Marawi IDPs need justice, social healing Dureza
DAVAO CITY – There will be no full social healing for Meranaw families affected by the nearly five months of armed clashes between military and Islamic State-inspired Maute Group in Marawi unless transitional justice is attained, Presidential Adviser on Peace Process (PAPP) Secretary Jesus Dureza said on Wednesday.
In a press briefing in Lanao del Sur, Dureza emphasized the need for social healing in order to restore the moral fiber that was destroyed by the armed conflicts between government forces and Islamic State-inspired Maute Group.
He said the destruction to the structures could easily be repaired by engineers unlike the work on “repairing back the destroyed social fabric, the relationship that had been broken,” which the secretary emphasized also needs equal attention.
“We cannot move on and make things already feel normal and better if there is no justice given, the correct justice needed, to redress the wrong that was committed and that will be the start of a social healing. There will be no full healing of relationships unless justice is served,” Dureza said.
He said OPAPP has lined up similar activities during this year’s Ramadan, emphasizing the need to put peace into the government’s rehabilitation efforts to ensure there would be no projects that will “trigger more conflict.”
“There will be no easy healing if you don’t allow opportunity for a vent that will allow them to express first… Because we believe that social healing can only take place if there is ownership by them who are the victims. It is not for anybody upstairs who were able to provide to them the solution; they provided it themselves,” he said.
Dureza also asked the people to be patient because there is “no magic formula” in the rehabilitation process and that reconstruction cannot happen overnight, considering that there would be a lot of challenges amid the “contrary voices and feelings.”
Open communication Assemblyman Zia Alonto Adiong said the Meranaws must be assured that the reconstruction efforts in the war-torn Marawi City must not only include repairing the damaged areas but also ensure that it would preserve the identity of the victims.
Adiong said the government must keep an open communication line between Task Force Bangon Marawi, local government unit, and residents to keep them informed of the rehabilitation process and manage their expectation to address growing frustration of the people in the rebuilding of Marawi.
He said it’s important that the rehabilitation process is clear to them in order to eliminate frustration stemming from the “fear of expulsion, fear of not knowing what’s going to happen” but he believes it can be managed by keeping the public informed of the process that the government is undertaking.
“Well, we don’t actually question the process, why the government is meticulously doing consultations and then acquiring legal grounds, putting up the technical specificities in terms of the reconstruction, prior to the reconstruction. We don’t question that, if it means delaying the process and we also do not question but rather we understand the frustration of the people,” he added.
Adiong said the affected residents must be transformed into development partners of government in Marawi.
The residents displaced by nearly five months of armed clashes between government forces and Islamic State-inspired Maute Group may start rebuilding their destroyed houses after the government clears the debris and completes the “horizontal preparations” in 12 to 18 months, Housing Assistant secretary Felix Castro.
Castro assured the Meranaw families in a series of consultations that the government “will not touch the private properties” and that “rehabilitation will only involve government infrastructures.”
Mayor Majul Gandamra challenged his constituents to be on the same level with the premier urban centers of the country, one that is true to its cultural roots and yet progressive and peaceful enough to become a source of genuine pride among Maranaos.
Lanao del Sur 2nd district Rep. Mauyag Papandayan Jr., chairman of the House Committee on Muslim Affairs, criticized the “vague” rehabilitation plan presented by Task Force Bangon Marawi (TFBM) exactly a year after local terrorists’ siege in the Islamic city.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has called for intensified interventions for the reconstruction of Marawi City and relief efforts for its thousands of displaced residents.
“Around 230,000 people remain displaced and in need of stronger support one year after armed conflict broke out (in this city),” the ICRC said in a statement issued on Wednesday.
Pascal Porchet, head of the ICRC delegation in the Philippines, said: “Efforts to rehabilitate Marawi and assist its people must be stepped up to reduce the suffering of thousands of those who were displaced over the past year. The efforts are there, but these must match the growing needs of those who face prolonged displacement and are close to despair.”
Senator Antonio “Sonny” Trillanes IV has filed two resolutions seeking a formal inquiry into the events surrounding the infamous incident as well as on the real status of government rehabilitation and reconstructions efforts for this war-torn city.
News about Sen. Trillanes’ move promptly drew praises from members of the Maranaw community including even the militant residents, who had once deplored the Bicolano senator for his dissenting stance that contributed to the 16th Congress’ shelving of the first draft of the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL).