Privilege and Peace

By Chelsey Dyer, WfP SE Regional Board Member

Margaret Mead, a once famous anthropologist, theorized that warfare is an invention created by humankind. She staunchly rejected the notion that war is a biological or sociological inevitably and argued that should a “method more congruent with the institutions and feelings of the period be invented” war would become obsolete and a new invention would supersede its role. I have often wondered over the veracity of this theory. Over time, citizens have turned to their governments and governments to transnational bodies to prevent citizen abuse during conflicts, end wars, and prevent them from starting. But violence has always remained an option.

Until now.

Until a small community in Colombia created another possibility, a new hope for peace. Despite a perpetuated cycle of violence and economic deterioration that erodes community bonds and the luxury of creativity, a group of dedicated Colombians has continued to persist in their recognition of the defects of war. And so some have created a new invention, a space in which violent actors are evicted and peace is groomed with non-violence and community bonds.

It is the humanitarian space of Puente Nayero.

Situated against the backdrop of Buenaventura, the people of the beachfront neighborhood of Puente Nayero established a humanitarian space with the aid and accompaniment of the Comisión Intereclesial de Justicia y Paz or the Inter-Church Commission of Justice and Peace. Today, their success is echoed in the warmth that filters through the coconut trees and casts its glow on the children at play below, children who are already guaranteed a healthier future. Peace is growing, despite the obstacles the city of Buenaventura provides. With an 80% poverty rate, Buenaventura has been called “ground-zero” for the US-Colombia Free Trade Agreement (FTA). Enacted in 2012, the FTA immediately eliminated 80% of tariffs on U.S. exports to Colombia, allowing a surge of cheap US goods to enter Colombia. Buenaventura is the primary hub through which 70% of Colombia’s imports and exports pass. As such, this city has been targeted for intensified multinational development and aesthetic improvements to accommodate the heightened presence of business professionals. However, this development has been accompanied by displacement, more turf wars between neoparamilitaries over drug routes and territory, and increasing levels of violence and economic distress.


While the Colombian government attempts to combat rising levels of disappearances, dismemberments, and murders in Buenaventura by increasing its military presence, local community members report the collusion of armed forces with multinational corporations and neo-paramilitaries. Accounts of abuse feed a pervasive mistrust of armed officials and erodes already fragile community bonds. Many citizens in Buenaventura are left with no other options but to shut themselves in their homes after dark for protection; be displaced to the cement compound of San Antonio with few economic, educational, or health opportunities; or join a neo-paramilitary group.

This is what makes the community of Puente Nayero so remarkable. Faced with the aforementioned options, the community created another choice. Peace. In April 2014 the community began to evict all violent actors from their land, reclaimed “chop-up” houses previously used for torture, and began the long journey of rebuilding a supportive a social community.


The clothes drying on the wash line and the neighbors meandering calmly throughout the streets mask the extraordinary nature of Puente Nayero in a veil of banality. Yet, amidst the dirt paved streets and wooden homes the movement for peace continues. In November 2014, paramilitary groups made incursions onto the adjacent street of Piedras Cantan, threatened community leaders and announced their intentions to infiltrate the space. This occured in spite of the community's repeated demands for police presence in the space and protections for leaders. The community was granted collective protective measures (medidas cautelares) by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) in September. This ruling grants official recognition to the humanitarian space as an area under threat and acknowledges the community's heightened risk level due to the lack of government action. With this recognition the IACHR has said the Colombian government must comply with the community's requests for protection. However, history has shown that lack of political will in Colombia can cause well-intended policies to fail. In order for the community’s needs to be fulfilled the Colombian government and National Protections Unit (a division of the Ministry of the Interior tasked with protecting human rights defenders and other citizens under threat) have to comply. As such, this community’s battle for security and peace is far from over:

WHAT ARE THEIR NEEDS?

• · A school bus for children
• · Security cameras and better lighting in the space (for safety)
• · Cell phones and bulletproof vests for leaders
• · Secure transportation and body guards for leaders
• · Police presence five key points in the community which would require local and national government support 
• · Prior consultation with multi-nationals who wish to use their land

It is not easy to fight for peace-to take up arms and blatantly put your body on the front lines. But it is more challenging to live for peace; to forgo weapons, to rely only on your government and your faith in humanity to protect you from those who strive to fight. I am privileged because I have never had to make that choice, violence or non-violence. I was born into peace. And now I want to use my privilege to help the peace in Puente Nayero grow and expand throughout Buenaventura. I want the children in Puente Nayero to dream uninhibited by worries about safety and economic security. I want to believe in Margaret Mead’s idea that warfare can be replaced with a better invention. And this is why I work with Witness for Peace, because they turn my dreams into beliefs and my beliefs into realities. I believe in peace because of communities like Puente Nayero. I believe in peace because even when confronted with decades of war, poverty, and government disdain, people still have hope, people still have alternative solutions for the future. I believe because I know of our victories in the past, and I am ready to win again. Let’s start with Puente Nayero.

