Local Peace Zones

Madelene A. Sta. Maria

Introduction

A study of the Peace Zones as special areas of development may provide us with valuable

insights into the processes undertaken to provide communities with resources and

capabilities for economic, social, and political growth. These zones, being the locus

where the roots of conflict are to be addressed, present to us a venue where improved

governance may be observed and investigated. It is likewise to be noted that these Peace

Zones have been declared through people's initiatives. Such an act necessitates a degree

of community organization that makes consensus possible regarding the analyses of

prevailing conditions and desired goals. With this important facet existing in these

communities, we may now also be able to study how non-governmental organizational

aspects and entities interact with governmental functions in addressing the developmental

needs of a particular community. The aim of the present case study is to present the

dynamics of such an interaction in a selected Peace Zone area so that an understanding

may be obtained regarding governance through the mediation of civil society

organizational activities and goals.

In previous studies on the Tulunan Peace Zones, analyses are confined to the events that

preceded and accompanied the declaration of the Peace Zones (e.g. Montiel and Briones,

1995; Gastardo-Conaco and Lee,1994). Of greater significance in these studies is the

participation of community, church and government leadership in the establishment of

the Peace Zone. The emergent values and the process of moral persuasion that the

concept of the Peace Zone was likewise of greater interest in these studies (see also Lee,

1994). Little attention was given to the nature of government and organizational activities

within the area that relate to its status as a zone for peace and development.

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The interaction between CSOs and government institutions/agents in the Peace Zones

may be viewed from two levels. These levels relate to the status accorded by the

governments to these Zones or communities. The Peace Zones may be recognized as

peace constituencies, and may thus be seen by the government as instrumental to the

promotion of peace in the country. The government agency the directly coordinates with

organized bodies within Peace Zone areas for the maintenance of and advocacy for peace

is the Office of the Presidential Adviser for the Peace Process (OPAPP). Representatives

from the OPAPP conduct regular visits to these areas to monitor developments, and assist

when conflicts arise in the communities. The Peace Zones are also accorded the status of

special development areas, and as such, these communities are treated as sites where

roots of non-peace may be addressed through the implementation of development

projects. The National Program for Unification and Development Council, created by

then President Ramos in September 1993 through an executive order, was tasked with the

formulation and supervision of program packages for these communities which are now

known to be Special Peace and Development Areas. CSO activities in the area are

predominantly directed toward addressing the needs of the communities as special zones

of development, rather than toward engaging the community in the promotion of peace-

building efforts within the country.

In order to capture the nature of the interplay between government and non-government

activities and functioning in the Tulunan Peace Zone Area, date were obtained through

individual and group interviews with church leaders and church workers, community

members and leaders, government officials, and non-government organization officers

and staff members. Information was likewise taken from official documents from the

municipal office on the Peace Zone projects, and from documents from the Tulunan Zone

of Peace Foundation. Three field visits were undertaken to gather data: from the 24th to

the 28th of June 1999, from the 17th to the 21st of September 1999, and from the 3rd to the

6th of February 2000.

Focused on in the study are two Zones of Peace located in the municipality of Tulunan, in

the northern part of Mindanao province of Cotabato. These Peace Zones of Sitio New

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Alimodian and Barangay Bituan are located in the eastern portion of the municipality.

Together, the Peace Zones of New Alimodian and Bituan comprise ca. 5% of the total

land area of Tulunan. New Alimodian was created as sitio of Barangay Banayal in 1969,

when people from the Barangay proper transferred to the area because of armed conflicts.

New Alimodian is presently composed of 129 households. Barangay Bituan is settled by

Ilonggo migrants from Miagao, Iloilo who make up a total of ca. 118 households. The

minimum number of children per family is 5, while the maximum is 13 to 15.

