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| Volume 3, Issue 20 -- October 13, 2006 |
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From the JPIC Office Greetings from D.C., where the weather seems unsure whether it wishes to plunge into the flamboyance of autumn or linger a little longer in green summery warmth. One day I am snuggled under my heavy comforter, the next I am running around in a T-shirt, and the fan is back in the window. What is clear, however, is that whether fast or slow, change is on its way. And so it might be said of the larger context, from melting glacier ice to the increasing frequency and intensity of natural disasters like Hurricane Katrina, change is imminent. The signs are all around us. In wetter regions, the rains are coming heavier and more frequently, while in other climes, deserts are expanding rapidly and water is scarce. We have reached, in effect, a tipping point, where our self-focused extravagance is rapidly coming to an end, whether forced or chosen. It seems we might still have a choice. Sitting in the shade outside the Church one Sunday morning, Don Pedro tells me of how he and other landless campesinos followed Maryknoll Father Bill Woods, “Padre Guillermo,” into the northern jungles of Guatemala near the Mexican border during the late ’60s. Now a community leader, Don Pedro and his wife along with other young families hacked their way through the jungle with machetes, carrying their few possessions on their backs. They walked for days from the towns where they were born, and fought the jungle to create new communities and carve out a little land for their milpa. Those first years were hard, but the land was generous. They weren’t used to the rains, the mud, the heat. But they adjusted and soon were harvesting more than enough corn to feed their families, coffee and cardamom to sell, and such wonderful plantains and bananas and oranges. Don Pedro shakes his head. No longer. The rain comes later every year. The heat is worse, almost stifling. They almost lost the second harvest this year, the rain was so late, and when it came, torrentially, the flooding almost drowned the young plants. The ears are small, and only one or two per stalk. The fruits are meager. “La tierra no da,” he tells me, repeating a refrain that I have by now heard often: “The land doesn’t give anymore.” It’s as if it has been poisoned. Global warming. The words are everywhere around us, from newspaper headlines to movie theaters, political debates to classrooms to pulpits. Coming out of the most-recent General Assembly, the Columban Fathers have identified it as one of the most pressing justice and peace concerns facing our communities. They are not alone in their assertion. Study after study show that what was once considered a “green” issue, something of concern only to comfortable, middle-class environmentalists, is already having profound repercussions for the poorest and most vulnerable members of our world community. A recent study by Christian Aid UK paints a bleak picture of the effects climate change will have on impoverished communities around the world. They predict that based on current trends, 185 million people will die in sub-Saharan Africa because of disease directly attributable to climate change by the end of the century. Furthermore, either escalating flooding or droughts, depending on the region, will lead to increasing famine, undercutting the food supply for many communities living already in extreme poverty. The study highlights that while it is not too late yet, urgent international action is needed on climate change issues. To read the study, visit www.christian-aid.org.uk/indepth/605caweek/index.htm. To be honest, climate change is a new issue for me. While I know the general idea, I have much to learn. I have always been more focused on economic justice issues, trade and debt. But the more I read, the clearer the connections become. We no longer have the luxury of being able to separate environmental issues from poverty issues from work on migration—they are too interconnected, each feeding into the next. We do a disservice to those we seek to stand in solidarity with by not seeing the bigger picture, by not seeking to understand the links between oil and debt, between trade policies and increased migration, between Hurricane Katrina and the hunger too many experience because the land no longer gives as it used to. So I hope that you will join me in this learning process, and help us explore and develop these connections. We are called to care for all God’s creation, and the livelihoods and survival of many of our global neighbors, and even our own futures depend on us heeding that call. The simple choices we make every day, whether remembering to turn out the light when we leave a room, or carpooling, using public transportation, walking or biking instead of driving, may have profound consequences that extend far beyond ourselves. It is not only a matter of avoiding an environmental doomsday, but of standing in a profound solidarity with the most vulnerable members of our world community.
