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Singled
out among the poorest and most disadvantaged among the rural poor
are the upland and hilly land farm families who are usually referred
to as those “who live at the top or beyond the foot of the
mountains.” Disadvantaged because they are usually prone to
both natural (e.g. drought, flash flood) and man-made calamities
(e.g. Mindanao conflict).
When El Niño took its toll in
Mindanao in 1998, many of the upland farmers in the hardest hit
provinces resorted to eating an indigenous and poisonous root crop
“kayos”. Unprepared for the long drought, said upland
residents mostly belonging to cultural communities were left with
very little choice as to their coping strategies in meeting their
family’s food needs. Hence, some have died as a result of
eating the poisonous “kayos.”
On the other hand, sustainable development
in Mindanao cannot proceed unless the peace and order problem in
the area is addressed. Recognizing the need to achieve long lasting
peace, the government had to exhaust all its efforts to limit the
capability of lawless elements and rebel forces to mount terroristic
activities and harassments against peace-loving civilians in Mindanao.
It is along this line of thought that the government had to resort
to an offensive measure in order to ensure lasting peace in the
area. However, mounting an offensive against rebel forces is not
without costs, material and non-material. Among the consequences
of war are: human lives lost; farms temporarily abandoned; house
destroyed; and emotional distress of the victims.
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