Dear Colombia Peace Presence Supporters

Colombia Peace Presence Update, December 2004

In this Update:

• To the Colombia Peace Presence Supporters
• Peaceful Path of Women Marches to the Chocó
• News Briefs
• Letter from the Field: A Holiday Message from the Cacarica River Basin

 

Once again a year of much activity has passed. Of the eight dedicated peace presence volunteers we trained in March , some already have served on our team, others are preparing to go , and three of them are currently in San José de Apartadó. We invited Ella Florez from Colombia to to come speak to U . S . communities in the US about the important role women play in peace building, and Leonardo Jiménez , who inspired us at the FOR national conference with stories of conscientious objectors from the Medellín Youth Network of conscientious objectors. A delegation of 17 US citizens - – co-organized with Chicagoans for a Peaceful Colombia - – visited Colombia and learned about the many efforts grassroots groups and communities undertake to build alternatives to war. Together with the AFSC American Friends Service Committee , we published a report on a variety of these same efforts . A a nd a photo exhibit of highlighting three different Colombian Peace Communities is almost ready to go on the road.

We could not have done all of this without your support and continuous interest , and we want to take this opportunity to thank you very much and encourage you to stay involved and mobilized. There are a few specific possibilities coming up that we would like to share with you:

• As we let you know said in the previous last update, we are currently looking for volunteers for the Colombia Peace Presence to serve on either on our team in San José de Apartadó , or on a team we are planning to establish in Colombia's capital Bogotá. If you or anyone you know are is interested in this possibility opportunity, please contact us for more information and an application for our training in March. Application deadline is January 7 15. (415 495 6334 or forcolombia@igc.org)

• In the last update we also announced that W we are organizing a nother summer delegation - – this time together with Global Exchange. If you would like to get T to get to know the Women’s women’s networks, Peace peace Communities communities, Youth youth Groups groups and many others who play a part in the creati ng on of solutions in Colombia, join us from July 30 to August 13, 2005 and be part of the solution! For more information , contact Global Exchange at 1-800-497-1994.

• The photo exhibit , “Resistance Unarmed,” needs hosts! It is beautiful and inspiring with its 29 11'x14' color photographs telling the stories of the communities of San José de Apartadó, Cacarica and Dabeiba. Let us know if you would like to host the show for two weeks to a month at in your university, community center or church. Contact ( rebekah@forusa.org )   

• The Report Building from the Inside Out, a vivid account of the diverse efforts by Colombian indigenous, women, youth, and peasants to forge a nonviolent path in the midst of Colombia’s political violence, is still available. You can order a copy for $5 (postpaid) or distribute copies in your community for at a bulk rate ($25 for ten copies; $35 for twenty copies, postpaid).

• And F finally , we are looking for artists, writers, poets and musicians between the ages of 13 to and 23 to submit material for to a bilingual magazine and compilation CD that will promote awareness among young people in the United States of Colombia and related issues. The purpose of the magazine is to educate young people in the United States on issues central to the conflict in Colombia through accessibly written articles as well as art, poetry, interviews and music that offer a diversity of voices and perspectives. The deadline for submissions is January 7, 2005. Contact Rebekah Waldron for more information or to send your submission to . ( rebekah@forusa.org )

As you can see, we have a busy year 2005 ahead of us and we hope you will stay with us and continue to support our work and the Colombian groups and communities who keep work ing for peace and justice.

We wish you a blessed and peaceful holiday season and a happy New Year.

Jutta Meier-Wiedenbach, Rebekah Waldron, John Lindsay-Poland.

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Peaceful Path of Women Marches to the Chocó

“War and hunger have not destroyed our dignity . ,”   “... W we continue marching in the territories and on the roads that are controlled by different armed groups and with this exercise of resistance, love and commitment we reclaim the territory for civility ...”

With these words the Ruta Pacífica de las Mujeres (Peaceful Path of the Women) begin their press release about a march of 700 women to the Chocó department on the Colombian pacific Pacific coast to commemorate and celebrate the International Day Against Violence Against Women on November 25. "We march to the Pacific to denounce and make visible the humanitarian crisis in the Chocó, expressed in the situation of the displaced women and the communities that are confined in the department ," the press release states.

