JOURNAL 3 – FOREWORD (Vol. 2 No. 1 January
2003)
 The
Subanen are the indigenous ethnolinguistic group of
the Zamboanga Peninsula. There are more than 400,000
of them today in the provinces of Zamboanga del Sur,
Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga Sibugay and in Zamboanga
City. Significant numbers live in the hinterlands,
in the interior valleys and in the mountainous areas
of the peninsula. There they struggle to hold on to
their traditional way of life even as they also struggle
to come to terms with the modern world. At the same
time, very many Subanen have been absorbed into mainstream
society and many a Subanen community has successfully
made the transition to what we might call modern Philippine
living.
The Subanen today are vastly outnumbered by the descendants
of the mostly Visayan settlers who came into the Western
Mindanao region beginning the middle of the last century.
Thanks to direct contact and intermarriage with the
Subanen, many of the older members of the cultural
mainstream groups have a degree of familiarity, awareness
and even appreciation of the Subanen and their culture.
One wonders though if that degree of familiarity and
appreciation can be maintained, given the historical
processes of globalization, modernization, and general
socio-economic development.
One would and could hope so if such awareness and
appreciation of Subanen culture and history were part
of what Western Mindanao’s schools, colleges
and universities consciously and systematically impart
to their students. The sad fact, however, is that
though the Subanen are clearly part of Western Mindanao
in more ways than one, they are hardly mentioned in
history, literature and social studies textbooks used
in Western Mindanao schools. For that matter, local
history and the culture of Western Mindanao’s
ethnolinguistic groups are hardly part of the educational
curriculum in Western Mindanao schools.
That situation is the proper background against which
efforts (1) to promote an awareness, understanding,
and appreciation of Western Mindanao’s ethnolinguistic
groups and (2) to integrate local history and culture
into the educational curriculum in Western Mindanao’s
schools should be viewed. It is also this same background
that this current issue of Peace and Culture Studies
would be best viewed.
Last February 26-27, 2002, the Ateneo de Zamboanga
University through its Institute of Cultural Studies
for Western Mindanao (ICSWM) ran the National Conference
on the History and Culture of the Subanen. This Conference
was aimed at promoting greater awareness, better understanding
and deeper appreciation of the Subanen and their culture.
It was made possible by the generous financial support
of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts,
the country’s premier cultural promotions institution.
Other generous individuals and institutions also gave
financial support, including Mr. Manuel Pangilinan
(of the PLDT), Mr. Meneleo Carlos (of the RI Chemicals
Corp.), Mr. Luis Lorenzo, Jr. (of Lapanday Holdings
Corp.), the Metrobank Foundation Incorporated and
the Ayala Foundation Incorporated. We continue to
thank these institutions and individuals.
Some 165 individuals came to listen to talks given
by highly regarded experts on various aspects of Subanen
culture and history. The majority were educators from
all over the Zamboanga Peninsula. Interestingly enough,
over 75 participants identified themselves as “pure”
or “partly” Subanen.
Among the participants, there were at least 60 who
were more than participants in that they also shared
with the others some of the more performative aspects
of their culture. The Ginghuran Bae Subanen Folkloric
Troupe (of Lapuyan, Zamboanga del Sur) and the Datu
Tankilan Andus Cultural Dance Group (of Mandih, Sindangan,
Zamboanga del Norte) each presented an extended dance
module. A presentation of traditional Subanen attire,
with Subanen rhythmic music as background, was put
together by Zamboanga City-based Subanen of all ages.
As if to tell participants that Subanen culture is
of interest to the non-Subanen as well, three Zamboanga
City-based student groups presented Subanen dance
numbers as “intermission numbers” at various
points during the Conference. Very many of participants
made comments to the effect that all these live presentations
by the Subanen and the students were as helpful for
increasing their awareness and appreciation of Subanen
culture as were the talks given by the speakers.
The talks themselves covered a good range of topics.