WHAT CAN WE DO?

• Write a letter of support to the Puente Nayero community. Send it to WfP SE  and we will translate it (if needed) and forward it on to the community.
• Take a photo of yourself holding a sign of support. Make sure you put where you’re from! Post it to Facebook or Twitter and email it to us.
• Write officials at the Colombian Embassy in Washington, D.C. and the U.S. Embassy in Colombia. Express your support for the community and your wish that their needs be fulfilled.

Life and Death, Hope and Fear: a visit to Iguala

by Maggie Ervin

The city of Iguala in Guerrero state, Mexico

It was here in Iguala, a city whose name means “place of the serene nights,” where local police killed six people and disappeared 43 students on the night of Sept 26th. This latest episode in Mexico - unlike many other bloody events since massive US - supported militarization began here in 2007 - has made national and international headlines, and sparked tens of thousands of Mexicans to take to the streets in protest. The outrage is palpable. As Edgar, a man I spoke with here in Iguala, put it, “We never thought they’d go this far. They really gave it to us this time…People are fed up.” For the last six weeks, despite the government’s promise to do all it can to find the students and its unprecedented deployment of federal police and army on the search, they have yet to be found.

Although its population is less than 120,000, Iguala, Guerrero, is an important city in Mexico due to its key role in the country’s history. In 1821, the famous Plan of Iguala was signed here, declaring Mexico free of Spanish rule. Soon after, the first national flag was both designed and sewn here. And Iguala is the only city mentioned in the national anthem. So if you’re Mexican, you’ve probably heard of it. If there’s national, historic symbolism to this place, it’s hard not to see recent events here as emblematic of Mexico's present. 

Death is all around these days, it seems: images of Catrina, the skeleton woman who dons a lavish 19th century hat; the colorful sugar skulls of all sizes called calaveritas; kids dressed up as zombies and ghosts. All this, of course, because this weekend was Day of the Dead, a celebration with a rich pre-Hispanic history - later syncretized with All Saints’ Day - which involves remembering and communing with the dead. But it seems there are other deaths around as well: That of trust. (Something's wrong when you fear your police. Or when, as a sovereign nation with plenty of forensic experts, your citizens demand you bring in their Argentinian counterparts to identify the bodies.) That of security. (My taxi drivers: “People are careful about who they talk to. You should be too.” “Please get in the front seat if you want to talk.”) That of any remaining confidence in the country’s three main political parties (all tainted with corruption and links to organized crime). And it’s easy to lose count of the mass graves found around Iguala. It seems that every few days since the students disappeared, more have been discovered. I thought I’d managed to keep track of how many, at twenty, but then Edgar said there were two new ones just found on the edge of town that had yet to be accounted for.

Like any city, there are official graveyards here too. And on every November 1st and 2nd, families visit them to remember their dead. So by Saturday Iguala’s three cemeteries were replete with families cleaning graves and decorating them with the yellow and purplish-red flowers known as cempasúchil. Meanwhile, its main plaza filled up with captivating and creative tributes: to deceased pets, to Led Zepellin’s drummer, to mortal victims of breast cancer, to a bride in Chihuahua who legend says was embalmed into a mannequin, to Robin Williams, and to the 43 missing students.

The world awaits news of them. Millions of people are desperately hoping that they’re still alive, that there will be no tombstones decorated for them on next year’s Day of the Dead. “They took them alive, we want them back alive!” is being chanted all over Mexico and abroad, in march after crowded march. There have been some testimonies, however, that suggest the students were killed. So while there is hope, there is also fear. Fear that to the more than 60,000 violent deaths in Mexico over the last seven years, there will be added 43 more. Which would be the worst historic legacy that Iguala could leave. 

Iguala’s Flag Museum. The green of the Mexican flag represents liberty, the red union, and the white peace, which feels elusive these days. In addition to recent grisly events, Edgar added that, "If the students are found dead, there's gonna be a bloodbath here."

Mexico's second largest flag lies on the edge of town. Although President Peña Nieto tried to ignore the violence in the country, his focus on “moving Mexico” forward and his claims of security came crashing down with news of the massacre and disappearances. This added to recent revelations that (in his home state) 22 civilians were killed point blank by army members after having surrendered, an event which the army had tried to cover up.

Mexican Independence from Spain was declared here 193 years ago. The declaration contains three main points, the third of which is the "union of all social classes." Unfortunately, though, the divide between haves and have-nots in Mexico is still alarming. Almost half the population is officially considered poor. The 43 missing students all came from humble, rural families and were studying to become schoolteachers in their communities.