Ruta Pacífica cites statistics about the violence and poverty in this department, which is mainly inhabited by Afro-Colombian and indigenous communities. "The Chocó is a territory that is disputed by different armed groups. Aside from the displacement, bullets and guns, it also has the face of poverty: 60% of the population lives in extreme poverty ; , the index of illiteracy is the highest and the quality of education the lowest in the country. Only 23 % of the population has potable water and the infant mortality rate is 94 out of 1000." Ruta Pacifica They quote s statistics that place the Chocó among the five departments with the highest rate of forced displacement , with and women as the most affected.  

"In the context of poverty and discrimination, weapons represent an economic possibility for many young people , and war means a job. Meanwhile women bear the consequences of family instability. In many cases they are left without sons or husbands and have to assume the economic responsibility for the entire family alone. They are violated by the society that continues to discriminate against them because of their skin color, gender, traditions and actions."

"For all those reasons, the Ruta Pacífica de Mujeres declares itself in solidarity with the women of the Chocó and their communities. We - – women from Antioquia and representatives from our regional chapters in Putumayo, Cartagena, Cauca, Santander, Valle and Bogotá - – march to the west of the country. 700 Seven hundred women continue with the task of making visible the invisible and to ask for truth, justice and reparation to the victims."

(http://www.rutapacifica.org.co/movilizacion_choco.htm)

According toInfoBrief of the U .S . Office on Colombia, Ruta Pac í ifica reported that this women's caravan was stopped near the municipality of Carmen del Atrato, when an armed group, reportedly the Guevarist Revolutionary Army (ERG), fired at several trucks and blocked the road in an armed -strike that affect ed ing the department that week.

(http://www.usofficeoncolombia.org/)

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News Briefs

Cacao Growers and Indigenous Guard awarded 2004 Peace Prize

The project of the cacao growers of Remolino of the Caguán , and the Indigenous Guard of the Cauca, winners of the [Colombian] National Peace Prize in 2004, "are two strong examples that it is possible to overcome conflict, minimize its influence while when it occurs and generate conditions for a sustainable peace," said María Teresa Muñoz, Director of The Bank of Good Practices to Overcome the Armed Conflict [ BSCP, a project of the U nited N ations Development Program DP] affirmed said.

•   "A key to the success of the Indigenous Guard is that they have been inspired by the culture, history, and control of the territory as a whole with a political significance. Another is that they do not accept neutrality before the armed groups, they consider neutrality an act of cowardice.   If they did not keep their autonomy and stay ed neutral they would be condemned to lose their integral spiritual vision of the world, their culture and their patrimony," Muñoz commented. In reference to the project of the cacao growers of Remolino de Caguán and Suncillas, Muñoz s aid tated that it appears that they appeared to have hav e been able to transcend some of the major obstacles that often present themselves in the confront integra ted l alternative development programs. (Translated from the United Nations Development Program - UNDP, www.saliendodelcallejon.undp.org.co)

March Against Fear in Ciudad Bolívar

On A December 7 th , a march in the midst of a cultural event in the neighborhood of Arborizadora in Ciudad Bolívar , on the edge of Bogotá, protested recent massacres and the fact that during the time of the government of Alvaro Uribe Velez these [kinds of aggressions ] have intensified. The R residents in some Ciudad Bolívar of the neighborhoods in Ciudad Bolívar denounce d paramilitary groups as responsible for the executions of dozens of youth during 2004. The objective of the march was to raise consciousness in the community of Ciudad Bolívar and to reject the terror and forced recruitment imposed by   paramilitaries. The protestors marched through several neighborhoods , including South Candelaria and San Francisco, finishing at Tunal Park. The corporate media presents the selective ass assinations of youth as the fruit of gang wars, thus covering up the horrendous crimes perpetrated by the paramilitaries. (Translated from Indymedia Colombia http://www.colombia.indymedia.org/)

Reelection Passes Final Vote in Congress

A bill lifting a ban on presidential reelection has passed the last of eight Congressional votes required to amend the constitution, paving the way for Alvaro Uribe Vélez to run for a second four-year term in 2006. The Chamber of Representatives voted overwhelmingly for the measure late November 30 after a 12-hour debate. But Uribe's Congressional foes are planning challenges before the nine-member Constitutional Court, which showed independence from the president August 30, striking down an "antiterrorism" measure he backed. Rep. Gustavo Petro Urrego of the left-leaning Independent Democratic Pole (PDI) said he would argue before the Organization of American States that the Uribe administration used public resources to win support for the reelection bill.

