources of the stories—grassroots communities. Utilizing art and theatre-making processes, cultural action methodologies, community dialogue, and cultural research, a collaborative play is produced based on real-life situations. This play is then performed to various other communities and to the general public for advocacy.
a) Asin sa Katawhan
Drawn from the experiences of members and leaders of Basic Christian Communities, Asin sa Katawhan, demonstrates the mounting contradictions in a peasant society. Faced with the horrors of militarization, poverty, and natural calamities, Erlinda, Benigno, Besing, and Fr. Jun test the boundaries of their courage and spirituality.
b) Bakwit
is a piece filled with black humor about the situation of permanent internal refugees Kardo and Berto. The wacky duo talk about their desire to go home, their situation in evacuation centers, and the rules of life governed by war, poverty, and displacement in a hilarious exchange of wit and wile. Audience participation is engaged through most of the performance.
c) Pagbati
portrays the place of women in mythical and contemporary realities. Written, directed, and performed by women, the vignette paints varied pictures of violence faced by women from birth to giving birth.
d) Siak sa Duha ka Damgo
is a musical comedy about two families in search of wealth. The search of fisherfolk Felimon, Syana, and Junior and entrepreneurs Fernando and Brando lead them to the doorsteps of "lemlunay", the paradise of great abundance and home to tribal priestess Ye and warrior nephew Malid. As the two families race towards the pot of gold, they find themselves trapped in their own elusive dreams. The play weaves the issues of debt and ecological destruction and utilizes audience participation in defining the play's conclusion.
e) Oya, Arakan!
The concert play follows the story of the couple Tuwalang, a Manobo warrior, and Erlinda, a Christian settler. At their wedding, they are gifted with a gunso, the Manobo tribe's ancient sacred jar, vessel of the Manobo's heritage and wisdom. Tuwalang was given the task to guard the gunso. But the migrant settlers grab the gunso to try to unearth its secrets and gain power over the tribe. War ensues. And the two peoples-the Bisaya and the Manobo-once united, have now parted ways.
f) Mindasilang
Within the backdrop of a raging war, three friends of various cultural origins-Raf (Talaandig), Chris (Cebuano), and Noralyn (Maranao) prepare to mount a play on the issue of peace with a school theatre group. As the war rages, their efforts towards this common project are being derailed, compelling them to journey through their past in order to understand why there is war, to appreciate their differences and to rediscover their commonalities. The play was the other half of the performance-and-peace-education-tour. The second half involved peace education workshops and forum among mostly high school and college students.
All the six productions are creative components of broader interventions for people's development. The process involves design and implementation of cultural action to pursue a common agenda. The promotion of peace, and protection of natural resources are examples of these agenda.
The above-mentioned TID works share a common orientation and strategy. The plays recognize that the complexities of the world will only be revealed through community analysis and interaction. Community involvement is generated with the participation of creators from various disciplines, sectors, outsiders and insiders, etc. The plays carry multiple perspectives that seek diversity rather than simplify complexities.
The plays are products of cultural action work involving members of the communities who collectively reflect on specific development issues affecting them. Cultural action suggests the use of creative conflict-resolution and promote multiple perspectives and options for change.
In this system of "cultural industry," the nature of the cultural product is defined by the interests of the different creative partners. The drying up wellsprings of art-the community storytellers and traditional artists-are teachers of art forms, nature wisdom, myths and legends, and land values. The theatre artists become tools for transformation and development, a newly-discovered oasis to water the parched earth. Both gain from the interactive, creative experience.
Moreover, the theatre projects are anchored on a "Rights-based Development Perspective" that places special concern on the people's right to be heard and promotes the elimination of discrimination in all fronts. In the process of working with diverse stakeholders, the theatre projects also sought for post-project institutional engagements and support.
Theatre-in-Development Work: Strengths and Lessons
The works on Theatre-in-Development (TID) are premised on the oft-spoken motherhood statement-"that peace is not just the absence of armed conflict and there could be no peace without development." However, the un-peace situations in most areas in Mindanao have, at some point, discouraged some players in the sustained delivery of development interventions.
TID work of Kaliwat consists of the following major core activities:
1. Learning Plays—a series of theatre workshops that train community members to mount their own plays reflecting their own local experiences
2. Policy Advocacy—linking communities to other communities through: a) theatre performances by Kaliwat that depict the issues of the communities; b) facilitating the intervention of other relevant NGOs and government agencies to support community-desired programs and projects (e.g. Department of Agriculture, Forestry, etc.; c) facilitating dialogue between communities and relevant government agencies towards resolving community issues and towards legislative action; and d) promoting and popularizing friendly legislations through theatre performances in communities.
3. Cultural Resource Management—facilitating the conduct of various creative skills workshops and management trainings to enhance and manage existing cultural resources and (food production, instruments-making, beadwork, furniture-making, etc.)
4. Theatre in Education (TIE)—involves: a) setting up of TIE Mobile Teams who went to elementary and high schools to conduct trainors' trainings and theater workshops culminating in a festival of children's plays performed by children, and written and directed by school teachers. All the plays dwelled on children and youth issues (e.g. drug addiction, environmental concern, child rights, etc.); b) increasing the awareness and involvement of school heads, including the Department of Education in the importance of theatre in educating children and the general public; c) opening up discussions with education authorities towards institutionalizing theatre in education through policy advocacy and legislative action; and d) introducting creative methodology in classroom teaching.
