The facility is the country’s first “peace center” seen to build bridges of understanding and support for former rebels who have chosen the path of peace and reconciliation, while also providing them with the necessary resources and opportunities to reintegrate into society successfully.
Agusan del Norte Governor Maria Angelica Rosedell Amante, lawyer Elisa D. Evangelista-Lapiña, OPAPRU Director for Eastern Mindanao, along with Caraga Police Regional Director Brigadier General Kirby Kraft and its military counterpart, including officials from Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the Regional Task Force-Ending Local Communist Armed Conflict led the ribbon-cutting ceremony on Wednesday (Sept. 20) at the Camp Bancasi, Butuan City.
Agusan del Norte Governor Maria Angelica Rosedell Amante in a statement said that the "Kagawasan 143” would take the lead in coordinating the broader implementation of provincial peace-building initiatives, programs, and measures.
“This coordination will be directed toward streamlining the delivery of fundamental services and social interventions for FRs, their families, and the wider communities,” Amante said.
She said the peace center’s primary purpose is “to provide comprehensive support to former rebels, their families, and the communities they belong to."
This endeavor, according to her aligns with and bolsters the ongoing peace initiatives within the province, including the ECLIP (Enhanced-Comprehensive and Local Integration Program).
The launching was part of OPAPRU’s celebration of the 2023 National Peace Consciousness Month. The program’s concept was patterned after Davao City’s Peace 911 where it serves a processing of hub and point of coordination of various projects, programs, and services intended to the former rebels.
Lapiña, OPAPRU Director for Eastern Mindanao, for her part, said the “Kagawasan 143" would serve as a hub for community engagement, where Friends Rescued (FRs) can come together to discuss and address local issues, share ideas, and build a stronger, more cohesive community.
She added that OPAPRU would closely collaborate with the “Kagawasan 143” Peace Center that would actively support and engage in peacebuilding initiatives within the city, and the province of Agusan del Norte working closely with grassroots organizations, local organizations, the academe, and other government agencies to promote conflict resolution and social harmony.
The establishment and inauguration of the peace center represent a pivotal moment in OPAPRU Eastern Mindanao’s ongoing efforts to foster unity, harmony, and stability in the Caraga region.
OPAPRU vowed to transfer P5-million to initially fund the operations of the Kagawasan 143 Peace Center that would strengthen the implementation of the OPAPRU’s Localized Peace Engagements Cluster's Transformation Program in the province.
The peace center will assume the crucial roles of supervision, evaluation, execution, and monitoring of the Transformation Program. This comprehensive program is built on four major pillars: Security, Confidence-Building Measures, Healing and Reconciliation, and Socio-Economic development.
OPAPRU, on the otherhand, handed over 500 rice sacks to former rebels who are residing at the Agusan del Norte’s Halfway House Livelihood Training Center located in Brgy. Bancasi in Butuan City.
Photo from OPAPRU
Facebook Conversations