When laws conflict; the case of ‘desecrated’ Bugnay monuments

EDITORIAL

Cause-oriented groups and concerned individuals have condemned the “desecration” of a monument of Cordillera heroes in Bugnay, Tinglayan, Kalinga province recently. 

The militant Cordillera People’s Alliance said last Jan. 7, three pick-up trucks ferried policemen to Bugnay at the site of the heroes monument and took down the monument panels bearing the profiles of Macliing Dulag, Lumbaya Gayudan and Pedro Dungoc who led the anti-Chico Dam struggle during the Marcos regime.

Groups like the CPA said this was an affront to the heroism that Dulag, Gayudan, Dungoc and other Chico Dam veterans who led the struggle against construction of the dam which could have submerged hectares of lands  in Kalinga.

“While statues of fascists are being torn down in other parts of the world, here in the Cordillera, state forces are tearing down monuments of peoples’ heroes,” the CPA said in a statement. 

“This fact is inked in a barangay resolution which we learned was submitted by the residents of Bugnay to the office of the Upper Kalinga District Engineering Office (UKDEO) of the Dept. of Public Works and Highways, which points to the police as the culprits.” the statement said.

The National Historical Commission earlier came out with a statement on the matter saying it was illegal to destroy historical memorabilia like monuments bearing historical significance.

The Dept. of Public Works and Highways however said the monument was located on a road-right-of way.  

The National Commission on Indigenous Peoples said indigenous lands and things therein should be respected. Local folks said the area where the monument was located was part of their ancestral lands, cannot be considered government land and therefore authorities had no right tearing down the monuments.

If the monuments were indeed illegal in being placed there, then these could be relocated to a less controversial and “legal” place with the public as witnesses. 

But if it is proven that the “desecrated” monuments were legally there in the first place, then those who did the desecration should at least issue a public apology.  

Meanwhile, the Kalinga Police Advisory Council members who reportedly pushed removal of the monuments were reportedly in favor of putting monuments of Chinese contractors now building the Chico River Dam.

The desecration of the Kalinga heroes’ monument has opened a Pandora’s Box and the stench is seeping out. It involves a bigger issue which is once again a repeat of the fight against the building of the Chico River Dam during the Marcos regime – defending ancestral lands.  

A probe on the matter is wanting to settle the issue. But it should be done by a neutral party.

The results could be used for making rational and just policies in addressing such issues.