Looking after their own in Patikul Milwida M Guevara Philippine Daily Inquirer
February 28, 2010
(Editor’s note: The author, a Haydee Yorac Award recipient, is president of Synergeia Foundation. After head teacher Bong Cañizares was kidnapped and beheaded in Patikul, Jolo, the foundation suspended its teacher-training project and program for out-of-school youth in Jolo. Last week, she made a trip to Patikul and saw first-hand what the community has been doing to keep its teachers safe so they could continue teaching Patikul’s children in school. In the face of the parents’ determination and bravery, Ms Guevara says, Synergeia has resumed its operations in Jolo. It does take a village.)
THE schools in Patikul remained closed after the death of head teacher Bong Cañizares.
It was as if the children and teachers were mourning his loss. But it was also because the teachers were afraid to go to school. They were afraid for their safety.
Since there were no teachers in school, the children were forced to miss their classes. The children had no books and other reading materials at home, which meant they had no opportunity to learn their lessons.
The children from Sulu are already the poorest performers in the country, with a 37.0 percent average score in the National Achievement Test. With almost all the children involuntarily dropping out of school, their situation was bound to worsen. The ultimate victims of atrocities are the children.
The parents asked the teachers to go back to school. In turn, the principals and supervisors of the teachers sought the help of the municipal mayor to guarantee their safety.
The mayor asked the military to send soldiers to Patikul to look after the security of teachers. The military appreciated the problem but had other equally important priorities and was not able to provide the needed guarantee.
Ghost town
So it happened that the schools remained closed until the early part of January. No paper-stars were hung in classroom windows in celebration of Christmas. It was an eerie feeling to see the schools as empty as ghost towns.
And then the parents said “Enough!” They could not allow the situation to go on. One parent said, “Wala ng laman ang utak ng anak ko (There is no learning happening in my child’s head).”
The parents held a meeting with the barangay captains. Initially, they were angry. Then, they felt despondent. Eventually, they realized that if no help was coming from outside their communities, they would have to step up to the task.
But what could they do? They were also afraid. Each of them had to work to earn a living. The farmers had no one to look after the carabaos, goats, plants and chickens. But a decision had to be made.
Choosing education
They listened to their hearts. Which is more important to them: the education of their children or earning their daily wage?
The parents unanimously chose education of their children. They want their children to have a better life than they have.
“Sana po hindi sila maging mahirap katulad ko (My hope is they won’t be poor like me),” said a parent.
The parents and barangay officials organized themselves into convoys to serve as security for teachers from the jeep terminal in Jolo, the capital of the province, to their schools every morning.
The parents converged again at 3 p.m. to escort the teachers from their schools back to Jolo.
Everyday.
Bravely, the parents and barangay officials would ride several motorcycles, some ahead and some following the jeepneys ferrying the teachers.
One parent fearlessly said he was now offering his life to guarantee the safety of the teachers.
The parents believed that their banding together was a strong proof that that the community was committed to look after its own.
Heroism is far from the thoughts of parents and barangay officials. It is the love for their children and their teachers that is the source of their strength.
“They would have to harm us before they could harm our teachers!” one barangay official said.
Patikul will be remembered for the sad fate that befell Principal Cañizares. But this remote town in Sulu should also be remembered for the heroism of its parents. If only for this, Principal Cañizares did not die in vain.
