BATANG MINDANAW: Siargao is not just a destination, it is our home

SIARGAO, Surigao del Norte (MindaNews / 08 July) —  I am Maria Lalaine Tokong — a proud daughter of Siargao.

I was raised by this island, by its forests, its winds, and its tides. I’ve seen it in its quietest mornings and its loudest typhoons. I’ve seen Siargao rise, fall, and rise again. Through every change, I’ve carried a deep love and responsibility for this place I call home.

There is no question, Siargao is so beautiful, you will love it here. But behind the beauty lies a truth we locals carry quietly:

Allow me to say it and have your time if you’re interested to know about what I stand and where this is all coming from.

The world found Siargao just as it was beginning to stand again after Typhoon Odette and the long pause of the pandemic. As we rebuilt, the island began to attract more tourists, more investors, more foreign eyes and fewer local voices.

Today, it feels like almost half of the people living here are no longer locals. While some have good intentions. I’ve met good and kind people, the ones who adapt to our way of living, the ones who fit in to the Local way, and I’m truly grateful. I have also observed behaviors that don’t align with the soul of this island. Behaviors that don’t reflect the spirit of a true islander. This land will ground you and while some may come here for the trend, only those who’ve rooted themselves in this land or who were born from it will understand that Siargao has a way of releasing what does not belong.

Tourism has brought life and opportunity, but also a wave of change that doesn’t always respect what’s already here. Our values, our community, our slow, sacred way of living. Too often these are treated as background, not foundation.

But more than that, this change is slowly chipping away at our sense of security.

Siargao used to feel like a place where we knew every face walking down the road. Where children could play until dark without fear. But lately, there is a subtle tension in the air, a feeling that we are no longer in control of what’s happening around us, on our own land. That kind of unease is hard to explain, but I’m sure locals feel it, that —

“We are feeling less at home in our home.”

It makes me feel out of place in the very land where my umbilical cord was buried. But I speak up, because I refuse to let our identity, our peace, and our safety be erase. I say and speak this through my voice, and through my actions.

What happens when we no longer feel safe, seen, or heard?

In light of their plans to build an Israeli Cultural Center, a Chabad House here on the island.

Let me be clear: this is not about hate. I believe in the goodness of people. I’ve met Israelis I deeply respect and care for. But what we’re experiencing, the growing number of Israeli visitors and the consistent cultural insensitivity is real. It must be acknowledged, our only way of letting you know what’s going on, our side of the story.

These concerns about loud parties, aggressive responses when asked nicely to respect rules, disrespectful behavior, the disregard for local customs are not imagined. They are not rooted in racism or religion, they are rooted in lived experience.

We have observed a growing presence of young Israeli travelers on our island many of whom arrive straight from military service. We understand that some come to rest, to heal, or to find peace and truly, everyone deserves that. But we cannot ignore what we see and feel. Some arrive in large groups, move with an air of dominance, purchase land, drive recklessly, and create their own communities that feel disconnected from the rest of us disregarding the culture, the customs, and the quiet rhythm of this place.

^{Maria Lalaine Tokong of Siargao. Photo courtesy of Ms Tokong}

We are not speaking out to exclude, but to protect. To remind everyone: this is not just a destination, it is our home.

When structures are built without the community, when events are held without understanding the place, when parties replace the stillness of the full moon that’s not just change. That’s displacement and it’s also creating insecurity in our minds, in our hearts, and in our own homes.

So we say this with love, but with firmness:

Come as a visitor and come as our guest. You are welcome to experience the beauty, peace, and spirit of Siargao. But you DO NOT need to build a church or religious structure to represent your faith here. We already have our own, rooted in generations of devotion and tradition.

We ask for sensitivity, especially in a time of global crisis. The world is in pain and there is a war, it might not be here but the effects echoes here. There is loss and now is not the time to build something that can divide or disrupt.

Not now and my wish is to never.

We respect your faith, please respect ours, our people and the way how we want our lives to progress. We have been here and always have been part of the island long before this has become for everyone. This island is not empty land. It is sacred, it is loved, this is not just land — this is a home.

We are raising our voices because we love this island more than we can ever say. We are asking for something simple but sacred: Respect. The kind that honors the people who live here, the culture that shaped us, and the land that has given so much to so many.

Progress is not true progress if it leaves its own people behind. While our new Government administration has just taken their seat, I can feel something shifting and I feel that they are listening. Slowly, our community is finding its voice and I pray it continues not just for a moment, but for a true, lasting change.

This is not just for me, this is for you. For your children and your grandchildren. For the next generation who will walk these shores, plant in this soil, and call this island home.

So that one day, when they ask what we did when our land, culture, and people were at risk, we can say: We showed up. We spoke out. We stood our ground.

Because they deserve to inherit a Siargao — and a world that remembers where it came from.

And that fight, that love, starts now.

For this island, for our children, for tomorrow — I will never be too far.

Full of Love, Maria 

PS: Stay in the light for goodness is coming 

(MindaViews is the opinion section of MindaNews. Maria Lalaine Tokong, 27, posted this piece on her social media account on July 4. Tokong granted MindaNews permission to share this)

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