Exciting preparations for the UPR

There’s nothing like a surprise holiday to finally get down to business and catch everyone up on what’s been going on since last December (please forgive my absence)!

 In the months of December, January, February and right up till the deadline of March 15^th, I was very hyper-focused on finishing our parallel report for the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of Bolivia. It was a large group effort and as you know, working in a team makes for a richer document as well as a more time-consuming process, but in the end we did it! Together with dedicated people from Christian Brothers, Missionary Sisters of the Holy Spirit, Divine Word, Oblates, Maryknoll Sisters and Maryknoll Lay Missioners, and Franciscans (both religious and laity), we finished our forums, consultations with individual groups of women and children/teens, and were able to put together their voices along with our experiences and analysis to form a well-rounded report from civil society on the situation of human rights (for women and children) in Bolivia.

Turning in a report to the United Nations doesn’t necessarily do much on its own – rather it serves as a platform for jumping-off into a much larger campaign to better the situation, the reality on the ground. That’s why in the months between March and now, we’ve been coming up with strategies as to how to seek changes using the opportunity of Bolivia’s review (UPR) to bring more attention to the areas that need improvement and hopefully political will to change them.

In July we had a workshop in order to better understand how to use the human rights mechanisms that the UN offers (there are many others besides the UPR) to seek improvement. Overall it was a success and we were able to have the national ombudsman with us for an entire day and the next day we had two representatives from the office of High Commission on Human Rights of the UN in Bolivia.  To read more about it, please see this article on the website http://franciscansinternational.org/News.111.0.html?&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=451&cHash=3bab79ad10a7adf3377ed3895377605e

Just two weeks ago, I went to La Paz and gave a workshop to prepare for “lobbying” visits to 9 different embassies that took place in the two days to come. We went to talk about the recommendations those countries made to Bolivia back in the UPR of 2010 to offer our analysis of their recommendations’ implementation as well as share the recommendations that came out of the consultations we did with people on the ground. We visited the embassies of Panama, Brazil, Mexico, Italy, Costa Rica, Germany, Switzerland, Spain and Chile. Overall the conversations went very well and they were appreciative of our visits and our report because they work in the embassies and depend mostly on the news and their own personal experiences to get a feel for what is going on in the country. They can’t be out in the communities with the people like we are, so they were grateful to receive other perspectives.

The only “people” able to make recommendations to a country when the time comes up for their Review are other member States of the UN. It is a peer review, that’s part of what makes it a good tool—every country passes through the examination chair. Since civil society cannot make official recommendations, we try to inform member nations about our perspectives, concerns and recommendations so that they can put them forward officially in the UPR.

At the beginning of October, thanks to Franciscans International, I will have the privilege of accompanying a Bolivian Sister to Geneva in order to present at the Pre-Session of Bolivia’s UPR. It will take place in a fairly small informal room not on the property of the UN itself, but hopefully at least a good 40 countries will send someone to listen, essentially do their homework before the date of Bolivia’s UPR, which is at the end of October or beginning of November at the Human Rights Council. Aside from the Pre-Session presentation, we will also have many other smaller meetings with different permanent missions (If this is new lingo to you as it is for me, permanent mission means a country’s representation at the UN. It’s like embassy) to talk about the issues.

It seems that I have already written a lot for today, so in the next blog, I will be talking more specifically about what we found in our consultations and what recommendations we put forth in our report. Thank you so much for reading!

5 Things I’m grateful for today: unexpected holidays (thank you Bolivia); seeing pictures of my cousins’ sweet children; eating strawberries; meeting new-born babies of two Bolivian friends in the past week; the gift of health.

Forum on Violence against Women

“When you have an abusive husband who has strangled you in addition to psychological abuse for years, and the police tell you to bring them evidence or to bring your husband in so they can talk to him…of course he will jump right at the opportunity, recognizing that he needs to change and will never be violent again!” Laura (name changed) said sarcastically and all the women in the room nodded their heads silently in understanding at the forum, Bolivia Women Today, Voices of the Women.

Photo taken by: Marc Adams©

Having noticed the strong prevalence of violence against women and children, a collaborative group here in Cochabamba decided we should hold a forum to discuss the reality with women themselves and work together to come up with solutions to improve the situation. We also invited different public entities that assist women in situations of abuse or violence as well as NGOs because everyone has a unique perspective to add to the conversation.

As you may remember from the beginning of this blog, a big part of what called me back to Bolivia was the opportunity to help in the process of preparing a submission for the Universal Periodic Review of Bolivia at the Human Rights Council of the UN, to relay what the situation of human rights is in the country. Our idea is not to just comment from our own opinions but really consult the people about their reality and how to make it better.

