MARAWI CITY – 5 more trapped civilians were able to escape to a safe zone here in the city. The civilians are all Christians and were trapped at Brgy. Daguduban where they work since the start of the conflict.
The civilians are all working as carpenters under the employment of a Maranao Muslim.
Arnold, one of the civilians reiterated that their employer let them escape and tried to talk with the Maute Group, “Nagpaiwan ang boss namin para kami ay makatakas at kausapin ang Maute, pero kinuha siya nung grupo,” he said.
The civilians also recounted their struggles in escaping the conflict area. They have to swim the Agos River to cross to the safer side of the city.
Salic Mai, a Peace Corridor volunteer and member of the Non-Violent Peace force has been coordinating with the civilians since the start of the conflict. Peace Corridor volunteers since then have been monitoring their location.
The peace volunteers – called the Joint Coordination, Monitoring, and Assistance Center (JCMAC) – provided guidance to the civilians on how they can safely escape the conflict area. The civilians were given directions to wave a white flag with the word ‘civilians’ written on it while they transfer to a safer place.
The JCMAC also facilitated the coordination with the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police regarding their exact location in the conflict area, this is to spare them from military offensives against the Maute Group.
On 29 May 2017, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte approved the creation of the Peace Corridor. It is being implemented by the government and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). It was established in the three-kilometer Bangolo Bridge to the Quezon Avenue to allow retrieval operations.
The JCMAC was able to rescue 179 trapped women, men, children and elderly during its first attempt in 4 June 2017.
On its second attempt on Thursday, it was able to bring 38 more civilians to safety.
From 11-12 June 2017, the JCMAC were able retrieve 19 more people – making it a total of 236 saved people.
