Mayoyao, Philippines---It is fiesta time in the famed rice terraces of the northern Philippines, and young men in colourful tribal clothing pound ancient rhythms on brass gongs as wild boars squeal ahead of slaughter.
The annual festivals, held in remote mountain communities after the planting of the rice that is at the core of their existence, are a vital way of passing centuries-old customs to the new generation.
Those traditions are the soul of the Cordillera ranges, one of the Philippines' most spectacular regions where Ifugao tribespeople are custodians of World Heritage-listed rice terraces.
But the stepped paddy fields, built 2,000 years ago and the highest in Asia, as well as the Ifugao's traditional lifestyles, are facing unprecedented threats amid the relentless forces of modernity.
"There is a danger of these beautiful areas turning into urban jungles," Edison Molanida, World Heritage sites manager for the national government's culture commission, told AFP.
"One of the main threats is the rapid pace of development in the area. And by rapid pace, we mean unmanaged development."
In its description justifying World Heritage status, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) describes the region as "a living cultural landscape of unparalleled beauty".
On misty mornings, when the first rays of pale orange sunshine fall across the stone walls that follow the mountains' contours, the terraces look like giant staircases climbing to the heavens.
UNESCO also praises the Ifugao people for having remained in harmony with nature for so long, such as by using herbs instead of pesticides, eschewing fertilisers and generally showing great care for limited natural resources.
The irrigation system, which taps water from mountaintop forests and shares it equitably throughout the communities, is hailed as a "mastery of engineering".
A generation or two ago, many of the Ifugao villages and the lifestyles of the people who lived in them largely resembled those of centuries ago.
Large areas of the five listed districts, home to roughly 100,000 people and a day's drive from the capital Manila, today retain many of the aspects celebrated by UNESCO.
AFP