Iguala's mayor Jose Luis Abarca quickly fled town as his possible role in the massacre and disappearances, as well as revelations of his close ties with organized crime, came to national light. His fortune expanded rapidly over these last few years, and  among his many properties that sprang up is this shopping mall.

The city's police chief is on the run as well. Soon after the massacre and the subsequent arrests of officers, the local police department was closed. It was later reopened with federal police in charge. Mexico’s federal police, however, have a dubious human rights record, and enjoy widespread impunity for violations. The National Human Rights Commission received 146 complaints of human rights violations by federal police in 2006. By 2012, that number had jumped to 802. Since 2008, over 1.2 billion US taxpayer dollars have been directed to Mexico through the Merida Initiative. Beyond massive military equipment, these funds have supported “security services,” used in part to train and increase these police forces.

There is now a heavy federal police presence in Iguala. “But there’s talk that they’ve started to extort just like the local police did,” said one of my communicative taxi drivers.

A tombstone in the main cemetery of Iguala decorated with the cempasúchil flowers.

A truck in Iguala. The US government has been largely silent about the 43 disappeared students. The White House called it “worrisome” last week, and the State Department only issued a brief statement soon after the incident. Read our recent Action Alert and take action to demand that the US government take a more forceful and vigorous stance.

In the city's main church, this image had special resonance, as "Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, advocate of difficult and desperate causes."

From the tribute to the missing students in Iguala's main plaza: "You took them alive, we want them back alive!"

Vida y Muerte, Esperanza y Miedo: una visita a Iguala

por Maggie Ervin

La ciudad de Iguala, Guerrero

Iguala, una ciudad cuyo nombre significa "donde la noche es tranquila", fue el escenario donde la policía local mató a seis personas y desaparecieron a 43 estudiantes en la noche del 26 de septiembre. Este último episodio en México - a diferencia de muchos otros hechos sangrientos que han sucedido desde el comienzo de la militarización masiva apoyada por Estados Unidos en el 2007 - ha sido noticia nacional e internacional, y ha provocado que decenas de miles de mexicanos salgan a las calles a protestar. La indignación es palpable. Edgar, un hombre con quien hablé aquí en Iguala señaló que nunca esperaron que ocurrieran tales hechos. “Nos dieron en la torre...Estamos hartos”, dijo. Durante las últimas seis semanas, a pesar de que el gobierno afirmó que haría todo lo posible para encontrar a los estudiantes desaparecidos y ordenó el despliegue de la policía federal y el ejército en la búsqueda, aún no han encontrado a los jóvenes.

A pesar de que su población no llega a los 120.000 habitantes, la ciudad de Iguala, Guerrero, ocupa un lugar importante en México debido a su papel clave en la historia del país. En 1821, se firmó el famoso Plan de Iguala aquí, declarando a México libre de la dominación española. Poco después, la primera bandera nacional fue diseñada y elaborada aquí. Además, Iguala es la única ciudad mencionada en el himno nacional. Así que si eres mexicano, probablemente has oído hablar de este sitio. Si bien cuenta con un simbolismo histórico y nacional, es difícil no ver los recientes acontecimientos violentos ocurridos aquí como emblemáticos de la situación actual que se vive en México.

Al parecer, la muerte está presente por todas partes estos días: imágenes de la Catrina, el esqueleto femenino que usa un lujoso sombrero del siglo IXX; coloridas calaveritas de azúcar de todos los tamaños; niños disfrazados como zombis y fantasmas andando por las calles principales. Todo esto, por supuesto, porque este fin de semana fue el Día de los Muertos, una celebración que cuenta con una rica historia prehispánica - después sincretizada con el Día de Todos los Santos – con el fin de recordar y festejar a los difuntos. Sin embargo, existen otras muertes: la de la confianza. (Algo está mal cuando la población teme a la policía. O cuando, como nación soberana que cuenta con muchos expertos forenses, los ciudadanos exigen la presencia de especialistas argentinos para identificar a los cuerpos). La de la seguridad. (Los taxistas con los que hablé me dijeron, "La gente cuida con quién habla. Tú debes tener cuidado también". “Ven al asiento delantero si quieres hablar".) La de la poca confianza que queda en los tres principales partidos políticos (todos manchados por la corrupción y su vinculación con el crimen organizado). Además, resulta fácil perder la cuenta de las fosas comunes que se han encontrado en los alrededores de Iguala. Desde que desaparecieron los estudiantes, se descubren cada vez más fosas. Pensé que había logrado llevar la cuenta total de ellas (veinte), pero después Edgar dijo que habían hallado dos fosas más a las orillas de la ciudad que aún no se eran registradas.

