|
| Volume 3, Issue 19 -- September 22, 2006 |
|
From the JPIC Office It is a blessing to be the bearer of good news. So often, in this work, we can get bogged down in the seeming hopelessness of it all. We spend so much time fighting, gearing up against the latest bad piece of legislation, assault on the environment or systematic violation of human rights to come down the pipe. There are so few victories that we can celebrate, and yet we keep on fighting, keep on raising our voices, because if we don’t, who will? Sometimes it takes something significant to jar us out of what I call the “fight, fight, fight” mentality—to help us remember to see the simple beauty in the world around us and to feel joy in our friendships and relationships with those around us. Something significant to remind us in a very basic way why it is that we do raise our voices to demand a more just world. Something significant . . . Something significant—like a birth. And in this regard, our JPIC office has been very blessed. Our own Amy Echeverria gave birth to a beautiful, healthy baby girl on September 7. Both mother and daughter are home and doing very well, and while the office is a little lonelier without Amy’s presence, we share in her family’s joy at welcoming a new life into their home, and wish them all the love and blessings possible in their daughter. While babies and congressional bills seem a strange juxtaposition, it is also the crucial issue at stake—exactly what kind of world are we creating for the children of today? What values are we postulating? There is much work remaining for us to do, as bills on interrogation techniques, trade agreements and border fences are being debated in the U.S. Congress, and violence and militarization threaten the peace and well-being of communities and families around the world. However, it is more than ever worth pausing, both to reflect on the state of our world as well as to be grateful for the blessings that grace our lives, whether a new life or an old friend, the shelter of a tree or a community, the faith and hope that sustain us. The simple and steadfast presence of these in our lives is victory and good news enough for celebration, and inspiration enough to keep us on the journey. Peace & blessings, Theresa Polk
Reflections from Chile
By Columban Father Robert E. Mosher Chile is no stranger to torture. With U.S. backing, military generals took over the democratically elected government of Salvador Allende in 1973, and began to arrest and systematically torture as many supporters and officials of that government that their soldiers could round up. From that day, September 11, until President Patricio Aylwin ended the dictatorship with his election and inauguration in March 1990, torture was a regular and highly developed tool of state terror in Chile. Many thousands of cases were compiled and published by the government-sponsored Valech Commission a few years ago, including cases of the torture of children. The vile details of the variety of methods and degrees of pain inflicted, many resulting in death or permanent physical impairment, shocked the Chilean public. Priests of the Missionary Society of St. Columban joined other Christians in organizing and implementing a “Movement Against Torture” during the 1980s that effectively called attention to these activities of General Augusto Pinochet’s secret police, the CNI (Centro Nacional de Informaciones), and participated in five-minute “lighting” protests in front of the specially equipped torture centers, among other public venues. The hundred or so members of the “Sebastián Acevedo” movement—named for a man who burned himself alive on the steps of a major cathedral in Chile, protesting the torture of his two adult children—also held workshops on the issue, making sure that the movement remained a peaceful means to pressure for change and that the nature of torture be examined. One of the most challenging sessions, I remember, helped us discover the importance of not demonizing those who torture. “These are not Martians from another planet, or machines, who apply electrical wires to the genitals of their victims, or submerge their heads in water …,” a psychologist warned us. “These are human beings who have lost something.” She told us that this is what any human being can become, given the right circumstances and upbringing, the right environment in his or her youth, the correct experience of brainwashing. This is what prolonged dehumanizing conditions can do to a normal, healthy person: eventually desensitize him or her to the extent of losing the capacity to feel compassion or empathize with the sufferings of others, even while inflicting that suffering. Each one of us in the movement, we were reminded, was a potential torturer. Each one of us had to look inside and tell ourselves, “OK, denounce and act against the torturers and dictators outside ourselves, but how much time is left to the dictator within? What do I do about the torturer inside me, who treats others with disrespect, who hates, who desires to control others and inflict pain on them?” I realized with a shock that Jesus had recommended the same attitude of his followers when they might be tempted to self-righteously decry the failings and sins of others: When you want to point out the splinter in your neighbor’s eye, look first to the beam in your own eye. It is the essentially unconscious reflex of people to condemn without regard to their own need for repentance and renewal. Our work to remove torture from the scene of Chile in the 1980s or in the secret jails of the CIA in the 2000s requires a humble recognition that torture has two victims, both the torturer and the tortured, and both are human beings, granted that the tortured is the victim of injustice, while the torturer is responsible for his or her actions, and has lost their human quality. This perspective helps us realize that torturers will have to be worked with to help them regain lost humanity and, once again, integrate their lives with their conscience once the torture stops, is permanently prohibited and the tortured rehabilitated. But it also helps us realize that those who acquiesce to torture, abetting the act and speaking in favor of its usefulness, are also allowing the inner torturer, who desires to control and inflict pain on his enemies, to surface, and will also need recovery to become human once again. As a nation that might permit excessive force and degrading treatment of its prisoners to bring out its inhuman potential, we need to face facts about our humanity as a people, and repent of this kind of attitude. We need to ask God’s help and forgiveness and allow truly moral values of respect for the dignity of others, made in the image and likeness of the Divinity, to continue to distinguish us from those who manifest little regard for the life and safety of others. They need to recover their own lost humanity, once they are arrested and confined for the public good. Columban Father Robert E. Mosher of the United States has been in Chile since 1980. Message from the Border
Update from Lomas de Poleo It has never been clearer that the Pedro Fuentes Zaragoza family cannot legally or morally obtain possession of the land in Lomas de Poleo. Therefore they use every means possible to cut off any individual or group that is supporting the residents to make them more vulnerable to the brute force and corruption of the Zaragozas’s agents.
