House probe on fake Cordillera-woven blankets, garments sought

MANILA, Philippines — The House special committee on creative industry and performing arts was urged to probe the alleged prevalence of counterfeit Cordillera-woven blankets and garments from China in local markets.

Former senator and now House Deputy Speaker Loren Legarda has filed House Resolution No. 1549, urging the House panel to hold an inquiry with the goal of strengthening protection of intellectual property rights and cultural heritage of indigenous peoples and communities.

Last month, it was reported that fake Cordillera-woven blankets and garments from China have flooded local markets. This prompted native weavers to demand government protection for the indigenous craft.

Many of the fake products were said to be machine-made replicas made of conventional textiles and are inferior to the genuine fabrics.

“Such influx of counterfeit goods poses a risk to rural livelihoods of indigenous cultural communities in terms of market competition and is also to the detriment of sustaining their culture and creative productivity,” Legarda said in the measure.

She also pointed out the need to create a comprehensive cultural archive of cultural properties of the different ethno-linguistic groups of the country, to record, classify, organize and protect them.

The Antique lawmaker said related laws on the protection of traditional property rights of indigenous peoples should be revisited.

She added that explicit systems, procedures, legal protections and remedies should also be made available and accessible to indigenous peoples and communities who are threatened by the importation of counterfeit goods.