Como en cualquier ciudad, hay cementerios oficiales aquí también. Los días 1 y 2 de noviembre, las familias los visitan para recordar a sus seres queridos muertos. Así que para el sábado, los tres cementerios de Iguala estaban repletos de familias limpiando las tumbas y decorándolas con flores amarillas y rojas-moradas conocidas como cempasúchil. Mientras tanto, en el Zócalo se llevaron a cabo homenajes cautivantes y creativos: a las mascotas fallecidas, al baterista de la banda Led Zepellin, a las víctimas mortales de cáncer de mama, a una novia de Chihuahua que según la leyenda fue embalsamada como maniquí, a Robin Williams, y a los 43 estudiantes desaparecidos.

El mundo espera noticias de ellos. Millones de personas anhelan desesperadamente que aún estén vivos, que no haya lápidas decoradas para ellos el Día de los Muertos del próximo año. "Vivos se los llevaron, vivos los queremos!" gritan por todo México y en el extranjero, en las innumerables marchas que se han realizado. Sin embargo, ha habido algunos testimonios que sugieren que los estudiantes fueron asesinados. Así que mientras hay esperanza, hay miedo también. Miedo de que a las más de 60.000 muertes violentas que se han registrado en México en los últimos siete años, se sumen 43 más. Lo cuál sería el peor legado histórico que podría dejar Iguala. 

Museo de la Bandera en Iguala. El color verde representa la libertad, el rojo la unión, y el blanco la paz, algo ausente en estos días. Además de los recientes eventos espeluznantes, Edgar agregó que, "Si resulta que los estudiantes están muertos, habrá una matazón aquí ".

La segunda bandera más grande de México se encuentra al borde de la ciudad. Aunque el presidente Peña Nieto trató de ignorar la violenta realidad del país, su enfoque de "mover a México" y sus afirmaciones de la seguridad nacional se vinieron abajo con la noticia de la masacre y las desapariciones. Esto sumado a las revelaciones de los 22 civiles que fueron asesinados a quemarropa por el ejército (en su estado natal) después de haberse rendido, un evento que el ejército había tratado de encubrir.

La Independencia de México fue declarada aquí hace 193 años. El documento contiene tres puntos principales, el tercero de los cuales señala la "unión de todas las clases sociales”. Sin embargo, lamentablemente la brecha que separan a los ricos de los pobres sigue siendo alarmante en México. Casi la mitad de la población es considerada oficialmente pobre. Los 43 estudiantes desaparecidos procedían de familias humildes de zonas rurales, y estaban estudiando para formarse como maestros y posteriormente enseñar en sus comunidades.

El alcalde de Iguala José Luis Abarca no tardó en huir de la ciudad cuando su papel en la masacre y las desapariciones, así como las revelaciones de sus estrechos vínculos con el crimen organizado, salieron a la luz a nivel nacional. Su fortuna aumentó rápidamente durante los últimos años, y entre sus muchas propiedades se encuentra este centro comercial.

El jefe de la policía de la ciudad también se fugó. Poco después de la masacre y las posteriores detenciones de algunos policías, cerró este departamento. Más tarde abrió nuevamente con la policía federal a cargo. Sin embargo, la policía federal de México tiene un dudoso historial en lo que se refiere a derechos humanos, y disfruta de una impunidad generalizada por dichas violaciones. La Comisión Nacional de Derechos Humanos recibió 146 denuncias de violaciones de derechos humanos cometidas por la policía federal en el 2006. Para el 2012, ese número había aumentado a 802. Desde el año 2008, más de 1,2 mil millones de dólares provenientes de los Estados Unidos se han destinado a México a través de la Iniciativa Mérida. Más allá de proveer equipo militar masivo, estos fondos han sido utilizados para apoyar los "servicios de seguridad", en parte para entrenar y aumentar estas fuerzas policiacas.

Ahora hay una presencia notable de la policía federal en Iguala. Pero “hay rumores de que han empezado a extorsionar igual que la policía local lo hacía", dijo uno de los taxistas.

Una lápida en el panteón general de Iguala, adornada con flores de cempasúchil.

El gobierno de Estados Unidos en gran medida ha mantenido el silencio sobre la desaparición de los 43 estudiantes. La Casa Blanca calificó esto como "preocupante" la semana pasada, y por su parte el Departamento del Estado sólo emitió un breve comunicado poco después del incidente. Lee nuestra reciente Alerta de Acción para exigir que el gobierno de Estados Unidos tome una postura más enérgica y contundente.

En la iglesia principal de la ciudad, esta imagen tuvo especial resonancia: "Nuestra Señora del Sagrado Corazón, abogada de las causas difíciles y desesperadas".

Homenaje en el Zócalo de Iguala a los estudiantes desaparecidos: “Vivos se los llevaron, vivos los queremos!”