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“Coconuts put us through college,”
says Luz Margarita’s brother, Dr. Jose
Tranquilino Ruiz II. The physician,
town councilor and hotelier walked
us through the history of Glan at
Sarangani Highlands, his mountain
resort in General Santos overlooking
the province. In 1914, during the
American occupation, their grandfather
was appointed by Governor-General
Francis Burton Harrison to lead
Cebuano
colonos
or settlers. They
established “Colony No. 9,” an
agricultural settlement in Cotabato that
prospered to become present-day Glan.
Today, besides the coconut plantations,
a few ancestral homes built by these
pioneering colonists have survived,
distinguished by capiz shell windows
and intricate cutwork called
calados
.
Long before Christian immigrants
from Luzon and Visayas arrived in the
early 20th century, Sarangani was
already a cradle of diverse cultures. To
this day, an impressive variety of ethnic
groups live in the province, such as the
B’laan, Tagakaolo, T’boli, Uvo Manobo,
Kalagan, Maguindanao and Sangil.
“According to unofficial estimates, up
to 60 percent of Sarangani’s population
today are
lumads
(indigenous
peoples),” says Allen Lawa, a project
development aide of B’laan descent.
Like most
lumads
, the B’laans were
once marginalized by lowland society.
But things are changing for the better.
“Growing up, I used to be ashamed to
tell people I am B’laan,” Lawa admits,
“but now I am proud of my culture.”
Many young professionals who
belong to indigenous groups are also
reconnecting with their ethnicity
through projects like the Lamlifew Tribal
Museum at Barangay Datal Tampal
in Malungon, 45 minutes away from
General Santos. Established in 2007
to cultivate and share indigenous
knowledge and traditions, Lamlifew
(pronounced lam-lee-foe) is the only
community-initiated museum in the
Philippines endorsed by the National
Museum. A traditional B’laan house
displays authentic wares, while a
Gumabal weaving house has women
creating
tabih
, an abaca textile similar
to
t’nalak
of the T’boli.
The possibilities in Sarangani are
endless — and all these wouldn’t be
possible without the locals, who serve
as its tourism advocates, historians
and conservationists. Pacquiao may
very well be its poster boy, but the true
champions of this emerging frontier are
the Sarangans themselves.
Cebu Pacific flies daily from Manila
and Cebu to General Santos City.
www.
cebupacificair.com
Left: The Alegado
House in Glan with
decorative cutwork
called
calados
.
Glan boasts some
of the best beaches
in Mindanao
09LKH Smile
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