BAGUIO CITY — Long-standing border hostilities between two indigenous tribes in the northern Philippines erupted into violence again over the weekend, leaving one tribal member dead and prompting a security deployment to prevent further escalation, police said.

A member of the Butbut tribe of Tinglayan, Kalinga, was killed Saturday during a clash at Mount Tummuwad involving the neighboring Betwagan tribe of Sadanga, Mountain Province.

The Kalinga Provincial Police Office reported that law enforcement officers have been deployed to the remote mountainous border to secure the area and deter retailiatory attacks.

Following the incident, the Kalinga provincial government endorsed the matter to the Cordillera Regional Peace and Order Council in an effort to mediate the decades-old boundary dispute.

Local authorities and a joint peace task force have been working with tribal elders from both communities to negotiate a permanent territorial concession.

Recent dialogue sessions have aimed to build on previous localized discussions to allow border communities to safely resume farming and daily activities.

The roots of the friction stem from a dispute over land and water boundaries, particularly around the contested areas of Mount Ikar.

Hostilities first erupted in the early 2000s over pasture lands and resource access, which severed the traditional peace pacts or bodong between the two groups.

Over the years, intermittent skirmishes and shootings have disrupted farming, local commerce and schooling in the affected border villages. The frequent volatility previously led provincial peace councils to temporarily declare the contested ridges a no-man’s land secured by state forces.

Past mediation attempts have repeatedly stalled over conflicting historical claims. Representatives from the Betwagan tribe argue for the preservation of traditional markers established in the mid-1970s.

Meanwhile, leaders from the Butbut community maintain a different historical interpretation of their ancestral territory. These conflicting geographic claims have caused several past ceasefires and government-led negotiations to collapse shortly after implementation.

Kalinga Police Provincial Director Gilbert Fati-ig urged elders and leaders of both tribes to exercise restraint, maintain open communication, and pursue reconciliation.

Fati-ig stressed that armed conflict endangers civilian lives and severely disrupts community peace.