Stories of struggle and hope Oxfam stories from the field

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1 Stories of struggle and hope Oxfam stories from the field Oxfam has, collected stories of survivors of Typhoon Haiyan across the provinces of Leyte, Eastern Samar and Northern Cebu over the past twelve months. Below are their stories of struggle, of courage, and then of hope and empowerment. While the stories we hear from the government and aid agencies like us can help us understand what has happened to the rehabilitation and recovery of Haiyan-affected regions, the survivors themselves can tell a better story of how they have been faring a year after the typhoon made landfall. Below is a list of some of these stories, each with a short summary and description of what it contains. If interested, we can lead you to people we have interviewed, or if you prefer, we can you copies of these stories, which come with photos and interviews. You may contact Oxfam Germany s head of media, Steffen Küßner, at skuessner@oxfam.de / or directly Oxfam s Media Manager for the Haiyan Response, Rhea Catada, at RCatada@oxfam.org.uk or Not just a woman s job: rebuilding homes in Haiyan affected communities SUMMARY Women are considered as among the most vulnerable in Yolanda-affected communities. But what happens when you give a woman a hammer, a shovel, and a bag of nails? Houses and homes are restored, and the family s life takes on a new future. The Women in Carpentry Training (WIC) is another pilot initiative by Oxfam in helping women, out-of-school youth and members of the LGBT community to engage in the reconstruction activities across Eastern Visayas. The project was made possible in partnership with GREEN Mindanao in the Province of Leyte and TESDA in Northern Cebu. The idea was simple to mobilize women and other members of the AREA/ AVAILABLE MATERIALS Across Haiyan-affected regions Background information on Oxfam s shelter programme with interviews and photos of women from Northern Cebu

2 vulnerable sectors to repair houses and rebuild their own homes, while participating in a cash-for-training programme on carpentry and masonry, since men were also busy looking for livelihood opportunities, to provide food for the family. The people in our community were surprised, some even started teasing us upon seeing us do carpentry work, climb on top of sheds, but we don t mind because we know they are amused to see women in this work and are just waiting what will happen next. This is our chance to show that nothing is impossible for women. (Interview) Time is running out for the coconut farmers Water and sanitation change lives among the Manobos of The Eastern Visayas region was one of the country s top producers of coconuts. In Region 8 alone, 13 million trees were decimated out of the total 33 million trees destroyed by the typhoon across affected areas. Among those affected are the small coconut farmers who are now struggling for other sources of income. For farmers who still have a few coconut trees left standing, they are facing the threat of infestation. With these issues, the coconut farmers are calling on the national government to help them with their livelihood problems. Kung hindi kami tulungan ng gobyerno, baka imbis na puno ang aakyatin ng mga mag-niniyog, bahay na (If the government doesn t help us, instead of climbing trees, some coconut farmers may end up climbing other people s houses. (Interview) In the foothills of Bagacay, a small Lumad community composed of the Manobos, locally referred to as the Mabusag and the Mamanwas, or the Maitom have taken Across Haiyan-affected areas Photos (We can connect you coconut farmers on the ground) Eastern Leyte

3 Bagacay Where have all the fish gone? sfishing communities struggle with declining catch and degraded marine habitats Jumpstarting reconstruction through mobile hardware stores refuge after they were deposed by an armed conflict in Eastern Mindanao where they originated from. The Lumads were one of the hundred communities residing in the affected area who suffered from the aftermath of the typhoon. Their homes, along with the crops they tilled, were destroyed, landslides blocked their customary routes to town, their water reservoir was contaminated, and they were left to fend for themselves without water, food, and shelter. Our info materials will tell you more about their story, their tradition, and how water and sanitation interventions have changed their lives. When the distribution started, we were relieved; but then the help did not stop there. The help continued and we felt included for once after being isolated all this time. (Interview) Across Haiyan-affected regions, fishing communities are among those who suffered the most. While help eventually came, in the form of repaired and new boats from government and aid agencies, fishers continue to suffer from declining catch.. My husband s a fisherman, and I help with the fishing sometimes. But right now, aside from fewer catch, we are only able to get smaller fishes. Now, my husband is forced to do odd jobs like carpentry in order to sustain the family. It has been a year, and while we are now back on our feet, thanks to the help of the government and aid groups, we are still yet to get back to a normal life. (Interview) Although commercial establishments like banks, restaurants, and gasoline stations have gradually re-opened weeks after Leyte was struck by Haiyan, it was only after two months that a few of the hardware store owners started setting up shop by selling old stocks left in their warehouses. Photos, information materials, testimonies Across Haiyan-affected regions Photos and interviews Tacloban Background information,

4 Oxjam: Women sing songs of healing Restoring seaweed farms in Bantayan Island Given the need of hardware supplies for rebuilding in hard-toreach, devastated areas, Oxfam (in partnership with Green Mindanao) engaged hardware businesses wtih a project called Self-Recovery Assistance Program (SRAP), wherein trucks containing hardware supplies were mobilized to reach far flung areas and barangays. Valma wrote from the heart. Tears ran down her cheeks as she sang her composition and recalled the day when the typhoon Haiyan, locally known as Yolanda, came. Writing and singing my own song brought back my zest for living, Valma testifies after the song writing workshop arranged by OXFAM in March, as part of the celebration of women s month. Valma comes from Pagnamitan, a village in the town of Guiuan. Media called Guiuan ground zero after Haiyan. The typhoon brought winds too strong, tearing down almost every house, sucking the life out of the coconut trees, and stealing away any hope for recovery. On November 8, the first year of commemoration of Haiyan, Valma and the other women who joined the workshop are singing their songs again. The town has not fully recovered but Valma and her group of women are healing their hearts through songs. Seaweed farming is a major source of income for the fishing communities of Bantayan, a small island located at the northern tip of Cebu. However, the vast seaweed farms which once lined the coasts of the island were completely washed away to the sea after typhoon Yolanda struck the Visayas region. Oxfam initiated the seaweeds farming programme to help photos, and interview Eastern Samar Feature story, photos Northern Cebu Feature story, photos

5 seaweed farmers recover what they lost. The farmers were given start-up capital and taught simple farming technologies for seaweed propagation through community trainings held in partnership with the local agriculture office of the municipality. The training integrated modules on making seaweeds farms adaptive and resilient to future disasters, and thrive despite changing sea surface temperatures. I learned so much from the seaweeds programme. Before, I was only an ordinary seaweed farmer, but now, I am a leader. Before, what I knew about seaweeds was just for me and my family, but now, I share my knowledge to other people and I gain so many new friends from it. If their seaweeds caught any disease, they can come to me and I can give them some seeds. There is now unity among us. (Interview)