•   Colombia has not allowed presidents to run for a second term since 1886. The only president ever reelected was independence leader Simón Bolívar, who served from 1821 to 1830. At the PDI's first congress November 12, the 200 delegates voted unanimously for the party to run a 2006 candidate. But Bogotá Mayor Luis Eduardo "Lucho" Garzón, a PDI member interviewed in the November 28 edition of the newsweekly Cambio, said he would not seek the post. Sen. Carlos Gaviria Díaz of the leftist Democratic Alternative announced his candidacy December 2. Other hopefuls include the PDI's Sen. Antonio Navarro Wolff, former Bogotá mayors Antanas Mockus and Enrique Peñalosa, and the Liberal Party's Horacio Serpa Uribe, who finished second in the 2002 presidential race. (Stacey Hunt, Colombia Week)

U.S.-Andean Talks Focus on Agriculture

Meeting last week in Tucson, Arizona, negotiators from the United States, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru discarded a goal of completing a free-trade accord by mid-January and scheduled two more rounds of talks. One, focusing on agriculture, will begin January 31 in Colombia, raising the prospect of street protests akin to those across the country when the talks opened May 18 in the Caribbean port of Cartagena. Medellín Mayor Sergio Fajardo Valderrama is pushing the government to hold the agriculture round in his northwestern city. An eighth round will be held in March. President Alvaro Uribe Vélez's government says it's pressing Washington to eliminate subsidies for U.S. production of 13 agricultural goods. Without tariffs or price controls protecting them from the subsidized U.S. imports, thousands of Andean farmers would have to abandon their land or cultivate illegal drugs. The most vulnerable Colombians include producers of corn, rice, sorghum, barley and poultry. Washington, for its part, wants to protect its sugar and tobacco industries from Andean imports. (Chip Mitchell, Colombia Week)

To sign up for Colombia Week, e-mail editors@colombiaweek.org with "SUBSCRIBE" in the subject line. You can also view archives at http://www.colombiaweek.org.

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Letter from the Field: A Holiday Message from the Cacarica River Basin

By Brad Grabs

Greetings and Happy Holidays!   I hope that you all are enjoying this special season.   This past month has been filled with many experiences for our team.   Some are sad continuations of the war here …combat for 19 hours near here kept us up all night a few weeks ago …three leaders of an indigenous community located about 1 one mile from San Jose were killed by armed men who entered their sovereign territory last week …an elderly gentleman was killed by the FARC (Colombia’s largest guerrilla force) very near La Union …

Fortunately, there is good news to report as well.   A healthy baby was born in La Union on November 11 … the corn is nearly ready to harvest …and most important ly, the Peace Community of San Jose continues to survive and to strengthen their process of peace, despite the war all around them.

In this update, I’d like to share with you a tremendous experience that I had just last week.   I traveled to Cacarica, a river basin region near the Pacific coast of Colombia.   A community there hosted a meeting about the FTAA (Free Trade Area of the Americas).   The people in Cacarica are an Afro-Colombian community that who and have lived in this wilderness region of Colombia for over 70 years.   They earn very little money, but are very rich in culture and in natural resources.   It is exactly communities such as this one that will be sorely affected by the FTAA.  

People traveled to the meeting from Mexico, El Salvador, the United States, Chile, Venezuela, Brazil, and Colombia.   We all gathered in the port city of Turbo, where people from the Cacarica community met us and piled us into a “chalupa,” a long, narrow boat used to haul cargo.   The chalupa is owned by the community, and makes a weekly trip hauling wood to sell in Turbo and bring ing ing supplies and food back to the community.   With about 70 people in the boat, sitting on the sides or on boxes of supplies, we made our way through the Gulf of Uraba Urabá and down the River Atrato River.   The eight - hour journey was plenty hot, and there was no roof on the boat for shade.   Along the way, we got a good view of the lush wilderness of the area, and some of the wildlife (including two monkeys) that make a home there.   In order to arrive at the community, we later had to break up and go in canoes, as the river becomes too shallow to support a large boat.   Later we disembarked and walked for nearly an hour through the dark jungle to the small settlement of Nuevo Espacio, where more community members were waiting for us, offering all they had to make us comfortable.  

