UN condemns shooting of Pinoy driver

MANILA, Philippines - The United Nation’s World Food Program ( WFP) condemned yesterday the killing of the Filipino driver of a truck laden with food supplies for displaced families in Lanao del Sur.

“WFP strongly deplores this act of wanton violence that has led to the tragic and senseless loss of life of an individual who was helping in the delivery of humanitarian assistance,” the international aid agency said in a statement.

WFP country director Stephen Anderson had said the driver was a local hire and not a full-time employee of the WFP, the world’s largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide.

Anderson said the WFP is working with all concerned government authorities who are investigating the incident.

“As of press time, based on the evidence on the ground, WFP is treating this incident as an isolated case, and will do everything possible to ensure that operations in Central Mindanao will not be hampered,” he said.

“WFP staff are in touch with the family of the bereaved and are extending the necessary support in their time of grief,” Anderson said.

WFP, in partnership with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), has been providing food assistance to vulnerable populations displaced by the conflict in Mindanao since 2006 with relatively minimal security incidents compared to the scale of operations.

The organization currently distributes approximately 2,000 tons of food a month, or an average of 100 truck deliveries per month, mainly for livelihood programs targeted to food-insecure populations who were displaced by the upsurge in conflict in 2008 and 2009 and have now largely returned to their places of origin. – Helen Flores, Pia Lee-Brago