Mrs. Janie Grace Hapalla, an acknowledged local expert
on Subanen culture, presented an overview of Subanen
culture. Dra. Gaudiosa Ochotorena, who a few decades
ago did a lot of work on Subanen oral literature,
was scheduled to present a paper on Subanen oral traditions.
Because of certain circumstances concerning her health,
she could not personally be present to read her paper
and answer questions about the topic. But she sent
her paper and it was read by the Conference Committee
Chair.
There were also two papers on the Subanen celebration
called buklug. One was an insider’s account
by Dr. Vicente Imbing, M.D., who is himself a Subanen
datu. The other was an anthropologist’s description.
This was given by Prof. Artemio Barbosa of the National
Museum’s Anthropology Division. A sketch of
the Subanen in the 19th century was presented on the
second day by Dr. Felice Noelle Rodriguez of the History
Department of the Ateneo de Manila University. Mrs.
Ofelia Lingating, an official of the National Commission
on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) Region IX, gave a quick
look at the current situation and struggles of the
Subanen. Finally, Dr. Racquel Georsua, a member of
the Faculty of Music at the University of Melbourne,
presented an overview of Subanen ethnic music.
This issue of Culture and Peace Studies makes available
to a wider audience most of the papers presented and
four of the main speeches delivered during the Conference.
For reasons beyond our control, the papers of Dr.
Rodriguez and Mrs. Lingating cannot be published as
yet. Dr. Imbing actually submitted the equivalent
of two papers, though he read only one during the
Conference. This issue publishes both papers. Since
this issue presents the papers and speeches in the
actual sequence that they were delivered during the
Conference, Dr. Imbing’s second paper is placed
after Dr. Georsua’s paper, which was the last
read during the Conference.
The main speeches include that of the Hon. Ma. Fina
Yonzon, the current NCCA Executive Director, who delivered
the Keynote Address, stressing the need to come to
a better understanding of ourselves and its connection
to the aspiration for peace. Ms. Estrellita J. Vicente,
Special Projects Officer of the Ateneo de Zamboanga
University (ADZU), gave the General Orientation and
Conference Overview. In his Synthesis Talk, Dr. Jesus
T. Peralta, one of the country’s leading anthropologists,
identified two things that ought to be preserved in
Subanen culture---the epics and the buklug. The Closing
Remarks were delivered by a Subanen princess, Engr.
Aldrina Hitalia, who is also the ADZU’s Assistant
Senior Dean of the Colleges.
In closing this Foreword, a small point needs to
be made. All the Conference invitation letters, posters,
streamers, TV ads, newspaper announcements, registration
forms, programs, certificates, etc. consistently used
the spelling S-U-B-A-N-O-N. There is, of course, a
general confusion as to whether it should be “Subanon”
or “Subanun” or “Subanen”
or “Suban-on” and so forth. In the established
literature, especially that coming from the earlier
generation of anthropologists and ethnographers, there
does seem to be a preference for “Subanon.”
In recent times, the variations in the spelling are
sometimes meant to distinguish among various Subanen
sub-groups.
During the Conference proper, several Subanen, separately
and in small groups, approached the ICSWM and pointed
out that for them the spelling S-U-B-A-N-E-N is their
preferred spelling. Out of respect for them, Culture
and Peace Studies will adopt such a spelling in its
future issues. For this current issue, however, we
chose to respect the writers’ preferences.
TITLES
An Introduction To Subanen Culture
JANIE GRACE H. HAPALLA
Subanen Oral Traditions In Historic-Ethnic
Blend
GAUDIOSA M. OCHOTORENA
The Subanen Becklog: A Lapuyan Description
VICENTE L. IMBING
The Subanun Buklug Complex
ARTEMIO C. BARBOSA
An Overview Of The Subanen Traditional Musical
Arts
RACQUEL B. GEORSUA
An Account Of Subanen Origins And History,
With Special Focus On Lapuyan, Zamboanga Del Sur
VICENTE L. IMBING
|
