“The government prioritized infrastructure and tourism projects such as the Ferris wheel overlooking Lanao Lake over helping displaced families return and rebuild their homes."

“This is no longer a delay—this is injustice!”

CAGAYAN DE ORO — More than 120 families displaced by the five-month battle in Marawi in 2017 are facing eviction from their temporary shelter in Barangay Pindolonan, Saguiaran, Lanao del Sur.

The Reclaiming Marawi Movement (RMM), a group advocating for the immediate return of the Marawi Siege victims, is pushing for a dialogue with the landowner to allow the 129 families to stay under favorable terms.

Ramadan Muntor, RMM coordinator, told Bulatlat that the displaced families living in the Bakwit Village in Barangay Pindolonan—a few kilometers away from Marawi City—were initially given until April 28. Prior to this, however, they were told by the landowner’s relative that they were required to pay rent if they chose to stay.

They reportedly need to pay around P1,000 (US$16.48) to P1,500 (US$24.71) per month, excluding the P180 (US$2.97) monthly electricity bill—an amount they could barely afford.

On Saturday, May 9, the displaced families and the landowner will meet to discuss the matter, Muntor said. Their main appeal now is to have an affordable monthly rental fee, as many of them have yet to receive their compensation from the government.

Read:Group opposes Marawi Siege compensation planned changes

Eviction from temporary shelters has been a major concern of Marawi internally displaced persons (IDPs), as lease agreements between the government and private landowners in 2017 would only last for five years. Hence, most of them, according to RMM, are now paying rent.

The Marawi Siege will be in its ninth year on May 23.

In September 2023, more than 200 displaced families living in the temporary shelter in Barangay Rorogagus, Marawi City, faced eviction. Displaced families living in the Boganga Lake View Shelter also reportedly received notices in the same month, asking them to look for a new location.

Read:Gov’t urged to take action as Marawi internal refugees face eviction

Muntor said they monitored 13 temporary shelters that are currently occupied by more or less 16,000 displaced families from 24 most affected areas during the siege. Two of these shelters were situated outside Marawi.

Overall, over 77,000 families were displaced by the Marawi crisis, according to the data from the now-defunct Task Force Bangon Marawi.

The Moro-Christian Peoples Alliance (MCPA), a group advocating for Moro people’s rights, slammed the Ferdinand Marcos Jr. leadership, including the administration of former President Rodrigo Duterte, for its failure to resolve the displacement crisis.

“The government prioritized infrastructure and tourism projects such as the Ferris wheel overlooking Lanao Lake over helping displaced families return and rebuild their homes,” said Amirah Ali Lidasan, MCPA secretary general, demanding a stop to any eviction.

“This is no longer a delay—this is injustice!” she added.

Asnaynie Macabando, an internally displaced person (IDP) living in a temporary shelter in Marawi City, shares the dire situation of IDP communities during a public hearing held by the Ad Hoc Committee on Marawi Rehabilitation and Victims’ Compensation of the House of Representatives in Marawi City on June 4, 2024. Photo by Franck Dick Rosete/Bulatlat

Read:Marawi Siege displaced families still in temporary shelters after 8 years

Lidasan stressed that the dire situation of IDP communities in Marawi should be treated as a critical issue to discuss in the first parliamentary election in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) in September.

Asked if there were provisions for permanent shelters, the RMM coordinator said the displaced families have always been told to wait for updates. “The problem is, how long will they wait?” Muntor asked.

Bulatlat emailed the BARMM’s Ministry of Human Settlements and Development on Monday, May 4, to obtain current figures of permanent shelters, including their occupied and vacant units. There was no response as of this posting.

RMM has been campaigning for Kambalingan—a Meranaw term for voluntary, safe, and dignified return—of IDP communities. If the return to their original homes is impossible, Muntor, as an IDP himself, stressed that displaced families should be provided with “livable” shelters.

“How can we be called Meranaw if we are not in our own community?” he pointed out. (RVO)

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