DAVAO CITY —- Calling Indigenous Peoples of Mindanao ‘Lumad’ is a misnomer, said the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples, a thing the agency wants to correct.
The National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) issued a resolution denouncing the use of the term “lumad” when referring to Indigenous Cultural Communities (ICC) and different Indigenous Peoples (IPs) groups.
NCIP Resolution 08-009-2021 issued on March 2 stated that the elders, leaders, and members of different ICC/IP groups in Mindanao requested that they not be called “lumad”.
They said the term has been widely used even by some government offices and public officials to refer to members of the ICCs/IPs, especially those from Mindanao.
“Lumad” is a Cebuano term that means “native”.
It was first adopted by members of the Lumad Mindanao Peoples Federation (LMPF) on June 26, 1986 during its First Congress held in Kidapawan, Cotabato. From then on, it has been used to refer to ICCs and IPs.
IP elders, leaders, and members refused to be called “lumad” because the LPMF, they say, is not the recognized representative of the ICCs and IPs of Mindanao.
As such, it does not represent their collective sentiments.
“’Lumad’ is not an indigenous term. Its emergence and continued use (are) marred by its association with the CPP, NDF, and NPA (Communist Party of the Philippines – National Democratic Front – New People’s Army) whose ideologies are not consistent with the cultures, practices, and beliefs of ICCs/lPs,” the NCIP resolution read.