The residents of New Alimodian and Bituan engage in farming with rice, corn and

peanuts as the main crops planted and produced. The average annual income per

household is P 15,000. As a source of secondary income, some of them engage in poultry

and hog raising as the most common form of backyard livestock raising. The majority of

residents earn from P 2,500 to P 6,000 per hectare per cropping. Most of the residents

make use of their own resources in financing their farm expenses since they have no

access to credit facilities and have no chance of availing of different types of credit with

the exception of the credit they may enjoy from the community cooperative stores. The

average farm-size falls within three hectares. The majority of the farmer-residents can be

classified as landowners, acquiring the land by purchase or though squatting. There is a

predominant use of non-mechanized methods of farming, i.e. the use of the carabao-

drawn plow, bolo or the carabao-drawn harrow.

The Tulunan Peace Zones were selected for study because of the existing level of

community organization in the area. This level of community organization has been

achieved through the introduction of Basic Ecclesial Communities (BECs) in these areas

by the Catholic Church. Since the 70s. The Bituan and New Alimodian Peace Zones are

also the present sites for development projects initiated by the only active NGO in the

area, the Tulunan Zone of Peace Foundation (TZPF). The TZPF (known by community

members by the acronym of its Japan-based funding agent, CCWA) is a church-based

non-government organization, i.e. its activities are consistent with the Church's mission

and are supervised by Church leaders. Other CSOs that have entered the area were not

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able to continue their operations and activities mainly because of the lack of Church

backing and support that was necessary to remain active in the communities.

The marked visibility of the Church leadership in the area is attributable to the significant

role it played in protecting the people against violence from the military at the height

armed conflict in the area during the late 80's. Members of the community who were

involved in church activities within the BECs were suspected to be affiliated with or

supportive of the New People's Army (NPA) of the Communist Party and were thus

persecuted. Because of this experience, community members have become distrustful of

government. Government functions are seen to be advantageous or beneficial only in

such instances when there is coordination with or endorsement from church-based leaders

and/or agencies. The CSO participation in governance in the Tulunan Peace Zone is thus

deeply influenced by the nature of leadership exercised by the Church in these

communities.

From our observations of the encounters among the various CSOs, and CSOs with

government, the following outcomes are evident:

1. The nature of the CSO active in the Peace Zone remains to be consistent with

the Church-initiated BEC structure that was put in place during the times

when the political conflict was adversely affecting the people's lives. Two

types of CSOs became distinct: the church-based CSOs and the independent

CSO. An independent CSO is that which administers funds independently

from the Church and minimally consults the Church leadership in the planning

and implementation of its projects. CSO activities that are "independent" are

discontinued when these are not consistent with the programs delivered by the

Church, or do not conform with the practice of consultation and participation

that characterize the BEC formula.

2. Whereas there existed an alienation from and distrust for government before

and shortly after the declaration of the Peace Zones, greater confidence for

government is gradually being experienced as positions in local government

councils are occupied by BEC leaders who also perform leadership roles in

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Peace Zone Coordinating bodies and in the CSO committees. Consequently,

CSO plans and projects are tabled for deliberation in local government council

meetings, and community leaders get familiar with tasks involved in the

implementation of projects at the local government level. At the same time,

government officials at the local community level assume important

responsibilities at the CSO level. Most of the local government council

members who get involved and agree to participate as heads of CSO

committees are also beneficiaries of CSO programs and projects. They

therefor feel that it is only proper that they accept CSO responsibilities being

themselves beneficiaries of these CSO services. Although they are aware of

the advantages of simultaneously holding government and non-government

positions, they see no difference in their tasks. Thus, composition of

leadership in the communities remain unchanged. Participation at the CSO

level occurs largely as a result of a patronage system reinforced by the CSO in

its manner of organizing its delivery of services in the community.

3. Transparency and efficiency in the administration and implementation of

community programs are said to be achieved when these activities are

undertaken within the existing machinery of the Church through its organized

units in the community. Without Church interference, questions may be

legitimately raised about how funds are being spent and about the sincerity of

the project proponents. A mistrust of "outsiders", which was strongly felt

during pre-Peace Zone era continues to be engendered and reinforced. The

Church continues to play its role as a "protector" of the people against the

government and non-government bodies that may "intrude" into the people's

lives and "exploit" them. Members of these communities share this same

sentiment and are mostly wary of government intrusions. When non-

government "outsiders" who have brought in projects that were beneficial to

the communities were constrained to leave (ostensibly by the Left),

community members and leaders find themselves unable to question or

oppose the action. They remain powerless and often report that they are

ignorant about what brought about the unfortunate incident.

