food on the table. The common sentiment among our partners was “sa gutom kami mamatay, hindi sa COVID- 19”. (We will not die of COVID 19, but of hunger.”) How can they even afford face masks and shields? The government was not supporting them with these. When we spoke to the women in Marawi, who were still in the evacuation centers, they had no regular access to drinking water, let alone water for washing their hands and soap. Social distancing was an impossible measure to take for Teduray and Lambangian peoples who have been forced to abandon their communities as they were being fired at, houses burned, because of land conflict. As early as the first quarter of 2020, thousands have been displaced, and have set up their own makeshift evacuation centers - cramped, with no regular access to water, and lacking food. These are the harsh realities of indigenous women and their families in the different parts of Mindanao, and Luzon. And how are these known, or considered by the IATF? Most of the indigenous communities, accurate and timely information on COVID 19 was hard to come by - what is COVID 19, what is pandemic, how do we properly protect ourselves; also, information on ayuda (relief) - where to get this, how, who are eligible? This situation was not a priority of IATF response. When ayuda was first rolled out, it was chaotic - no clear information was reaching the indigenous women - confusion on 4Ps or the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program, benefits for senior citizens, and the lockdown ayuda. There was one experience, shared by an Erumanen Menuvu from Cotabato - that the ayuda from the local government was raffled off by the barangay. Then there is the information on vaccine - what are these? why? how? Again, no systematic and culturally appropriate information campaign was done by the government. This has a significant impact on the vaccination hesitancy among the indigenous communities. Meanwhile, as the indigenous women were finding ways to cope with the lack of food, and income, the military was making it more difficult for them. The militarist response of the Duterte government has paved the way for more human rights violations in the guise of health protocols. In one instance, the Mamanwa woman leader, who was distributing relief packs from LILAK to the families in her community, was harassed by the military, accusing her of distributing goods to rebels. In another province in Southern Tagalog, the indigenous woman leader who was also distributing relief packs, was visited by the military in her home. Out of fear, she then decided to stop receiving relief packs from LILAK, even, as she said, they badly needed these. Two years into the pandemic, how are these issues being addressed by the government? How are the realities of indigenous women being taken into account by the IATF, by the agencies, and local government units? As COVID-19 and its variants are reaching the indigenous communities, indigenous women are worried, and burdened with the increase in their care work. Their food security is deeply threatened, as well as their livelihood which are mostly based on natural resources. The Page 2 of 206