PIME in Kidapawan (1980-1990)

At the end of 1979, the Bishop of Zamboanga informed the PIME Missionaries that his clergy was ready to take over the parish of Ayala; thus they were free to take commitments in other dioceses.  PIME maintained a presence in Zamboanga with its Regional House and Procure, and those who were working in Ayala moved to the diocese of Kidapawan.  Kidapawan is in the heart of Mindanao, and considered by many to be the “Far West” of the Philippines: rich land, almost uninhabited, and vast untapped mineral resources. In the 80’s, however, (just as they had experienced in Siocon on the west coast of Mindanao), the people of its villages were living in terror, cougth in the middle of frequent battles between rebels and the Philippine Army. On the part of the goverment forces, and the groups supporting them, daily violence were perpetrated against people suspected to help muslim or communist rebels. Some english words became very familiar: “hamletting” (entire villages taken over by the military and held under strict control, with interrogations, murders, torture, and burned homes), “disappeared” (persons suspected by the armed groups, who disappeared without a trace, and it was most dangerous to go about asking questions as to their whereabouts), “salvaging” (summary executions of suspected persons or families).  Aside the insurgency and counter-insurgency there were also private vendettas of families or ethnic groups, land conflicts, and general violence spread by the different factions. Placing themselves at the service of the Jesuit Bishop of Kidapawan, Federico Escaler in 1980 (and after him Bishop Orlando Quevedo, OMI), the italian PIME priests were sent to Tulunan, Columbio and Arakan Valley. There, because the situation of violence, they tried to implement an apostolate in defense of justice and human rights.  In Tulunan they found a group called “The Ilaga”. ‘Ilaga’ means ‘rat’, and they were armed paramilitary groups formed to fight the Muslims who, it was said, were killing Christians like rats.  At the beginning the Ilaga seemed positive, because the Muslims were more numerous and better armed, and were terrorizing the Christians.  The Ilaga defended the villages and fields of the Christians, but then some groups (like that of the Manero brothers who killed Fr. Tullio Favali) began to commit atrocities thinking themselves to be invincible.  These groups, sustained by the military and the government, acted more like criminals then para-military and out of control. The people knew; they heard the cries of the torture victims, but they remained silent.  Whoever wanted to enter the Ilaga had to prove his courage by killing a muslim. These are facts that the people in Tulunan people today still remember.  The Muslims also had their fanatic groups, called ‘Barracuda.’

The Church in Kidapawan (which became a Diocese in 1982), born and grown in the midst of conflict, developed an Apostolate of Education toward Justice and Peace, especially through the Basic Ecclesial Communities (BECs). The PIME priests were among the first proponents of these small Christian communities of Bible sharing, common prayer, evangelization, charitable and social action. Out of these BECs emerged the pastoral agents and Christian leaders who changed the face of the local church with their commitment to the defense of human rights.  With hundreds of initiatives, too many to list here, they concretely brought about what had been spoken of many times in Church documents: the preferential option for the poor, the human person as the life of the Church, building a new world beginning with the least powerful. Tensions continued to mount.  In 1985 alone the Diocese of Kidapawan could count more than 70 people killed for doing nothing more than speaking and working for peace and justice, defending the people from all kinds of violence and seeking dialogue with the Muslims. Among these was Fr.Tullio Favali,PIME, Parish Priest of Tulunan, killed on April 11, 1985 by a paramilitary group led by the notorious Norberto Manero, alias Kumander Bucay.  The funeral of Fr. Tullio was a triumph, almost a national festival.  The atmosphere was one of life, and not death. More than 30,000 people came from all over the country, including 150 priests and hundreds of sisters.  Throughout the Philippines posters displayed a blood-covered Tullio and the words, “How many more?”  This quickly became the symbol and slogan of the nonviolent people’s resistance against the Marcos regime.  Less than a year later, on February 26, 1986, the “revolution of flowers and rosaries” would remove Marcos from power without bloodshed, a unique happening in recent history. On September 4, 1987 the two Manero brothers were convicted of murder (the very first time that paramilitary operatives had been convicted in a regular court process. Ironically on the same day the police issued a warrant of arrest for Frs. Luciano Ghezzi and Peter Geremia with the charge of rape committed against a non-identified girl. They were detained inside the ABC hall in Makilala (togheter with other accused) for few weeks and were visited by thousand of people. At the end of september the accusation was dropped as the crime was never commited (fabricated). (After more then 20 years most of the members who killed Favali have carried out their sentence in prison and Norberto Manero was pardoned in 2008. One of the principal accused, Arsenio Villamor, Jr., was subsequently captured. In January 1999 the trial against him opened in Kidapawan).
Aside Fr. Favali seven PIMEs were assigned in the Diocese of Kidapawan in the first 10 years: Frs. Peter Geremia, Alessandro Bauducci, Fausto Tentorio, Luciano Ghezzi, Bruno Vanin and Michele Carlone. After leaving the Parish of Tulunan (1990) PIMEs remained among the christians, indigenous people B’laans and muslims in Columbio Valley and 120 km far away in Arakan Valley mainly inhabitated by settlers coming from the islands of Panay and Negros and indigenous people called Manobos. For them these were difficult years. Violence was as naturally as water and it shaped the society in which they had to stay anyway. They did what it was right to do, to teach people how to resist and to stop being violent otherwise there is no future.

