Report from SFP President's Peace Education Summits in Mindanao and Nepal
March 12, 2010



My recent visit to Mindanao and Nepal was very productive and very timely. In both areas, conflict is never far away and this tends to make the local residents even more appreciative of those who make the effort to visit with the goal of addressing the sources of conflict. Whereas my last visit to Mindanao took place only days after a massacre, this time it was Kathmandu that was experiencing unrest as a citywide strike forced the closure of foreign embassies resulting in the cancellation of some of my appointments.

Despite that setback, we were able to make significant advances in both areas. It is particularly significant that SFP is forging strong partnerships in the Muslim world. At a time when the Obama administration and others are concerned about the spread of Islamic extremism, SFP is not only improving the lives of young Moslems but also involving them in the direct, positive experience of improving their communities.
In Mindanao, I first traveled to Marawi City, popularly known as the Islamic City of Marawi. It is the capital city of Lanao del Sur, Philippines, the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). I provided a lecture on leadership as part of a program organized by Risale I Nur at Mindanao State University (MSU). The title of the lecture series was Love, Righteousness and Leadership. It was part of an ongoing lecture series on MSU campuses throughout Mindanao. This series was tying together February as the ‘month of love’ and the upcoming elections in the Philippines. We then went on to visit the MSU campuses in Cagayan d’ Oro, meeting with university officials to further explain SFP’s plans and goals.
This was followed by our peace education summit with 40 teachers from Iligan East High School. Riza Dalkilic and Prof. Samuel Quivs were co-presenters. Riza and Prof Quivs will follow up with developing and adapting the curriculum for Mindanao and holding teacher training seminars in other schools throughout Mindanao.



These seminars are an important dimension of SFP’s work. They offer a full explanation of our underlying philosophy and an opportunity for teachers and professors to ask questions. As a result, we have developed scores of allies and advocates in Mindanao and other areas.
Upon leaving Mindanao, I then traveled to Kathmandu, Nepal, where I visited our impressive six-story headquarters building that provides accommodations for orphans from the ongoing conflicts in addition to housing the SFP offices. We immediately set out on an eight-hour journey over unpaved roads through the mountains to Sarlahi where Saroj Khanal, SFP’s Executive Director, is based. The HQ in Sarlahi is a four-story building that houses orphans in addition to the SFP offices. The next day, we visited one of our libraries where the community held a festival to welcome me. In the audience were two groups of women with identical saris. When I inquired about the uniform, I was informed that they were part of different literacy programs in our libraries. The women had created the uniforms on their own initiative since, as young girls, they had always dreamed of going to school with a uniform.
Currently, with the support from the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), a new building is being developed for the library project. We also visited a computer center where basic computer skills are provided to local citizens free of charge. I greeted 30 of the over 100 SFP Peace Volunteers before leaving to the next city, Dhading, where we were again greeted by SFP Peace Volunteers following another eight-hour journey.
When we arrived back in Kathmandu, we met with officials who are developing the national peace education curriculum centered on the director of curriculum development in the Ministry of Education. We had meetings with the Minister of Education and the Minster of Peace, together with the Chairperson of SFP in Nepal, Dr. Joshii, who is known as the Gandhi of Nepal.

The peace education summit was very well received and well attended with the Minster of Peace delivering the opening remarks and staying for the first half of the program. Action plans were developed for the implementation of the curriculum and integrating the curriculum with the national curriculum.
One VERY important conclusion that we can reach from these, and other developments around the world, is that SFP is putting down DEEP ROOTS. Becoming part of the educational programs in schools and colleges, and forging strong partnerships with other organizations and agencies means that SFP is becoming part of the fabric of society in several nations.

In service,

Charles Phillips