SURVIVORS of Typhoon Pablo still need government attention, especially those who have been displaced due to the work stoppage in the banana plantations, the International Solidarity Mission to Southern Mindanao (ISM-SM) reported.
International delegates from International League of People's Struggle (ILPS); Anakbayan in United States of America (USA); and Union del Barrio of Los Angeles escorted by the Barug Katawhan and Panalipdan in Southern Mindanao (SM) visited the areas affected of the 2012 flashflood and humanitarian violations so as to assess the situation of the residents.
Kuusela Hilo, in a press conference at TNS Buffet, said it shows that the residents in areas of Davao Oriental and Compostela Valley still need more assistance while they are rebuilding their communities and restoring their lives.
The members of the ISM also learned that there are several workers who stopped working since the banana companies were attempting to negate their pre-Pablo pay and to push for a lower piece meal pay after the disaster.
Rev. Frank Wulf, of the United Methodist Church in California, said they have seen workers fighting for getting their jobs back and having a decent living and working conditions, adding that they salute this courageous act in organizing themselves to rebuild their communities.
"In Paquibato area, we have witnessed the palpable violation of the people's civil and political rights, the terror in which children and their mothers have to live through as they face this military harassments and psychological torture because their family is a member of the New People's Army (NPA)," Wulf said.
Wulf added that in an immediate act of solidarity, the international delegates offered a collection of P12,000 to support the striking workers with rice for their families and closed the evening in Barangay Andap with an international solidarity night.
"With those scenes we witnessed, rest assured that the international solidarity will provide stronger support for those Pablo and Crising survivors and victims by educating people and be more active in campaigns," Ron Gochez of the Union Del Barrio Los Angeles said.
Among the efforts of the solidarity are against corporate logging, foreign mining operating in Pablo affected communities and campaigns that expose the militarization and corruption of relief assistance, human rights violations and civil military operations US military troops in the communities.
Wulf said having witnessed all the gross violations of civil and political, social, economic and cultural rights of the people in Mindanao, they hold President Benigno Aquino III accountable for the criminal neglect of the Filipino people especially the victims of disaster.
Karlos Trangia, Barug Katawhan spokesperson, added that in behalf of their members, he is asking the National Government to address the concern of the residents in Compostela Valley and Davao Oriental who were victims of disasters and human rights violations.
