For Statement either read below or click here.

Established in 1991, the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO) is an international membership organization, representing nations and peoples worldwide aiming to provide these groups with a voice in international fora. The organization is comprised of over fifty different Member groups, and currently represents more than 150 million people globally. The Cordillera people were a founding member of  the UNPO.

UNPO would hereby like to convey its strong support for the Cordillera people and the dedication and hard work of the Cordillera Peoples’ Alliance (CPA), a federation of organizations of the indigenous peoples of the Cordillera. UNPO is fully committed to the CPA and their dedication to advancing the collective interests and welfare of the indigenous people of the mountain provinces. The aim of the CPA to unite separate organisations around one cause, specifically on the issue of environment links them to many of our other members. UNPO works continuously with members who live in regions but do not fully control them, and resources are often not used for the benefit of the resident people but for the ruling elite of the controlling state. UNPO believes government must be participatory, representative and responsive to citizens aspirations and expectations.

The Cordillera people have endured recent catastrophic loss of lives during a squally rainy season and conversely experienced severe water shortages during the dry season. This has produced environmental calamities that the Philippines government has neglected. Equally, the government has roundly failed to identify strategies to mitigate the effects of such circumstances. Participation by the Cordillera people in their governing process has also been restricted. UNPO believes that there is an urgent need to address this state of affairs.

Added to the effects of climate change, there are two current threats to the environment of the people in Cordillera. Firstly, dam projects impose by the Philippines government; these projects have expelled many Cordillera people from their homes and forced them to seek refuge in other areas. The second threat comes from foreign mining companies who are taking mineral resources away from tribal lands and consequentially the Cordillera people are being marginalised in the decision making process. UNPO would like to take the opportunity to highlight the muted voices of the Cordillera people within the Philippines and condemn the all too often voracious and exploitative appropriation of indigenous peoples’ lands for corporate gain. UNPO would like to support the CPA in finding peaceful resolutions to these issues.

May 10, 2010 will see the first ever automated presidential elections in the Philippines. UNPO would like to strongly support the right to participation of the Cordillera in their governing process and hope these new elections can translate into fresh ideas and further co-operation between the Philippines government and the CPA.

UNPO calls on the international community to support Cordillera’s participation in the governing of their country and to ensure that as an under-represented group they are able to fully participate as equals. UNPO would also like to join the Cordillera people in celebration as they observe their 26th Cordillera Day with the celebration regionally centralized on April 25, 2010 in Baguio City.