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These outcomes can only be understood in the context of how the Peace Zone has

developed from a community that was engaged in a political struggle for its continued

existence. This political struggle was supported and substantiated by the Church which,

at present, continues to closely monitor the community in its socio-economic

rehabilitation. To undertake an examination of this context, a brief history of the Church

presence and the nature of Church leadership will be presented.

The Church Presence in the Tulunan Peace Zone Area

The level of community organization that one may observe in Tulunan is attributable to

the presence of the Gagmay'ng Kristohanong Katilingban (GKK) or the Basic Ecclesial

Communities in the area. The thrust of the Kidapawan diocese, of which the Tulunan

parish is a member, has been focused, since the early 1980's, on the education for justice

and peace. Regular consultations with community residents were undertaken to determine

their present conditions and how they are able to overcome their problems. During these

consultations, inputs were given by church leaders/resource persons about the overall

national situation. This was to provide the people with the opportunity to share their

concerns with others in the community and to unite their interests to address these

concerns.

Communities were and are organized at the barangay level in terms of Kapilyas or

chapels, each consisting of clusters of 10 families. Sunday celebrations are held within

each Kapilya, which is usually done through a bible service presided over by a designated

Kapilya head. The Kapilya also provides the venue for regular discussions on community

concerns. A diocesan general assembly is held every three years wherein the Kapilya

representatives gather to share experiences and plan for activities. These activities include

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leadership programs, family life programs for marital partners and retreats of live-in

seminars for the youth.

The Church became very much a part of the people's lives during the 1980's. A church

activity was also a community activity. The leaders of the church were also the

community leaders. Because many of the church activities involved community building

and immersion into the daily lives of the people, many church leaders were suspected of

sympathizing with or working for the NPA. These leaders were tortured and killed by

fanatic paramilitary groups. Leaders of farmers' organizations who were also closely

involved in various community organizing activities of the Church suffered the same fate.

When the setting up of Peace Zone was being planned, the Tulunan parish priest, Fr. Roni

Villamor, represented the people in their negotiations with the militaary and the

government. The municipal councilor, Joel Villamor, the brother of Fr. Roni, was also

instrumental in the success of the Peace Zone effort through his support for the concept at

the municipal level.

When he assumed his duties as parish priest, Fr. Roni's objective was to make a clear

identity for the Church distinct from the government/military and from the rebel group.

He acknowledged the fact that there were church members who have taken up arms

against the government, but he tried to show that the workers for the Church did not

belong to the same camp -- the Church had different methodology for change.

The Tulunan parish priest enjoyed the full support of the people. He is a most powerful

and influential leader of the community. Stories are told by the people of the heroic acts

of their priests in moments of extreme violence and suffering. Fr. Roni Villamor, known

to be the Father of the Peace Zone, was said to have offered his life to the people. His

successor to the parish, Fr. Toto Buenaflor, the Tulunan parish priest from 1993 to 1997,

is said to have exhibited unselfish and brave actions that demonstrated his commitment to

the people. When the fanatic paramilitary group Tadtad killed and dismembered the body

of the father of the former parish coordinator, Mr. Toto Nim, Fr. Toto was said to be the

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only one who went to the place of death and carried the remains of the dead man with his

bare hands. Fr. Toto was also known to have gone personally to the area where anti-

logging activities were supposed to have taken place, confiscated the logging equipment

and transported the cut trees to the doorsteps of the municipal building as a sign of protest

to these illegal activities. The current heads of the TZPF committees look back at Fr.

Toto's time when it was so much easier to deal with problems in the area because he

would personally take up these matters with the local government officials.

Fr. Toto is the founder of the Tulunan Zone of Peace Foundation (TZPF). He was to have

been mainly responsible for obtaining the funding support from the Japan-based Christian

Children's Welfare Association. The low-profile image of the current parish priest, Fr.

