Dante Sinhayan is a 34-year-old emerging tribal leader from Bukidnon, Mindanao. He narrates his life story and experiences growing up in the forest, including witnessing significant deforestation caused by logging. He discusses how this has impacted his people, the Lumad, as the forest is integral to their identity, rituals, and livelihoods. Without the forest, the Lumad will lose their way of life and not be able to survive. Dante hopes to continue raising awareness of the importance of forest protection and passing these teachings to future generations.

1. viii Forest Faces

2. DANTE SINHAYAN
Lumad
D ante Sinhayan is a 34-year old emerging tribal leader
in the uplands of Bukidnon in Mindanao, married,
with a two-year old daughter. The interview is interesting
in that Dante narrated his story echoing the traditional
form of a datu introducing himself as he entered a village,
“tungkod” or staff in hand. Starting with his parents, every
event in his life was well-accounted for in his memory.
Forests as Lumad identity
“My father is from Kalabugaw and my mother is from
Bulunay and when they got married they settled in
Kalabugaw, where I was born in 1973. My father was a
farmer. We moved to Bulunay when I was still young, where
I grew up and went to school from Grade 1 to 3. I went
back to Kalabugaw to continue my elementary schooling
from Grade 4 to 6. Nobody could support me in high
school, so I searched for a sponsor. I went to Kabanglasan
and met Father Leoni, who sponsored me up to my third
year in college when he died. Father Matt took over until
I finished college. Upon my graduation, I went back to my
village.”
“There I saw the many changes in the forest. There were
a lot of denuded areas, and we were still gathering many
of the forest products we were using: rattan, medicines,
timber for housing, and timber that we were selling to
the Dumagat. The hunting grounds of my parents, my
grandparents changed. Nobody told me why these forest

3. changes took place that I was seeing, but I heard from the elders as I listened to them as they
discussed. The changes in the forest of my village were significantly caused by the entry of
logging.”
“For the people and for myself, logging clearly caused the destruction. But the impact did
not register in our minds, the importance of what was destroyed was not established. There
were no efforts to revive the forest, especially the ritual areas, the hunting grounds, the sacred
places. In Bulunay, the Pugawan ritual area was totally removed and bulldozed. I am also
seeing the scarcity of the resources that we collect in the forest. Seldom do I see now people
carrying forest-based food.”
“Our aspirations to continue caring for “Then the Baptist preachers came who told us that participating in ritual acts was evil. I was
Forest Faces Forests as Lumad identity
the forest must not be lost, for as Lumad, baptized a Baptist and this was the dominant religion in our area. I was taught that rituals
once the forest is gone, so will our being
a Lumad go as well.”
are not good and I turned away from my traditional beliefs. But now I realize I should not
have abandoned the ritual areas, because these are the sacred places where we can care for the
forest continuously. And if the forest is gone, where will we do our rituals, in the middle of
the road? We do our rituals in the water, but water comes from the forest! This is what I see
at the moment that is also the future.”
“But people did not think about reconstructing what was damaged. We are letting the forest
go and saying to ourselves it is already damaged anyway. We go back and revisit the forest to
12

4. process or cut trees and establish farms, not to revive the ritual areas and sacred places that our
next generation could see. This is not discussed in my village.”
“The entry of logging and the bulldozing of farms discouraged us and contributed to people “Without the forest, I feel different in the city
caring less. Our adupahan was bulldozed and the owners did not resist or ask for payments, as seeing big buildings. It is too hot. In the forest,
no negotiations took place. Owners were employed by the logging companies as workers and it is cool and I hear the sounds of different birds.
The changes make me reflect and mixes me up
helped in the bulldozing. People did not go back to caring for the village, the sacred places, in how I think. It is natural that a Lumad cannot
and the forest so that more food could be gathered in the future. In short, nobody cared!” survive in the city. Thus, being a Lumad in itself
is a great challenge as it also means taking care
“As a grown-up, I am saddened by what took place. And as time has passed, there are groups of the forest.”
entering Bulunay who are slowly awakening my village. Watershed management is a phrase
we now hear, and the lowlanders are slowly sowing, starting, reinstating in us the feeling of the
forest’s importance. The forest gets discussed and the watershed; how important is the forest,
what is this watershed. Thus, care for the forest is growing again, slowly.”
“I talked with a member of our village council and the entry of this program is allowing people
to care again for the forest. And indeed it is true that this care is growing slowly in people’s
minds and hearts. My hope is that this continues and will not stop when these outsiders leave.
Our aspirations to continue caring for the forest must not be lost, for as Lumad, once the
forest is gone, so will our being a Lumad go as well. We can still be proud of being a Lumad,
but the forest is one of our real identities. The forests differentiate what we feel when we are
in the city. If the forest is gone, we lose what we call as Lumad. We may still be Lumad, but in
rituals only. How do we live? This is discouraging for us.”
“If we care less for the forest, we will not live without the forest. I cannot live without the
forest. Without the forest, I feel different in the city seeing big buildings. It is too hot. In
the forest, it is cool and I hear the sounds of different birds. The changes make me reflect and
mixes me up in how I think. It is natural that a Lumad cannot survive in the city. Thus, being
Forest Faces Forests as Lumad identity
a Lumad in itself is a great challenge as it also means taking care of the forest.”
“One time I went to the city port to fetch someone who was arriving, and there were Badjao
kids in the water near the docking area, begging for money from passengers and other visitors.
(The Badjao culture is sea-based and they live in the poorest region in the country. Many of
them migrate to different areas in the country.) Coins were thrown at them and they dive in
the water to get the coins. I threw one peso and the kids replied that it was too small! I was
surprised that the kids were not Badjao and they came from Claveria, in the uplands near my
13