Nuevo Espacio is part of the community of CAVIDA, Comunidades de Autodeterminación, Vida, Dignidad del Cacarica (Communities of Self-Determination, Life, and Dignity of Cacarica).    Similar to the Peace Community of San Jose, they it too are a community hit hard by the violence of the war here, forced to displace d for four years, and later returned as an organized community dedicated to neutrality and a process of peace.   Although their region is still in conflict conflicted due to by the presence of armed actors, the people of Cavida y have come to recognize that the biggest threat to their way of life is not just the war, but economic policies and plans that fuel the aggression.   In Cacarica as well as the area around San Jose, large companies are seeking to mass-produce African Palm, which is used to make cooking oil as well as bio diesel.   For campesinos who make a living growing their own food in a self-sufficient manner and caring for the land, this would mean the end of their way of life.   After the people of Cacarica told of their plight in at the meeting, representatives from the other South American and Central American countries told of their own struggles to resist resource exploitation and mass production that would surely remove them from their land.   Often this movement towards “free trade” is associated with violence, as people are forced off of their land by others who want to use it for economic gain.            

In college, I remember being taught in Economics class that mass production and free trade is good, as it allows products to be produced more efficiently.   What I wasn’t told is that these strategies also often destroy the cultures and livelihoods of a lot of people.   Life here in Colombia is certainly not efficient, but it is rich.   In Cacarica, there are no stores, but plenty of good food growing nearby.   There is no water or plumbing in the houses, but plenty of good fresh water in the stream bordering the community.   There is no electricity (except f or r om a small generator), but there is plenty of sunshine that provides light for a good day’s work.  

During the days of the meeting, it became very clear to me that many people in Central and South America fear the U nited States S.   They don’t fear our military, but rather our economic policies that threaten to turn their nations into “colonies of the U .S . that provide the resources for the benefit of the North Americans” as one participant put it.   One participant after another participant encouraged resistance to the FTAA and to the onslaught of economic policies that threaten to remove them from their land and turn them into laborers who work for the gain of others.   One participant from Colombia encouraged communities to grow a variety of foods and to strive for self-sufficiency.   “As long as we have a good variety of food to eat from our fields, we don’t worry about much,” he stated.   

The long chalupa ride back to the port gave me plenty of time to reflect about the difficult, yet beautiful life of the Colombian campesinos and indigenous peoples.   What became exceedingly clear to me during this meeting was that having one’s their own land on which to live and grow one’s their food is key to their happiness and sense of security.   It has also become very clear to me that U .S . consumer demand for products and resources is at the core of much suffering in this part of the world.   I find it tragically ironic that so many people in the U nited States S celebrate the birth of the Savior, the Prince of Peace, the defender of the poor, with consumerism that sows conflict and poverty in other parts of the world.    May we be renewed in conscience during this new year, and may our consciences lead us to act in a way that supports and sustains the most vulnerable among us.

 

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If you have any further questions about the FOR Colombia program, please contact us. Thank you again for your ongoing support.

In Peace

Jutta Meier-Wiedenbach

Colombia Program Coordinator

________________________

Fellowship of Reconciliation
Task Force on Latin America and the Caribbean
2017 Mission St. #305 San Francisco, CA 94110
phone Phone: (415) 495-6334, fax: (415) 495-5628
www.forusa.org

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***

If you have any further questions about the FOR Colombia program, please contact us. Thank you very much for your ongoing support.

In Peace

Jutta Meier-Wiedenbach
Colombia Program Coordinator

____________________________
Fellowship of Reconciliation
Task Force on Latin America and the Caribbean
2017 Mission St. #305
San Francisco, CA 94110
phone: (415) 495-6334, fax: (415) 495-5628
www.forusa.org

 

©2004 Fellowship of Reconciliation