5. Community Cultural Programming—facilitating the conduct of a series of activities which includes cultural mapping and research, environmental scanning, and consultations and meetings with and by community leaders and members to draft and implement a comprehensive community cultural program. Cultural programming encompasses all areas of culture: food resource, health and hygiene, literacy and education, artistic traditions, environmental protection, livelihood, folklore, and local governance.
There are several breakthroughs that serve as push factors for cultural workers to sustain their engagements in TID. Among others:
—Shared orientation. TID facilitates the surfacing of issues and critical analysis and at the same time provides the communities with a range of options to build transformative structures and processes.
—Venue for cultural workers formation. TID hones a core of artists who immerse themselves in community development work that emphasizes the use of creative and flexible approaches that would suit varying conditions and actions.
—Organized community action. TID serves as a vehicle for firming up the community claim-making and in the process institutionalizes the multi-stakeholders (PO, NGO, LGU, etc.) co-initiatives towards an improved people's situation.
—Creative methodology. TID contributes to an expanding body of participatory learning and action approaches that promote a system of joint analysis and people's participation leading to debates about change. Debates change the perceptions of the stakeholders and boost the readiness to contemplate action.
—Creativity in development work. TID seeks to make functional the contribution of artists and cultural workers in development work, as co-enablers in the change process that enhances the creative capacity of peoples and communities to create and re-create their cultures and manage their own cultural resources.
Significant Journeys
Siak sa Duha ka Damgo (Environmental Protection)
We began with "Siak sa Duha ka Damgo" in 1991. We went to Bago Aplaya fishing village in Davao City. We had occasion to work with them before as members of the Mindanao Community Theatre Network. We met with the community leaders and told them we wanted to mount a play about fisherfolk and the environment. We conducted cultural action workshops among youth and community leaders which used mainly image theatre, and conducted interviews with key people in the community. In the process, we learned that the community had pollution problems engendered by factories who disposed their waste in the river that wove through the village leading to the sea. Pretty soon we found ourselves facilitating negotiations with government agencies that looked at this problem. In the end, the community through its organization followed the process through. The factories were soon investigated and required to improve their waste disposal methods.
The other half of Siak was a cultural action program among the B'laan indigenous peoples of Columbio, Sultan Kudarat. Columbio is a "highway intersection" where armed groups of various persuasions pass through. Thus, it is also a crossfire community. The cultural action program in Columbio focused on surfacing the issues surrounding the area's critical nature as a "highway intersection" and the complications faced by the people with the advent of mining.
Oya! Arakan (Ancestral Domain)
As Siak continued to tour (its last performance was in 1998), the beginnings of a three-year cultural action program in the highlands of Arakan Valley was being concocted. One of the outputs was a concert-theatre performance entitled Oya! Arakan.
Before Oya, Arakan! was conceived, Kaliwat and its community partners (Manobo Lumadnong Panaghiusa, Inc. and Tribal Filipino Program for Community Development, Inc.) conducted an ethnographic research on the Manobo of Arakan Valley, facilitated various forums, consultations and conferences with relevant government agencies to push for the Manobo's ancestral domain claims, and brought in legal and agricultural experts from NGOs. Almost three years after the start of the Arakan project, and after more than 20 years of pangayao (tribal war) against cattle ranches and logging companies, majority of the Manobo's ancestral domain claims were granted.
Soon Kaliwat began networking with various indigenous communities. In 1995, the legworking and networking gave birth to PANAGTAGBO, a network of indigenous organizations/communities around Mindanao.
Lakewood (Food Security)
The Lakewood Community Resource Management (CRM) Program is yet the longest-running cultural action program of Kaliwat. Having started in 1996, the program continues to this day. The program is also Kaliwat's most comprehensive cultural action program-four members of the group have actually been based there, coming home only once in two months for two to three days each time.
The partnership with the local organizations (IPA/Lakewood Parish and MESALIGAN) has extended towards involving the support of relevant government and non-organizations.
The CRM program in Lakewood consists of environmental protection measures, establishment of a village school incorporating a "learning farm", co-management of the literacy program including the training of para-teachers, expansion of linkages with groups outside of the municipality on the mining issue, reforestation, piloting of communal bio-intensive gardens and fruit tree orchards, and the establishment of various alternate livelihood programs, among others.
Continuity
The centerpiece of cultural action work in Mindanao is the interplay of Culture, Peace, and Development. There is need to promote the recognition and respect of cultural rights-the rights of communities to freely participate in their cultural lives. There is need to find locale-specific and culture-focused dispute resolution processes. In this arena, theatre and other performance arts remain powerful tools to unleash the creative capacities of communities, for them to re-create the culture of the past, to create the culture of the future and to strengthen the culture of peace, NOW.
Poverty-alleviation measures in Mindanao have encountered several setbacks due to cultural aspects (e.g. lack of technical and social organization skills, unreliable sources of information, lack of political and social support, bias against basic education, highly centralized, un-localized, etc.) So-called development projects in the island continue to threaten the cultural survival of indigenous, Moro, and folk communities. Most of these "development" projects are EXTRACTIVE (e.g. mining, export-oriented fishing industry, commercial plantations), rather than CULTIVATING. At the core of genuine development is the CULTIVATION OF CULTURE.
The Arts are proven methods of peacemaking, healing, promoting the ideals of harmony and cultural diversity, and finding solutions to social and economic problems of the community. In a multi-ethnic and culturally pluralist society like Mindanao, Culture and Arts are living forces and catalysts for individual growth and social development.
(Paper presented by Geejay Arriola at the Community Arts Development Conference in Hong Kong, February 24-29, 2003. Resources: MINDULANI, Inc. Conference Papers, and Kaliwat Experience Papers.)
