Peace Village III: Key Activities

Kids Commit to Peace

Conflicts are often inevitable, but violence is not. Day-to-day realities at home, in school, and in the community, impress upon the children the opposite message – that dispute and violence come together. This fosters the culture of violence.

A Peace Village activity has aimed to help the children unlearn this message. What’s worth noting was the manner of doing it - a process that encouraged active, experiential and participatory learning. Grade IV and V Makabayan pupils were asked to prepare for and present a play using mime as art form. Three scenes of conflict and violence were enacted by the young cast, moving mutely around a common theme – violence makes a loser out of every protagonist. Nobody wins.

While drawing lessons from the play, the facilitator would ask the children to share acts of violence that they themselves experienced and observed. Some kids took easy time relating with some characters portrayed as victims in the mime. The children were aware of the subtle acts of violence that they see or fall victim to, one way or other. The discussion had allowed the children to have a clearer sense of what is good or bad, fair or unfair in situations of conflict, The children were then asked to agree among themselves on what works and what doesn’t in dealing with conflict situations without resort to violence. The top choices were usapan, pulong-pulong, and pamamagitan - dialogue, assembly, and mediation.

Next, the children gathered their ideas into a resolve -- a list of acts they had sworn to do and advocate for as one set of ways to non-violence, like this: Respect self and others; Communicate better; Listen; Forgive; Respect nature; Play creatively; Be courageous. The list was painted on a white streamer.

Then came a moving scene: the young peace advocates sealed their individual commitments when each and everyone of them, Christian, Muslim and Lumad alike, waited for his or her turn to put a palm print on the streamer.

The final gesture saw the children announcing their commitments by marching around the Village with the streamer held aloft, for all the world to see. [top]

Creative Peace Reflection was a two-hour nightly contemplation on peace to cap the day at the Peace Village. The children shared their musings on peace and recalled experiences on violence and how these affected them and their families.

The sessions aimed to bring out ingrained fears of violence and feelings toward peace as an exercise in self-awareness. The sessions also allowed the children to contemplate on how they can share in creating a culture of peace. They took a look at the current peace initiatives in their schools and communities and how these affect them. [top]

The Journey To Peace was an uphill climb, in the literal sense.. It started with children and their teachers climbing the 243 steps to Dapit Alim in Tubod, Lanaao del Norte, overlooking Panguil Bay.

Dapit is a Cebuano word for "place"; it also means “invitation” or “nearness”. Alim means “to heal”. Dapit Alim is well known in Mindanao as a place for healing.

The serenity of the place allowed the participants the opportunity to commune with God and nature. The sessions facilitated by a Catholic priest gave time for lectures that transcended culture and religion. Ample singing, dancing and relaxation exercises punctuated the sessions. [top]

Art has often served on many occasions, not only as a form of creative expression, but as a tool to bring people together.

Peace Art has always been one of the kids’ favorites since the First Northern Mindanao Peace Village. Here, the children are given the opportunity to draw a visual representation of their personal definitions of peace and their visions of a peaceful world.

The children are allowed to work on their own with very minimal supervision from the teachers to give full play to their creative expression, if not to bring out the artist in them. [top]

The Peace Village is a community of mixed faith and culture, reflecting the cultural diversity in Mindanao or in the whole country, for that matter. Three groups of people coexist in the community – the Christians, the Muslims and the Lumads. In celebrating this diversity, the Village has chosen to live by the words of the United Nations when it said:

“Cultural diversity is a source of exchange, innovation and creativity; it is therefore as necessary for humankind as biodiversity is for nature. In this sense,it is the common heritage of humanity and should be recognized and affirmed for the benefit of present and future generations.”

The Peace Village showcased the different cultures of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao by reliving their widely known practices. [top]

The Shower of Peace is an early morning ritual for the peace advocates who would gather together and enjoy a shower that symbolizes the cleansing of prejudices and “sinful” feelings against peace. The symbolic activity also gave them a fresh start for another day of sharing and learning from one another. [top]

The Learning Hubs combined learning and fun. They had given venue for activities that allowed ample space for children to explore, express themselves, discover and learn with fellow learners. The hubs for the major learning areas focussed on activities that sought to blend peace education with curricular content.

Sample activities included hands-on, interactive demonstration of science tools to encourage out-of-the-box thinking; innovative and challenging math puzzles and games; poetry, essay and script writing on peace; tour of a mini-museum showcasing cultural diversity and Filipino values; and many more.  [top]

ALIVE is short for Arabic Language and Islamic Values Education, a peace-learning hub with a pedagogical twist. Christian children and teachers who came to visit the ALIVE hut were treated to a taste of Muslim living. The place offered the chance to dress, eat, sing and dance like a real Maranao.

Upon entering the hub, you are asked to don an authentic Maranao attire. You are then invited to feast on a variety of Maranao delicacies. The musically inclined may try playing Maranao musical instruments. Or, you may try taking some graceful steps to the beat of kapangalilang. And for good measure, you are briefed on the basics of Islam and Muslim culture.

It’s learning it by “living it”. [top]

Children, it is often said, “learn responsibility best and gain a sense of moral values by discussing, with good guidance, real and controversial issues.”

The Village offered a forum for such discussion by way of the Youth Peace Congress.

Young peace advocates representing Christians, Muslims and the indigenous people gathered together to exchange views on key issues of peace and conflict, agree on solutions, and resolve to abide by them. A peace pact among the members of the youth congress documented their resolve to work for peace.

Following the lead of the Peace Congress occasioned by the 2nd NM Peace Village, the recent Congress has aimed to let the children through the experience of addressing issues of peace and violence which simulate real ones.

From the actual process of “doing” it, the children are allowed to think critically and articulate their ideas freely, develop positive approaches to dealing with conflicts, and develop the skills for harmonious social interactions amid diversity.

The congressional “peace sessions” were preceded by the swearing into post of the newly elected officers of the Youth Peace Advocates Organization of Northern Mindanao, representing the various schools divisions from Region X of the DepEd.

The organization’s new officers crafted the peace pact that was later presented to DepED Regional Director Estrella Babano. [top]