Education for peace in Mindanao

The peace in Mindanao is said to be impossible if there is no economic development, if people there are hungry. Peace and development go together, like a horse and carriage. People like to talk about peace, but they don’t realize that Muslims living in poverty cannot eat peace; they need jobs, food, shelter, a decent existence. With the government and non-governmental organizations launching programs to promote peace and development in Mindanao, there might yet be hope for a better life for the Muslims and other ethnic groups.

But there is yet another way to achieve peace in Mindanao – through education. Presidential Assistant for Education Mona D. Valisno says, "Through education, any resistance and conflict in beliefs, cultural practices, religion and perceptions of development can easily be amended, harmonized and unified."

Mona sees the realization of 30 years of efforts towards peace in the recent imple-mentation of the main-streaming of the Madrasah educational system within the national educational curriculum. The activity is a "prelude" to President Maca-pagal-Arroyo’s vision for Mindanao, the President, according to Mona, has emphasized that "education is the only long-lasting persuasive and integrative strategy towards improving the human resource capabilities of the Mindanaons. In this regard, the recognition and mainstreaming of the Madaris, not only in Mindanao, but in the whole Philippine archipelago, is a cost-effective way of fast-tracking and sustaining the development of the Muslim communities."

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Mona describes the Madrasah or Madaris educational system as giving the Muslim child his first educational experience, wherein he is first taught the basic tenets of Islam. Islam being a religion and a way of life, the child is taught the rudiments of social responsibilities and societal privileges. He is also given citizenship training and made aware of his duties and responsibilities as a citizen of the Philippines, as well as how to live harmoniously with other tribes. Through the Madrasah, he is taught leadership and trained to become future leaders in the propagation of Islam, as well as of tier communities.

However, says Mona, the present role of Madrasah education for peace and development has yet "to be fully optimized or tapped for sustained implementation and adoption. It can play a very potent ‘catalyzing’ role of empowering the Muslim people towards nationalistic sensitivity and loyalty. The various commentaries published against the Madrasah clearly shows that indeed its potential is recognized thus the negative statements and that to some extent express the apprehensions of its being wrongly utilized like breeding terrorism."

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But Mona is convinced that Madrasah, and the national government’s education can accommodate diverse ethnic traditions and promote the social transformation vital to the preservation, practice, and transmission of cherished Filipino values and culture inclusive of all ethnic tribes like the Ilocanos, Cebuanos, Tagalog, Waray, Maguindanao, Tausug, Maranao, Bagobos, Tirurays, Yakans and all others generally categorized as Christians, Muslims, and Indigenous Peoples.

To improve access of all disadvantaged sectors to quality, relevant and responsive system of education, President Macapagal-Arroyo launched the program "Edukasyon para sa Kapayapaan at Kaunlaran sa Mindanao," which has a five-point agenda, namely, Information and Communication Technology, Madrasah Education, Peace Education, Mindanao Cultures and History, and Teacher Training.

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The mainstreaming of the Madrasah curriculum reinforces Letter of Instruction No. 1221 addressed to the Ministry of Education "to formulate and adopt a program for the development of the Madrasah system of education and its gradual integration into the mainstream of the Philippine education system, endowing them with the capabilities to contribute to the modernization of (Muslim) communities within the framework of their Islamic faith." This LOI is dated March 1982.

Under President Macapagal-Arroyo, a new initiative has been formulated. With the approval of Republic Act 9054, an act to strengthen and expand the Organic Act for the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, the President champions the promotion of Madrasah, emphasizing upgrading the knowledge and skills in the sciences, math, English and information and communication technology.

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From the foregoing, it seems Madrasah is sought to be upgraded and improved to make Muslim students better prepared for life outside their society and live in harmony with non-Muslims. But what about non-Muslim students? What changes are being made in the present curriculum to make them understand, respect and appreciate Islam culture and practices, and live harmoniously with their non-Christian brothers and sisters?

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On Tuesday noon, July 2, the Bulong-Pulungan forum at the Westin Philippine Plaza will feature Dr. Mona Valisno, Presidential Assistant for Education, and Saeed A. Daof, director general of the Center for the Promotion of Peace and Development of Mindanao. Come with your questions on winning the peace in Mindanao.