Mindanao Displacement Dashboard, August 2016
By the end of August 2016, approximately 3,000 displaced indigenous peoples (IPs) in Tandag, Surigao del Sur are preparing for their planned return in September 2016. A joint ocular visit was conducted 24 August by government agencies, concerned groups and community leaders to assess the current situation in the IDPs places of origin in the municipalities of Lianga and San Agustin and what services needed to be reinforced and supplemented upon coming back to their homes. In Bukidnon, 773 IP families (2,593 persons) returned to their homes in various barangays in the municipality of San Fernando though 48 families(166 persons) from Sitio Tibugawan, Barangay Kawayan remain displaced on the grounds of the Provincial Capitol in Malaybalay due to fear of further harassment from the paramilitary group involved in the shooting incident last July. Meanwhile, displacement reached 3, 947 persons in Basilan and 4,521 persons in Sulu and it is expected to grow in numbers as the military operations against the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) progresses while access to these areas of concern continues to be extremely difficult and seriously affects access of civilians to humanitarian assistance.
