Bagobo Success Story

Actually this is the only article i got from the internet about a bagobo person who bacame popular in their tribe for his affiliation and his in-depth study about Bagobo tribe. But as I continuously surf in the internet I cannot find other articles describing this person. In fact, what is written in this article is that this person is stated to be photographer so that's why I publish this post. The article is this.!!!! Bagobo Life: A Photo Exhibit at the Davao MuseumGermelina A. Lacorte / MindaNews / 18 May 2003 DAVAO CITY – An exhibit of some two dozen vintage photographs featuring glimpses of Bagobo life as far back as a century ago has been opened at the Davao Museum by a Bagobo artist-photographer who is deep into the history of Mindanao's ethnic tribes. Datu Miguelito Bangkas, who studied photography in Japan and has launched exhibits and lectures about the tribe in different parts of the country, said the three-month exhibit---to end June 15---gives the public some perspective on the different experiences the Bagobos went through from the coming of the American colonizers a century ago, to the Japanese and the abaca boom in the 1930s and the tribe’s diaspora at present. Among those displayed at the Davao Museum is a vintage photograph of the first Bagobos who set foot on St. Louis, Missouri, USA in 1904. The picture, culled from the old postcard collection of American writer Jonathan Best, showed a group of Bagobos who were among the 1,100 Filipinos featured as "live anthropological display" of the Philippine village at the St. Louis World Exposition that year, organized to convince the American people on the need for the US colonial war against Filipinos. The sepia photograph showed a Bagobo house looming in the background. Bagobos had to carry the materials of their house all the way to the US and assembled them for the exhibit. Viewed from the backdrop of advanced technology, the Philippine village reportedly changed the opinions of Americans initially opposed to the US colonial war in the Philippines. Since it featured the Filipinos as a 'savage' race that needed to be 'civilized,' the exhibit convinced the average American of the necessity of colonial occupation and cast a long lasting bias against the Filipino as a people. "What you see of the Bagobos now are mere remnants of the past," Datu Bangkas said, explaining that Western influence had totally pervaded the Bagobos' way of life so that their own culture has been erased. "When the Americans came in about a century ago, the Bagobos were forced to assimilate through the subtle use of education. At first, the Bagobo resisted gestures to entice them to schools but later on, colonizers were able to recruit even Bagobos to teach The exhibit features a sepia 1930 portrait picture of Laidan Bagobo, the first Bagobo licensed by the American colonial government to teach Bagobo natives. This was the height of the abaca boom in Davao, captured in another picture entitled "Bolante" which shows two Bagobos deep into their work with the spinning machine. Davao was known as “Little Tokyo” before the second world war because of the presence of a large number of Japanese working in abaca plantations in the area. A sepia photograph captured a memorable encounter between a group of Bagobos and the Japanese during the building of the Bagobo-Japanese road. The first Bagobos who set foot in St. Louis, Missouri, USA in 1904. Datu Bangkas said the Japanese found it easier to relate to the Bagobo's animistic belief, because it was similar to their own. A photo captioned Nit To, Bagobo word for ‘spirit,’ showed a collection of wooden sculptures carved after the shape of human faces, representing the spirit of each family member in each Bagobo house. Every time a family member gets sick, the Bagobo family would to talk to the spirit represented by the wood, not to the sick person. Close relationship between the Bagobos and the Japanese resulted to intermarriages captured in the 1930 photograph of a Japanese-Bagobo wedding. The photograph shows a Japanese groom flanked by the entire Bagobo family of the bride. After the war, the US Congress passed the Enemy Property Act allowing USAFFE (United States Air Force in the Far East) and Filipino guerillas to confiscate land owned by the Japanese. The confiscation reportedly affected some ancestral lands owned by the Bagobos, who were accused as Japanese 'dummies.' To air their grievance, the Bagobos went to see lawyer Pedro Quitain, who asked Congressman Salipida Pendatun to arrange a Malacanang meeting with President Manuel Roxas. Thus, the 1947 picture of Bagobo Chieftain Datu Masaglang with President Roxas. Datu Magsalang had asked the President to stop the law’s implementation but it was too late for Roxas to intervene because most of the ancestral lands of the Bagobos were already taken. Other interesting photographs include the 1900 US Governor's office, the seat of the US government which is now the engineering department of the University of Mindanao; a sepia 1936 portrait of Datu Betil, the brave Bagobo warrior killed by the Japanese for refusing to let them use his horse for the war; "The Dentist" shows a Bagobo mother, sharpening the teeth of her son with a bamboo reed (also from the collection of Jonathan Best), a 1910 picture entitled Payang Boloy, the house owned by a Bagobo Datu the size and design of which could no longer be found in Bagobo land; and the 1930 portrait of the artist's grandfather Datu Botow Bangkas, the first Bagobo Tagabawa to marry a Bagobo Guiangan that led to the peace pact among the two warring Bagobo groups. The marriage purportedly stopped the Nga Yow (tribal war) which had been going on between the Bagobo-Guiangan and the Bagobo-Tagabawa for some time. Some of the photographs displayed were culled from the collections outside of the country, including the "kabil" or Bagobo backpack, culled from the Smithsonian Institution Museum in Washington D.C. Datu Bangkas used to serve as acting chief of the cultural affairs section of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP). He had been doing photo exhibits on the tribal peoples of Mindanao at the Cultural Center of the Philippines and had been to folklife festival of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC and a cultural gathering at the New York Museum of Natural History Philippine Center.

