The peoples of the Cordillera developed new forms of mobilization after the end of the Marcos regime. Having previously fought alongside the communist New People’s Army (NPA) against authoritarian rule, Cordilleran leaders developed a new sense of Cordilleran “nation,” based on shared experience of the various peoples of the region. This new nationalist movement, represented primarily by the Cordillera People’s Liberation Army (CPLA) and the Cordillera Peoples’ Alliance (CPA) began to make demands for “autonomy.”

The movement prompted the state to respond with significant promises. Motivated to show democratic credentials and to consolidate its broad coalition of support for the People Power revolution, the Aquino government agreed to a constitutional clause that enshrined autonomy for the Cordillera, as it also did for Muslim Mindanao. At first therefore the 1987 Constitution heightened the credibility of the state’s commitment by enshrining the principle of autonomy, but it became difficult to sustain its credibility with subsequent legislation.