PIME among the squatters (1970-1981)

During the 70’s the Tondo area on the outskirts of Manila was a huge squatter settlement with 300-350,000 inhabitants.  The ancient parish of Tondo (Santo Niño), with three diocesan priests, had been established at the time of Spanish colonialism to service the port area.  In 1970, two new parishes were erected and one was entrusted to PIME. It was located in an area called Magsaysay Village and was named San Pablo, to commemorate the visit of Pope Paul VI to Manila in November of 1970. Just in time of his arrival, two PIME priests went to the new parish: Frs. Bruno Piccolo and Joseph Vancio. They settled in a small house. They started to visit the families and were warmly welcomed. The people in Magsaysay Village, for lacked of space, lived practically on top of one another, with no order, no streets, no running water, no open spaces for the children to play. The area was divided into six “blocks” of houses or huts and there were fierce rivalries among these neighborhoods which, often, ended with people wounded or murdered. In some ways, the PIME Fathers in Tondo faced the same challenges as those in Santa Cruz: people divided in various groups. As in Santa Cruz, the missionaries opted to identify with the poorest, and committed themselves to helping them with the involvement of all the faithful.  The “Zone One Tondo Organization” (ZOTO) was established to engage in work of development and assistance.  Through community organizers, the people were led toward solidarity and collaboration in common projects.  Fr. Gigi Cocquio, parish priest in 1973, recalls:

“Fifteen days after the formation of the Parish Council, there was a food crisis: it was impossible to find rice in the city.  The government sent trucks protected by the military, which in many areas sold the rice at exorbitant prices.  But in Tondo, we never saw any at all.  A number of us went to the municipal hall, where many others were gathered to make requests in the name of this or that group.  But really everyone was out for himself.  There were 70 of us, and we went directly to the rice distribution office.  There was a bit of tension, and then we explained the plight of thousands of squatter families.  In two hours, rice was assigned to us.The results of this action went beyond the rice.  The people understood that unity is strength, but in order to attain unity they have to overcome the old rivalries among the blocks.  A day later, the 70 who had gone to the municipal hall held a meeting, joined by many others.  For once they had something to discuss and a reason to fraternize.  We had never been able to break down the barriers among the different blocks, but now they were dissolving little by little, as common interests and commitments increased.”Solutions to other problems came in the same way.  Close to a hundred people went to the municipality to request the installation of pipes for running water.  In the beginning they were an irritation, but then the authorities began to recognize that even the poor of Tondo were part of Manila, which at that time had 5-6 million inhabitants, of which 1.2 million were squatters.  In August 4, 1974, the mayor of Manila went to Magsaysay Village and immediately gave the order to extend running water to the squatters, with many public faucets.”

