Beneficiaries. The Kadtabanga Foundation for Peace and Development Advocates Inc. has also built classrooms in Peace Development Communities scattered around 36 municipalities in Maguindanao. (Contributed Foto/RAFI)
WHEN they were as young as 12 years old, many combatants of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) were already holding firearms, wielding knives, and lobbing bombs out in the battle field, fighting against the Armed Forces of the
But in 1996, they
laid these down and left their war-torn communities to begin another struggle:
to win peace and promote development in Mindanao .
This new chapter began after the signing of the Final Peace Agreement between
the government and MNLF, which mandated the peace and development efforts in Mindanao .
In 2000, former
MNLF commanders and combatants established the Kadtabanga Foundation for Peace
and Development Advocates Inc. (KFPDAI) with the aim of transforming
conflict-affected areas into Peace and Development Communities (PDCs).
Founders were
trained to become Peace and Development Advocates (PDAs), together with other
MNLF members in other parts of Mindanao and Palawan .
Former MNLF
territories serve as sites of projects of the United Nations Multi-Donor
Programme (UNMDP) and the Philippine Government. Fifty-three PDCs in the
Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) became the nucleus of
peace-building efforts at various levels.
Transformation
“It is about
shifting paradigms of the combatants. It is also about changing the
perspectives of the communities that peace can be attained through helping each
other. This transition period involves all the stakeholders, not only Muslim
communities,” said KFPDAI Executive Director Hadja Giobay Diacolano.
“Kadtabanga” in
Maguindanaon means “helping one another.” The organization is a leading civil
society organization in the province in the area of peace-building. It serves
36 municipalities in Maguindanao, focusing on peace and development activities
like emergency assistance, relief and rehabilitation, livelihood development,
capacity-building, infrastructure, and delivery of basic social services.
The 15-year-old
foundation has transformed 57 former MNLF combatants into PDAs.
Full-time MNLF
volunteers in the 28 PDCs underwent extensive training to become “facilitators,
linkers, information agents, translators, educators, mobilizers, coordinators,
managers and mediators.”
With its unique
identity as combatants-turned-peace-advocates, KFPDAI earned the support of
several international organizations like the United Nations Development
Programme and Oxford Committee for Famine Relief in kick-starting their
operation.
Partnership-building
is the organization’s forte. Over the years, KFPDAI has established strong
partnerships with numerous barangay, municipal, and provincial planning bodies.
It is also part of the Regional Assessment Team, Regional Economic Planning
Board, and the National Anti-Poverty Council.
Post-conflict
Observable
changes brought about by KFPDAI’s interventions include an increase in
community participation of former combatants in peace and development programs,
and the breaking of the culture of silence among Muslims and non-Muslims.
KFPDAI also works
closely with women and the youth in its programs. Through their programs,
Muslim women have taken a more active role in their communities and have joined
economic and social activities.
In 2003, KFPDAI
facilitated only five PDCs, but as its community organizing approach proved
successful, the number steadily grew and has now reached 28.
“We have not
separated from the community. We are still here to help our brothers and
sisters who have been most affected by the situation in Mindanao ,”
one staff member said.
PDCs are
post-conflict barangays or clusters of barangays that have been marginalized
but have expressed desire for peace and development. The PDCs undergo a
comprehensive, six-stage development framework facilitated by Kadtabanga. To date,
majority of the PDCs are in stage 4 (currently implementing projects) while
three are in stage 6 (self-sustaining).
Personal
duty
The
transformation is concretely manifested from residents’ testimonies that the
PDCs have become refugee centers in past conflicts around the area.
With funding
support from local and foreign partners, KFPDAI has constructed water systems,
health centers, resource centers and classrooms in PDCs. The water systems, in
particular, have made life easier for families who previously had to walk two
to three hours to get potable water.
“One of the
challenges is how to develop the spirit of volunteerism, especially among the
second-liners. We need to capacitate the children of our MNLF members, too,
even if they won’t be receiving salary,” Diacolano said.
Although it has
dedicated volunteers, it does not have regularly paid staff, the executive
director included. The organization relies on volunteerism and does not have
sustainable sources of funds and income-generating projects.
“But with or
without salary, PDAs continue functioning because they consider it their
personal duty and moral obligation to their communities,” one staff member
said.
As the
organization grew, so did the recognitions it received. Its highest
commendation to date is its recognition for “Organizational Transformation and
Strengthening of PDCs” awarded by the Mindanao Development Authority and the
UNDP in 2010.
“We hope to be
seen as community organizers and not just MNLF. We hope to be seen as partners
in bringing peace and development in Maguindanao,” Diacolano said.
(The
Kadtabanga Foundation for Peace and Development Advocates Inc. is one of five
finalists in the institution category of the 6th RAFI Triennial Awards. The
winner will be revealed on Friday, Aug. 14.)
http://www.sunstar.com.ph/cebu/local-news/2015/08/06/ex-combatants-work-toward-peace-devt-423203
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