Philippine radio station seeks to provide a platform for indigenous Lumad people, whose rights are increasingly under threat

Radyo Lumad, launched last year by the charity Rural Missionaries of the Philippines (RMP) and the rights group Kalumbay Regional Lumad Organisation, broadcasts eight hours a day, five days a week.

It offers a mix of news and commentary, as well as traditional music and a helpline for listeners’ queries – with 43 community reporters focusing on rights violations, including forced evacuations and threats from industrial and mining projects.

“Indigenous people have limited representation and participation in the media,” said Mona Sihombing at the advocacy group Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact.

“Alternative and community media, such as Radyo Lumad, provide a space for our voice to be heard in the fight for our right.”

The Lumad in Mindanao island in the southern Philippines are among the nearly 17 million indigenous people who make up about a fifth of the country’s population.