Message from the Border
Update from Lomas de Poleo
Once, again, a most heartfelt thank you to all of our readers who continue to follow the story of the people’s struggle for their land on the Lomas de Poleo mesa west of Ciudad Juárez, Mexico. Your interest and concern are always a source of support to the people, and your prayers are essential to the community’s perseverance and safety. You can see some of the photos and hear the segment that was aired last week. Go to www.krwgfm.org and scroll down to see a photo of one of Pedro Fuentes Zaragoza’s towers and click the Audio link. This past Sunday, the Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati were unable to attend the Eucharist in Lomas. They were prohibited from passing through a new gate placed on property west of Lomas and claimed by another wealthy individual. Later in the week Sr. Peggy Deneweth and some volunteers were prohibited from passing the same gate. The guards said the area would be sealed from now on, and no one would be allowed through. These are more signs that the wealthy, powerful investors and politicians want this bi-national, multi-billion dollar development project to go forward. All this means more pressure on the residents of Lomas. The lawyer from the Agrarian Tribunal, however, continues to serve the people with dedication and confidence that they will win their day in court. In addition to the 70-some people who have their cases in the Tribunal, the lawyer Carlos Avitia told me there are about 50 more cases to be added.
Zaragoza family members are subpoenaed to appear in Chihuahua on November 6; the people of Lomas will appear on November 7. Please keep all parties in your prayers that this complex and long-standing land dispute will be resolved peacefully and with justice for all concerned. Juan and his wife, Berta, and their four children live in El Paso. Only the father has documents, hence, Nayeli, a recent high school graduate and member of the National Honor Society all four years, cannot attend college. Without documents she cannot apply for any financial aid and the family can barely support itself as it is. Like so many of the 12 million undocumented Mexicans in the United States, they continue day by day, hoping and believing that some new legislation will regularize their situation and allow their children to study and have a better life. I remain in El Paso trying to maintain some of our projects in Mexico through the kindness and commitment of Cristina, Dean, the Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati and, of course, Columban Father Kevin Mullins. On October 3, Fr. John Burger, outgoing U.S. Region Director and newly elected to the Columbans’ General Council, and Fr. Arturo Aguilar and Fr. Kevin, both on the U.S. Regional Council, had a meeting with Bishop Don Renato of the Juárez Diocese. The bishop expressed his appreciation for the Columban presence in Corpus Cristi in Anapra and hoped our presence would continue there. The bishop seemed more supportive of my return to the diocese if my legal/immigration difficulties are resolved favorably. Fr. Hector Villa and other priests from the Juárez seminary continue to celebrate the Sunday Eucharist in the chapel of Jesus de Nazaret. The bishop mentioned to Fr. Kevin earlier this week that the Zaragozas were again trying to get him to accept land for a new chapel in the relocation area on the mesa. This would, in effect, end any formal church presence with the people of Lomas who refuse the relocation. The bishop told Kevin, “It is not opportune to accept the land from them for the chapel at this time.” That is good news. The Siege of Jericho, seven-day chain of prayer and Eucharistic Adoration at Corpus Cristi parish, ended with a packed church at the 10 a.m. Mass on Sunday, October 8. After Mass, a banda de guerra, a military band, from the local high school led the community around the church seven times, after which trumpets were blown and cries of “Viva Cristo Rey!” filled the air. The prayers of the community there and the many others who have been in contact with us to let us know they were knocking on Heaven’s door, gives us confidence that these various conflicts will, somehow, lead us all closer to one another and God’s Kingdom. And, so, for now, along with the people on the mesa in Lomas de Poleo and the millions of undocumented in our own country, we wait and hope, trusting in God’s grace and praying that justice, integrity and compassion will not be lacking. Dios es muy grande! Your prayers and concern are deeply appreciated now more than ever. Migration Secure Fence Act 2006 Passes We have had both good news and bad on the immigration reform front. Before adjourning on Friday, September 29, the Senate passed the Secure Fence Act of 2006 by a margin of 80-19. This bill authorizes the construction of 700 miles of two-layer fencing across the southern border of the United States. Despite