-pinalabi-

Where Can We Find Them?

There are two major groups of Bagobo that could be distinguished until the present century. These two groups are distinguished from each other trough several cultural distinctions and by their geographical location.These two groups are called according to their geographical location. Most of them could be found near coastal and mountain areas so there are the Upland Bagobo and the Coastal Bagobo. These two are the two major Bagobo groups. The Upland Bagobo lives in the very mountainous region between the upper Pulangi and Davao rivers on Mindanao in the Philippines. The Coastal Bagobo once lived in the hills south and east of Mount Apo or Apo Sandawa.They moved to the west coast of Davao Gulf between Daliao and Digos. The coastal Bagobo were influenced by Christianity, plantations, and resettlement among Coastal Bisayans. Upland Bagobos’ primary livelihood comes from swidden farms. Their traditional subsistence is derived approximately 75 percent from swidden fields that yield rice, maize, sweet potatoes, and other crops. These swidden fields are made through burning of the field to clear it so that it can be planted. Twenty-five percent of their diet comes from hunting, fishing, and gathering. Now, Coastal Bagobo is not considered a separate group anymore. They now live with either the Upland Bagobo or with the Coastal Bisayans.It did not become a hindrance for some of the Bagobos to relate with the Bisayans because they lived with them and were influenced by these Bisayans that also lived in the coastal areas where they lived.

Survival Scheme of the Bagobo in the Current Society

It is evident that Bagobo tribe still exist today at present times but they have difficulty in dealing with the highly gobalized community at present especially that they live in isolated rural locations. In fact, they face various problems when it comes to the strengthening of their ways of living for the reason that they are slowly influenced by the culture in the urban society. Moreover, children are highly affected by these condition for the fact that according to the article I have read about the Bagobos, their place is being used for industrialized site for hydroelectric power project. The problem is concerning a more impact on the tribe’s system of beliefs has held nature in high respect. The waterfall has been a crucial part to their way of life, a springboard of their culture, religion and physical well-being. After all, it’s the waterfall that makes the surrounding land more fertile the whole year round, its mist protecting the area’s crops from drought. The people have also been known to observe their own system of communal farming. Promises are given to this particular tribe that they can get a permanent source of income if they continuously support in the proposed project for a new power site. The tribal leader of this certain group of people continue to shout for justice in this state. They wanted their land to be preserved for the future usage of the Bagobo children. For me, they can cope with the situation but it is not an assurance that they can do it readily for the reason that they wanted their land to preserved for the next generation. It should be clear from these observations that the restoration of a more democratic political system in the Philippines has not in itself significantly improved the human rights circumstances of indigenous Filipinos. Such improvement as has occurred instead reflects the organizational efforts and plain hard work of indigenous Filipinos and those who work on their behalf. On the other hand, the Philippine case is made unique both by the presence of good laws already on the books that in fact empower people (including indigenous people), and by the level of sophistication in government and public discussion about the significance of ancestraldomain rights of development and environmental issues. If there is good news as about the Philipplines, it is that the current political climate does appear more receptive to, or at least more tolerant of, those seeking to act on these relatively congenial circumstances to improve the human rights conditions of indigenous Filipinos. Yes, they can cope if they internalize with themselves that it is important for them to accept new social changes in their society and bring up theirselves into a more elevated way of living. Such changes will be needed to support their will to exist in the future times. But, they can still preserve their culture by selecting the sets of changes that can trigger into a balance way of life. Not totally, diminishing the motives of their culture.

