Queen’s province celebrates the scarecrow

Although named after a Spanish queen, the province of Isabela celebrates yearly the lowly scarecrow, which despite being inanimate, has been a “friend” to farmers in many parts of the world, including the Philippines, for generations.

The scarecrow or bambanti in Ilocano, the predominant language in the second northernmost province, has been the low-technology protector of farmlands from birds that would otherwise devastate agricultural crops.

Not surprisingly, for Isabela, self-proclaimed center of agriculture in the country, the bambanti represents the best of the province and her people—silent but vigilant and resilient.

The Agri-Ecotourism Fair this year was participated in by majority of Isabela’s 34 municipalities and three cities, including the capital Ilagan.

Isabela enthusiastically pursues the one town-one product (OTOP) campaign initiated by then President Fidel V. Ramos.

This was evident in the offerings of every booth in the agri-ecotourism fair including chocolate-scented pinilisan red rice, corn (Isabela is reputedly the country’s corn capital), sugar, cacao, monggo and other legumes, mushrooms, mangoes, ube, and various rice cakes.

The distinctive products of each town were also showcased in the giant bambanti that “guarded” the agri-tourism booths. Beans and legumes, rice, corn, seashells and many other materials went into the making of the different scarecrows, depending on the main crop or product of the town or city they represented.

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Beyond Isabela’s fields of rice and corn

BY ALYSSA ASHLEY LUCAS (The Manila Times) ON FEBRUARY 18, 2018

Considered the “Queen Province of the North,” Isabela exuded an aura of pride and joy as the last fireworks lit up the sky. The crowd applauded, ending the night on a high—after months’ worth of laborious preparation made for a successful 2018 Bambanti Festival.

Typically overlooked as a tourist destination, Isabela actually abounds with white beaches and highlands of the neighboring provinces. Add the vast fields of rice and corn blanketing its land, which are commonly mistaken as the only sights in the province. While the fields are a great sight, they often obscure what the northern beauty really has to offer.

Seeing past through its thriving agricultural production, though, one will see a province rich in culture with a vibrant past, gorgeous attractions, and beautiful people that make up its northern charm.

Bambanti – the Ilocano word for scarecrow – is an award-winning festivity that honors the hard work and dedication of Isabeliños, as well as a showcase of the province’s commodities. It is likewise known as one of the biggest festivals in the north that people from different parts of the country attend each year.

With this year’s festival theme, “Isabela Kong Mahal” (Isabela, My Beloved Land), the northern province became a feast to the eyes for one glorious week in January. Gorgeous booths delicately lined up, built and designed with intricate details from the 34 municipalities and three cities attracted visitors for the wide variety of indigenous products worthy of global recognition.

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Isabela’s dancing scarecrows…and more

By Bernard L. Supetran (Business Mirror) - February 18, 2018

Dubbed the “Queen Province of the North,” Isabela is regarded as the country’s agriculture powerhouse being the biggest producer of corn, the second-largest producer of rice and a host of other major crops. Sandwiched by the Sierra Madre and Cordillera mountain ranges, it boasts of vast fertile plantations as far as your eyes can see. 

In the middle of these sprawling farms are the ubiquitous scarecrows or straw human effigies, the old-fashioned figures used to keep birds away from feasting on the crops to ensure a bumper harvest.

So, when Isabela decided to throw a party to celebrate its bountiful yield, it can be no other than a tribute to its unlikely hero, which has been quietly helping them since for ages—the scarecrow, known locally as “bambanti.”

Thus, in 1997, the provincial government under then-Gov. Benjamin Dy formally introduced the Bambanti Festival to pay tribute to the farm icon through a colorful and well-choreographed parade of contingents from the towns mimicking the animated dance of the scarecrow if he is to come to life.

But what makes this festivity unique is the massive parade of some 1,000 dancers around the Isabela Sports Complex in a spectacular multimedia production putting the spotlight on the role of the tell-tale bambanti. A fusion of synchronized dance, and an opera- and ballet-type musical purposely-written for the event, the show could be easily compared to an opening number to the Olympic Games.

Coupled with cartoon animation, techno-pop music, and capped by a pyrotechnics display makes the show a cut above the rest, enough to make it a perennial winner in the Aliwan Fiesta competitions.

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