Shela Matuod Uray, an indigenous woman from the Higaonon in the Philippines, really felt the impact of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on their lives. Before that, the Higaonon people lived in peace as a community that was free to enter and exit rural areas, now it is difficult.

“We can't go to our fields because of restrictions. If we can't go to our plantations, what can we do? We don't have enough foodstuffs, "he said in a discussion some time ago.

These indigenous people still have to wait three months for the rice harvest. During the pandemic, they survive on maize and tubers.

When someone is sick, said Shela, like a fever or sore throat, they take young papaya leaves for medicine. They also try to prepare the rice fields to replant in the rainy season.

A similar story also comes from Serly Masdiana Saragih, a traditional Batak Toba woman, North Sumatra, Indonesia.

Serly is the principal of the Arjuna Laguboti Vocational School in Toba Samosir, where some Batak teenagers and women around the village are studying.

When the local government announced that the outbreak had entered North Sumatra, health protocols also took effect immediately.

The Toba Samosir indigenous people, who are usually busy with traditional rituals, began to reduce the crowd, for example in death rituals. People are also asked to maintain personal hygiene by diligently washing their hands and wearing masks.

Serly immediately guided the students at her school to use their laboratory and produce hand sanitizers and distribute them to the surrounding indigenous communities, especially those with difficulty accessing water.

They produce more than 3,000 bottles. During the distribution, said Serly, the students were also provided with information about health protocols that they distributed when distributing hand sanitizers.

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