5. place. I asked them why they are in the city. One of the kids told me
that it was difficult in their place, things will not grow, crops will
not grow without fertilizer, and they do not have fertilizer. He told
me it is better in the city as money is easy. He told me they were
many before, but some went home as they cannot cope. Some are
able to adapt, but most are unable to sustain themselves.”
“This is why I realized that if the Lumad is put in the city, they can
live for some time, but they will not survive for long and will return
to their origin. But where will they return if the forest is gone, the
land is gone? The identity of the Lumad as a person is tied to what
we call ancestral domain. The forest marks our ancestral domain
and ensures that Lumad who went to the city has a place to return.
Ancestral domain also ensures forest protection, and if the forest
vanishes, then what the Lumad keeps talking about as ancestral
domain also vanishes. There may be something left over, but it is
not the same, if people understand what is called ancestral domain.
Even if food is scarce, the forest brings one to reflect and connect as
a Lumad. If I were not a Lumad, my appreciation of the forest will
be limited. The lowland appreciation of the splendor of the Lumad
needs to be defined well, explained well. What I expressed is the
Lumad’s appreciation, view, and experience of the goodness of the
forest as their life. If the forest is lost, the more the Lumad is lost.”
“The importance of water is also inseparable to the Lumad and
ancestral domain discussions. Everyday, every minute, we use water
and with it, we discuss forest, although not often. By discussing
how water emerges, then the forest gets discussed. Then the whole
Forest Faces Forests as Lumad identity
area gets discussed, how to care, how good it is, and what if we lose
this? In the city, they can buy water, but the Lumad cannot.”
“The Lumad’s life is the forest, and we are in the frontline in
caring for the forest and the resources therein. If it gets destroyed,
the Lumad gets affected first. If the forest is eroded, the water is
polluted, and the Lumad will be affected first before the lowlanders.
And often we cannot defend and prevent the difficulties that will
14

6. be experienced. Severe landslides also damage the water, and we
have minimal skills in seeking assistance down the valley. We may
get re-settled in another village, which will cause another problem
as we will be claiming land which will not be ours.”
“On a number of occasions, I gave inputs in the school for the
children, particularly the Lumad, on the different ways to take care
of the forest and that these ought to start with us. The Lumad can
always go down the valley, but we will not survive. I related the
story of the Lumad who tried selling bread, but who returned after
a few months because he cannot survive.”
“I will continue relating this care of the forest with my work and
talk with the community, the children, the Tribal Council. I
express, during these meetings, that caring for the forest is not a
game and is not based on apprehensions and assumptions. Forest
care is based on real events for us, the Lumad, because if we will not
settle in the forest, we will not survive. Taking care of the forest
leads to good things for people. Sometimes the topics discussed
lack focus, but these still need to be discussed. We discuss sacred
places, timber extraction, and these realities need to be passed on
to the elders and to the children.”
“Everyone is challenged to care for whatever we have now, as
whatever destruction takes place in the forest, the Lumad will be
most affected. But the Lumad does not have the knowledge to
respond to these damaging events where we do not care for the
forest and will be damaging our lives. So that’s it!”
Forest Faces Forests as Lumad identity
15

