A Turkish-run orphanage on a troubled Philippine island
Around 10,000 orphans seek refuge in a Turkish-run orphanage on the troubled southern Philippine island of Mindanao.
The orphanage opened in 2012 and is home to 97 children aged between 7 and 14.
The island of Mindanao in the southern Philippines is home to around 10,000 orphans.
Most of them lost one or both of their parents during many years of fighting between the Philippine state and rebels.
Many rely on relatives for support, but a few have managed to find permanent homes.
"If I wasn't here, my mother would suffer. She would not be able to afford to send me to school. I may have been sent abroad to earn money. That's what happened to one of my sisters," says 14-year-old Hasena Mohamed, who has been living in a Turkish-run orphanage near the city of Cotabato since her father died fighting for the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.
TRT World 's Shamim Chowdhury reports with more from Cotabato.
Copyright © 2024 TRT World.