This article is inspired by actual events.

Abra de Ilog, Mindoro, circa 1990s. An NGO and a congregation of sisters teamed up to organize a tribal conference. The topic was health, malnutrition, especially of children, and dealing with the lack of pharmaceutical drugs in remote, cashless, marginal areas. The organizers invited tribal communities within a 15- to 20-km radius, about a half-day trek through mountainous terrain. Because funds were limited, they invited a maximum of 75 tribal parents, mothers, or fathers.

The guests, equipped with flashlights or torches, had to wake up at 4 a.m. for the long trek. They arrived about mid-morning. The problem was that they did not want to leave their children behind, so the guest list ballooned from 75 to 300. There was a problem of feeding the big group with limited funds. So the organizers met with some tribal leaders to solve the problem.

The local parish church donated three more sacks of rice. For lunch, they cut down a huge 50-year-old malunggay (moringa) tree and boiled the leaves with salt in giant cauldrons. Everybody was happy with an unlimited malunggay soup with rice for lunch and dinner.

On Day 1, the conference trained the mothers in herbal medicines. They distributed pamphlets on basic medicinal herbs endemic to the area for relief from menstrual spasms, asthma, fever and cough. The mothers easily identified the herbs from the photos in the pamphlet.

The nuns trained the mothers in acupressure for simple ailments. For example, a pressure point coded S26 on the lower leg would relieve menstrual cramps. Points in the wrist area would cure insomnia and stress. The New People’s Army adopted this grassroots paramedical training.

The men were given seeds and taught how to set up community herbal nurseries and identify seeds and seedlings in nearby forests they could plant. They were also taught to meet with each other to discuss common problems, such as how to protect the nurseries from storms and droughts. Solidarity was a key factor for survival.

The men volunteered to prepare breakfast the next day. They lined up banana leaves in an almost kilometer-long “highway” in the corridor of the school, the venue for the conference. Cleaned motor oil cans were used to wash hands before eating and for drinking water.

They placed the rice in a continuous white “mountain range” through the length of the banana-leaf highway and poured bagoong (shrimp paste) on top — the perfect breakfast. The children were given leftover malunggay soup.

The tribal conference was a complete success, training the parents in the use of herbal medicine and acupressure, setting up herbal gardens and doing paralegal work. Maintaining one’s health entails minimal expenses by mainly relying on subsistence practices.

The conference was over in two days. After an early 5 a.m. breakfast on the third day, everyone was ready for the long trek home.

Author’s note:

I am not aware of the evolution of tribal conferences after the Abra de Ilog affair, which happened several decades ago. I am hoping the herbal gardens and paralegal practices have survived time and the radical changes in the grassroots landscape. The participation of local governments is critical because they have the funds and resources to help the NGOs and church groups, if the money is not squandered in corruption.