Tuesday, November 11, 2008 80 volunteers sent to conflict areas By Grace L. Plata
ABOUT 80 volunteers were sent off Monday for a humanitarian mission to Sitio Kahusayan, Barangay Manuel Guianga, Davao City and the town of New Bataan in Compostela Valley.
Dubbed as as "Duyog sa Panaw", the mission is spearheaded by the Exodus for Justice and Peace (EJP), a federation of religious and development groups advocating peace. The volunteers will help communities affected by the clashes between the military and the New People's Army (NPA).
Rev. Jurie Jaime, covenor of the EJP, in a press conference Monday, said the mission is undertaken because the communities concerned are in dire need of assistance.
Jaime said the mission, which will be done simultaneously in both areas from November 10-11, is aimed at providing immediate humanitarian services such as food relief, medical and psycho-social therapy to those who have been affected by the recent clashes and to express solidarity and moral support to the victims of human rights abuses.
In a prepared statement, the group said that within 2008 alone, there are about nine incidents of evacuation, which took place in the region.
The most recent of these, the group said, happened last September where 300 families were displaced in Boston, Davao Oriental and in October where the residents of New Bataan, Compostela Valley fled their homes while their communities were bombarded indiscriminately.
"We fear that the worsening peace and order situation in the region will cause more displacements of the indigenous peoples and more traumatizing experiences for the children," Jaime said.
He added that the trouble would not only destroy their communities but also threatens the survival of their people.