Fred Palomar, is usually compared to the dynamic Fr. Toto. Fr. Fred states that it really is

a matter of a difference in leadership style. Much of Fr. Toto's success as a leader is

being attributed to his being a member of a political clan on North Cotabato, and to the

fact that the Mayor at the time he was parish priest was his cousin. The mayor during Fr.

Toto's stay in the Tulunan parish, Mayor Peñafiel, fully supported the Church-initiated

activities, and was said to have backed many of the Peace Zone programs and to have

consulted directly with the leaders in the Peace Zones.

The most influential leaders in the Peace Zones are those that are closely associated with

the Church. Having experienced the support of their Church leaders in their most trying

moments, the people have given their full support to Church-initiated activities.

Community members are said to show their strength in numbers when mobilized by

Church leaders and organizers. A long caravan of truckloads of people are known to have

been produced through these mobilization efforts.

The Peace Zone as a Zone of Development

A possibility for an improvement in the economic life if the people was seen with the

declaration of the Tulunan Peace Zones as Special Peace and Development Areas

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(SPDAs) in 1993. The Peace Zones in Tulunan were thus to be awarded P 5 million each

for development and livelihood projects. For the first phase of implementation, about half

of the original intended funding have since been spent for various projects and

community needs. These included the setting up or expansion of consumer's stores, the

purchase of farm machineries such as power tillers, rice and corn threshers, and the

purchase of Brahman cows.

Most of these projects have become idle, however, due to lack of additional

capitalization, support technical services and regular monitoring form concerned

agencies. In other cases, the occurrence of natural calamities has caused the failure of

many projects. For example, the implementation of seed and seedling dispersal projects

was a failure due to the rat and black bug infestations brought about by the heavy rains of

the La Niña weather phenomenon. This has caused residents that corruption took place in

various stages in the release of funds for some of these projects, evidenced by the

purchase of unsuitable farm animals and equipment, and the construction of defective

water supply and irrigation structures.

Another significant factor has been cited as having caused the failure of the projects in

the first release of the SPDA funds. This has to do with the lack of preparation on the part

of community members in managing these funds, and the limited time frame imposed by

government agencies in the disbursement of the funds. Community leaders and officers

were not given the necessary training to efficiently handle the funds for the various

proposed projects. The community members did not have a long-term perspective in

determining how the funds may be utilized. They were more pre-occupied with their day-

to-day existence. When the funds were released from the provincial government to the

cooperative stores, the people were not aware and were confused about the requirements.

The implementations of projects were done swiftly, not giving enough time for the

members of the community to learn the skills and to develop a perspective necessary to

handle huge amount of money. There was a seeming urgency to release funds before the

end of the Ramos administration. Project proposals were then hurriedly accomplished so

that funds could be used. As a result, most of the programs implemented were give, for

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example, to corn and peanut producers. Corn seeds were distributed not in time for the

planting season. The Brahman cows distributed could not be used as farm animals as

intended because the recipients did not know how to take care of these animals. The cows

were thus sold or eaten up as a remedy to the food shortage caused by the severe drought

brought about by the El Niño phenomenon that recently hit the area. To further help

augment their income, many farmer landowners have resorted to leasing their lands to the

Central Mindanao Sugar Corporation for P 8,400 for three years per hectare.

The introduction of the project funds also caused conflict among the people. Because of

disagreements as to how the funds may be utilized, a group of BEC members were said to

have split from a mother unit to establish their own unit. The main antagonists in this

conflict, however, were the parish priest and an NGO head. The nature of this conflict

will later be described.

According to Fr. Roni, when the funds came in, Fr. Toto decided that it was important to

supervise where these funds should go since the implementation required a tripartite

(government, non-government and community) relationship. In Fr. Roni's perception,

this move was not in keeping with the history of the Peace Zone as it coordinated with

the OPPP -- a coordination that was motivated by political issue, and where participation

from the people did not involve money. In Fr. Roni's view: "So yung pera, imbes n

maging opportunity to be generous, naging opportunity to be selfish. Naging self-

centered sila which noon wala yon kasi wala namang pinghati-hatian." (The money,

instead of presenting an opportunity to be generous, was used as an opportunity to be

selfish. They became self-centered which was not there before because at that time there

was nothing to be divided among themselves."

