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Justice for Teduray Tribe: An emotional Sen. Robinhood Padilla calls on his fellow senators to pay close attention to the tragedy that befell the Teduray tribe in Maguindanao, where 24 members died due to flash floods at Mt. Minandar following heavy rains from tropical storm “Paeng” last October 28. Padilla, in his privilege speech Tuesday, November 22, 2022, said the indigenous people were allegedly forcibly relocated in 2020 to the foot of the mountain in Sitio Tinabon, Bgy. Kusiong in Datu Odin Sinsuat town. He said that in December 2020, the Teduray tribal community, composed of 127 families, protested their forced relocation to Mt. Minandar from their ancestral land along the shoreline in a petition to the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP). However, the NCIP did not respond to their petition. “Mr. President, due to the forced relocation from their ancestral land, the indigenous people were forced to live at the foot of Mt. Minandar – which became the burial place of more than 20 Teduray,” Padilla said in Filipino, adding that they were uprooted from their ancestral land for centuries along the coastline allegedly to protect them from threat of storm surge. The senator said he filed Senate Resolution No. 280 to investigate the tragedy, to stop the abuses committed against the poor indigenous communities and to prevent the commission of violations against their right to ancestral lands. (Bibo Nueva España/Senate PRIB)