7. Traveling in the forest, there is much sadness
that government cannot reach the poor for basic
services and in these places too are often insurgents
who are part of the faceless poor and the violence they
get caught in. In seeking to interview them along the
same path and time, a tribal leader was murdered,
killed in a sacred place of traditional ritual in front of
his children and grandchildren, who then with all their
relatives had to leave and find subsistence elsewhere.
This is but another untold story of the forest, scenes
and faces washed over.
Traditional ritual place of the Lumads of Bendum
Forest Faces
16

8. AMAY GANGGA or MAN GANGGA
(aka BERNABE AMPOHON)
Tribal Leader
O n the morning of 16 May 2007, Amay Gangga was shot and
died amongst some of his children and grandchildren, by
The loss of cultural identity
someone who joined in the traveling group. He was crossing at the
junction of the Pinamangkulan-Pulangi Rivers, a sacred site of his
people. Amay Gangga was around 70 years old and a member of the
Bendum Tribal Council representing the Ampohon family group.
The Ampohon family is the most organized family group in
Bendum, attributed mainly to Amay Gangga’s ability to mobilize
his family. Amay Gangga was a source of traditional knowledge and
one of the few elders who could do the saut (war dance). He was
the community’s ritualist. He was a typical traditional Pulangiyen
who kept moving during cropping periods. The Ampohon family
group participates actively in community activities and readily
present during pahina (communal labor).
In his younger years, he lived around the Tigpaniki River with
his parents, and when he got married, he moved to Barangay
Caburacanan. When he had a family, he moved to Maasam, and
after some time moved to Mahan-aw back in Pulangi. When one
of his daughters got married in Bendum, the whole family moved
to Bendum.

9. The death of the elder affected his family group and the entire
community. Amay Gangga’s death created tension amongst the
aggrieved family and other members of the community, as there
were suspicions that the incident was triggered by an internal
conflict in the community and external arms. Feeling abandoned
by the community, the entire Ampohon family group moved out of
Bendum, family members separated and settled in different places
where they now have to struggle for acceptance and to belong in
each of the new communities and groups.
This loss of a highly respected elder and his entire family’s departure
at the same time cannot be viewed simply as a homicide and
outmigration case. The motivations and reasons that brought this
tragedy upon the community are complex and perhaps there are
many versions of the truth of what happened.
But a life has been stilled and the grief of the Ampohon family
Amay Gangga performs a traditional ritual in a community activity will perhaps remain inconsolable for a long time. Seeking justice
will be difficult, especially when the entire family of generations
is fragmented and are themselves seeking new homes and
communities.
Amay Gangga was a source of traditional knowledge and
one of the few elders who can do the saut (war dance).
He was the community’s ritualist.
Forest Faces The loss of cultural identity
18

10. ED CORONEL and
PAUL AZARCON
Mining Industry Professionals
Mining and forests in 20 Years
E d Coronel and Paul Azarcon are two professionals who are carving out their careers in the Philippine
mining industry. Ed has a commerce and accounting background specializing in development
management, and is increasingly drawn to community relations and development in host mining
communities. Paul is a geologist and presently works with one of the mining companies doing exploration
activities in the country.
Their stories on forests draw parallels as they both acknowledge the urgent need to respond to the social
realities in forest communities, mainly typified by the extent of poverty and lack of basic social services.
They are familiar with government-implemented programs on community forest management, as they go
around these areas in the course of their work in mining. Ironically, they realize the similarity of speculative
behavior in mining and in forests (whether community- or corporate-managed). They are also very well
aware of the various perspectives and discussions on mining and actively participate when invited.

