Luzon gives up Christmas, ritual feasts for survivors

LA TRINIDAD, Benguet—Instead of butchering 26 pigs to celebrate the 113th foundation day of Benguet province, the Ibaloi and Kankanaey held a prayer rally on Saturday for the survivors of Supertyphoon “Yolanda” in the Visayas.

Like many Luzon communities, Benguet gave up its festivities to donate money for the “cañao (ritual feast)” to the survivors. Benguet Gov. Nestor Fongwan said the province intended to donate P1 million for relief and rehabilitation efforts in the Visayas. “We pray for healing and fast recovery of the affected communities,” he said at the prayer rally.

Baguio City had abandoned its Christmas projects to save up to P800,000 that would add to the P1 million the summer capital sent to communities ravaged by Yolanda and the earthquake that struck Cebu and Bohol provinces.

The governments of Pangasinan and Pampanga provinces had given up their respective Christmas parties so the money could be sent to the ravaged communities in Eastern Visayas.

Inmates, too

Even inmates joined the goodwill projects. In Bulacan province, 2,600 inmates at the provincial jail offered to donate their P300 Christmas cash gifts to Yolanda victims, according to Ric Ibera, an inmate leader.

He said the cash gifts totaling P780,000 would help displaced residents rebuild their homes. “What is P300 for each inmate if collectively the money would help Tacloban City, Leyte, Samar, Cebu, Iloilo and other Visayas communities,” he said.

Benguet officials and residents gathered at Wangal Sports Center in the capital town of La Trinidad to pray for the survivors of Yolanda, after suspending the cañao that would have ended this year’s annual Adivay Festival.

Thirteen Benguet towns were supposed to hold the cañao, which would have required the ritual sacrifice of pigs for a community feast. Fongwan also canceled the grand parade in solidarity with the typhoon victims. “It is not appropriate to hold a feast when thousands of our brothers and sisters are suffering and mourning in the Visayas,” he said.

In Baguio City on Thursday, Japanese performers who have been touring the country to teach the Butoh dance, held a prayer ritual at the city’s Igorot Park to remember the typhoon victims.

Cadets of the Philippine Military Academy held  a “taps vigil” on Nov. 17 for fellow cadets, who are natives of Leyte and Samar provinces.  Reports from Kimberlie Quitasol, EV Espiritu and Vincent Cabreza, Inquirer Northern Luzon, and Carmela Reyes-Estrope, Inquirer Central Luzon