Helping Children Learn in Safe Environments Amidst Emergencies
by Save the Children
In May 2017, ISIS-inspired local extremist armed groups entered Marawi City in Lanao del Sur and engaged the Philippine military in urban warfare, which lasted for 5 months. The conflict seriously disrupted the lives of the Maranaos living in the city. It caused massive displacement; deaths; and significant damage to property, livelihoods, and public facilities such as schools, hospitals, and rural health centres. The displacements, in particular, negatively impacted the learning continuity and psychosocial well-being of over 33,000 school children.
One month after the end of the conflict, the Child Protection Rapid Assessment Task Force, a cooperation of several child rights organisations in the Philippines, gave a glimpse of the risks faced by the children of Marawi — including separation from their families, gender-based violence, exploitation, and environmental risks. They also came up with recommendations to protect the children and alleviate their suffering.
Their plight moved Save the Children Philippines (SCP) and Plan International Philippines (Plan) to join forces in May 2018 and respond to the crisis. With support from Education Pathways to Peace in Mindanao, a 9-year cooperation on peacebuilding and education between the governments of Australia and Philippines, SCP and Plan formed a consortium and partnered with 4 local non-government organisations to implement a project called Integrated and Inclusive Conflict-Sensitive Protection and Education for Children in Mindanao (iCOPE).
Working with the Maranao People Development Center, Inc., Balay Rehabilitation, Inc., Ranao Women and Children’s Resource Center, Inc., and Teach Peace Build Peace Movement, the consortium helped achieve or recover the children’s access to conflict-sensitive, culturally appropriate education and child protection services in safe and protective environments. They also worked closely with the then-Department of Education of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, which later became the Ministry of Basic, Higher and Technical Education of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. The project ran from May 2018 to November 2019 in 10 previously abandoned villages and schools in Marawi City and 3 municipalities in Lanao del Sur to where the residents returned after the conflict — ultimately benefiting 13,043 people.
Safe Spaces for Conflict-affected Children and Women
One of the most immediate and visible outcomes of the iCOPE project was the establishment of temporary learning spaces in 4 damaged schools, allowing the children to continue their studies. Larger than their regular classrooms and already equipped with furniture, these spaces made the children and their teachers feel safe and comfortable. [1] Meanwhile, the project also provided 10 child- and women-friendly spaces to address and prevent violence, abuse, neglect, and exploitation among the affected residents, especially girls and young women.
iCOPE also gave psychological first aid and psychosocial support services to the children and women occupying these safe spaces, as well as the wider population.
On the other hand, iCOPE gave the education authorities technical assistance on disaster risk reduction and management, while helping the community establish formal and informal child protection mechanisms, to ensure the children’s safety and uninterrupted education in emergencies.
Children and Youth as Peace Advocates in Their Communities
The project developed local youth and adult peace champions and held a Peace Festival where they, especially the learners, expressed their messages of peace and unity through music, poetry, visual arts, and theatre. Through various other peacebuilding activities, children and young people also learned about the Islamic concept of peace, how conflict starts, and how it is managed. There were also peace camps and interfaith dialogues for children and young people aged 13 to 24 years, which helped them understand the importance of breaking the cycle of religious bias and prejudice, for instance, between Christians and Muslims.
A Father’s Wish
Fast-forward to 2023, many problems resulting from the conflict in Marawi remain unaddressed. Most of the displaced families are still living in relocation sites. Life, however, is slowly getting back to normal.
A former member of the Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces (BIAF), the armed wing of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, who asked to be called Nashib or Nash, wished that peace would be as simple as wiping away the terror and misery brought about by armed conflict. A Moro fighter for 25 years, Nash said he has never experienced having a permanent house he could call home. ‘I haven’t given my wife and children a decent life, as we frequently moved from one place to another because of my obligations as a freedom fighter,’ he said. This former fighter also lamented the fact that conflict-affected children fail to experience the true essence of life.
‘There are a lot of children who witness first-hand people dying because of armed conflict. Children deserve to play outdoors without fear in their hearts. We must do something about this,’ he told SCP during a training session on the culture of peace and conflict resolution for community leaders. Enlisting as a peace champion or advocate, Nash admitted that joining the training was a breakthrough for him because he never thought he would ever learn conflict management techniques. Also serving as a religious leader in his community in Marawi City at the time he joined the project as a peace champion, Nash hoped that someday, armed conflicts would soon end, especially for the children who are the most vulnerable.
‘This is what BIAF soldiers desire as well — to resolve conflicts in the communities. We have the same dream,’ he concluded.