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Thursday, March 25, 2004
Moro people air sentiment, want peaceful communities
A RECENT series of workshops conducted among Moro leaders and elders in Barangay Sirawan, Toril and Talomo, both in Davao City, addressed the Moro people's sentiments over conflict situations in various parts of Mindanao.
The participants said that peace in their areas is pulled down by apathy of other sectors about their lives and as they are always prejudiced, their communities are becoming "unfit" for their children. This sad situation, a Moro leader said, is further burdened by "painting" of their areas as a haven for terrorists, something that they said have affected their lives tremendously.
"We have had enough of discrimination. We have been discriminated against for so many years and we want this to stop now. We cannot allow our children to suffer the same," the Moro leader said. The workshop was initiated by the Community Resource Development Center (CRDC) Inc. through the support of the Government of the Philippines and the United Nations Multi-Donor Program Phase 3 (GOP-UNMDP3).
It evolved around "culture of peace" and was designed to fit the context of the Islamic value formation and expounding common goal of each group of people to live in a peaceful society.
It was developed as a program to enhance people's understanding towards collective peace as a common goal not only for Moro communities but also for other cultural groups.
Rafael Gomez, Manager of the UNMDP3's Component on the Promotion and Advocacy of the Culture of Peace, said the workshops paved the way for the revitalization of the sectoral roles of youth, women and elders in the reestablishment of peace as a culture.
"It is imperative that all sectors of the community are given the chance to share their experiences especially on issues that know no boundaries. The issue of discrimination is real and this is one of the walls that COP workshops are trying to break down," Gomez said.
In a report submitted by Rashid Manahan, CRDC executive director, he stated that the workshop created an avenue for community participation, and developed peace agenda that has been literally translated as an advocacy to influence values, attitude and practices.
Manahan said the gathering of Moro leaders and elders led to the understanding of the existing problems of the community and its implications to different sectors and groups.
(March 25, 2004 issue)
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