the strong objections of the Mexican government, President Bush signed a bill on October 4 authorizing $1.2 billion to begin construction, although estimates suggest as much as $9 billion will be needed. It is almost certain that such a fence, rather than being a deterrent, would lead only to increased loss of life as migrants are pushed into the harshest areas of the desert and traffickers resort to more extreme measures to sneak people across the border. In the past year alone, 426 people have died attempting the harsh journey. The fence is also likely to have significant negative environmental impacts, destroying a fragile desert ecosystem, cutting off access to water and disrupting migration routes for many species, from rare butterflies and birds, to snakes and endangered ocelots. Access to water is also of concern for farmers and ranchers. The good news is that, despite the passage of the Secure Fence Act, other enforcement-only measures did not pass. The House of Representatives piecemeal approach to slipping H.R. 4437, its punitive immigration bill, through the Senate was not successful. Instead the Senate refused to act on provisions that would have required state and local police to enforce immigration law, expanded the use of expedited removal, detained certain immigrants indefinitely and denied remedy to migrants for government misdeeds. This is a hopeful sign that a more-humane, comprehensive immigration bill is still possible, if not by this Congress, than perhaps by the next. It is clear that the Secure Fence Act is a knee-jerk reaction by the Congress so it is seen as doing something in the lead up to the November elections, however ineffectual and potentially harmful that something may be. We continue to call for a just and comprehensive bill providing safe and dignified avenues for migrants to enter, live and work in the United States. Economic Justice World Bank Shuts Out Dissident Voices The fall meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank took place in Singapore mid-September. The international financial institutions have come under heavy criticism for the exclusion of civil society voices. The government of Singapore barred the entry of 27 accredited participants from non-governmental organizations. Activist groups were denied permission to protest outdoors, and were instead constrained to a roped-off area reportedly the size of a squash court. A civil society forum was held in nearby Indonesia instead. Under such conditions, organizers asked, how can these institutions legitimately talk about corruption and accountability? On a positive note, the government of Norway made a landmark decision to cancel $80 million of debt owed by five developing countries after ruling that the loans were not made in good faith and were therefore illegitimate. The decision to unilaterally and unconditionally cancel the debts of Egypt, Ecuador, Peru, Jamaica and Sierra Leone was announced October 2. The government of Norway recognized that, in these cases, the lending was domestically-motivated, rather than by the needs of the receiving countries. By doing so, Norway has broken ranks with other creditor-countries who often refuse to acknowledge corrupt, irresponsible or politically-motivated lending practices. According to Africa Action, lenders “can no longer turn a blind eye to their own historically unfair and corrupt lending practices. They must follow Norway’s lead, and cancel the illegitimate debts being repaid now by impoverished countries in Africa and throughout the global South.” For more information, visit www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=34979. Development Muzak plays again in Singapore at annual meetings
Peter Bosshard To the bankers and government officials who descended on the city state for the World Bank and International Monetary Fund annual meetings in September, Singapore may have looked like the perfect model of a globalized consumer society. Tellingly, for the first time, the annual meetings took place inside a giant shopping mall. Corporate logos dominated the venue, shoppers went happily about fulfilling their consumer duties, and the delegates were shrouded in a constant cloud of Muzak. Dissident voices have no place in a Singapore-style consumer paradise. At the World Bank’s annual meeting, civil society protests were restricted to a small stage inside the shopping mall. And Singapore’s government banned close to 30 experienced civil society activists from entering the country altogether. The media frenzy that followed the reprisals overshadowed the fact that the ban was just a pale reflection of the repression which poor people in the underbelly of global consumer society—and often at the receiving end of World Bank projects—experience. To keep the wheels of the world's consumer society spinning, new resources of land, water, forests and minerals constantly need to be brought into the