-pinalabi-

Food!!!

Since the Bagobo's livelihood are metal crafts, basketry, agriculture, fishing... most of their food is obtained through their livelihood... their food includes, rice, camote (sweet potato), corn, banana, coconut, sago. They also eat meat such as deers, pigs, chicken, monkeys (monkey meat, are not preferred by the majority though), grasshoppers, crabs, eels, and fishes since most of their food is also acquired through hunting. The Bagobo usually has a garden where they get their vegetables, fruits and other greens. For the flavoring, they use salt (secured from the coast native and Chinese) and pepper (obtained out of the mashing of the fruit of a wild pepper known as the katombal. And I bet that they are very far from diseases such as UTI, diabetis and kidney stones since they are not used to food preservatives like us today. How lucky, hehehe...

-pawa-

Tribal Fashion ^_^

I have read that the Bagobos are very much concious when it comes to their clothes since they givemuch attention to their clothing.; in fact, they are considered the most colorful people of the Philippines, because of the ornaments found in their garments that is usually made out of processed hemp, it is colored and woven and is decorated with embroider, or design it with shells or beads. It is said that one of the reason why the Bagobos pays much attention to their clothing is because it enhances the person's character. Thus, distinction is seen in the certain types of clothing one wears, clothing depends on ones social rank and power
The men usually hold their hair with handkerchiefs that is decorated with beads and tassels. They often wear close fitting undershirt topped with a beaded of embroidered coat that usually have opening in the front. The trousers, made of hemp rarely reach the knee, is also decorated with a beaded or embroidered band on the base of each leg. They actually wear two belts, one isto hold its trousers and the other is to carry tools for fighting or working knives which every man usually does. Instead of pockets, men carries along with them a cloth bag still bordered and decorated with tassels and beads which is common in all of their clothing. Men also wears, ear adornment that is made of wood, the wealthy often wear ivory ear plugs made like huge collat buttons. It is so rare because it is manufactured from Borneo, and only the wealthy possess them. The Bagobo women wears a closely fitted jacket about the neck to the skirt, no portion of the upper part of the body is exposed. Like other garments, it is also has embrodered designs decorated with shells, metal disks or with beads. They wear narrow tube skirt made of hemp designed like a sack with both ends open. To hold their skirt, they place a beaded belt.
Women takes pleasure in loading their arms with ornaments of shell or brass and their forearms is covered with separate rings in different sizes. Back of the hair of women is well oiled and is combed straight to the back of the head, where it is tied in a knot. On the knotted hair is a wooden comb decorated with beads, the comb serves as the ornament on head of women. The women wear plugs on their ear lobes, made of wood, where it is inlaid with artistic designs, and are connected by strands of beads passing under the chin.
Both Men and women wear plaited or beaded ornaments that are saud to have magical properties. At a very young age, children are pierced in the ear lobes, where into the opening is a twisted banana or hemp leaf is placed. The leaf serves as a mechanism to continually enlarge the opening until ear plugs can be inserted. Thus, it is also part of the tradition of the bagobo, that when a boy or girl reaches the age of puberty, their teeth is usually blackened, this is actually done by putting the head against the person who will do the act, and grips a stick of wood between the child's teeth while each tooth is filed leaving only the stump, that's the time that what is left of the teeth is blackened. During the period of this process, the patient is not allowed to either drink water, cook, or eat anything sour, or even attend a funeral. If in case the patient break any of the above mentioned, it is said that his teeth will have a poor color or probably get sick. Thus, the blackening of teeth signifies that the patient is ready to enter the society as a young man or woman.
-pawa-

