The
displaced families took shelter at the provincial sports center
in Tandag City, where they are finding it difficult to meet
their basic needs, having had to leave everything behind. (photo
by NC-ND /ICRC / R. Ang). |
2,700 evacuees in
Surigao del Sur receive aid
By
ICRC
September 10, 2015
MANILA – Around 2,700
people fled their homes in Surigao del Sur, Eastern Mindanao, in the
aftermath of armed violence last week. To support them, the International
Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the Philippine Red Cross (PRC)
provided relief items on 8 September.
The displaced families,
mostly from Lianga and San Miguel municipalities, took shelter at the
provincial sports centre in Tandag City, where they are finding it
difficult to meet their basic needs, having had to leave everything
behind.
“We abandoned our home out
of fear,” said 39-year-old Lita Tejero, a mother of eight, from San
Agustin municipality. “Life at the evacuation centre is hard. We rely
on aid. The unpredictable weather is also a concern.”
Working closely together,
the ICRC and the PRC distributed household items, such as jerrycans,
blankets and sleeping mats, and hygiene kits to ease the plight of
evacuees. The PRC has also set up a soup kitchen, serving hot meals to
evacuees once a day.
“Armed violence often
results in the displacement of civilians, including women and
children. Away from their homes, they must subsist in fear and
uncertainty. We hope that normality will soon return to the areas
allowing the displaced families to go back to their homes,” said
Timothy Yates, head of the ICRC sub-delegation in Mindanao.
The ICRC reminds all parties
to the armed violence of the need to respect human life and dignity at
all times. Civilians “regardless of their religion, ethnic group,
gender or political beliefs” and their property must be spared from
the violence.
The ICRC is a neutral,
impartial and independent humanitarian organization whose mandate is
to protect and assist people affected by armed conflict and other
situations of violence. It has had an established presence in the
Philippines for over 60 years and a permanent presence in Mindanao
since 1986.