Marawi evacuees to live in tents, away from conflict

MARAWI CITY — Some 5,000 families displaced by the fighting between government troops and terrorists holed out in sections of this Lanao del Sur provincial capital would soon find peace in an upland community where they would live in tents, away from gunfire.

Mayor Majul Gandamra said the “tent city” for residents, which would rise on an 11-hectare land owned by several Maranao families in Barangay Sagonsong, would be completed in a month.

Gandamra, during the groundbreaking for the tent city on Tuesday, said the project would be funded by the Marawi government and in part by the P20-billion rehabilitation fund pledged by President Duterte.

He said Lanao del Sur Gov. Soraya Adiong also pledged to help them.

Brig. Gen. Ramiro Manuel Rey, commander of Task Force Ranao, said the Department of Environment and Natural resources (DENR) also pledged to donate lumber.

Rey said local officials, through the DENR’s donation, could build houses made of light materials for evacuees.

Gandamra said they might approve the construction of houses made of light materials in the tent city but this had to be consulted with local officials and community leaders first.

Gov. Mujiv Hataman of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao earlier brought up the idea of building tent cities to house some 264,000 people who fled Marawi when the fighting between the military and members of the Maute terror group and Abu Sayyaf bandits started on May 23.

According to Hataman, the idea is to decongest evacuation sites and provide evacuees with more conducive areas to live while the city undergoes rebuilding.

But Rey and Gandamra could not say how long the evacuees would have to stay in the tent city.

“In essence, a semipermanent shelter made of light materials would last longer than the tents,” Rey said.

European aid

Lt. Col. Jo-ar Herrera said like everyone else, they also hoped that the fighting would be over soon. “But we could not talk about deadlines,” he said. “We cannot say when this will end.”

The European Commission is releasing 850,000 euros (P49 million) in humanitarian aid funds for emergency assistance to civilians affected by the fighting in Marawi.

The fund, which will be channeled through the commission’s European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (Echo), will help address the most pressing needs of a vulnerable population.

“This grant from the European Union will support the delivery of immediate life-saving assistance to those most in need, and contribute to the protection of people affected by the conflict,” said Pedro-Luis Rojo, head of the East, Southeast Asia and Pacific regional office for Echo.

“The unprecedented violence in Marawi has caused tens of thousands of families to flee, leaving everything behind,” he said. “This has triggered a sharp increase in humanitarian needs as many of the displaced people are currently deprived of fundamental means to sustain their day-to-day lives.”

The aid, delivered through an Echo partner, would focus on the provision of crucial support including food, water supply, health care, hygiene kits, sanitation facilities and essential household items as well as ensuring improved protection for the evacuees.

Zorahayda Taha, regional director of the Department of Social Welfare and Development in Central Mindanao, said the people of Marawi needed all the help they could get.

Taha said government agencies would make sure that aid and services would reach the displaced residents of Marawi. —Allan Nawal, Richel Umel, Jeoffrey Maitem