Moro and Indigenous Peoples on SONA 2025: ITAKWIL ANG REHIMENG US-MARCOS! KORAP, PABAYA, AT PASISTA SA MORO AT KATUTUBO!

PRESS RELEASE

July 28, 2025

Moro and Indigenous Peoples on SONA 2025: ITAKWIL ANG REHIMENG US-MARCOS! KORAP, PABAYA, AT PASISTA SA MORO AT KATUTUBO!

Katribu Kalipunan ng Katutubong Mamamayan ng Pilipinas, together with various organizations advocating for the rights of Indigenous Peoples (IP) and the Bangsamoro, held their State of the National Minority Address (SONMA) along Commonwealth Avenue on Monday to expose the true conditions of their communities after three years of being ignored and excluded from Marcos Jr.’s State of the Nation Addresses, while facing intensified attacks under his administration.

Katribu spokesperson Funa-ay Claver outlined six major issues faced by the Moro and Indigenous Peoples: (1) state-enforced abductions and killings, (2) illegal arrests and trumped-up charges, (3) militarization and bombings, (4) terrorist-designation and red-tagging through the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020 and the National Task Force to End Local Communist and Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), (5) plunder of ancestral lands and territories, and (6) displacement of communities.

“The genuine state of the Indigenous and Moro Peoples under Marcos Jr.’s administration is one of intense oppression and exploitation,” Claver said. “With the recent agreements on tariffs and U.S. ammunition storage with the Trump administration, not only the Indigenous Peoples and Moro will suffer, but the entire Filipino population.”

Marcos Jr.’s government is being criticized for using the ongoing crises as a pretext to strengthen military cooperation with the U.S. under the guise of disaster response. The Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) sites and the establishment of a U.S. ammunition depot in Subic make the Philippines a potential target of U.S. adversaries, dragging the country into conflicts that do not serve its interests. The unfair tariff agreement to burden Philippine exports to the U.S. with a 19% tariff while U.S. goods enter tariff-free further weaken the local economy and betray the welfare of Filipino producers.

“Marcos Jr. is a lapdog to US imperialism and a traitor to the Philippines,” said Claver. “Under his administration, the Filipino sinks further into despair and hardship.”

Speakers from other organizations such as the Moro-Christian Peoples Alliance, Bai Indigenous Women’s Network, Bigkis at Lakas ng mga Katutubo sa Timog Katagalugan (BALATIK), Kabataan Para sa Tribung Pilipino, and Siklab Philippine Indigenous Youth Network also exposed ongoing human rights violations in their communities, largely caused by militarization linked to destructive energy projects and extractive industries. Under Bongbong Marcos, Katribu has recorded 12 cases of bombings on ancestral lands and territories.

The SONMA also highlighted cases such as the plight of the Moro people in Marawi who remain displaced due to bombardment and land-grabbing, the killings of Indigenous youth like Jay-el Maligday, Kuni Cuba, and Elioterio Ugking, and the persistent judicial harassment of Indigenous and Moro rights defenders. Presently, Katribu has documented 109 Indigenous Peoples and advocates political prisoners, with 22 of which are cases under the Bongbong Marcos administration.

The SONMA also served as a platform to present the active campaigns of the sector and their continuing efforts toward peace based on justice. “Indigenous and Moro Peoples staunchly fight for better living conditions. With our rights being denied, we resolutely reject Marcos Jr. along with his administration’s repressive policies against the people. Itakwil rehimeng US-Marcos!” Claver concluded. #

Reference:

Funa-ay Claver

Spokesperson

Katribu Kalipunan ng Katutubong Mamamayan ng Pilipinas

+63 969 024 4465

information@katribu.net