Ethics, Laws, and

Justice System
Customary Laws
is “law consisting of customs that are accepted as
legal requirements or. obligatory rules of conduct;
practices and beliefs that are so vital and intrinsic
a part of a. social and economic system that they
are treated as if they were laws”
Customary Law is passed down orally sans a system of
writing as they have been transmitted orally from one
generation to the next.

Parts of Indigenous laws have been institutionalized

by RA 8371 or the Indigenous Peoples’ Right Act
(IPRA), but still with in the framework of Philippine
Constitution.
Sources of Ifugao Customary Law
Tugun

Indigenous knowledge and skills were transferred orally

in the family through words of advice, and by actual
trainings from parents to offspring, family clans and
community activities.
Two Sources of Customary Laws
Taboos or paniyo which means bad, evil, dirty.
The customary that embrace the laws on
properties, individual rights, family laws and
penal laws.
The Ifugao claims that their customary laws and
practices were given by Lidum, The Great Teacher, a
deity of Kabunyan, the Ifugao Skyworld (Barton, 1969).
Paniyo (Taboos) are ethical and religious oriented
which were sometimes construed as superstitious
beliefs. Hence, violations of these taboos may be a
factor of some bad omens.
 Ifugao Prohibited Acts and Conduct (Taboos or Paniyo)

A. Gender- Family- Related Taboos

1. To stare at a woman’s breast or hips;
2. To speak or talk to the unmarried woman in their dormitories or agamang on love
affairs, marriage proposal, sex and sexual related parts of the body;
3. To intentionally touched any part of the body of a marries man or woman;
4. It is forbidden to a man to enter a place where a married woman is alone or vise
versa;
5. To displease a pregnant woman who is asking for something like food;
6. To marry a relative within the third degree of consanguinity (first to third cousin);
7. To assist a sick person on his/her toilet needs by a kin or anyone of different
gender. It must done be by the spouse or anyone of the same gender;
 8. For brothers and sisters or cousins of opposite gender to sit beside each other or
sleep in one roof. They should not touch one another;
9. Not to utter sex-related words in the presence of siblings and cousins opposite in sex
for it will destroy relationships;
10. To kill women or children even in times of war. A person who intends to kill an
enemy defers his intention when an enemy is carrying a child; and
11. To step a cross or kiyangan/ akkangan any person who is sitting down or sleeping,
and specially food that are prepared

B. Religion- Related Taboos

1. It is a taboo for people to go to work in the fields on holidays like the day of tikom/
ngilin/ tungoh;
2. It is forbidden for the family members including the mumbaki (native priest), to eat
fish or shellfish after the performance of the baki in an alang (rice granary). It is a form
of abstinence to honor the gods. Doing otherwise will render the offering and the entire
ritual futile and worthless;
3. It is forbidden to mention the names the gods of evil, as well as those of departed
ancestors outside the performance of the baki or for any other reason;
4. No one will visit the newly born baby and the mother just after the delivery until the
ammung/ bagol, a ritual performed by the mumbaki on the third night of after birth,
where the baby is given a name;
5. Fish or shells and those that smell fishy (munlanghi) should not be eaten together
with meat from animals that were offered in a baki; and
6. In the occasion of death in the family, people in the same generation as the deseased
are forbidden from eating the dangli or meat from sacrificial animals.
C. Property, Life, and Financial Taboos
1. To steal, to burn or destroy the property of another.
2. To pass across the bundles of palay that are spread for drying on the ground by a
person carrying a palay. If it happens, he has to pass another way or leaves his load
before passing. He may return to take his load when the palay is brought inside the
house or alang.
3. It is forbidden to collect debts of a person along the way or when a debtor has a sick
or dead family member or right after the burial.
4. To sell inherited properties specially rice fields. If it is for emergency, the buyer
must be the nearest kin such as a brother/ sister or related to the folks by
consanguinity who formerly owned the property.
5. It is forbidden to answer back elders, parents, brothers and sisters.
6. It is forbidden to kill or slay a kin: brother, sister, parent or relatives.
7. It is a taboo to eat a enemies and share betel until the hidit and the gibu are done.
D. Taboos related to Personhood
1. To insult a person and to destroy the reputation of a personhood.
2. To cause the death of or injury to a person by sorcery or witchcraft.
3. To gossip about a person or make false accusations against a person.
4. To use the word “iyam” (give me) when referring to a child or a baby. The
proper words to use is “maka yu ki baby” (come with me baby). The person
is not a thing.
5. To say malicious words “labu” especially to express anger or harass a person.
6. To urinate along the trail or path of people since, akkangan or kiyangan di
tatagu or people will steps across the person’s urine.
7. To spit moma within the house or with in the premises of the house like the
dau-lon where the family do their chores, near the luhong where the family
pound rice, and the like.
 The ibbuy is a feast and all contributions of the relatives of the buyer
are baddang (help), which the buyer will pay back in the future should
the relative and the donor have similar occasion. By tradition, the
payback gift known as Tungol, must be paid back, and a new gift added,
again to be paid back ad infinitum.

