On 26 February 2024, four of our project members participated in a roundtable discussion on historical treaties and treaty-making practices in Southeast Asia at the University of the Philippines- Baguio (UP Baguio). The event was hosted by the Department of History and Philosophy, College of Social Sciences, UP Baguio.
Hans Hägerdal provided an overview of the "Historical Treaties of Southeast Asia" project and showcased specific examples from eastern Indonesia. Then, Birgit Tremml-Werner and Ariel Lopez introduced relevant materials from Philippine and Spanish archives and analyzed the contents of the 1836 Sulu-Spanish treaty. Subsequently, Maarten Manse compared treaties and treaty-making practices in different parts of the Malay-Indonesian archipelago to show its relevance for studying the indigenous roots of colonial state formation and local resistance. Finally, Leah E. Abayao, Professor of History at the University of the Philippines Baguio reflected on the political structures of and interactions between various indigenous Cordillera societies.
Several faculty members and around 30 social science majors of UP Baguio attended the roundtable and participated actively during the Q&A.
The roundtable discussion was held on the sidelines of the internal project workshop also held at UP Baguio.
After the stimulating roundtable discussion, the project members received a guided tour at Museo Kordilyera where they were shown impressive examples of traditional Cordilleran textiles and learnt important lessons about community work and indigenous heritage. The project workshop further included a visit to former colonial sites such as Camp John Hay and the Mansion House. Before returning to Manila, the project members visited two colonial churches in La Union and stopped at Bacolor in Pampanga.
