Francis’ Story, Philippines
Photo by John Paul Lopez/2014.
“Change rarely happens with the kind of government that we have now; so it’s up to each and every one of us to make change happen”, says Francis Loyd Cinco, a twenty nine year-old paralegal from Initiatives for Dialogue and Empowerment through Alternative Legal Services (IDEALS) Inc. A civil engineer by profession, Francis has been engaged in post-Haiyan recovery and relief efforts since the day super typhoon Haiyan made landfall in Tacloban.
Having joined the IDEALS Legal Mission team in April, Francis is currently engaged in various legal missions all over the region, aiming to give hope and a chance to start life anew to the victims of the storm. As when this photo was taken, the IDEALS Legal Mission and the civil registration project of UNHCR teams visited the Tacloban, Caibaan bunkhouse to assist the residents on their legal needs.
“Our legal missions are not the usual ones, where we just bring the free services from offices to the community; rather, we feel that there is a deeper connection involved. I feel that it is our mission to give hope to those whose lives were entirely changed by the tragedy of Haiyan.”
Text by Rafael Pajares/2014.