Photo taken by: Marc Adams©

For that reason we planned this forum, where there were almost 100 people present and some very good discussion was had that produced 7 key problem areas and ideas for solutions:  access to education (as fundamental to counter gender violence); economic independence of women; public labor policies (relating to job opportunities, child care, loans etc.); access to justice (decentralize the location of the institutions that attend to women’s cases of violence and discrimination, better attention from the State to follow their cases and see them through in a timely manner); access to healthcare (with professionals and equipment necessary to attend to women’s health issues as well as violence); larger part of the budget (dedicated toward implementing programs in education, defense and justice, assistance to victims of violence etc.); and the participation and the organization of civil society (in order to prevent violence, we cannot just expect the State to take care of it, it has to be a larger community effort).

It was so encouraging to look across the room and see women from different backgrounds, regions, social classes, and education levels, all focused on dialoguing about their reality, the reality of the women they know, and coming up with ideas of how to CHANGE the reality for the better. I was really pleased to see present people from some NGO’s, the police, people from the health field, and people from social services, also there partaking in the conversation. 

The challenge was and still remains to not let that one morning of information, brainstorming and sharing end there. The idea of participating in the UPR (review at the UN on human rights) is not to write a report and sign out, NO. The idea long-term is to seek positive real change in society; changes that reflect the dignity of every human being and contribute to the common good of the community. It’s a good goal to have and at the same time a very slow process to get there—but I see great potential!

Photo taken by: Marc Adams©

That day at the forum, I left feeling really hopeful and I felt part of a larger group that also dreams what I dream. Their energy filled me and it’s what keeps me going, despite the slowness of putting together a collaborative report. This report though, is only the beginning. It is the jumping off point of a much larger “campaign” to seek these changes, and I ask that you hold me accountable—ask me how things are going, and share ideas with me! I will very gladly accept them and share them here in Bolivia. In my next entry, I’ll be giving a closer look at the process of the UPR…stay tuned!

5 Things I'm thankful for today: hugs; eating avocados when they are "just right" and so delicious; by surprise seeing a Sister here in Bolivia, more than 4 years after having met her in my formation with FMS in Washington, DC; receiving an email by surprise from a friend, with whom I haven't been able to communicate for a year; the chance to reflect and pray.

Non-violence and Honesty

One of the great things about life in general, but especially life here in Cochabamba, is that I find myself doing things I never would have thought of before.  Since the 50^th year anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I have a Dream” speech just passed, I think it timely to remember the value of active non-violence and seeking to resolve conflicts (that involve deep hurts and pains) with communication that is also non-violent.  While I am a fan of non-violence, I am a novice anxious to learn more, and an opportunity came up in July to participate in a non-violence workshop.

One of the current FMS missioners here in Cochabamba has experience with a non-violence workshop constructed by Pace Bene, a group from the U.S.  Using that text and her experience with Pace Bene, she was asked to give a 2 day workshop to the group of Franciscan friar students and I got to help her out in the process, which taught me a lot. 

We started out the workshop asking everyone to light a candle and tell the rest of the group what the meaning behind their name is. It was beautiful to see a little bit of the story behind each person by a simple telling of why they have the name they have. I saw pride in each person’s identity, a connectedness with their past and with their families. In sharing the story behind my name, I also felt a sense of pride and joy in who I am and where I come from. It felt good to have the opportunity to share and be heard.

There were many exercises that challenged us on what is violence and what is non-violence in our own perceptions. When one comes to recognize all the violence within oneself, it seems a daunting task to transform it. To help, we talked about some techniques to help as well as looking at the example of non-violent people we know or know of.

Since we also talked about interpersonal relations and communication on one of our radio shows, I will share a tip that has served useful to me recently in non-violent communication and that is - clarifying perceptions - starting with asking questions. We may feel angry or hurt by something said when what the other person meant to communicate was totally different, so it’s important to clarify.

Of course another value or principle that helps in communication is honesty and August was Justice and Peace’s month to focus on honesty. August 17^th is Bolivia’s flag day and the Justice and Peace movement decided about 10 years ago to use Flag Day as an entry-way to promote that Bolivians be more honest, since the flag should represent the values and principles of a country’s people. Each year they chose a different theme, like against bribery, or in favor of fair wages and dignified work, or paying taxes instead of buying from the black market, or promoting honesty in government officials etc. 

This year the theme was honesty in education: in the family, in schools and universities, and in other parts of society like religions. Of course we all could be more honest in all parts of the world and not just in August, but it’s a good excuse to bring it up at least once each year. We had some great national folkloric music at our tent in a plaza this year on Flag Day, and were able to talk with lots of people about the honesty campaign. Talking with people about the cheating, copying and lying that happens with students at such an early age, I was reminded how grateful I am for the Honor Code I signed at my university and how much it was an expectation in the culture of the institution, which I think makes it a little easier to abide by, but it also made me wonder…what happens when honesty is not an expectation?  Food for thought!  Until next time, I hope you are well!

5 things I’m thankful for today: the unexpected rain falling on the roof and on the dry arid land; having been given another year of life; homemade yogurt I bought from a French brother; getting to sleep in on a Sunday; meeting new babies.

