Philippines: Team sports against violence and discrimination

The girls have just come from the football pitch. Time to catch their breath – and time for a team meeting. But now it's about more than just football; about the situation on the street, their rights, and protection from abuse.

They are all frequent visitors to the streets of Davao City. They know what it's like to be chased away, insulted, and falsely accused, precisely because they are out in the city at night. 

The metropolis on the island of Mindanao has given little attention or priority to street children. Government programs often fail to help, and some have only caused further harm. "Rescue operations" and citywide curfews have become a cover for the unjustified arrests and detention of young people. Once children are detained, the girls report, they are subjected to cruel and humiliating treatment by police and security forces in their village.

Tambayan is working to combat this culture of violence. The terre des hommes partner organization offers psychological and psychosocial support to children, especially adolescent girls, but also children who are particularly vulnerable due to family circumstances or previous conflicts with the law.

Playing football is one of the many ways Tambayan reaches girls and opens new doors for them. The organization teaches them to recognize different forms of violence and protect themselves against them. At the same time, it advocates for a more peaceful and constructive culture in politics, the police, and government agencies.

The work helps to stop and break vicious cycles of violence. Many of the girls at the football pitch describe it similarly: they used to join one of the "street gangs" because they enjoyed it. The members told them that this would "earn respect." But being a member of a gang only brought new problems, each one bigger than the last.

The girls now know how to protect themselves. And they have newfound courage to strive for a better future. They are grateful for the community they have found in the Tambayan program. And anyway, they say, soccer is much more fun than being a member of a street gang.