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Badjao: The Marginalization Of Indigenous People In The Philippines

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The indigenous people are the descendants of the original inhabitants of the Philippines. Each group has a distinct culture and language. They are people live in a rather traditional way. They are among the poorest and the most disadvantaged social group in the country. Illiteracy, unemployment, and incidence of poverty are much higher among them than the rest of the population. IP settlements are remote, without access to basic services, and are characterized by a high incidence of morbidity, mortality, and malnutrition. They experience neglect and many people and unequal treatment in the provision of basic social services by the Government. (Vera 2007) .

The badjao is said to be the most marginalized among all the other indigenous peoples in the Philippines because of the closest phonemic affinity to the language group in the area where these people belong (Malayo-Polynesian languages). Understanding this marginalization of the Badjao community initially requires the recognition of the historical context and an examination of the social exclusionary processes that Badjao people experience whim stem from their social and spatial location in Philippine society. The Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) reported that even given the high correlation between ethnicity and poverty among indigenous people, compounded by a long history of discrimination and prejudice, (PCIJ,2007) regrettably relations between these peoples and more powerful populations ashore
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