BUTUAN: Two indigenous people (IP) leaders in Surigao del Sur have expressed support for the legislative measure at the House of Representatives that seeks to provide death and burial benefits for the IP Mandatory Representatives (IPMRs) in the country.
The House Bill (HB) 6713 was introduced by Rep. Edwin Olivares of the 1st District of Parañaque City in December last year.
It was approved by the Committee on Indigenous Cultural Communities and Indigenous Peoples on Wednesday.
‘We welcome the approval of HB 6713 at the committee level, and we are hopeful for the passage of this measure into a law,’ said Datu Rico Maca, the IPMR of San Miguel, Surigao del Sur, in an interview on Thursday.
Maca was joined by Datu Jimmy Guinsod, the provincial IPMR of Surigao del Sur, and several IP leaders from other parts of the country during the committee deliberations of the measure at the House of Representatives on Wednesday.
‘The IPMRs face difficult tasks, and often their lives are in danger, in protecting our anc
estral lands and communities,’ Maca pointed out.
He added that the original version of the measure only included the barangay-level IPMRs, however, revisions were later introduced to cover all of the IPMRs in the country, including the municipal and provincial levels.
‘The measure also adopted the suggestion made by the National Commission on Indigenous People to confer eligibility to the IPMRs in the country,’ Maca said.
Source: Philippines News Agency