The influence of San Pablo parish in Magsaysay Village went well beyond its borders and touched even those who did not go to church. On November 27, 1974 the three zones of Tondo organized a protest march in which about 5,000 people participated. Fr. Cocquio and Fr. Vancio were held for several hours by the police.  In Lent of 1975, a “Way of the Cross” was held in the city streets, highlighting the suffering of victims of injustice.  Arguments and accusations followed.  In April of the same year, a petition drive was launched for the release of the opposition Senator Ninoy Aquino, who was on a hunger strike. There were two episodes which eventually brought about heavy accusations against PIME priests in Tondo. The first was the strike at La Tondeña distillery located in Velasquez Street and part of the Parish of San Pablo. This enterprise employed 800 workers, but every two months 500 were let go and new workers brought in. At the request of the workers themselves, the Council of the Christian Community (a social organization of the parish) intervened in October of 1975. The parish of San Pablo worked to sustain the struggle, and staged protests. The police prepared a list of “subversives” and the first name on the list was Fr. Gigi Cocquio. The second incident happened a short time later, when Fr. Cocquio was joined by Frs. Francesco Alessi, Peter Geremia and Albert Booms. In December 1975 the World Bank approved and financed a project for the “development” of the squatter area of Tondo.  In the central area and along the sea shore, there was a plan to build the municipal hall, other offices and residences for the wealthy.  Thus began the demolition of the squatter area.  The police came every day, destroyed the huts, gathered the squatters with their few possessions into trucks, and transported them many kilometers away. In January 1975 the squatters of Manila met together in the “Committee of the Poor Against the Demolition.”  Twenty of their representatives, accompanied by four bishops, were received by the President’s wife, Imelda Marcos, who was considered the prime mover behind the demolition. They were able to gain a hearing, but the authorities continued to believe that the priests in San Pablo Parish were behind the protest movement of Manila’s squatters, especially since the other parishes of Tondo were remaining quiet. On January 24, 1976, Frs. Francesco Alessi (PIME Superior) and Gigi Cocquio (Parish Priest of San Pablo) were arrested by the police and little more than five hours later, they were put on an Air France flight directly to Rome. PIME’s Superior General mons. Aristide Pirovano (former bishop of Macapa’, Brazil), who was visiting the mission areas in Mindanao, returned immediately to Manila.  He met with representatives of the Bishops’ Conference and they published a strong protest over the expulsion of the two priests. Then mons. Pirovano went with the papal nuncio (Bp. Bruno Torpigliani) to speak with Defense Minister Juan Ponce Enrile. They reached a compromise: PIMEs suspected of political activities would not be deported, but they could not stay in Manila. However Fr. Albert Booms, an American citizen, was deported a few months later, on November 20, 1976. There was no justification given for the three expulsions. PIME priests did not leave Tondo. There were a reshuffling and new men were assigned in San Pablo, Frs. Alessandro Brambilla, Roberto Contis and Giovanni Colombo and Bro. Giovanni Arici. The parish, then, was divided in two areas: the first around the chapel of Santo Niño in Velasquez Street and the second around the Parish Church of San Pablo in Jacinto Street. PIMEs distanced themselves from any political issues but Tondo was already heavely infiltrated by anti-government political movements and, at the same time, by deep penetrating agents of the the military and national intelligence agency. The post-deportation was not an easy time to handle and eventually in the Regional Assembly of 1981, PIME , with the Regional Superior Fr. Egidio Biffi, decided to pull out its priests from Tondo and send them to Mindanao.
Tondo remained an experience to meditate. As once a PIME in the Philippines said: “For a foreign priest in the Philippines dividing his own life between Gospel and politics is a waste of time. Gospel is forever, while politics will just change in few months!”. On the other hand the Church of the Philippines, based on these ‘experiences’, in the following years, started the politics of resistance and opposition, the politics of joining hands to prevent more damages.

