Mythologies of the Tumandok Tribe

May 13, 2024

The Suludnon, also known as the Panay-Bukidnon, Pan-ayanon, or Tumandok, are a culturally indigenous Visayan group of people who reside in the Capiz-Antique-Iloilo mountainous area of Panay in the Visayan islands of the Philippines. They are one of the two only culturally indigenous group of Visayan language-speakers in the Western Visayas, along with the, Halawodnon of Lambunao and Calinog, Iloilo and Iraynon-Bukidnon of Antique. Also, they are part of the wider Visayan ethnolinguistic group, who constitute the largest Filipino ethnolinguistic group. Although they were once culturally related to the speakers of the Kinaray-a, Aklanon, and Hiligaynon languages, all of whom inhabit the lowlands of Panay, their isolation from Spanish rule resulted in the continuation of a pre-Hispanic culture and beliefs. They speak the Iigbok language (also known as Ligbok or Sulod language), a member of the West Bisayan subdivision of the Bisayan languages within the Austronesian language family. The Panay Bukidnon are known for their Binanog dance, which mimics the flight of the Philippine eagle, accompanied by an agung ensemble. Another dance of the same name is also performed by the Bukidnon Lumad of Mindanao, suggesting a cultural connection between the people of the Western Visayas and northern Mindanao in ancient times. Apart from this, they also practice the use of bamboo musical instruments, which they use to express themselves in traditional songs, dances, and epics. They are also known for their detailed embroidery, known as panubok. The heritage of the panubok is celebrated in the Tinubkan fashion show in Iloilo City. The Sulud are also known for their traditional practices on the mysticism of the binukot and nabukot.

On December 30, 2020, military and police operations in Tapaz, Capiz in the Philippines barged into houses while people were asleep and killed nine Tumandok Indigenous leaders including Jomar Vidal. According to a news article in The Inquirer, military officials insisted that those who died “fired first at police operatives serving 28 search warrants for firearms and explosives.” Sixteen other Tumandok were arrested on charges of illegal possession of firearms. The official narrative was that the Tumandok men fought back, a claim belied by the head of the regional police crime laboratory Colonel Enrique Ancheta, who reported that “seven of the nine Indigenous leaders who were killed tested negative for gunpowder residue.” The colonel was later relieved of his post. Defend Panay Network (DPN), an alliance of rights advocates, the church, the academe and environmental organizations, reported that the testimonies of the wives, children and family members revealed that the leaders were targeted for their decades-old struggle against the militarization of their communities and destructive projects such as the Jalaur River megadam. Even their legal counsel, Angelo Karlo Guillen who was defending Tumandok community members accused of resisting police arrest, was brutally attacked and killed. A report by the Panaghiusa Philippine Network to Uphold Indigenous Peoples Rights said that the military and police were forcing them to sign documents supposedly to “surrender” and “clear their names.” They refused to sign the documents since they are not members or supporters of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA), a local communist insurgency tagged as a terrorist organization by the Philippine government. In recent years, Indigenous Peoples have been tagged as communists simply because most guerilla bases are in their ancestral domains. Naturally, as these are the last remaining forests in the country.

The Philippine island of Panay is home to the indigenous Tumandok people but has also become the backdrop for their decade long struggle against dam construction projects. In the fight to preserve their land, life and culture, they have come to face not only forced displacement but also ever-increasing political and military persecution. Contrary to military claims that they were members of militia of the Communist Party of the Philippines, the slain indigenous peoples in Panay had long been asserting their right to land and life in the face of so-called development projects. In return, they had been tagged as enemies of the state and subjected to intense militarization over the years. For the past decade, the Tumandok of Panay island has been opposing projects that would end up submerging their communities, their sources of livelihoods, and their centuries-old culture and tradition. Just before 2020 ended, state forces carried out a “Synchronized Enhanced Management of Police Operation” that left nine dead, including the chairperson of their local organization Roy Giganto and two village officials Reynaldo Katipunan and Mario Aguirre.