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Marawi evacuees start returning home

John Unson - Philstar.com

October 29, 2017 | 8:05am

Hundreds of evacuees continue to be housed for almost five months now in a multi-purpose hall at Balo-i township, Lanao del Norte province after fleeing the besieged city of Marawi Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2017 in southern Philippines. There was joy among the evacuees at news of the two Muslim militant leaders Isnilon Hapilon and Omarkhayam Maute involved in the siege were killed by Philippine troops Monday. AP Photo/Bullit Marquez

LANAO DEL SUR — Displaced Maranaos started returning on Sunday to villages in Marawi City that they were forced to abandon on May 23.

Assemblyman Zia Alonto Adiong of the 24-seat Regional Assembly in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao told The STAR on Sunday that authorities have allowed the return of evacuees to areas declared safe by security advisers, among them bomb disposal experts.

“Residents of Barangay Basak Malutlut started returning to their homes today, October 29,” said Adiong, spokesman of the Lanao del Sur provincial crisis management committee.

Marawi City is the political and administrative capital of Lanao del Sur, which has 39 towns.

It was in Barangay Basak Malutlut were government forces and combined Maute and Abu Sayyaf gunmen first clashed on May 23, sparking a conflict that lasted until October 23.

“We are thankful to the office of Marawi Mayor Majul Gandamra and all other agencies and cause-oriented groups helping return evacuees to Marawi City,” Adiong said.

READ: More than 2,000 bombs, IEDs recovered in Marawi

The Western Mindanao Command and the Police Regional Office-ARMM have allowed the return of evacuees to areas already inspected by bomb disposal teams.

Bomb experts are still deactivating improvised explosive devices and collecting unexploded ordnance, such as mortar projectiles and artillery rounds, scattered in some still critical areas.

“We cannot compromise the safety of the returning evacuees. We have to protect them from possible accidents,” Lt. General Carlito Galvez, Jr., commander of WestMinCom, told The STAR via mobile phone on Sunday.

READ: Scenarios drawn from death of Marawi siege leaders

Adiong said the provincial crisis management committee is grateful to the WestMinCom and the ARMM police for cooperating in ensuring the safe sojourn of evacuees to their abandoned homes.

“We are also thankful to different government agencies and non-government cause-oriented groups helping these evacuees,” Adiong said.

Adiong said among the entities actively helping them is the Humanitarian Emergency Assistance and Response Team under the office of ARMM Gov. Mujiv Hataman.

“Credit also has to go to the World Food Programme of the United Nations for helping feed evacuees, particularly displaced Maranao school children through a feeding program of ARMM’s education department,” Adiong said.