Encounter with the Amazon

Riding along the river Beni, heading towards the Serere Reserve, I was filled with excitement and curiosity. For the first time in my life, I was about to encounter the famous Amazon rainforest, something I’ve dreamed of but never thought would actually happen. With Franciscans International - Bolivia we organized a eco-theological retreat in a beautiful reserve just outside the National Madidi Park, in Bolivia. From the documentaries and photos I expected to see beauty but it took living in the forest for 5 days to really understand the beauty is much deeper than any picture can capture, it’s like God’s breath is all around you in a strong and very powerful way, a way that fills you with peace and awe.

Walking from the river’s edge and into the rainforest to get to our cabins, we saw at least two different kinds of monkeys along the trail—the yellow monkey and the capuchin monkey—dancing along the branches of the giant trees in search of fruit. Immediately I noticed the humidity and the warmth, but rarely did the sun manage to touch our skin because of the thick natural roof of the branches and leaves we had above us. The cabin was a raised construction, with walls made of screen so all around us we saw the forest. I realized it was similar to camping except that we had modern mattresses and beds and there was no wall of the tent giving me the impression of being separated from nature, instead I saw it everywhere I turned and felt therefore more integrated (the brain is a funny thing).

 

 

 

There were twelve of us in our group and we divided up into three groups on the morning of the first full day, to go exploring with Severo, the guide assigned to our group as one of the members of the Madidi Travel/Eco-Bolivia team. We put all our trust in this man, and he was able to teach us a tremendous amount during the week. While quietly walking through the forest, he would spontaneously tell us to stop while he pointed out different plants, vines, trees or animals, what I would call the rainforest’s gems! He squatted down next to a big red tree root, made a little cut in it and out poured a white resin, which looked a lot like Elmer’s glue. The tree’s name is “Milk Milk” and with this natural glue, he took a leaf and stuck it to my ear so I had a natural earring.

The resin of other trees however, such as the Curari, is like venom and people use it to apply to the point of an arrow to use for hunting. My favorite tree was the Cachichira, whose trunk base was so broad that it looked like a giant skirt in mid-twirl, just gorgeous. One of the Cachichira lent the hollow inside of its trunk to a large clan of bats to rest during the daytime.

For a snack, our guide opened up a fruit for us that he picked from a tree. The fruit was “Monkey Head” and it had several large seeds inside with the fruit pulp covering the seeds and it was sweet with a texture similar to mango. Another day he picked up a different fruit, “Apple of the forest” and showed us how its magical juice could be applied to our skin and appear clear, but hours later turned into a dark tattoo. It was amazing! (they washed off completely in about 2 weeks) We were explained that these natural tattoos were used as camouflage by indigenous tribes in the forest. In addition to my tattoo, I also received more bug bites than ever before at one time in my life. To console myself, I tried to think, “well, I’m giving a part of me to the forest after it has given so much to me,” but in my itchiest moments, I just thought about scratching and how much I didn’t like the mosquitoes.

At night we went out in canoes to look at the stars, and it was another incredible sight to behold. The Milky Way was as clear as could be, and the bats were having a feast over the water. We also saw many caimans (like small alligators) which we could recognize for their eyes that glowed like candle flames when we shined our flashlights towards them. The night was spectacular and in order to distract me from the fear I felt towards the caimans, I arched my neck up, trying to record the image of the stars in their glory and the soothing silence around us.

Unfortunately, not everything in the Madidi mosaic is harmonious; there are many threats toward the Park itself and the area around it including the reserve we were in. Thousands and thousands of hectares of forest have been cut down in order to plant sugar cane and coca plants, in addition to excessive deforesting (in order to sell mahogany for example) and illegal hunting that takes place. Mining contaminates the rivers and waterways. If the Eco-Bolivia team, lead by Rosa María Ruiz, were not constantly monitoring, hunters and people wanting to cut down cedar and mahogany trees would have done away with a lot of the reserve. The animals are very smart, and according to our guide, who worked in other areas as well, many animals migrated to the reserve because they know they won’t be killed there and that there is actually food since the forest isn’t being destroyed. Because of this we were able to see puma tracks, wild hog tracks, howler monkeys, spider monkeys, butterflies and many different kinds of plants and trees.

As we reflected together throughout the week, we agreed that life was much simpler without electricity, phones, TVs, radios, computers, internet, and cars. There was a peace I experienced in the rainforest that I hadn’t experienced in a very long time, it was powerful and invigorating, I didn’t want to leave! I thought a lot about my family and friends in the US and wished I could transport them there to share in the amazing experience to see and feel and taste the sweetness of the forest. I was able to encounter creation’s song and its gentle melody continues playing in my heart, motivating me to be attentive to the sacred presence in all parts of creation, no matter where I find myself.

5 things I’m thankful for today: being able to have gone to the Serere Reserve; good hugs; skype to be able to talk with my family while they were on vacation; being in Cochabamba and working with some really great dedicated people; mint ice cream.