TABUK CITY, Kalinga — Two Kalinga sub-tribes have agreed to a temporary ceasefire following a peace dialogue held at the 503rd Infantry Brigade headquarters in Barangay Calanan, Tabuk City, on 30 July.

The agreement between the Butbut and Tulgao tribes seeks to halt hostilities while tribal elders, local officials and neutral mediators work toward a permanent settlement of the long-standing territorial dispute between the two communities.

The conflict stems from competing claims over ancestral boundaries, which recently escalated into physical and armed confrontations in contested areas.

Although the two communities share common ancestral roots, disagreements over land jurisdiction have periodically sparked tensions. The latest incidents prompted local government units and traditional peace pact holders to intervene to prevent the dispute from escalating into a wider intertribal conflict.

Under the ceasefire agreement, strict penalties will be imposed on violators. Any member of either tribe who breaches the truce will require the offending tribe to pay one carabao to the opposing tribe as compensation and a penalty.

Negotiators and traditional peace pact holders, known as binodngans, from both tribes signed the agreement to reaffirm their commitment to the indigenous peace process.

Matagoan Bodong Consultative Council head Engr. Andres Ngao-i presided over the dialogue alongside Tinglayan Municipal Administrator Atty. Mark Dave Bang-as and Vice Mayor Alexander Malasi.

Kalinga Gov. James Edduba also attended the meeting to express the provincial government's support for a lasting resolution.

Representatives from the Tinglayan municipal government, the Kalinga provincial government, the Philippine National Police, the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Department of the Interior and Local Government also attended the dialogue.

Peace negotiations will continue under the traditional "sipat" process, during which mediators will work with both tribes to reach a permanent settlement and eventually exchange peace tokens.