IT WAS a colorful Kadayawan sa Dabaw festival. The Indak-indak was more awesome, there was the festive vibe all over, the Pamulak was a feast to the eyes, with so many colorful floats, even the river parade was as colorful and teeming with people.
All the events clearly carried the Kadayawan message of unity and Mindanao diversity and for this alone, everyone who participated deserves to be congratulated.
Here's a food for thought for future festivals and festival-related activities... now that it's clear that the tribes have a heritage that is worth knowing and celebrating, let's raise the level of understanding not only among the non-tribes but the tribes themselves.
It is a fact that the culture and heritage of the indigenous peoples groups have suffered a major setback, many even have forgotten much about their heritage and stories as religion and mainstream education gained inroads into their communities. As a result, even among the tribal folks themselves, there is confusion if not lack of clarity on their stories and their beliefs, that will take a major effort on their people to resuscitate and preserve.
This is not about perpetuating the indigenous peoples’ existence on the fringes of society, in the forests and gullies. This is about getting a better grasp of the heritage of long ago from which are founded the very identity of the people.
We have sustained a festival that is clearly grounded on our roots as a city. This is very different from all other festivals in the country. Let us challenge ourselves to raise the level of understanding, raise the level of appreciation, beyond the colors and the beats as we all congratulate ourselves for sustaining a festival that is clearly grounded on where we all came from -- our roots, our people and the earth.