material and non-material things important to them

• Bagobos were known because of their traditions in terms of weaponry and other metal arts. They are also noted for their skill in producing brass articles through the ancient lost-wax process and they also weave abacca cloths of earth tones and make baskets that are trimmed with beads, fibers and horse's hair.
• They also have dances which make them unique from others.
  · Spanish missionaries and early ethnographers who studied them tended to identify the Bagobos as one group because they had common articles of material culture, such as dress and ornaments, tools, blades, and musical instruments.
  · The Bagobos believe in a supreme being who inhabits the sky world, as well as a deity who brings sickness and death to incestuous couples.
  · The Bagobo are among the most highly ornamented indigenous peoples, however, the Bagobo ornaments tend to exaggerate slightly.
  · The men are smiths and casters of copper and brass, crafting small metal bells to decorate their clothing, weapons, bracelets, and betel boxes.
  · Bagobo women are skilled weavers of reed baskets and hemp cloth. They also sew, embroider, appliqué and bead all the clothing of the family, and a few of them specialize in tie-dying the kerchiefs of warriors. Craftsmanship is important to them.
  · The "Divine man at the source of the waters" epitomizes goodness and purity as an artist, healer, lover and warrior. His gongs and antique jars signify his wealth, as do his fields of hemp and coconut groves. He possesses beads and gold necklaces, hair ornaments of dyed goat's hair and bird's down, finger-rings and leg bands of twisted wire hung with bells. His ear plugs of pure ivory gleam "like two big moons".
  · The Bagobo epic singer understood that an artist must be poised in quiet concentration, deriving inspiration from the colors of the Kawangkawang sky. Having set aside his finished leg lets, Tuwaang incises a ring, and then molds a kamahi chain or neckpiece, consisting of W-shaped pieces held together by a cord or string. The lozenge designs on the leg lets are like the eyes of the omen bird; their colors are like flowers of lightning, "buds of the stars." The neckpiece is like a singing housefly with colored wings. Bagobo myths also portray heroes as artists. Tuglay, who lived by a white lake, made kamahi necklaces from thin discs of gold, stamped and made brass finger rings.

-bituon-

How do they look?

The Bagobos have Malayan features. They have a light brown complexion, and their hair can be brown or brownish black that ranges from being wavy to curly kind of hair. Though their face is wide, the Bagobo's cheekbones are seldom prominent; they usually have a high forehead. Their lips can be described as full and bowed, with a rounded and well formed chin. Straight noses are unusual with the Bagobos, they mostly have a low root nose, with a broad ridge. The maximum height for men is said to be 164.8cm., and a minimum of 149.8cm.; while the women has a maximum height of 152.8cm., and a minimun if 141cm.
-pawa-

Their Influences.

The people of the Bagobo Tribe was said to be from the south and they were said to be the carriers of the Hindu culture here in the Philippines but still this Hindu Culture was mixed with the culture of the ethnic population those days. An example of an influence of the Hindu is our way of writing before which is the Alibata that is quite similar to sanskrit. And another Hindu influence is the epic Biag ni Lam-ang which is also quite similar to a Hindu story: Ramayana. And the Bagobos came from the south with other groups of people known today as the south also included other ethnicities like the Tagabawa, Jangan or Attaw. But the Spaniards and even the other ethnographers considered all this indigenous groups as one. Since they had similarities when it comes to clothes, tools, blades, and musical instruments.
The culture of the Bagobo Tribe was very much influencedby diffirent classes of people such as the neighboring tribe, Moros, Spaniards and Chinese since trading was very common to them during the old times. Thus, the Moros contributed so much when it comes to religion and social life that caused the Begobos to take in many new words and terms into their language from the Moros. But the kind of relationship the Moros and the Bagobos have were changed when the Spaniards settled in their area. There was a war between the Spaniards and Moros, wherein the Bagobo rulers were later persuaded by the Spandiards to join them, and that overthrown the Moros in power. Thus, Influence of Spaniards in religion was also embraced by some Bagobos.

What's in the name?

This information was actually from the internet. I’ll just be honest, I won’t be able to know anything about the Bagobos without the internet. So,I’m just gonna state the things I know about them. The first thing I know about them is about their name. The word Bagobo comes from the word “bago” which means new and “obo” which means growth. Maybe obo was changed to tubo which means grown in Waray-waray.