Rose Hayahay: Defending indigenous rights through education

“Indigenous peoples want to study; they want to be educated. But they don’t have schools in their communities.”

Rose Hayahay, a native of Davao de Oro, is a 23-year-old volunteer teacher in Lumad Bakwit School Manila, Philippines. She is teaching literacy and numeracy to Lumad students since 2016.

Teacher Rose taught at Community Technical College of Southeastern Mindanao (CTCSM), a community college in Davao de Oro which caters to more than 300 Lumad and farmer students.

Despite the promising contributions to the education of indigenous peoples, Lumad schools were forcibly closed by the Philippine government. In March 2020, CTCSM ceased its operations after the Department of Education Region 11 ordered the non-renewal of permit and its closure in May 2020.

In the face of repressive conditions, Lumad volunteer teachers and students remained resolute. They went to various cities in the country and put up Lumad Bakwit schools to continue fighting for their right to education.

Teacher Rose, on her part, has continued teaching her students amid the worsening attacks against the Lumad and their schools. She also endured personal assaults directed to her such as the abduction of her mother in 2018 to force her to surrender, and the constant red-tagging and smear campaigns against her on social media.

Teacher Rose says she intends to fight until they are all be able to return to their lands safely and continue their education peacefully.