By other means
The properties of a childless person must go to the relatives of the
same family lineage who took care of the childless person in terms of
honga, dangli or other animals offered for her/his well being and during
his/her death.
Penal Law: Crimes and Penalties
The Ifugao people are expected to observe teachings of ancestors or
“tugun di a-am-mod” and to bear in mind the paniyo (taboos) in their
dealings with family members and the community.

Value of Life

One of the major offenses is pate (murder). The murder of a family is a

great paniyo. The family is supposed to secure and respect each other’s life
and properties. A murder done treachery is punished severely. It also
declares the start of a family feud (buhul) where the victim’s family is
entitled to revenge (baloh/ bal-loh) under the customary law.
 Although bal-loh (revenge) is accepted, there are customary
laws governing revenge. The revenge of the victim’s kin can be
done by a near or a distant relative within the family against a
near kin of the murderer. Revenge is rarely exacted against
women and children, the weak or the elderly as it goes against
the Ifugao’s code of honor. When avenging the death of a kin
against an enemy, the group doing the “bol-lah” (vengeance) are
collectively responsible for the act done.
If a visitor (minangili) is killed by someone outside the family
circle, the host family is morally responsible to avenge the death.
 Pending the resolution of an inter-village conflict, one is not
supposed to share food or betel ingredients with the enemy.
Marrying someone from the enemy village is considered disloyalty.
When revenge killings become a non-stop feud, the elders in the
community may intervene to let the warring groups come to a peace
settlement called “hidit”.
Crimes and Penalties
1. Pate (Murder/ Homicide)
 When one takes the life of a person, it is called pate.
 The penalty for killing a person is death through vengeance. Peaceful settlements
may be reached with the employment of powerful go-betweens called Munkalun
(different from the makalun or messenger gods in the baki).
 Munkalun is a feared and respected person known for his fair sense of justice,
knowledge of custom lawand has the reputation of being able to enforce his
judgement by force or necessary.
 When the killing is accidental or unintentional, a fine called labod is executive in an
aminable settlement. The fine will be paid as hin-ba-id, and a rice field or an amount
of money for the deceased family sustenance or any decision agreed upon by the
criminal and offended family.
2. Kidnapping
 Is an act committed by villages that are under a state of tribal war.
 A party of head hunters from an offended village may kidnap a child or a woman
and sell the woman or child into slavery in other places through the agent called
“munhubot”
 A kindanpping victim called himbut is usually a child or a woman since killing
them is not sanctioned by customary laws of war.
3. Killing a Visitor or Guest
 Major crime
 It is a disgrace to the host of the community if a visitor is killed within their territory.
 However, if the killing is unintentional or by accident or by mistaken identity, then
the death penalty is commuted to a fine.
4. Longa (Attempted Murder)
 Attempted murder called longa is punishable by death or fine called halliw.
 Halliw is to be taken by the kin of the victim for ritual performances relative to the
act. None-payment of the halliw is courting death from the family of the victim.
3. Rape
 An offender of an unmarried woman can be absolved from his crime by marrying the
woman if the latter agrees. However, if the family of the victim does not favor the
rapist, then a fine is enforced or his life answers for the crime he did especially if the
woman or the girl does not like to marry the man.
 If a single man rapes a married woman, the rapist, if not killed, pays a fine in
accordance to the demands of the husband and his kins called akang (bypassing)
which is usually high. Another fine in accordance to the demands of the woman and
her kin is called “numbainan”, or shame. The fine may be equal or more than the
demands of the husband.
  If a married man rapes a married woman, the rapist pays three times the fines paid
by the unmarried rapist. The first demand called “akang” and it goes to the
husband; the second called “numbainan” goes to the woman and her kin; and the
third “luktap” goes to the wife of the rapist. If fines are not demanded, then the
rapist is to be killed by the husband of the victim and is appreciated by the
community for fighting the dignity of his family from such a great insult.

