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© Asia America InitiativeThere are times when a handful of dedicated men and women can work together to stop campaigns of terrorism and to remedy the intractable poverty that leads to massive violence. For the past four years, such has been the experience of my non-profit organization, the Asia America Initiative (AAI), in the island province of Sulu in the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao in the Philippines. The area is a reputed al Qaeda recruitment center on the maritime border with Indonesia and Malaysia. I formed the AAI in mid-2002. Our aim was to provide a model of peace-building—and offer an alternative to exclusive reliance on military force—through social and economic development. I chose to begin our work in Jolo, the Sulu provincial capital, where no one thought anything good—much less peace—could be possible. I wanted to prove that people-to-people generosity could overcome the hatred caused by desperate poverty and inequality. Our objective was to create model community-based programs to empower broken societies to rebuild their own future. Sulu is home to the Tausug warrior tribe, which has a history of tribal warfare and resistance against foreign invaders that has spanned some 500 years. In

The province has among the highest poverty, school dropout, and child mortality rates in Southeast Asia.

the 1970s, the city of Jolo was firebombed to ashes by the forces of Ferdinand Marcos. The resulting flight of the business class and the 20 years of civil war that followed led to the desperate poverty and ongoing violence that still dominates the region. As a result, the province has among the highest poverty, school dropout, and child mortality rates in Southeast Asia. To approach the work in Sulu, I drew on my experience in Afghanistan during the mid-to-late 1990s. While an international relations advisor to the U.S. Congress, I organized humanitarian NGO missions to sustain communities surrounded by al Qaeda and the Taliban. I came to understand the violent extremists’ methods of exploiting hatred and despair caused by dire poverty, hopelessness, and corruption. Because of my background—and as one of the few Americans who had observed Christian-Muslim peace processes in the Philippines—Tausug friends invited me to Sulu in August, 2002. All foreign embassies had issued “off limits” warnings for the area. My arrival immediately followed an incident in which a group of male Filipino Christian missionaries had been beheaded and the women kidnapped. This was reputedly done by elements of the Abu Sayyaf terrorist group, whose original leaders had been trained in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Knowing that no initiative can succeed without the trust of local community leaders, my first meeting in Jolo was with the senior Muslim religious clergy. They had one urgent request: “Can you help us rebuild our schools and bring our children hope for a better future?” Although I admitted to having limited financial resources, I promised my best effort. Fahra Omar, the hospital’s head doctor, was another key contact. Although the only hospital in the province, medicine was almost non-existent and surgery was performed without anesthetic. Dr. Fahra told me, “We are poor, but we are proud people. If you come as our friend to help, we welcome you. But we will not accept charity.” This mutual respect began AAI’s partnership with the Tausug community. We formed community organizations for health, education, livelihoods, and a peace process. Parents and teachers have contributed physical labor, while AAI has provided donated desks, chalkboards, textbooks, computers, and other educational materials for the schools. © Asia America InitiativeToday, thanks to the generosity of private foundations, generous individuals, and a modest grant from the U.S. Congress through USAID [which ended in March 2006] there are now more than 26,000 children in AAI’s “Model of Excellence” public schools. The graduation rate in our schools has grown from 35 to 70 percent. Parents and adult neighbors of our students increasingly seek an education and are willing to explore new livelihoods. The children involved represent all clans and families in the area, which has been a motivation for communal non-violence. Despite the success of our work in the community, my worst nightmare came true in November 2005 as heavily armed U.S. military forces came in on a supposed “civil affairs” mission (a.k.a. “hunting for terrorists”). They entered the area with very little understanding of the local history, culture, or current events. They ignored the fact that our AAI Filipino team (composed of males and females ranging in age from 21 to 50 years old) were working unarmed and helping to keep the peace. Immediately after the U.S. soldiers arrived, a campaign of bombing took place against the non-extremist Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) guerillas. They were not al Qaeda operatives, but in defiance of rampant corruption and the lack of community improvement following the 1996 Peace Accords. Some 1,000 innocent families became refugees from U.S.-backed bombing just outside of our project area. The community began bracing for renewed warfare. The whole region could, potentially, have gone up in flames. The 200 or so American soldiers on that mission were fully armed, but underestimated their vulnerability and could have suffered serious casualties against some 20,000 guerilla “reserves” of the MNLF. It was al Qaeda recruiters who would benefit most from this new cycle of violence. With the support of Christian and Muslim political and religious leaders, I had only one option to maintain the peace: to go to the mountains and visit with

I had only one option to maintain peace: to go to the mountains.

MNLF military leaders in an area where heavy U.S.-backed fighting had recently occurred. My safe passage was possible because I had helped save the life of the MNLF provincial guerilla leader’s 8-year-old daughter one year earlier. At his headquarters in the forest of Indanan, this commander gave his written statement that, if attacked, his fighters would defend themselves, but they preferred to have peace and development. Without publicity, I brought the guerillas’ messages to political and military leaders in Manila and Washington. As a result, the U.S. military mission was reverted back to a well-digging and road-building civil affairs mission, without a combat role. Through kindness, honesty, and consistency of humanitarian action, the threat of war has ended for now. And, the Tausugs are succeeding—against every imaginable odd—to create peace. Albert Santoli, Director Asia America Initiative

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