The SPDA fund is thus now being judged as not having helped to uplift the economic

conditions of the people. In 1997, a new proposal was drawn up by the municipal

government task force in consultation with the Peace Zone leaders for the remaining P 9

million of the SPDA fund. No concrete response have since been given by the national

government. In February 1999, a meeting was arranged with the OPAPP to verify the

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existence of the remaining funds and to obtain a commitment for the release of these

funds. Since then, different government representatives have come to visit the area,

asking the same set of questions every time. The municipal officials who are tasked to

follow-up on the release of the funds are themselves not very optimistic about the

implementation of the second phase of SPDA projects. The present administration does

not seem interested in pursuing the same programs of the last administration.

The delivery of basic services from the government in the Peace Zone communities has

slackened because of the special status these communities allegedly enjoy as Peace

Zones: "Tingin kasi nila minsan dahil special ang peace zone, akala nila, ok na"

(Because they see the Peace Zone as special, they assume that everything is just going

fine). In other words, because these communities have been awarded with special funds

and are a favorite focus for projects by non-government organizations, they are not given

much attention by the local government. We then would often hear residents' complaints

about not feeling the presence of the local government in their communities. Community

members also report that the OPAPP representatives' visits to their areas have become

rare.

The CSO Presence in the Peace Zone Area

Currently the most active NGO in the Tulunan Peace Zone area is the Tulunan Zone of

Peace Center (TPZC) of the Tulunan parish. The Center was established in 1997, with the

incumbent Tulunan parish priest as director. Other civil society organizations predated

the creation of the TPZC, such as the farmer's organization BATUNA (the acronym for

the areas covered by the association: Banayal, Tuburan and Nabundasan) formed in the

late 70's and the Pagsagop Foundation of the early 1990's.

The TPZC was conceived from the discussion in the Tri-People (the indigenous people or

the Lumads, Muslim and Christian people's) meeting held in 1996 at the parish of

Tulunan. What was common in the people's sharing was the dream of peace, unity and

understanding which can only be achieved when the problems of poverty, illiteracy,

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armed conflict, environmental degradation, malnutrition and the need to be attuned to the

will of "God", "Allah" or "Adwata" were to be resolved. In a conversation with an

OPAPP representative, the programs and services of Christian Children's Welfare

Association (CCWA) in Japan were made known to the parish leaders. A project proposal

was subsequently sent to the Association, and in February 1997, the Tulunan Zone of

Peace Center was formally recognized as a member of the CCWA which has 41 other

subsidiaries in the entire Philippines. Barangay Bituan and Sitio New Alimodian were

then informed of this partnership which was to have Bishop Romul Valles of the

Kidapawan Diocese as project holder.

The following account from Fr. Roni tells us of how the setting up of the NGO was

rationalized:

But we thought of the social apostolate, which is already the developmental aspect that we'll have to also look for linkages. Part of our networking who re the groups or institutions that can complete in a sense, the integral evangelization mission of the church. It so happened that CCWA, being an NGO, (was) Christian … in terms of orientation. We found it sound also that it can complement the church mission.

When the Center staffmembers were introduced and the programs and services of the

CCWA were made clear at the community level, great emphasis was given to the

responsibility of participation and ownership of the programs by the people. The local

government officials, barangay officials and the community and Peace Zone leaders were

also subsequently briefed about the existence of the project.

Since the communities in Bituan and New Alimodian possessed clear BEC organizational

structures, the Center officers experienced no difficulties in identifying the potential

members to compose the core group in each community. The core group was to play the

essential role of disseminating information about the Center's activities to other members

of the community. The core group also identified the children who were to benefit from

the services extended by the CCWA. The program started with 100 sponsored children.

To finalize a Five-Year Development Plan for the Center, meetings were conducted with

the core group members, sponsored families, sectoral representative, Peace Zone leaders

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and Barangay officials. A Vision and Mission statement was drawn up based on their

description of an ideal community. The Mission of the Center, in partnership with

families and other sectors of the community, was a commitment to building a peaceful

community by working toward providing the educational needs of the children, training

families in spiritual and value formation, developing a sustainable environment, helping

families to augment their income, and ensuring the health condition of members of the

family.