11. Ed grew up in Cuenca town in Batangas, a province south of Manila, and where
he recalls viewing Mount Maculot every day through a large window in their
house. He remembers seeing Taal Lake (a popular tourist attraction with Taal
Volcano in the middle) from Cuenca on the ridge overlooking the lake.
At 15, he climbed halfway up Mount Maculot and three years later, he
conquered his fears and found his way to the deeper forest and its ravines.
In there, he experienced a personal connection with the place and its thickly
vegetated forest.
Later, opportunities allowed him visit Mindanao and the Visayas where he
saw other mountains and forests. But while mountains and forests are tourist
attractions, he concedes that there is also the image of forests under siege due to
poverty, the onslaught of heavy equipment, and increasing poor communities
living in these areas.
In 1994, he visited Germany and saw its forests and plantations and was
impressed by how this was made possible in an industrialized country. A workshop facilitated by ESSC in which Ed Coronel participated to
better understand the prevailing conditions in Real and how best to
respond to the needs of communities and local government
By the time the Philippines passed the Mining Act I 1995, Ed got involved
with the major mining companies that undertook exploration activities and his
responsibility for community relations allowed him to engage with communities
and local governments that host areas involving mineral exploration and
development.
In Tampakan, South Cotabato in Mindanao, he thought it was helpful that the
company did an inventory of the flora and fauna in the area. In Zamboanga, he
Forest Faces Mining and forests in 20 Years
“I am tormented by forests. I hold a
worked with the company to establish how people will still benefit from the romantic view of forests, but at the same
area when the mining is over. The strategy was in developing upland agriculture time also a pragmatic view, that forests
and planting upland rice, although he has to understand better the real benefits are a collateral damage to progress, just
these will bring, as it appeared that people were not ready. like other things in society.”
Ed Coronel
In some corner of his mind, he holds the view that it might be in some ways
better that a mining company cuts through the forests than the kaingineros
(slash-and-burn farmers), as companies will have access to better technology
that clears the area more efficiently.
41

12. Ed also shared that mining and forests are best analyzed through the lens
of governance. From an incentives’ point of view, politics and governance
constitute the greater stakes in mining activities. The politics will
illustrate the exercise of authority and the compliance with pronounced
commitments, while the governance will illustrate whether rewards and
sanctions are operative, due diligence is complied with, and if erring
companies are getting away with violations.
As someone who is part of the “soft end” of the mining industry, he struggles
with the impact of mining on the environment and the communities and
how the mitigating measures are addressing the impact.
“I am tormented by forests. I hold a romantic view of forests, but at the same
time also a pragmatic view, that forests are a collateral damage to progress,
just like other things in society,” Ed admits.
Paul grew up in Bayabas, Toril, Davao City, after his family migrated from
Manila in 1969. His family had a farm at the foot of Mount Apo (the
highest mountain in the country at 3,000+ masl). His grandfather, who
used to be a government official after the Second World War, ran an abaca
plantation, but there was no forest.
As a young boy, Paul loved outdoor excursions and visited the beach often.
His initial exposure to forests occurred while doing interior geology in the
Agusan area in Mindanao within the secondary forest of a large timber
Aerial view of Atlas Mines in Cebu
concessionaire. He explored forest areas and recalls to have always related
his experience with people living there. In what he refers to as his then
Forest Faces Mining and forests in 20 Years
“immature mind,” those commercial forests were the actual forests.
In Samar (in eastern Visayas), he also explored forests mostly controlled by
Both Paul and Ed agree that within 20 years, the Philippines will the New People’s Army (or NPA, the armed group fighting the Philippine
have matured, the industry will have matured and become more government) and where he also saw what he refers to as the “poorest of the
responsible in operations. . . It will be a slow maturity, with pressure
coming from other companies driving the system of responsibility.
poor.” With the log ban imposed in 1986-87, he saw how people, saddened
The best practice is to show that it works. and deprived of their legal livelihoods, still continued cutting trees to
survive.
42

13. As he became involved with other mining companies, various experiences
come to mind. In the area outside the Subic zone (Zambales in Luzon),
the political bickering in forest management projects was only a ruse to
earn money for those in the decision-making positions. He also worked
with a company in Nueva Vizcaya whose forested areas survived, but
mainly due to the guards that secured and controlled the area and were
paid for by the company. Part of the community development where
Paul took charge was the planting of trees, part of the compliance
that the company undertook, and without the participation of the
Community-based Forest Management(CBFM) holders in the area.
For Paul, forests are always related to the social side, the poverty side.
The managed forests he has seen so far are not in CBFM areas. CBFM
as a tenurial right means one can do anything with the area, even put
up a rest house.
The speculative behavior he associates with mining areas, he also sees
in CBFM areas. “Do communities want to manage CBFMs, or do
they want quick money?”Paul asks. A major incentive is survival by
communities, and if the forest area is the water source, then the value
of forests goes higher. But having a CBFM instrument or none makes
no difference to those living inside forests.
At a macro level, he views land-use planning and management as
essential in specific forest area management. Poor people put pressure
on the forests as well, as that is their only source of income, due to lack
of other opportunities and coupled with the lack of basic social services
Forest Faces Mining and forests in 20 Years
from the government. Easing that pressure can come about through a
comprehensive approach to land use planning, with CBFM rights or
without. The speculative behavior Paul Azarcon associates
with mining areas, he also sees in CBFM areas.
Paul is also asking whether the CBFM and ISF (Integrated Social “Do communities want to manage CBFMs, or do
they want quick money?”
Forestry) programs have had successes in providing income for
communities, but which may have put unnecessary pressure on forests
due to poorly designed and poorly monitored resource management
frameworks.
43

