13/04/2026
Not Just a Burned Sign: The Desecration of Sacred Ground
What was scorched is a symbol of memory, reverence, and our covenant with the land.
In our customary understanding, sacred sites are not mere locations to be marked and forgotten. They are places held by lawa & inayan-the discipline of restraint, respect, and moral accountability; and values that keep harmony between people, environment, and the unseen. To destroy, desecrate, or neglect these spaces is to break that sacred balance.
When signs of sacred spaces are destroyed, the danger is not only physical loss. It is the slow erosion of memory, the weakening of respect, and the forgetting of boundaries that our elders carefully passed on.
In this light, we call upon:
-the umili of Pidlisan,
-the youth and schools,
-elders and leaders of the ili
-local government partners,
-and all visitors within the ancestral domain,
to uphold vigilance and responsibility in safeguarding sacred sites.
Protection must go beyond signages. It must live in our conduct, in education, in customary sanctions, in respectful pathways, and in every decision affecting the land.
The first and strongest boundary of every sacred place is the people’s conscience.
May this incident strengthen our resolve that no sacred ground shall again be desecrated- by fire, by ignorance, or by forgetting.
(Wawalitan in Pinodo, April 12, 2023)