As external resources of the Center, the Tulunan parish was identified to provide

spirituality sessions for the Center beneficiaries. The Department of Agriculture was also

identified to provide the farm technology and technical assistance to farmers. The

Department of Education was to provide non-formal training of skills for additional

income. The Department of Health was to provide technical persons for the treatment of

diseases. Finally, the Local Government of Tulunan was also considered for financial and

technical support.

These main activities of the Center are implemented, supervised and evaluated by four

committees: the Health and Sanitation, Sponsorship Child Relations, Training and Values

Formation Committees. Each of these committees is headed by community leader

(usually also a Kapilya head) who also acts as a barangay official in the community. Most

of the times the tasks as Committee Head and Barangay official coincide since the person

is in charge of a similar committee at the barangay level.

These community leaders have agreed to head CCWA committees because they are

themselves beneficiaries of the services of CCWA, their children being scholars of the

Center: “Nahiya din tayong mag-reject kung ‘di tayo mag-render ng service.” (We would

also be embarrassed to reject, not to render service). They see it therefore as their

responsibility to render their services. They do not see any conflict in accomplishing their

tasks since these tasks are essentially the same. The advantage they see in this

arrangement is that the activities of the NGO are taken up as agenda in barangay sessions.

As CCWA heads in the Barangay government structure, they become effective in

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disseminating information because they are more trusted by the people in delivering

truthful information.

The Church workers' activities are now indistinguishable from that of an NGO committee

member. According to Toto Nim, the former coordinator of the Tulunan parish,

(Ang mga proyekto) … napasok namin doon sa area kahit walang government approval. Yung NGO, yung simbahan, andun na ano, kasi ang struktura ng ating simbahan sa pangangailangan ng tao, sa presensya ng NGO patuloy yan … Kasi yung coordination (sa national government) mayroon tayong struktura eh, kung pag-uusapan ang simbahan. Halimbawa ang parokya ng Tulunan, ang channeling niya dito sa diocese ng Kidapawan. Kung connection ang pag-uusapan na national level, puwede naman tayong maag-diretso duon sa national level.

( The projects … we were able to introduce them in the area without government approval. The NGO, the Church, it was already there, because the structure of the Church is for the needs of the people, the presence of the NGO remains. As for the coordination with the government, we already have a structure as far as the Church is concerned. For example, the parish of Tulunan has channels to the diocese of Kidapawan. If we are to talk about a connection to the national level, we can go straight to the national level.)

Another non-governmental organization called Pagsagop was established in the early

1990's. This NGO set up a pre-school and started nutrition and literacy programs from 3-

12 year-olds in Barangay Bituan. Funds for the organization projects were sourced from a

German foundation. In1996, a lawyer who was in charge of the budget of the

organization had a disagreement with some community members because of her

supposed mishandling of the funds. Conflict was actually centered on the differences of

interests between the said lawyer and the Tulunan parish priest. These individuals could

not agree about the nature of projects that have been implemented in the communities.

The parish priest felt that NGO projects duplicated Church activities or were inconsistent

with these activities. Personal attacks ensued which caused rifts and factions within the

communities. As a result of this conflict, the Pagsagop organization left the community.

The pre-school was taken over by the Barangay but had limited funds and had no teacher

to run the school. In 1997, the pre-school was assumed by Patricia McAuliffe, a Canadian

non-Catholic missionary, who used her personal funds to pay teacher and activate the

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nutritional program of the school. McAuliffe extended the pre-school services to New

Alimodian and trained additional teacher from the community. She proceeded to work for

the creation of a foundation that was to receive its funds from the Canadian government.

The board of directors was to composed of non-Peace Zone residents. The people did not

welcome this move because the community members were not properly consulted about

these plans and changes. McAuliffe entered the community with the purpose of doing

research, but ended up establishing a foundation without discussing the plans with the

organized bodies of the community, such as the Inter-Peace Zone Coordinating Council.

