"Soldiers often come to communities and occupy schools and homes. They have been known to burn down entire villages including the schools. They harass the people psychologically and physically. Parents are afraid to send their kids to school when the soldiers are in their village which effects the education," she said then added, "Because the curriculum of the Salupongan schools include addressing issues relevant to the current situation of land threats and encourages the students to fight for their ancestral land against logging and mining companies, the Philippine government associates the schools with teaching rebellious ideologies. In turn, they wrongfully associate them with the New People's Army and that is how they justify the militarization, harassment, and killings of Lumad involved in attaining basic education. There have been numerous incidences of torture, rape, and killings by the AFP. Many human rights advocacy groups such as Karapatan and Save Our School (SOS) Network have brought international attention to these incidents and countless other human rights violations against children.
Read more: Salupongan International: Fighting for the rights of indigenous people