Cariño Doctrine a.k.a. “Native Title” Doctrine Day

 LETTERS FROM THE AGNO

March L. Fianza

  BAGUIO CITY -- On Feb. 23, 1909; Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. of the US Supreme Court ruled and recognized the land claim of Ibaloy headman Mateo Cariño over what is now known as Camp John Hay after losing his fight in a Philippine court. But 114 years ago today, Ibaloy ancestral land claimants in Baguio continue to struggle and have yet to reclaim what has been taken away from them by the government.
    Justice Holmes ruled that when as far back as memory goes, the lands held by individuals under a claim of private ownership were presumed to have been held in the same way from before the Spanish conquest, then these would never have been public lands. This gave birth to the Cariño Doctrine a.k.a “Native Title” Doctrine.
     Then in the same year, the Baguio Charter of 1909 crafted by the American colonizers stirred the peaceful settlements of Ibaloys in Baguio. The Charter made the Ibaloy communities powerless, disunited and uprooted from their lands as they were asked to move away from the center.
    This coming week on February 23, the 13th year of the celebration of Ibaloy Day should be a pleasant one as it commemorates the US Supreme Court decision over the land rights of Mateo Cariño. Instead, it stands witness to a sluggish or frozen process in the recognition of ancestral lands, not only in Baguio but in the whole country.
     Truth to tell, the Cariño Doctrine was the basis for inclusion of a provision on ancestral lands in the 1987 Constitution which also became the foundation for the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act (IPRA) or RA 8371 of 1997.
     Ibaloy Day which should appropriately be renamed as “Native Title Doctrine Day” would appear to be like any ordinary fiesta unless it is explained to the crowd that the day commemorates the time the US Supreme Court through Justice Holmes in 1909 ruled in favor of Mateo Cariño and the Ibaloys of Baguio.
     Every Ibaloy who is aware of this has the obligation to inform those who do not know the reasons for the celebration of Native Title Doctrine Day. Telling a story such as this should also be an added task for agency officials who are focused only at FPICs that become questionable at the end of the day anyway.
    My memory does not recall any moment when a concerned agency official explained the Native Title Doctrine a.k.a Cariño Doctrine during IPRA anniversaries. The NCIP should help ventilate the issues.
    Just like in most canyaos or Igorot feasts, the guests have their fill as meat and liquor flow freely. But amidst the deafening pig squeals and the momentary merry-making, the significance of the event gets lost in the steps of the tayao, drowned in the liquor like the meat boiling in a large pot.
    The event no longer functions as expected in the first place. And most of those who attend avoid discussions on how to strengthen the Native Title Doctrine and help correct the injustices over ancestral lands.
    Sometimes I wonder if some of us Baguio IPs choose to avoid the sad truth of a continuing injustice by holding festivals to drown the realities with San Miguel and pulutan, the reality of losing a battle over their ancestral land.
    So they resort to having “pyesta ni ulay” (always feasting). Others who join the event simply attend to see who is who, partake of the meat, get drunk, be merry and go. Then wait again for next year’s February 23 canyao.
     Now after 26 years of living under the IPRA, indigenous communities are still fighting against subjugation and discrimination perpetrated by agents of the government who were tasked to protect them. The fight for IP rights and ancestral lands in Baguio is unnecessarily taking too long, but it must be fought.