Circle shows where
Lamag is.
QUIRINO, Ilocos Sur - The Ilamag -
indigenous people of Lamag in the tri-boundary of Ilocos Sur, Abra, and
Mt. Province, northern Philippines - practice the indigenous way of
managing their forests – whether it is clan- or communal-owned forest.
Aside from hunting in the forest, the Ilamag’s most notable practice is
the gathering of honey from wild bees called in their native Kankanaey language as
iyokan, alig, lukutan.
Alig and
iyukan bees are bigger than the lukutan which are like lice.
The lukutan do not sting but they can penetrate open body parts
like the nose, eyes, and ears. The alig produce their beehive in
caves while the iyokan and the lukutan in the holes of
trees.
An Ilamag honey gatherer I interviewed
said March to May is the peak period for honey gathering. Flowering (panagbunga)
begins in October.
Honey gatherers wake up early in the
morning. In the forest, they look for flowering trees and plants. They
observe the bees’ movement, bees collecting nectars, from the flowers of a
plant or tree in an area where they probably formed their beehives or
caba. Nowadays, a hunter also uses binoculars to find a beehive by
monitoring the bees’ movement.
Finding a beehive, the hunter checks
first if it can be harvested. A beehive that is thick is a good sign. If
not, then he has to wait for at least a month before gathering the honey.
But first the hunter puts a wooden (crossed) sign pointing to that area.
The sign shows him as the finder of the beehive and that he will harvest
it in the future. No one is allowed to touch it.
Harvest day
On harvest day, the hunter – usually
accompanied by other hunters – brings a piece of wood called angyub
wrapped in an ubak (banana stem or wood skin). Then he sets fire to
the wood. The smoke from the ubak is intended to drive away the
bees from the beehive so that the hunter can then gather the honey without
being stung.
In gathering a beehive, the hunter can
also use a net to cover his face and a plastic bag to cover his body.
The beehive is placed inside a plastic
container to be brought home. At home, the hunter segregates the diru
(honey) from the caba by using a sagat (a screen, usually a
net). Usually he can gather at least two liters, except during the
non-peak season.
The diru is then poured into
4x4 Ginebra bottles. A bottle of diru is worth P100.
Good income
Elders that I interviewed said that
honey raising is a good income source for their basic needs and school
fees of their children. They also use diru as food supplement.
How does one say whether a diru
is pure or not pure, which is usually mixed with water. The elders said
that a pure honey when put in a paper will not drip. Adulterated or impure
honey drips from the paper. Or you can use a matchstick: when dipped in
pure honey the matchstick will still burn; one that is dipped in fake
honey will not burn.
Unfortunately, the Ilamag’s practice
of indigenous management of forest resources such as honey bee breeding
and gathering is prohibited by law, with the state claiming to be the
owner of the forest and resources located therein. In fact, a Marcos
decree - PD 705 or the revised forestry code - and the implementing rules
issued by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR)
prohibit the use of forest resources without a government permit.
But the indigenous people of Lamag
will continue such practices that comprise their ancestral legacy. And I
have learned much from my short immersion in the community of Lamag and
its people.
My special thanks to the elders I
interviewed namely, Angel Degay, 63; Bartolome Aluyen, 64; Julian Tamayo,
49; Damaso Galleo, 78; Cristino Canipas, 66; Carlos Aluyen, 63; and
Victorino Coplanga, 40. Nordis / Bulatlat
The author is a
fourth year student of Easter College Incorporated taking-up Bachelor of
Science in Development Studies in Baguio City.
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