PIME in Santa Cruz (Laguna) (1969-1977)

In 1970 the city of Santa Cruz, (120 km southwest of Manila) had about 60,000 inhabitants in 19 barrios, 40% Catholic and 60% “Aglipayan” (Filipino Indipendent Church). In reality, except for Christmas and Holy Week, few of the residents were attending to religious services and mostly only for devotional purpose. The Bishop of the Diocese of San Pablo, mons.Pedro Bantigue, wanted the PIME priests to provide strength and visibility to the urban parish, in the most important city of the diocese, capital of the Laguna Province. It was a difficult place, with two big churches and 12 chapel in the surrounding rural areas, with socio-political problems too. When it became clear that the priests were making themselves available at any moment and for any need, the faithful gathered in greater number: to the point that it was rather embarrassing for the priests, who never expected a response such as this. So they started to organize the catechism classes, established the Parish Pastoral Council, and stimulated the partecipation of the laity, members of the different parish associations. In church, among an incredible numbers of statues (which tended more to disturb the faith rather then to strenghen it), they welcomed sharing during the liturgy which also included religious instruction based on the Bible and on the teaching of the Church. But this new style was not well accepted by some of the local powerful families (traditional catholics) who used to control the the activities of the parish. PIMEs noted that the catholics had settled in the city center, gathering in the monumental Spanish church, leaving the periphery and squatter areas to the Aglipayans. Understanding the situation, they embarked upon social activities for the poorest people, regardless who they were: food and medicine, cooperatives to combat high prices, a credit union, a free medical clinic, assistance in home building, tuition support for students, construction of hygienic services, sewing and carpentry courses and animal husbandry. Many of these initiatives were received gratefully by the people, but also confused the faithful, who were used to seeing priests only as distributors of blessings and spiritual guidance. In August 1972, a violent flood devastated the city and the surrounding area. The convento and other parish buildings became a refuge for many people. It was a difficult situation to manage and the priests worked themselves to exhaustion, on their feet 16 to 18 hours a day. Frs. Bonaldo and Alessi ended up in the hospital. Their commitment attracted many volunteers and displayed a new way to testify to the faith. The parish was much different than it had been before! Still, was difficult to make the people to understand that flood victims and refugees, catholics or aglipayans, were more important, in that situation, of other religious practices. On September 21, 1972, a “state of emergency” was declared by President Ferdinand Marcos, who assumed total control of the country through the military, on the aim or pretext of battling the communist insurgents and muslim separatists on the islands of Mindanao and Sulu. Many, even in the Church, believed that while these were drastic measures, they would only last a short time, and might bring about an improvement of the general living condition of the people. However, very quickly the arrests began, even among the lay leaders of the parish in Santa Cruz. But PIMEs creativity did not stop. Fr. Peter Geremia, who arrived on august 1972, soon after started to form an “apostolic group” of 12 person of good reputation. They prepared the liturgy and every Sunday they went to the remaining chapels of the parish located in remote areas. There they shared, with the local people, prayers and what they have learned. It was a sort of basic ecclesial community. Meanwhile, Fr. Alessi, the PIME Superior in the Philippines, began to work in Tondo (Old Manila) at the beginning of 1973. At the same time, Fr. Pietro Bonaldo, whom Fr. Geremia describes as “a giant with a booming voice that shook the timbers, and a heart of gold,” was found to have cancer. After months in the hospital and various operations, he was sent to Italy in November of 1973, and he died shortly thereafter. In 1975 Fr. Geremia moved to Tondo as well, and the parish in Santa Cruz was left in the hands of Frs. Piccolo and Cadei. But time was changing. In the first years the partecipation of the parishioners was very enthusiastic, specially during the flooding, but after the imposition of the Martial Law, little by little, the people became less interested in the message of renewal and the activities stagnated. PIMEs continued until 1977 when they decided, after only eight years, to end their commitment in the Diocese in order to strenghen the presence in Tondo and Mindanao..

