22 August 2008
Mindanao
Mel Duncan
Thousands have fled the escalating violence in Central Mindanao where one of our teams is located. As the Nonviolent Peaceforce team accompanied their displaced neighbors, they learned that an old woman who is paralyzed had been left behind amid the chaos of a fire fight. The family members tried to return for her but were blocked by the intense fighting. The family then requested that the NP team rescue her. After coordinating with both armed groups to insure a safe passage, the NP team returned to the areas that had been a battlefield for 48 hours and successfully evacuated the woman reuniting her with her family.