BACOLOD, Philippines – The National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) and Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) turned the Manuel Y. Torres Sports Center in Bago City, Negros Occidental, into an arena for indigenous people’s (IP) games on Saturday and Sunday, September 28-29.
The two-day Indigenous People’s (IP) Games-Visayas leg, more than just a sports festival, became a venue for promoting and preserving the rich tradition, culture, history, and games of the indigenous communities in the province.
The sports center buzzed with excitement as 350 participants – men and women, young and old – from 17 diverse indigenous communities across the province competed in a series of traditional games passed down from their ancestors.
Negros Occidental is currently home to more than 90,000 IPs belonging to three different groups, according to the 2023 census of the NCIP-Negros Occidental Community Service Center.
Twenty-one of the 31 towns and cities in Negros Occidental, excluding the capital Bacolod, have IP communities.
This year’s IP Games participants included those from towns of Binalbagan, Don Salvador Benedicto, Calatrava, Candoni, Cauayan, Hinoba-an, Ilog, Isabela, and the cities of Cadiz, Himamaylan, Kabankalan, Sagay, San Carlos, Silay, Sipalay, Talisay, and Bago.
The initiative was organized in response to the call of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to protect cultural heritage. The IP Games, which began in 2018, had been interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, with no events held in 2020 and 2021.
The 2024 IP Games consist of three legs. It started in Salcedo, Ilocos Sur, in April, followed by the second leg in Bago. The final leg will be held in General Santos City this October, coinciding with the celebration of Indigenous Peoples Month.
Participants competed in games such as bangkaw (spear-throwing), pana (archery), fire-making using indigenous materials, kadang-kadang (bamboo stilt race), panit-lubi (coconut-peeling), palo-sebo (greased pole-climbing), trompo (wooden top-spinning), tumba-apatis (knock-down-the-tin can), bayo gisig (rice-pounding), and galing mais (corn-milling).
Each game holds cultural, traditional, and historical significance for the three IP tribes in the province: Ata, Ati, and Panay-Bukidnon.
Bangkaw and pana are symbolic of IP strength in hunting wild animals for food, while kadang-kadang, trompo, palo sebo, and tumba-apatis are traditional fun games played during their celebrations.
Meanwhile, bayo gisig and galing mais are traditional methods the IPs in Negros use to manually mill rice and corn, utilizing indigenous materials and physical labor.
Organizers said the IP games are now being challenged by digital games because many IP youth in Negros Occidental are becoming tech-savvy.
The event was graced by PSC Chairperson Richard Bachmann, a former professional basketball player.
Bachmann said the PSC’s mandate is to promote sports to citizens, including IP communities.
He told the participants: “We honor the rich history and vibrant culture of our indigenous peoples in the Philippines… [by] preserving the traditional games you grew up with and to introduce these to the youth for their continued appreciation.”
NCIP-Western Visayas Director Princess May Alkalde-Oral, lauded local officials in Negros Occidental for collaborating to acknowledge and uplift IP communities based on the Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act of 1997.
“We simply showed our deep concern for our brothers and sisters who are IPs in the province and, at the same time, our utmost respect and recognition of their culture and traditions because they truly deserve such heritage,” said Bago Mayor Nicholas Yulo of the weekend event in an interview with Rappler on Monday, September 30.
He said the just-held IP Games was a way for Negros Occidental’s local governments, including Bago, to look after the welfare of the IPs in the province.
Bago is home to Atis, especially in the mountain village of Mailum and now in the urban barangay of Taloc. – Rappler.com
