Team Activities in Mindanao

The mandate of the International Civilian Peacekeepers team (ICPs) lists:

1. Exploration with the partners for possible scenarios and needs for larger-scale nonviolent intervention, including the Sulu Islands, Basilan and Sultan Kudarat.



2. Working from a specific base with local communities on issues of violence prevention; supporting community members through training to be ready for nonviolent intervention in case of a looming crisis, and if requested linking them to other local or international agencies for rehabilitation, reconstruction and development needs.
3. Placement with, and accompaniment of the partners or their affiliates to support them in their work.
4. Development of formal relations with key actors in the conflict as part of potential official peace agreements.

Concretely, this includes:

1. Provide conscious international presence by deploying ICPs in vulnerable areas to associate with partners from local civil society on a continuous basis.
2. Offer protective accompaniment to individuals, groups or communities wedded to nonviolent solutions but exposed to threats.
3. Provide neutral spaces and facilitation services to local peacemakers from different communities who attempt to resolve traditional (Rido) and non-traditional disputes carrying the potential of violence.
4. Mutual sharing, learning and training on nonviolent strategies with peacemakers and authorities dealing with the peace process.
5. Monitoring violations of international humanitarian and human rights law and reporting them to relevant national and international agencies upon the consent of survivors.
6. Interpositioning. ICPs along with local peace volunteers and ceasefire monitors to boost the sanctity of buffer zones and zones of peace.
7. Maintain impartial and open lines of communications with armed parties to the conflict and lawless elements* in the field sites of deployment. Engaging all the other influential actors in the identified field site areas, like religious leaders, youth groups, women groups and teachers associations, etc.
8. Linking isolated communities residing in war prone areas to local or international agencies for relief and development so that peace and protection are mainstreamed.
9. Refine early warning systems and rapid response through community interventions to proactively prevent violent incidents and engage the groups on constructive basis.

* This term when used by us refers to groups outside of and uncontrollable by the established parties to the conflict.