World renowned artist stages “Art for Peace”, a call to halt Sabah conflict

By Michael Vincent D. Cajulao

ZAMBOANGA CITY – His call for peace never ceases as evidenced by his works. A result of being a war victim himself, Rameer Tawasil once again used art to convey his call to put a stop on the ongoing Sabah crisis.

“This conflict should stop immediately. Most of those caught in between the two warring sides are women and children. This just has to stop”, Tawasil said.

He said there should be a peaceful resolution to this problem and that to achieve this, the government of the Philippines and the Malaysian Government should look deeper into the historical and legal aspects of the conflict.

“It would be for the benefit of everyone, including the Philippine Government and all concerned parties to revisit the history of Sabah. By then, we can be assured that any move, particularly, by the Philippine Government, will be appropriate including the peaceful resolution of the ongoing carnage in Sabah”, Tawasil stressed.

The Art for Peace, which was held last Mar. 14, was also in partnership with the Western Mindanao State University - Center for Peace and Development (WMSU-CPD) headed by Dr. Marcelina Carpizo, together with the Muslim Youth Movement based in the city, and high school students of WMSU who voluntarily joined the activity.

Dr. Carpizo echoed Tawasil’s sentiment saying, “The victims in this kind of conflict are the civilians, with women and children being the most vulnerable that’s why we are calling for the immediate halt of this conflict”.

Carpizo, whose group has been actively participating in anti-human trafficking, said if this conflict continues, many Filipino may become victims of abuse in Malaysia, especially those undocumented.

“I have been to Sabah to visit prisons and check how Filipinos are treated. Clearly, Filipinos who were apprehended there, especially those without proper documents, were not treated properly. I have seen it personally”, she pointed.

Aside from these concerns, Tawasil also pointed on the huge effect of this crisis to the city’s economy, and the economies of the three island provinces of Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi.

“If there will be massive evacuation and deportation of Filipinos, we will be the first one to be affected since Zamboanga City is the economic center of the region. Food supply definitely will be affected, and everything follows. It’s a domino effect”, he said. (PIA9)