THE provincial government of Zamboanga del Sur has devised a unique way of helping push the overall peace-building initiatives in Mindanao while at the same time promoting formal education among its constituencies.
The program, dubbed Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW), netted 119 loose firearms and explosives turned in by local villagers and the grant of 64 scholarships to students.
The weapons were subsequently destroyed to make sure they would not be used as instruments of death and intimidation again.
Zamboanga del Sur Gov. Divina Grace Yu hailed the program as a milestone in the province’s journey toward stability and reconciliation, while Presidential Peace Adviser Carlito Galvez, Jr. emphasized that the scholarships should not be seen as payment for weapons, but as a “forward-looking investment.”