This kind of social violence employs lies, rumors, bribes, threats, promises, misinformation, intimidation and appeals to fear, greed and ignorance. It clouds personal relationships among the neighbors themselves and those who accompany them in their struggle for land and dignity.
Hence, I sit and wait in El Paso, consulting with people who know Mexico and the laws there, hoping for a way of returning to the people and the mission there. But as the lawyer Carlos Avitia told me the morning of my deportation when I was feeling overwhelmed by fear, “Padre, if you are involved in the struggle for justice, for changing the reality, suffering is inevitable. Don’t be afraid; that is what the Zaragozas want!” Carlos further reassured me that no matter what happens, he will continue to accompany the people and their cases in the Agrarian Court. (The Zaragoza family has been relentless in their efforts in court, and in the Agrarian Tribunal itself, to get Avitia off the case.) Columban Father Kevin Mullins called to tell me the people of Corpus Cristi Parish were beginning a “Siege of Jericho” prayer on October 1, petitioning the Lord to get me back into Mexico. The “Siege” consists of seven days and nights of prayer before the Blessed Sacrament praying that, as in the original siege at Jericho, the “walls come tumbling down.” This was used successfully in Poland when John Paul II made his first return visit and the authorities said he wouldn’t be allowed to visit his hometown of Krakow. After the days and nights of prayer, the pope entered Krakow and before long it was the Polish Communist authorities, themselves, who came tumbling down. We do believe that Dios es muy grande! and that some how God’s plan will be fulfilled. The thoughts and prayers of the people of Anapra and on the mesa in Lomas de Poleo have really been a source of sustenance and hope for me. Fr. Kevin and I were delighted when we learned that Fr. Hector Villa, the rector of the diocesan seminary in Juárez, would be celebrating the Eucharist at Jesus de Nazaret, the little chapel on the mesa, for the next four Sundays. The Sisters of Charity, Janet and Carol, were there for the Mass and said there was a good, enthusiastic crowd, and Fr. Hector was warmly received. By cell phone, I was able to speak with some of the people. Carmen, the main pastoral agent for the chapel, said, “Padre, we are continuing here with everything. We have the catechism class and our Mass. Nothing is stopping!”
