Sihaya Ansibod (Jobee Basas) flew to New York last 14 August to attend the Indigenous Values Conference which is being held 18-19 August 2018 in Syracuse University, New York. She is travelling with Joseph ‘Ka Boyet’ Ongkiko, one of our senior consultants at PeaceBuilders Community. The conference is being sponsored by Professor Philip Arnold, chair of the Department of Religion at Syracuse University and co-founder of Ska-nonh Great Law of Peace Center with the cooperation of the Onondaga Nation.
Sihaya comes from the Erumanen Ne Menuvu, one of indigenous peoples in Mindanao. She serves as the Peace and Reconciliation Field Director of PeaceBuilders Community — Central Mindanao. This Indigenous Values Conference will help enhance Sihaya’s global network and cross-cultural exposure.
Ka Boyet serves as our Senior Consultant at PBCI, giving leadership and guidance to our organization in the area of Leadership Training & Development Communications. He is officially representing PBCI along with Sihaya in this Conference. Ka Boyet also serves as a facilitator in this Conference, challenging American evangelicals to be aware of the historical injustices committed against the Indigenous Peoples of both North and South America, brought about by the Doctrine of Discovery.
Sihaya shows her indigenous Erumanen Ne Menuvu attire while at Lake Onondaga, Turtle Island. 
Ka Boyet serves as a facilitator in this Conference.
PeaceBuilders Community sent Ka Boyet and Sihaya to initiate on-going relationships between the leaders of certain Indigenous Peoples of the Turtle Island (North America) and the Indigenous Peoples in our archipelago. The opening of this trans-oceanic IP relations would help improve our capacity to implement inclusive and culture-sensitive peace and reconciliation programs in both shores of the Pacific Ocean.
After the two-day conference, Sihaya and Ka Boyet will be doing a learning tour for two weeks to visit various Indigenous Peoples’ communities in Turtle Island.
The Doctrine of Discovery: Misusing the Name of Christ. In the 1400s, a series of Papal Bulls were declared and sanctioned explorers to invade, colonize, and exploit lands and peoples around the world. The Doctrine of Discovery is the unsound theological basis for the colonialism and imperialism that still oppress many Indigenous Peoples today. These were done by the European imperial monarchs in the name of Christ.
The following 45-minute video explains how this doctrine affected the Indigenous Peoples of the Turtle Island (North America) and other IPs around the world:
