Regional autonomy: Pursuing elite interest

• Main Author: Dolo, Shivanee A.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2021
• Subjects: Autonomy; Political Science
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etdd_polsci/1; https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=etdd_polsci
• Institution: De La Salle University

This study aims to explain the failure to institute an Autonomous Region of the Cordillera (ARC). Although the Philippine Constitution supports its institution and efforts to establish it has continued for more than three decades, an ARC has not been realized. While previous studies focused on the contents of the autonomy organic acts and the previous plebiscite rejections, they have neglected to focus on the autonomy advocates. This study shows, using qualitative content analysis, that the autonomy advocates lacked cohesion. They have failed to align their criticism against a centralized governance system with their desire to protect the IPs of the region. Also, they have failed to construct a unifying identity for the region’s populace. This study demonstrates how the elite, fragmented by their interests, have contributed to the failure of establishing regional autonomy.