PIME first steps in Mindanao (1969 - 1980)

The first mission taken on by PIME in Mindanao was Siocon. Fr.Egidio Biffi arrived there in July 1969, followed by Frs. Santo Di Guardo (March 1970) and Angelo Biancat (April 1971). On January 21, 1970, Fr. Biffi wrote:
“This district of Siocon extends along the western coast of the Sulu sea for about 150 km, with villages on or near the coast. There are no roads, except a few built by the logging companies. Travel is by motorboat. The distances are great, since we travel only by sea, which is not always so calm. In the whole district there are little more than 30.000 souls, including the Muslims, a few Protestants and some animists (Subanen). I’m not sure about the exact number of Catholics, but certaintly they are over 10.000”
The missioner noted that in this remote corner of the Philippines, because the loneliness of the area, the Catholics seemed closed in on themselves rather than opening up to others, to the indigenous people and muslims. Fr.Biffi instituted a new line of apostolate based up on catechesis and assistance to the poor but he soon faced some resistance from the conservative groups of the parish more incline to popular religiosity and fiestas then social activities. He left Siocon and went to Sibuco, but in mid 1972 he fell ill and moved to Zamboanga where he took on the parish of Ayala and established there the PIME Procure. Fr.Biancat went to Siocon and Fr.Di Guardo to Sirawai.

Martial Law, which began in September 1972, created much tension in the area, which degenerated into reciprocal violence between Christians and Muslims, and many refugees came down from the villages of the surrounding mountains. The military ordered the handover of arms. The Christians obeyed immediately, feeling to be protected by the “christian Government” of Ferdinad Marcos, but the Muslims handed over only old and ruined arms. Soon the Islamic revolt began to spread. Between January and March of 1973, the Muslims camp in the village of Santa Maria was bombed three times from the air and the sea. In the district of Siocon, 80% of the villages were destroyed. Massacres and abuses were perpetrated by both sides. The people began to flee toward Zamboanga City and into the jungles of the interior where the Islamic guerrillas had their bases.

Three PIME missionaries arrived in the South during these difficult years: Frs.Vincenzo Bruno and Sandro Bauducci in 1972 anf Fr. Raymond Ridolfi in 1974. The first two went to Siocon, while Ridolfi joined Biffi in Ayala. In 1975 there was a tragedy. On September 24, Fr.Santo Di Guardo died in Manila of an intestinal blockage end peritonitis contracted while he was alone on the mountains of Sirawai. He was a priest well received by the local people, he left a real void. He was the first to work among the Muslims after having learned their language and his example stirred others missioners to follow his vision.

Ayala is situated about 15 km from Zamboanga City, one of the biggest in Mindanao, and important specially for its port facilities and its dialect, the “chavacano”, related to the spanish language. PIME had planned, in the 70’s, to take on a mission in Jolo, the southernmost point of the Philippines, near Malasya and Indonesia. This plan was not carried out due to the death of Fr. Di Guardo and the deportation of Frs. Alessi and Cocquio. PIME stayed in Ayala from 1975 to 1980, and various missionaries worked there, exchanging places with confreres in Siocon, Sirawai end Sibuco: Sandro Bauducci, Luciano Ghezzi, Peter Geremia, Fausto Tentorio and Sandro Brambilla. In Ayala and the surrounding area PIME started a new way to operate the parish by establishing few small christian communities. Moreover, some missioners, started to visit and assist the people living in the nearby squatter area, then the miners who where living in poor condition near the copper mines in the interior and muslim refugees. This new way of working looked strange and difficul to accept by the local clergy. Fr.Geremia, in a meeting with bishop and clergy, suggested the possibility to begin a social apostolate, beginning with the muslim refugees coming from the south (they moved to Zamboanga City after the biggest battle of the war between Army and Moro rebels which happened at the beginning of 1974 in Sulu), but it was impossible to involve the Diocese. The proposal could have been right on time considering the Tripoli Agreement of 1976 and the general cease fire of 1977 with the Proclamation 1628 declaring autonomy in 13 provinces of Mindanao-Sulu, but pocket wars and skirmishes never really ceased between Christians and Muslims, Army and Moro rebels. Years later, however, the Diocese allowed the establishment of two different programs regarding Muslim-Christian dialogue: the Silsilah Movement, founded by Fr.Sebastiano D’Ambra, PIME, and the Zamboanga Peace Advocate (now Zabida) of Fr,Angel Calvo, Claretian.

