2 Abra villages ban flashlights

LACUB, Abra, Philippines—Two villages in this interior town have forbidden the use of battery-powered flashlights at night.

Through an ordinance passed in December last year, residents of Barangays Buneg and Pococ were instead asked to light their way through the nights with pinewood torches.

The law is peculiar for Buneg, which has no access to power supply of Abra Electric Cooperative, so the villagers rely on solar-powered batteries.

But Buneg residents accepted the ban for their security, said barangay chair Danny Lingbaoan.

They have set up a neighborhood watch system, which defines beams cast by flashlights to indicate they have strangers in their midst.

Lingbaoan said thieves, with flashlights, occasionally roam in the middle of the night to steal gold mined from the area or farm animals.

Sometimes, houses were pelted with stones by strangers, who were only identified by their flashlights, he said.

“We had no way of knowing who these people were, but they were disrupting the peace and order.”

The Buneg ordinance took effect on Jan. 5 to complement a 9 p.m. curfew.

“Instead of flashlights, villagers here use saleng when they go out at night. Saleng or pine tree branches are abundant and can be sourced out at any time of the night,” Lingbaoan said.

“Saleng is our way of identifying the villagers from the outsiders. Flashlights can only be used during emergencies,” he added.

Security also justified the passage of a similar ordinance in neighboring Barangay Pococ last year.

“Two warring political parties exchanged gunfire in the middle of the night when they got drunk. Imagine these things happening in a village which is supposed to be peaceful,” said barangay chair Ricardo Bernardez.

Lacub, a farming town, can only be reached by taking a five-hour trek from the capital town of Bangued. It has six barangays with a combined population of 3,000.

A Buneg resident, who sought anonymity for fear of reprisal, said the ordinance also helped differentiate the villagers from communist rebels who may be lurking. An Army detachment is stationed in town.

“The [village] officials [told us] that only members of the New People’s Army will use flashlights, that is why this ordinance was pushed,” he said.