market system. The people who own or use these lands, forests and rivers have usually no control over how their resources are appropriated. Outside the limelight of global media attention, repression often reigns large. On the way to Singapore, I visited several World Bank projects in Pakistan. In the villages around Makhad, a small town on the left bank of the Indus River, we learned that many poor farmers are currently selling their land to the large landlords. The region is at risk of being flooded by the proposed Kalabagh Dam, and the farmers know that once their land is expropriated, only the rich will be able to pay the bribes required to receive fair compensation. If Kalabagh follows the example of other dam and irrigation projects in Pakistan, the large farmers will also bribe the water bureaucrats so that they can build illegal canals and divert additional water flows. Like the people who were displaced by the reservoirs, the small farmers at the end of the irrigation canals will be left high and dry. Journalists who write about development conflicts in Pakistan live dangerously. In April, Mehruddin Maree, a journalist who used to cover the impacts of large dams and irrigation canals on the Indus delta, was arrested by the police in Golarchi, a small town in Southern Pakistan. He has been missing ever since. “We are often intimidated when we touch on the interests of powerful parties, but this would not stop Mehruddin,” one of his colleagues told me. The case of Mehruddin Maree is not an exception. Aftab Ahmed Sherpao, Pakistan's interior minister, confirmed in 2005 that about 5,000 political activists and journalists are missing in the country. Paul Wolfowitz, the new head of the World Bank, has made good governance and the fight against corruption central themes of his presidency. He has suspended projects in several countries over corruption concerns in recent months, and the World Bank member governments agreed on a framework to combat corruption in Singapore. Yet it is not likely that the President's crusade against corruption will have any consequences for Pakistan, a frontline state in the Bush Administration’s war on terror. In spite of widespread repression and corruption, the World Bank announced in summer 2005 that it plans to increase its lending for the country's water sector tenfold between 2006 and 2010. If the Bank gets its way, this support will include $300 million for a mega-dam project like Kalabagh. The annual meeting in Singapore was far removed from the ground realities in countries like Pakistan. "Throughout the world, there is a growing recognition that the path to prosperity must be built on a solid foundation of good governance," Wolfowitz told the government delegates. Just as the Muzak in Singapore’s shopping malls drowned out the original tunes, the struggles of small farmers and journalists in countries like Pakistan disappeared in the rhetoric of the annual meeting. As the World Bank prepares increased support for projects like the Kalabagh Dam, civil society activists will need to work hard for the drumbeat of ground realities to be heard through the development Muzak emanating from Singapore and Washington. Peter Bosshard is the policy director of International Rivers Network, an environmental and human rights group based in Berkeley, California and a contributor to Foreign Policy In Focus (online at www.fpif.org). Action Alerts
The School of the Americas (SOA), in 2001 renamed the “Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation (WHINSEC),” is a combat training school for Latin American soldiers, located at Fort Benning, Georgia. Over its 59 years, the SOA has trained over 60,000 Latin American soldiers in counterinsurgency techniques, sniper training, commando and psychological warfare, military intelligence and interrogation tactics. Graduates have consistently used their skills to wage war against their own people, often targeting educators, union organizers, religious workers, student leaders, and others who work for the rights of the poor. With former SOA graduates being unmasked in Chile, Argentina, Colombia, Paraguay, Honduras, and Peru for their crimes against humanity, and with the blatant similarities between the interrogation methods and torture methods used at Abu Ghraib and those described in human rights abuse cases in Latin America, the SOA/WHINSEC must be held accountable. The SOA/WHINSEC is funded by American tax dollars, and it is in our power to shut it down. Join other committed citizens as we converge on Ft. Benning, Georgia on November 17-19, 2006, to remember the victims of the School of the Americas, hold its graduates accountable, and close the doors forever on an institution that does not uphold the fundamental value of human rights. For more information, please visit SOA Watch’s website at: www.soaw.org/new/index.php Contact Us
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