6. Luktap (Adultery)
 A married having an illicit affair with another woman is called luktap.
 This is punishable by death or fine.
 Aside from fines, which are twice than the usual; this can be a ground for divorce
or “munhi’an/ munbolhe”
 The will be subject to “hokwit”, the state of being oppressed by the other woman
spirit.
7. Incest
 Is a rare crime among the Ifugaos but if it happens, death will come swiftly to the
offender.

8. Baag/ Uman (Slander/ Defamation/ Gossip)

 “Baag/ Uman” is the utterance of derogatory or destructive criticisms against the
credibility, dignity, and integrity of a person or his family or family members.
 A go-between is sent by the offended party to negotiate with the slanderer for a fine
known as “upup de took” (to stop people from talking and to prove to the people
that such derogatory statement are not true).
 If the accused does not accept said act, the elders in the community with the
presence of the kin both parties will mediate and reconcile the parties.
9. Tudu (False Accusation)
 It is the imputation of falsehood against a person.
 The person falsely accuse will confront the accuser and send a go-between to
demand fine for the accusation.
 If the accuser resist , he is challenge to an ordeal or a duel.

10. Ako (Theft)

 Theft is taking another person’s property with the intention of keeping such property
as his own or with the intent to again.
 The stolen thing must be returned or its equivalent value plus five times the value of
the stolen thing and the fee of the go-between or the munkalun.
 If the person is very poor then he pays twice the value of the stolen thing and the fee
of the go-between.
 A thief caught in the act is likely to be punished by death or he is taken as a prisoner
until his kin will pay the fine being asked.
  In the event that the guilt of theft is denied, then he is challenge to a trial by ordeal
such as da-u, bultong or ug-gub.

11. Logab/Hinggab (Arson)

 It is committed when a property of a person as a house, alang, muyung or other
properties of a person is burned intentionally by another person.
 The arsonist may be punished by death or fine.
 In the event that the arsonist intentionally did so, a member of his family will be
kidnapped and be sold to hubot (slavery).
 Consequences of crime as Defined by the Customary law
1. Awwit/bal-loh
 Major crimes like murder, rape and even unjust vexation can be the cause of
family feuds (awwit).
 Revenge killing is justified especially in murder.
 Some mitigating factors may be kinship, the act being unintentional, repentance of
the murder or inventions of the nanomnoman or elders and leaders in the
community.
 The “death penalty” can be done by actual murder or it could be attained through
sorcery or the performance of the “dinogdong”, a cursing ritual.
2. Haliw (Fines)
 Can be imposed for both major crimes or minor crimes.
2.1 Calculations of fines
 Hin-baid/Hinbakid- is a fine of ten pigs equivalent to the number of animals
slaughtered in an imbayah.
 Na-anom- a fine of six animals;
 Nalimma- a fine of five animals;
 Natul-lu- a fine of three animals;
 Nunduplig- nunbadi- a fine of two animals and;
 Na-oh-ha- a fine of one animal.
For tuwali in kiangan
 Pu-u- is the largest part of the fine and is taken by the offended and their kins
 Hay-up- second largest part of the fine and is taken by the go-between who is usually
a kin of the offended.
 Natuwinan- the third
 Natu-ku- is the fourth
  Numbadi- is the fifth
 Na-oha- is the last
For Banaue
 Hinbaid- largest fine which is 10-15 pigs. The missing fines maybe paid with the
gamong (blanket for the dead), bay-ya-ong (woven blankets), pahul/gayang (spears),
uwah/otak (bolo), wahe (axe) to complete the fifteen pigs.
 Hudngor – is the fine demanded by the offended from the middle families; and the
poor shall demand the least.
 Numhaliwan- fine that slaughtered for the relatives, the community and neighbors.
3. Gibu
 Means a fine or settlement or indemnity given by the offender to the offended family or
family clan for a punishable act or for damages commited.
When is Gibu demanded?
Gibu is given to the victims by the defeated party in an ordeal or trial, who are deemed
to be the offenders as a peace offering . A man who committed a luktap produces a gibu to
the family or relatives of his spouse and also to the relatives of the woman whom he
commited adultery. In the same manner, the offended husband may also demand gibu from
the unfaithful wife.
A man who wants to marry a widow of high status has to produce a gibu to the
relatives of the death husband in the form of animals depending on the rank or status of the
death husband; either a carabao or a pig and other smaller demands.