| THE NEW GAMEPLAN - GIVING BOOKS NOT BULLETS |
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| Written by Samira Ali Gutoc | |
| Tuesday, 23 September 2003 | |
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The Mindanao problem is a Philippine problem, says an Iligan peace advocate in celebration of International Peace day last Sunday. Peace-building it seems has seeped into the corporate consciousness as well. Manila-based Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP)has thus been lobbying for business sector involvement in the poor plight of the Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao (ARMM ) and Western Mindanao. In the last decade since 1989, the corporate-led social development foundation has generated more than 800 million pesos from its more than 40 partners to address poverty in the island in what is called the Mindanao Catch-up-Plan. The program aims to provide basic services in the areas of education, health, employment and entrepreneurship for marginalized communities. The statistics in said fields is alarming. In the whole of Mindanao, only 3 out of 10 can actually graduate from secondary level, posting the highest dropout and survival rate in the country. In the ARMM, only one out of 10 Grade one enrollees finish high school. The infant mortality rate and unemployment in the ARMM region is also one of the highest. In the latest human development index report, the poverty incidence of Muslim areas has doubled to 72 percent, said Suharto Ambolodto of the Cotabato-City based Institute of Strategic Studies. While government and the MILF are undergoing peace talks, another peace drive is uplifting the lives of the country's poorest of the poor. Once a conflict zone, Basilan is on the developmental trail as it receives corporate funding for its schools and literacy classes. PBSP donated a science laboratory and school supplies to the Lamitan Central Elementary School, which hosts more than 2000 children. "This is one way of fighting poverty", said Councilor Badiria Aman, president of the school's Parent Teacher Association during the September 5 launching of textbook donations for Basilan's children. Lamitan was the infamous site where the Abu Sayyaf kidnapped more than 20 schoolchildren and teachers in 2001. "Parents have the same vision. It is the success of their children. I want Lamitan to progress", said Aman. Basilan is the newest additional province to the ARMM . While schoolchildren are learning the skills of reading and writing, Badjao adults, mostly women, ages 25 and above from the nearby Malawani Island, Basilan are learning the basics of ABC and arithmetic. Housed in a water village supported by stilts in corporate-funded literacy classes, Badjao women learn to sign their name in their own handwriting and "no longer in thumbmark". Ruaina Dahih, 25, who has 7 kids, said she felt happy after learning to write. With their newfound confidence, some of the classes "graduates" have organized a group called Las Viudas. Wives of former Abu Sayyaf members, these women acquire loans from PBSP-friendly banks to set up a livelihood such as making of cards using native paper. Malnourished children are also commonplace in Basilan. Feeding centers in the LCES have been set up to support around 60 schoolchildren, with ages 6-7 years old. The full meals in between breakfast and lunch outside the schoolrooms provide the kids with a means to address their being "underweight." While the peace and order problem in the island remains, the PBSP remains optimistic it can address the neglect of the development aspect of the peace process. "We can only address a pint in the bucket but that's enough for us", said Ruth Honculada, program manager of the PBSP.
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