Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Judy M. Taguiwalo today said that she will instruct all regional directors of the department’s field offices (FOs) all over the country to monitor more closely the situation faced by Filipinos taking refuge in evacuation areas because of natural disasters and/or man-made calamities.

She said that the DSWD’s FOs should find means to assist  refugees in whatever they can, and said that the department will also coordinate with other government agencies on the same.

Sec. Taguiwalo was moved by reports regarding a two-year old Manobo child who  died of pneumonia last Friday at an evacuation camp  in Bukidnon, Malaybalay City.  The boy was among the  150 Lumads who were forced to leave their community when they were attacked by  paramilitary forces led by Alde “Butsoy” Salusad earlier last month.

According to reports from the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines, two-year old  Charwin Amas had been suffering from diarrhea before he fell ill from pneumonia at the camp. The group also reported that 13 other children have also become sick, as well as   17 women, five of whom are pregnant.

“At the onset, the DSWD-Field Office X will assist the family by providing burial assistance for Charwin. We are also now coordinating with health authorities on how to help the other children and the women who have also fallen ill. As a welfare agency, our mandate is to contribute to over-all efforts of the national government to alleviate the poverty of Filipinos and to provide immediate assistance in times of emergency.  Employees and staff of all DSWD units are all social workers either by profession, training, or by orientation; this means that we must all be conscious of our duty to be compassionate to those in need and to exercise what powers are within our means to give that compassion and to be of service to the needy,” Sec. Taguiwalo emphasized.

Sec. Taguiwalo also reiterated her stand that all displaced Lumad citizens should be given the assistance they need so they can return safely to their communities and restore their traditional way of life.

“We are working full-time on plans to help the Lumads currently in evacuation areas to return to the ancestral lands and communities where we will also build schools for the children and help the parents return to their traditional farming and cultivation activities. These efforts are in coordination with the Department of Education and other agencies,” she said. ###