A group of college students and their professor from Waseda University in Tokyo, Japan, recently visited the province of Davao Oriental to learn how the stakeholders in the province work together towards local peace-building development.
Associate Professor Megumi Kagawa of the university’s School of Social Sciences said they chose Davao Oriental as she had been in the province on several occasions as a researcher and has an idea about how stakeholders here converge to achieve peace. Thus, she wants her students to also see and experience this firsthand. Furthermore, their team also considered the safety of the location they are visiting. She said this is an essential factor in their decision knowing that Davao Oriental has been already declared “insurgency-free”.
The students conducting this research for their Local Peace-Building Class also expressed their interest in learning how the province was able “transform conflict into peace.” They also wanted to know how the province upholds an inclusive society of different ethnicities, religious backgrounds, and beliefs.
Receiving the group during their recent courtesy call at the Capitol was Provincial Administrator Ms. Maria Gracia Tiago, who represented Governor Corazon N. Malanyaon. In a brief discussion, she explained to the visitors the provincial government’s painstaking efforts in achieving peace until finally being declared insurgency-free last year.
She also mentioned the impact of the Happy Home, a halfway house for former rebels, which was established under Governor Malanyaon’s administration in 2013. The facility has since been helping former rebels start anew with their lives. With the local implementation of the Ending Local Communist Armed Conflict (ELCAC) program of the national government, the peace efforts of the province have been strengthened and sustained.
Also present during the visit are ELCAC Action Officer Retired Brigadier General Leopoldo Imbang, Jr., Happy Home Center Manager Ms. Marlyn Casibua, and Ms. Norjana Gulembayan. ᴘɪᴏ | ᴘʜᴏᴛᴏꜱ ʙʏ ᴍᴀʀᴋ ᴏʟɪᴠᴇʀ ᴀʟᴠɪᴛᴇ
