Deusdedit Ruhangariyo
Special to ICT
Around the world: Wetlands in the Philippines are in danger, special programs work to combat suicide among men in Canada and financial illiteracy in Australia, rappers stand up for cultural identity, and a pioneering Māori policeman is honored.
PHILIPPINES: Loss of wetlands threatens livelihoods
The Indigenous Manobo people in the Philippines have thrived for generations in the marshlands of Agusan del Sur, living in homes built on stilts and tied to bangkal trees, and traveling by canoe when the waters rise, Mongabay reported on July 26.
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The marsh ecosystems are facing numerous threats, however, as large-scale development projects, the local community and an increasing outside population exploit the fertile soils by burning and draining the peatlands and swamp forests for agricultural conversion.
Corn, rice, and palm oil plantations have replaced the natural habitats, along with the construction of irrigation infrastructure. And an increasing use of electrofishing, which involves using an electric field to incapacitate fish, is gaining popularity and could potentially deplete fish stocks.
The imbalance between food production and biodiversity conservation is a key concern of the changes to the marsh, according to a study in the International Journal of Development and Sustainability.
Agusan Marsh in the Philippines — a country highly susceptible to climate change — also experiences extreme weather events, such as severe typhoons and prolonged droughts.
The challenges faced by Agusan Marsh are not isolated. A recent study in the journal Nature revealed widespread global wetland loss in the past three centuries due to similar stress markers observed in the Philippines’ largest freshwater wetland. Wetland loss is attributed to various factors, including drainage for upland croplands, conversion to flooded rice fields, and peat extraction.
CANADA: Men’s group fosters healing and transformation
A men’s group formed to reduce the growing number of suicides and domestic violence in northern Saskatchewan, Canada, is helping men and youths build skills and cope with stress, anger, depression and anxiety, APTN News reported on July 27.
Founder Christopher Merasty, First Nations from LaRonge, Saskatchewan, said the group, Men of the North, was formed after a series of male suicides in the region.
“I saw a need for direction…for men who’d served jail or prison time, no longer had a job or drivers’ license, and were being called out on their substance abuse,” Merasty said, according to APTN News.
“The future looked bleak. I would have been just another statistic.”
The province of Saskatchewan has the second-highest rate of death by suicide in Canada, trailing only Nunavut in the far north, according to the local chapter of the Canadian Mental Health Association. Men in their 40s and 50s are disproportionately affected, and Indigenous men experience three times the rate of suicide of non-Indigenous men.
Participants in the Men of the North program learn about anxiety and depression and discuss coping skills to deal with stress and anger. They can obtain training certification in counseling, group leadership and youth mentorship, which improves their future job prospects.
“Our society doesn’t encourage men to talk about their problems, and they’ll use drugs and alcohol to deal with their emotions, their anger, ” Merasty told APTN News. “When that doesn’t work … they get into legal or marital trouble, they consider dying by suicide.
“I decided to put together a program that will help mitigate a lot of the suicides, a lot of the domestic violence, a lot of the incarceration rates, alcohol, by providing additional resources and hands-on vocational training for men and young men in the community,” he said.
Merasty runs Men of the North as a volunteer while working full-time in a mine. He said the group typically has 15-18 men each week participating.
AUSTRALIA: Making sense of financial issues
Indigenous Australians are improving their financial wellbeing, becoming more aware of banking, credit scores and financial resources, the First Nations Foundation found in a study reported by National Indigenous Times on July 28.
The foundation, a charitable organization with a primary mission to empower financial prosperity among Indigenous Australians, blends training sessions, workshops and digital resources to improve financial literacy in programs that include the online, “My Money Dream,” National Indigenous Times reported.
The foundation also works with financial institutions to provide culturally relevant financial literacy resources to First Nations communities and clients.
First Nations Foundation’s inaugural Impact Report reveals a positive trend in the financial welfare of Indigenous Australians. National Indigenous Times reported on July 28.
The First Nations Foundation serves as a charitable organization with a primary mission to empower financial prosperity among Indigenous Australians.
The foundation’s inaugural Impact Report found improvements in accessing and establishing free bank accounts, increased awareness of the importance of a good credit score, and enhanced knowledge of using online banking tools and setting up automatic payments.
Foundation Chief Executive Phil Usher said the predominantly low levels of financial wellbeing observed in Indigenous communities are a result of systemic and historical issues that have perpetuated adverse effects.
“What most people don’t understand is that it’s not about just telling Aboriginal people the basics of money management. It’s about having the yarn on how we perceive money and how we can use it to help our family and communities,” Usher said, according to National Indigenous Times.
“We have to support Indigenous Australians in healing their relationship with money and how this relates to the trauma they’ve experienced.”
According to Mr. Usher, providing culturally-appropriate training for financial institutions would be a valuable step in fostering financial literacy among Indigenous Australians.
NEW ZEALAND: Māori officer celebrates 50 years of service
A Māori police officer with the Kaupapa Māori Programme celebrated 50 years of service in a special ceremony that recognized his dedication and contributions to law enforcement in New Zealand, Te Ao Māori News reported on July 28.
New Zealand Police Sgt. Wayne Panapa, who received the Queen’s Service Medal in 2001, received a service clasp and other honors as his family, friends and supporters watched on.
“I think Māori first, and police officer second,” Panapa said. “I don’t leave being Māori at home, like our old people did when they went to school and couldn’t speak Māori. I take it every day to work.”
Wallace Haumaha, deputy police commissioner for the Iwi tribe and communities, said achieving 50 years of service is “a commendable feat.”
“Sgt. Panapa has been an instrumental part of the iwi and communities team that has taken the Kaupapa Māori Programme to greater and newer heights,” Haumaha said, according to Te Ao Maori News.
Panapa underwent training at the Trentham base camp in 1973 and became a nurse at Tokanui Hospital. He decided to change careers seeing Ministry of Transport riders while traveling to 64 countries as a performer with the New Zealand Brass Band.
He served 18 years as a frontline officer with the Ministry of Transport, then moved with others when the ministry merged with the police in 1992. At that point, he became one of the pioneering iwi liaison officers, a role that required him to be a sworn member of the police.
Panapa, who is Ngāti Whātua and Ngāti Ngawaero, said the appointment was a mandate from his people.
“It wasn’t a police decision,” he said. “You were appointed by your community in your particular area. If you didn’t have the backing of your own people in your own rohe, you wouldn’t have gone so well.”
TIBET: Tibetan rappers gain popularity with songs about identity
Tibetan youths living in exile have turned to rap music as a creative outlet to express their cultural identity and voice their stance on Tibet-related matters, Radio Free Asia reported on July 29.
Through their songs, they assert a powerful cultural framework, defending Tibetan identity intertwined with Tibetan Buddhism, which has faced oppression from the Chinese government in recent times, particularly in the tense Tibet Autonomous Region.
In pursuit of preserving the Native language among Tibetans living in Darjeeling, India, 19-year-old rapper Tenzin Younten penned a song urging his community to embrace and speak their mother tongue. Radio Free Asia reported.
“I saw two Tibetans in my neighborhood communicating in the local dialect [Nepali] and that just triggered me,” said Younten, whose stage name is Youns BoB. “I then thought and decided that I must empower young Tibetans in exile to at least communicate in our own language. So, I went home and wrote the song, ‘Speak in Tibetan if You Are Tibetan.’”
The Chinese authorities have been known to imprison numerous Tibetan writers, artists, singers, and educators residing within the region for advocating Tibetan national and cultural identity, as well as language rights, especially after the widespread protests that swept Tibetan areas in 2008.
Singer Lhundrub Drakpa was sentenced to six years in prison in 2020 by Tibetan authorities for his song “Black Hat.”
Singer Lhundrub Drakpa faced a six-year prison sentence in 2020 due to his song “Black Hat,” which criticized the repressive Chinese government policies in Driru County, located in the northern Tibetan city of Nagchu.
My final thoughts
My final thoughts are in the Philippines where the Agusan Marsh, the Philippines’ largest freshwater wetland, and the Manobo Indigenous people face numerous threats. The fertile soils of the marshes are being exploited through practices like burning and draining the peatlands and swamp forests for agricultural conversion.
Given the critical state of the marsh ecosystems, all stakeholders should prioritize their conservation and sustainable use.
I would like to challenge all stakeholders to hold awareness campaigns and educational programs to inform the local community and those involved of the importance of preserving these ecosystems.
Engaging in dialogue with stakeholders, including government officials and developers, is crucial to finding ways to strike a balance between development and conservation.
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