The Mud People Festival in Nueva Ecija

Photographer

Jophel Botero Ybiosa

Category

Special Category - Event Photography

Company

Team Juan Makasining

Submission Group

Professional

Year

2025

Country / Region:

Philippines

This photo depicts Mud People Festival in Aliaga, Nueva Ecija, Philippines on June 24, 2018. Devotees dressed in dry banana leaves and covered their bodies with mud from the rice fields then attended a Holy Mass. This religious ritual is commemorated to pay homage to their patron, Saint John the Baptist. According to a local legend, the Japanese soldiers were about to execute the villagers of Aliaga during World War II. But in the midst of downpour, Japanese soldiers suddenly changed their minds. Afterwards, the villagers celebrated by rolling around the muddy ground. They believed that being saved from the execution was a miracle of Saint John the Baptist.