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Lumad victims from Lianga, Surigao del Sur recounted the horrors of the Sept.1 rampage by a paramilitary group, who entered their community along with soldiers.
“We urge law enforcement authorities to do their part so that the killing rampage of these armed paramilitary groups can be immediately stopped.”
Forced evacuation continues to take toll on the Lumads, with the death of a child.
By MARIFE MAGBANUA
Wearing Manobo-designed vestments adorned with colorful bead necklaces and earrings, 24 graduating indigenous youth proudly marched during the third graduation ceremonies of Alcadev. Tears of joy filled the morning of March 10, 2010, as students, parents, teachers and other guests celebrated the end of another school year full of achievements and challenges.
By MARIFE MAGBANUA
Students and the teachers of an alternative boarding school for Lumads in Surigao del Sur pick up the pieces after being displaced by militarization for 40 days.
By CHERYLL D. FIEL
Like the Moro in many parts of Mindanao, evacuation has become a way of life for the Lumads . They would rather sleep in schools, at village halls or town gymnasiums than stay in their villages and bear the brunt of military operations.
Barely a month after the Manobos went back to their homes in Lianga, the soldiers are back again, recruiting them to the Task Force Gantangan, a paramilitary group to fight the government’s war against the insurgents.
By ALEXANDER MARTIN REMOLLINO
The Manobos of Surigao del Sur may be back home for now, but they still face the threats of militarization – even as they also have to contend with the burden of rebuilding their ravaged homes, schools, and livelihoods. View slideshow
LIANGA, Surigao del Sur -- The established pattern of military atrocities in several villages in this province sent the Manobo folk packing up to leave this year, even at the mere sight of soldiers. Karapatan-Caraga said that on June 10, some 70 soldiers of the...
Special Report | Last of Three Parts Even in times of crisis and conflict, Alcadev, the nonformal school for tribal children in Surigao del Sur, carries on with its mission. Indeed, the recent militarization in Surigao that resulted in massive displacements of Lumad residents proved to be quite a learning experience for the students, if only it weren’t so traumatic.
The living conditions of the Lumad in the evacuation center make them, especially the infants and children, vulnerable to illnesses resulting from lack of food, water and facilities for sanitation. "Their daily lives, work and schools have sadly become “collateral damage to the Arroyo’s counterinsurgency campaign," says Gabriela Rep. Luz Ilagan.
Special Report | First of Three Parts A non-formal school in Surigao del Sur has shown how education serves as a tool to unite and develop Lumad communities. Now, amid the evacuation by Manobo villages triggered by the presence of soldiers, the school is being targeted by the military, claiming that it is an “NPA school.”
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