Padre Salvatore

Ricorre oggi l’anniversario dell’uccisione, a Zamboanga City, di padre Salvatore Carzedda, PIME.  Ancora oggi, dopo 16 anni rimangono senza risposta le due domande principali: chi l’ha ucciso e perche’?. Si parlo’, allora, di cinque sicari che su due moto seguirono la Mitsubishi, affiancarono il mezzo e poi attraverso il finestrino di guida spararono due volte a padre Salvatore. Ci furono dei testimoni ma durante il susseguente processo le loro testimonianze furono ritenute senza fondamento e in contraddizione. Il caso giudiziario fu cosi’ archiviato per mancanza di prove e forse anche di coraggio.

40 years: the beginning

Joseph Rudyard Kipling , the english author, born in Mumbai, India, and best known for his works The Jungle Book (1894), was a bad prophet when he wrote, “East and West will never meet.” In fact, even by his own time (the beginning of the 20th century), East and West had not only met, but also merged together to create an extraordinarily fascinating country: the Philippines, the only nation in Asia with a Catholic majority. Through three centuries of Spanish colonial rule, Catholicism in the Philippines has brought together two civilizations, peoples and continents as diverse and distant as Asia and Europe.

An Institute for Foreing Mission like PIME, which has a preferential option for Asia, could not help but go to the Philippines. In January of 1967, Bishop Aristide Pirovano (then Superior General) responded to the invitation of some bishops and went to visit the apostolic nuncio and four bishops, together with the Regional Superior of Hong Kong, Fr. Secondo Einaudi. A year later, he sent Fr. Einaudi and Fr. Piero Gheddo for further discussions. An agreement was reached with two bishops who were inviting PIME to their dioceses: San Pablo, on the island of Luzon; and Dipolog on the southern island of Mindanao.
The first PIME members to reach the Philippines were Frs. Pietro Bonaldo (missionary in Hong Kong, to which the Philippine delegation was attached), Egidio Biffi (formerly in Burma), Pio Signò (expelled from China), Joseph Vancio (from the USA) and Brother Giovanni Arici. Others followed in a short time: in 1969 Frs. Bruno Piccolo and Francesco Alessi; in 1970 Frs. Adriano Cadei (like Biffi, expelled from Burma), Santo Di Guardo and Angelo Biancat; in 1971 Fr. Gigi Cocquio; in 1972 Frs. Peter Geremia, Vincenzo Bruno (both having been working in the USA) and Alessandro Bauducci; in 1974 Frs. Albert Booms, Alessandro Brambilla, Raymond Ridolfi and Giuseppe Zanotto; in 1975 Frs. Renato Contis, Giovanni Battista Roggeri and Br. Donald Kuester; and in 1977 Frs. Salvatore Carzedda, Sebastiano D’Ambra and Luigi Colombo.

In the first ten years, PIME sent 22 priests and 2 brothers for the two commitments agreed upon with the bishops: the parish of Santa Cruz (diocese of San Pablo) and the mission district of Siocon (diocese of Dipolog). In December 1968, the first to arrive approached the Archbishop of Manila to request a church or chapel as a point of reference in the capital. That desire was realized in 1970 when Bishop Pirovano visited the missionaries. Bishop Nuncio Carmine Rocco invited PIME to minister to the endless mass of squatters in the downtown area called Tondo. In view of Pope Paul VI’s coming visit to Manila, there was a desire to address the needs of these people with the institution of two new parishes, in order to demonstrate to the Pope and the Asian Bishops the commitment of the Philippine Church for the most poor and marginalized.
Thus, after two years, PIME found itself in three separate pastoral areas, each one very different and distant from the other. There some people could have said, seeing these strange men coming from far away, with the words of Kipling himself:

The Stranger within my gates,
He may be evil or good,
But I cannot tell what powers control- -
What reasons sway his mood;
Nor when the Gods of his far-off land
Shall repossess his blood.