She was also said to be feminist and only wanted women to form her staff. This was not

understood by the community leaders, who questioned the decision-making process that

was undertaken.

In the beginning, McAuliffe applied for the porject and coursed it through the Gagamay

Kristo-anon Katilingban Kidapawan Foundation, the social arm of the Diocese. Fr. Roni

was then its administrator. When the Foundation was phased out, Fr. Toto took charge of

the social projects of the Diocese. When the funds were obtained for the project,

McAuliffe sought permission to manage the funds without having to course it through the

Diocese for easy disbursement. This was to cause problems because, according to Fr.

Roni, administration of funds were "clearer" within the Church since the Church did not

"own" money and no personality "owned" money within the Church. It was said that if

an organization were not affiliated with the Church, the members of the rebel group could

easily demand for the payment of "social taxes" which would they could not do with the

Church because they would easily be "reported".

In September 1999, McAuliffe was visited in her house in Bituan by some people and

was asked by them to leave and not to enter Bituan again. The reason given was that her

safe conduct pass has expired and must obtain a new one from Jalandoni, a Communist

Party leader. This was asked of her even as she never had or needed a safe conduct pass

in her visits to Bituan. For some observers of the Peace Zone situation, this indicated that

the Left continues to influence the decisions done at the community level. For those in

the community who sympathize with McAuliffe and are in agreement with the activities

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sponsored by her in the community, this only indicated that there are members of the

community who misunderstood McAuliffe and were interested in handling the funds

from the Canadian government. More recently, it was reported that McAuliffe was asked

to stop her projects altogether.

The Nature of CSO and Government Coordination

Non-government organizations used to be perceive as allies of the Left. The government

was generally perceived to be an oppressor through increased militarization. These

perceptions are changing because of more recent developments in the area. There is a

realization on the part of the local government officials that the CSO is needed to identify

and implement vital projects at the community level because of the proximity of the

CSO. The CSO is seen to be an important instrument for the dissemination of various

government programs. The government is thus allowing NGO bodies to represent the

people, and this way less intervention is exercised by the government, allowing it to

concentrate more on its task of assisting and monitoring. The Church, through the CSO,

continues to promote its programs which used to be facilitated and coursed through BEC

structures.

There is also a realization on the part of the CSO that the government assistance is

necessary in the implementation of its projects, because government is in possession of

the basic facilities and resources necessary to realize the CSO goals. Infrastructure needs

may be obtained and coordination with higher government agencies may be

accomplished through closer coordination with the government. In Tulunan, formal

coordination between the Church and government is being achieved through the CSO.

This coordination is seen in the following instances:

1. When the Peace Zone leaders are also those who occupy important

government functions,

2. When government official have close or blood relationships with NGO

leaders. The access to government resources is facilitated.

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When asked about their perceptions of the existing NGO-government coordination, some

members of the community said that both NGO and government have an equal status, i.e

their image of the NGO is now not any different from their image of the government.

Sometimes. there is less opportunity to participate since often it is made known to them

that the NGO makes certain claims about their needs. Sometimes too, there are activities

engaged in by NGO and government which the people are not aware of. In the final

analysis, NGO coordination with government is confined to the NGO's identification of

who should lead in the implementation of a project or program.

Conclusion

Based on the findings of this case study, it may be concluded that the concept of the

"non-government organization" or CSO can be used as a convenient tool to prolong or

perpetuate an entity's influence in a community. If, in this case, the Church will not

adopt the concept, its activities and role may easily be usurped by other CSOs who may

enter and adopt the same prevailing relationship which puts the community at the

receiving end.

The coordination between the Church-backed CSO and the government in the Peace

Zone area is contributing to a changing perception that may not be positive for the CSO

as it is increasingly being identified with the government that is continued to be distrusted

by the people because of their experience as victims of war and victims of corruption.

As the status of the communities as special development areas is being emphasized

through Church-CSO and government activities, what is being increasingly ignored is the

status of these communities as peace constituencies -- a status that may be more

appropriately be used to further the goals of effective governance.

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