Children whether deliberately used or not are still victims and survivors of state violence in the Philippine context.
Tending to children has become difficult in evacuation centers with the number of displaced increasing every day after two weeks of skirmish between MNLF and state forces. All over the city, the number of displaced residents has swelled up to nearly 120,000 from 12 villages as fighting continued on its second week.
by DANILDA L. FUSILERO, MART D. SAMBALUD, and TYRONE A. VELEZ Davao Today From cronies to political dynasties, nothing has…
There they are! — heroes of the masses — the true
fighters and firm defenders of the people’s cause,
who lyricise with their vigilance the liberation
of the Mother Land from the quagmire of misery.
In House Resolution 302, Bayan Muna asked the committee on peace, reconciliation and unity to investigate whether or not the government terminated the tripartite review of the 1996 Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF, which claimed that this provoked their members to march into Zamboanga City on September 9.
Women and children survivors of Typhoon Pablo from Compostela, Compostela Valley joined Thursday’s rally to dramatize their demand for food relief from government and stop the military encampment in their villages. Communities in Compostela said soldiers are deployed to protect the mining investment of San Miguel Company. (davaotoday.com photo by Ace R. Morandante)
Datu Serrano Mambay-an, a Matigsalug leader of purok 4b, Barangay Mangayon said military presence has something to do with the mining operation in the area saying “gigamit jud na nga kompanyaha ang mga military, gibayaran gyud na karon nga panahon sa pag operasyon sa among bukid (the firm uses the military and pays them to operate in our villages).”
Aerial bombs launched by government troops against Muslim rebels and more fires in Barangay Santa Catalina Monday worried displaced residents who said relatives and neighbors were trapped there.
Brad Adams, Asia director of HRW reacted over this report. “Government forces should not be making blanket assumptions about whether individuals are rebels based on whether they have proper documents or not. Officials can check those leaving the conflict zone, but they need to ensure that civilians have safe passage and are not put at unnecessary risk.”
“It’s frustrating how the government has handled the security, why the coasts weren’t secured and could not prevent the MNLF from entering,
and how they are handling the situation right now. We don’t know what areas are safe, which roads are secured and which establishments are
open,” a debater from the Ateneo de Zamboanga team said.
