Philippines: “The Book of Memories” book and exhibit launch

Around 300 participants, including families of missing people from across Mindanao, local, provincial and regional officials, representatives from the Marawi Compensation Board and the Philippine National Police-Forensic Group, and religious groups graced the launch of The Book of Memories (Ang Aklat ng Mga Alaala), a 77-page publication released by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in commemoration of the International Day of the Disappeared, which falls on 30 August.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held to inaugurate the photo exhibition which is open to the public from 26 to 30 August 2025 at the atrium of Robinsons Iligan. The exhibition features photographs from the book and explores the space between destruction and rebuilding in the aftermath of the Marawi conflict. Using skeletal house frames as visual metaphor, the exhibit reflects the fragility and resilience of a community that endures.

In The Book of Memories, the families share their deeply personal stories, expressing their need for answers as they continue their search for their missing kin. Filipino photojournalist Larry Monserate Piojo captured photographs of the families along with the treasured objects that once belonged to their missing relatives.

“Eight years since losing their loved ones, the families have remained resilient in the face of many challenges. This book is a testament of their perseverance in their quest in wanting to know what happened to their missing loved ones. Through the book and the exhibit, the families and the ICRC wish to call on the authorities to fulfill their responsibility of clarifying the fate of the missing,” said Johannes Bruwer, head of delegation of the ICRC in the Philippines.

We hope that the government could help all families of the missing, whether financially or through other means. There are so many of their children who cannot go to school. And the government should help all families, whether they are Muslims or Christians.

Litisia Palahang, mother of a missing person

“We hope that the government could help all families of the missing, whether financially or through other means. There are so many of their children who cannot go to school. And the government should help all families, whether they are Muslims or Christians,” said Litisia Palahang, who has been searching for her son.

The authorities shared updates such as the Lanao del Sur provincial government’s creation of a technical working group on the identification, exhumation and documentation of human remains in the Maqbara cemetery; as well as information on other support. They said they have not abandoned the families of the missing, despite the challenges that they encounter with the identification process.

Nevertheless, answers on the fate and whereabouts of the Marawi missing have yet to be provided by the authorities. Knowing what happened to their loved ones is both a need and a right that allows families to find closure and end the cycle of uncertainty.

“We hope that this book and the exhibit will encourage the authorities to provide us with closure. Remembering our loved ones and paying tribute to them is just the first step. It is never enough. Healing is possible only if the government could provide us with the help that we need,” said Litisia Palahang, whose then 34-year-old son went missing during the conflict.

The ICRC has registered over 300 cases of people who went missing from the 2017 Marawi conflict. The obligation to prevent people from going missing and to account for those who are reported missing is enshrined in the Geneva Conventions and its Additional Protocols, to which the Philippines is a party. This includes the dignified management of the dead and the identification of those who remain unidentified.

From 2017 to 2024, the ICRC has helped more than 400 families of missing people by providing mental health and psychosocial support and through livelihood initiatives. The ICRC has been providing the Philippine National Police-Forensic Group with technical advice, capacity-building and material support to support the identification of remains in the Maqbara and Dalipuga cemeteries.