14. At the micro level, what difference does it really make for poor Tampakan was purchased at US$4-$5 per share, and sold later at
communities between these acronymed projects and forest US$9-$10 per share. Tracking the developments in the export-
management projects of mining companies? There are reforestation import banks will be crucial.
and other projects factored into a mineral development activity
that are part of a mining company’s feasibility study. But will Paul sees that “mining will be re-inventing itself ” and that there
all companies do it? Who does the monitoring, the Mines and will be added revenues from preserving, not cutting, trees as
Geosciences Bureau (MGB) or the Forest Management Bureau? He carbon sinks and in focusing on income generating activities for
thinks that the MGB should be more than capable of monitoring. communities in mining sites. Pollution control equipment and
renewable energy options will be continuously explored to the
Small-scale miners are another story altogether. Paul describes extent of “getting profit from trying green, not cheaper” options.
them simply as ore collectors, and with no accountability and
responsibility for the damage and impact wrought by their In the end, both Paul and Ed see the cumulative impact of mining
activities. in 20 years as less than all the subdivisions being developed in
Metro Manila. The process will build up slowly, at the same time
Both Paul and Ed agree that within 20 years, the Philippines will shoring up confidence.
have matured, the industry will have matured and become more
responsible in operations. An area of improvement should focus on In terms of forests, regeneration and reforestation need to be
the inclusion of China (which is currently a buyer, not an investor) seriously looked into and implemented as major elements in mining
in the industry. rehabilitation plans.
It will be a slow maturity, with pressure coming from other
companies driving the system of responsibility. The best practice is
to show that it works. The learning experience with Lafayette that
operates on Rapu-rapu Island is that “nobody in the industry wants
to be like a Lafayette” and lose substantial capital in the process.
The small to medium companies that have small to medium risks
will survive, as they will be more than able to navigate the regulatory
Forest Faces Mining and forests in 20 Years
waters.
Both also share the view that major mine openings in the next 20
years will be limited as the Philippines is ranked very low as an
unstable regime, with political and sovereign risks still very high.
Even the Tampakan copper mine in Mindanao, generally viewed
as a world-class mine, was sold earlier because of sovereign and
political risks, and Ed and Paul do not see this mine opening soon,
even with renewed and activated investment. In 1994 and 1995,
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15. RAP PUBLICATION 2008/04
FOREST FACES
Hopes and regrets in Philippine forestry
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific
Environmental Science for Social Change (ESSC)

16. The designations employed and the presentation of material in this publication do not imply the expression of any
opinion on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations or the Regional Community
Forestry Training Center concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or
concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The perspectives, statements and conclusions expressed in
this publication are entirely those of the interviewees and should not be construed as representing official positions,
policies or opinions of FAO.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in
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should be addressed to the Senior Forestry Officer, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations,
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The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) leads international
efforts to defeat hunger by helping countries improve agriculture, forestry and fisheries practices
and ensuring good nutrition for all. FAO is also a leading source of knowledge and information
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to negotiate agreements and debate policy. FAO’s mission in forestry is to enhance human well-
being through support to member countries in the sustainable management of the world’s trees
and forests.
The Environmental Science for Social Change (ESSC) promotes environmental sustainability,
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a critical and holistic understanding of the dynamic relationship between biophysical and socio-
cultural processes in collaboration with various partners in resource management.
Photos: Peter Walpole unless otherwise indicated
For copies of the publication, write to:
Patrick B. Durst Peter Walpole
Senior Forestry Officer Executive Director
FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific Environmental Science for Social Change
39 Phra Atit Road, Bangkok 10200, Thailand 1/F Manila Observatory Building, Ateneo de Manila University
Tel: (66-2) 697 4000 Fax: (66-2) 697 4445 Loyola Heights, Quezon City, 1108, Philippines
Email: Patrick. Durst@fao.org Tel: (63-2) 426 5921 Fax: (63-2) 426 5958
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@FAO 2008
ISBN 978-974-06-1213-1