Innocent civilians seeking refuge to a safer place. (PHOTO BY TRIFPSS)
Evacuees seek help
military denies arm conflict
By: Babes D. Tuso, Executive Editor
Lianga, Surigao del Sur. Lumad groups in barangay San Isidro who are now evacuating at the town’s municipal gym here have sought assistance from the Diocese Presbyterium headed by Bishop Nereo Odchimar to bring their sentiments to President Gloria Macapagal- Arroyo.
Norma Ampis, Tribal Filipino Program of Surigao del Sur (TRIFPSS) Director said in a press statement that the evacuees are hungry with very little ration of food. They are even sleeping on the cement floor with very thin mats to support their backs.
At least 49 families from Upper Oregon in barangay San Isidro, this town, have been in evacuation center since June 18 summing up now to a total of 204 lumad families with 1, 753 individuals, 374 of which are children up to six years old, from the exodus of communities from barangays Diatagon in Lianga, Barangay Buhisan in San Agustin and Barangay Caras-an in Tago who have earlier seek evacuation due to continuing arm conflict.
The Local Government Unit, Department of Social Welfare and Development, Philippine National Red Cross, religious sectors and other socio-civic organizations have already provided assistance to evacuees in terms of food and medicines. But due to inadequate support, evacuees have already decided “to ration their rice supply to only one meal with solid rice per day while having only rice porridge for the other two meals to stretch their supply of rice.”
The evacuees have asked for more food ration while they will be staying in the evacuation center but more importantly, “they wanted peace for them to go back to their own communities so that they can live peacefully and just.”
Ampis and a leader of lumad’s school Alternative Learning System for Agricultural and Livelihood Development (ALCADEV) said, lumads were forced to leave their communities and farms to “escape from the heavy build-up of battle-ready military elements from the 58th and 36th Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army since July 18.”
Lt. Col. Benjamin Pedralvez, Jr., 58Infantry Battalion Commanding Officer however clarified that his men are only in the area not for combat operation but for peace and development project of the government under the Kalayaan program.
“We do research and development projects. We determine what the residents need and act on them. In some areas in Surigao del Sur, we have built schools, roads, water systems and even bridges,” he said.
He also emphasized that there was no arm struggle happening in the area that forced lumads to evacuate.
He alleged that the mass evacuation is instigated by ALCADEV.
“ALCADEV coerced the residents of the area to leave their houses because the military will bomb the school and indigenous people’s (IP’s) communities due to the presence of communist terrorists in the area. This is clearly misguiding and misinforming the public so as to taint the image of the military and at the same time spawn chaos,” he added. (With report from Lovely Laudette D. Gamba, PIA-Caraga)
Lianga, Surigao del Sur. Lumad groups in barangay San Isidro who are now evacuating at the town’s municipal gym here have sought assistance from the Diocese Presbyterium headed by Bishop Nereo Odchimar to bring their sentiments to President Gloria Macapagal- Arroyo.
Norma Ampis, Tribal Filipino Program of Surigao del Sur (TRIFPSS) Director said in a press statement that the evacuees are hungry with very little ration of food. They are even sleeping on the cement floor with very thin mats to support their backs.
At least 49 families from Upper Oregon in barangay San Isidro, this town, have been in evacuation center since June 18 summing up now to a total of 204 lumad families with 1, 753 individuals, 374 of which are children up to six years old, from the exodus of communities from barangays Diatagon in Lianga, Barangay Buhisan in San Agustin and Barangay Caras-an in Tago who have earlier seek evacuation due to continuing arm conflict.
The Local Government Unit, Department of Social Welfare and Development, Philippine National Red Cross, religious sectors and other socio-civic organizations have already provided assistance to evacuees in terms of food and medicines. But due to inadequate support, evacuees have already decided “to ration their rice supply to only one meal with solid rice per day while having only rice porridge for the other two meals to stretch their supply of rice.”
The evacuees have asked for more food ration while they will be staying in the evacuation center but more importantly, “they wanted peace for them to go back to their own communities so that they can live peacefully and just.”
Ampis and a leader of lumad’s school Alternative Learning System for Agricultural and Livelihood Development (ALCADEV) said, lumads were forced to leave their communities and farms to “escape from the heavy build-up of battle-ready military elements from the 58th and 36th Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army since July 18.”
Lt. Col. Benjamin Pedralvez, Jr., 58Infantry Battalion Commanding Officer however clarified that his men are only in the area not for combat operation but for peace and development project of the government under the Kalayaan program.
“We do research and development projects. We determine what the residents need and act on them. In some areas in Surigao del Sur, we have built schools, roads, water systems and even bridges,” he said.
He also emphasized that there was no arm struggle happening in the area that forced lumads to evacuate.
He alleged that the mass evacuation is instigated by ALCADEV.
“ALCADEV coerced the residents of the area to leave their houses because the military will bomb the school and indigenous people’s (IP’s) communities due to the presence of communist terrorists in the area. This is clearly misguiding and misinforming the public so as to taint the image of the military and at the same time spawn chaos,” he added. (With report from Lovely Laudette D. Gamba, PIA-Caraga)
JULY 21 -28, 2009 VOLUME 1 NO, 11 BUTUAN CITY PHILIPPINES
No comments:
Post a Comment