Perceptions of Young Members of the Aeta Community About Their Intellectual Property Rights for Their Traditional Knowledge Systems: Uniquely Magbukun

• Main Authors: Angeles, Juan Kristopier D., Angeles, Xyra M.
• Format: text
• Published: Animo Repository 2024
• Subjects: indigenous knowledge systems; intellectual property; Magbukun; cultural appropriation
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/apipmibookseries/1; https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/context/apipmibookseries/article/1000/viewcontent/1_Angeles_monograph_final_112024.pdf
• Institution: De La Salle University

Traditional knowledge systems are innovative and practically address the needs of Indigenous peoples. In the past decades, efforts from various stakeholders have been made to acknowledge Indigenous peoples in policy debates on intellectual property (IP) dialogues. Sharing of ideas and community experiences was practiced among indigenous communities, such as the Aeta community of the Magbukun tribe in Bataan. The said Aeta community has long opened its door to researchers and nonlocals. However, due to the educational assimilation among the young participants, they formed this call for mimicry and recognition of their tradition that made them believe that both public and private institutions give “enough” and “proper” IP rights for their tribe, but these knowledge systems are openly accessed like exploited resources. This cultural exploitation includes various forms of cultural appropriation, which is one of the consequences of coloniality. In 2012, Antony Taubman, director of the Intellectual Property Division of the World Trade Organization, posited that there have been three major assumptions about the IP protection of Indigenous peoples: (1) IP focuses on privacy rights and commercial firms; (2) IP is time-bound, inconsiderate about the intergenerational context of traditional knowledge systems; and (3) IP is a form of commodification, making indigenous culture a commodity that can be traded globally. Using the phenomenological research method, the researchers explored how the young members of the Magbukun community perceive their IP rights to their traditional knowledge systems. The researchers utilized thematic analysis to make sense of the transcribed interviews. The findings revealed that young members of the Magbukun tribe are still aware of the grassroots traditions (pangangagon, pagluluto sa buho, etc.). Also, they have the perception that they are properly recognized as the original proponents of their tradition despite no standard IP recognition from various institutions.