Decision 25 G.R. No. 224469 questions in doubt will be resolved in favor of those from whom the penalty is sought." More importantly, to construe the word "authority" in Sec. 77, P.D. 705 as excluding the rights of ICCs/IPs already recognized in the IPRA would unduly undermine both the text and the purpose of this novel piece of legislation and significantly narrow down the rights recognized therein. (Emphasis in the original) Two. It is an admitted fact that petitioners relied upon their elders, the non-government organization that was helping them, and the NCIP, that they supposedly possessed the State authority to cut and collect the dita tree as IPs for their indigenous community's communal toilet. Thus, subjectively, 68 their intent and volition to commit the prohibited act, that is without lawful authority, was rendered reasonably doubtful by these pieces of evidence showing their reliance upon these separate assurances of a State authority. As Justice Zalameda explains: The peculiar circumstances of this case require the same liberal approach. The Court simply cannot brush aside petitioners' cultural heritage in the determination of their criminal liability. Unlike the accused in People v. De Gracia, petitioners cannot be presumed to know the import and legal consequence of their act. Their circumstances, specifically their access to information, and their customs as members of a cultural minority, are substantial factors that distinguish them from the rest of the population. As for the Mangyans, their challenges in availing learning facilities and accessing information are well documented. The location of their settlements in the mountainous regions of Mindoro, though relatively close to the nation's capital, is not easily reached by convenient modes of transportation and communication. Further, the lack of financial resources discourages indigenous families to avail and/or sustain their children's education. Certainly, by these circumstances alone, Mangyans cannot reasonably be compared to those in the lowlands in terms of world view and behavior. In the Mangyans' worldview, the forest is considered as common property of all the residents of their respective settlements. This means that they can catch forest animals, gather wood, bamboo, nuts, and other wild plants in the forest without the permission of other residents. They can generally hunt and•eat animals in the forest, except those they consider inedible, such as pythons, snakes and large lizards. They employ swiddens or the kaingin system to cultivate the land within their settlements. Based on the foregoing, to hold petitioners to the same standards for adjudging a violation of PD 705 as non-indigenous peoples would be to force upon them a belief system to which they do not subscribe. The fact that petitioners finished up to Grade 4 of primary education does not negate their distinct way of life nor justifies lumping IPs with the rest of the 68 See e.g., Nunavut Teachers' Association v. Nunavut, 2010 NUCJ 13 (CanLII), <http://canlii.ca/t/2c4s1>, retrieved on 2020-10-3: "The subjective element concerns a party's motive and intent .... The subjective element in the context of assessing good faith concerns the motive and intent of the parties ....