Your interest, prayers and support are needed and appreciated now more than ever. Migration
"We have been excluded from the High Level Dialogue"
“We have been excluded from the High Level Dialogue:” Addressing the more than 50 migrant rights groups gathered in the Community Dialogue on Migration, Development and Human Rights in New York today, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights of Migrants stated: “We have been excluded” from the high level discussions on migration policy. “The physical distance we are from the United Nations building,” stated Mr. Jorge Bustamente, “is symbolic of our distance from the migration policy discussions being held there.” The Community Dialogue is running in parallel to the UN High Level Dialogue on Migration and Development being held in the United Nations Headquarters in New York and attended by ministerial delegates from around the world. The two-day event, held to highlight the economic advantages to both origin and destination countries of migration, has provided only extremely limited opportunity for those affected by the policies, the migrants themselves, to present their views and aspirations. Mr. Bustamente also highlighted the need to raise awareness of migrant concerns. He noted: “Migration is a rational and reasonable behavior; people move to where opportunities are and where they can find a better life. It is also an inherently international issue. Thus, any policy that relies on unilateral means to curb natural migration, will never be successful.” Migrant Rights International (MRI) organized the parallel Community Dialogue to bring the voices of migrants into the debate. Opening the event, Cathi Tactaquin from MRI explained: “In this conversation on migration and development, we want human rights, the rights of migrants and their families to be part of any ongoing discussion and activity.” Three percent of the world’s population now lives in a country not their country of birth, the number rising to 9.5% of the population in developed countries. Migrant workers, including irregular migrants, allow industrialized countries to maintain blue-collar sectors such as agriculture and manufacturing, and also aid the development of home countries through their remittances, which now total more than all of the world’s aid. Yet, say migrants rights groups, the rights of migrant workers are routinely violated. Migrant workers are regularly paid less than local workers, have little access to health and education services and have no avenue for redress in a labor dispute. Mr. Bustamente ended his address by stating: “Migrants are a large and powerful electorate worldwide. We need to tap into this power and encourage our colleagues to organize and demand a place at the policy-making table.” Migrants and their advocates will take up this call on September 14 at a rally to be held in the United Nations Plaza. As Bandana Pattanaik from the Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women stated: “The vulnerability of migrants marginalized by unjust government policies must be recognized by those attending the HLD. Migrants rights are human rights and this must be a part of any further dialogue process.” For more information, please see www.migrantsrightsinternational.blogspot.com Economic Justice Update from the Trade Front By all accounts, little progress was made during the third round of negotiations between the United States and South Korea for a free-trade agreement (FTA). The talks took place in Seattle the week of September 5, where activists from Korea joined U.S. labor, faith and environmental activists in the streets to protest the secrecy of the negotiations, erosion of state sovereignty and provisions harmful to farmers and labor in both countries. Little information has been made public, but from statements made by the lead negotiators, there remain wide discrepancies in the positions taken by the two countries. Korea has been adamant in demanding that rice be kept off the table as a cornerstone of Korean agriculture and dietary staple. Other contentious issues include pharmaceuticals/access to medicines, automobiles, agricultural goods and food safety standards. Meanwhile, the FTA between the U.S. and Peru remains on hold as Congress prepares to wind up their session and head back to their districts to campaign. All signs point to the fact that the agreement will be dealt with in the “lame duck” session, when Congress returns after the November elections and are less accountable for their votes. It also seems likely that the FTA will be lumped into an omnibus package with other pending trade votes, again making it more difficult to stop. Your calls and letters have kept it off the table this fall. Keep up the pressure through November and take advantage of the presence of your representatives in their home districts to tell them to vote no on the Peru FTA. (For talking points, please see our website. A recent study on Chile’s economy debunks the myth that Chile’s economic growth is due to its strict implementation of neo-liberal policies, such as trade liberalization, negotiation of free-trade agreements and privatization of services. Rather, the study shows such policies have led to increased economic disparities, while relying solely on the unsustainable exploitation of natural resources to fuel economic growth. Instead, Chile’s economic successes can be attributed to the enlightened implementation of non-neo-liberal policies.
Read the study at www.citizen.org/publications/release.cfm?ID=7460 Action Alerts Tell your Senators to Oppose “Enforcement-Only” Immigration Reform Bills The U.S. Senate is considering several immigration enforcement bills prior to adjournment for the mid-term elections. These bills represent pieces of H.R. 4437, the enforcement-only bill passed by the U.S. House of Representatives in December. The enactment of these individual measures is an attempt to circumvent the legislative process and enact H.R. 4437 in a piecemeal fashion, thus abrogating the need to consider other important aspects of immigration reform, such as a path to citizenship for the undocumented and the creation of a temporary worker program. It is crucial that pro-immigrant voices are heard at this moment, speaking out against these measures. The bills being considered include H.R. 6061, the Secure Fence Act of 2006, which authorizes the construction of 700 miles of border fencing along the southern border. This is currently being considered by the U.S. Senate. Other measures include bills requiring voters to provide photo identification and proof of citizenship (passport or Real ID card), permitting indefinite detention of immigrants, expanding the use of expedited removal, and deputizing state and local law enforcement to enforce immigration law, while removing judicial review from immigrants whose rights have been violated. Please call the Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121, and ask to be connected to your senators’ offices. Once connected, ask them to oppose enforcement-only bills that threaten the rights and lives of migrants. State your support for a fair and comprehensive package that, at minimum, provides an opportunity for hard-working immigrants already in the country to regularize their status, an avenue to citizenship for those that desire it, provisions for family reunification and the creation of a safe and dignified manner for future migrants to enter and work legally in the United States. This is a pivotal moment – please make your voice heard! For more information, please visit justiceforimmigrants.org/action.html Contact Us
We welcome submissions, comments and suggestions.
|