Get Your Read On
We’ve been doing a lot of reading these past weeks, and thought we might share of few of our favorites. Just to note – Richard has been keeping his Shelfari shelf more or less up to date for a couple of years, so you can jump over there and see more reviews and lists. So here it is – what we are reading on Colombia, Theology, and beyond!
From Mamie:
Confessions of an Economic Hit Man by John Perkins
- A memoir in which Perkins’ says his function was to convince the political and financial leadership of underdeveloped countries to accept enormous development loans from institutions like the World Bank and USAID. Saddled with huge debts they could not hope to pay, these countries were forced to acquiesce to political pressure from the United States on a variety of issues.
Walking Ghosts by Steven Dudley
- Dudley’s book, which is based on a master’s thesis he wrote while filing reports for the Washington Post and National Public Radio in Colombia in the late 1990s, seeks to dig out the complicated roots of the political party the Unión Patriótica. This leads him into tangled accounts of the FARC, drug trafficking and paramilitarism. The book is dense, but compelling. (For First United folks, Steven Dudley is a child of the church, son of Carl and Shirley Dudley)
From Richard:
Evil Hour in Colombia by Forrest Hylton
- Hylton draws together a very detailed, historical look at the Colombian state since its inception – and it is still readable! The best single source on Colombia’s history of progressive movements followed by severe counter-reaction, all leading to today’s Colombia, described by Hylton as “War as Peace.”
God and Empire by John Dominic Crossan
- Crossan studies the early church and the formation and context of the New Testament – all under the lens of the Roman Occupation, and what God is saying in general about occupation. It is fascinating how we often overlook this all-encompassing fact of first and second century Mediterranean life when we look at the New Testament. It is certainly interesting to me to read this book in the context of Colombia, as a citizen of the United States, and think about what God is saying to us as members of the empire today.
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Ok, so its not all heady stuff. We just finished reading The Help by Kathryn Stockett and Richard is finally ready to dive in to Reducido al Reino de los Pingüinos, a chapter book in Spanish! If you have suggestions for further reading, throw them in the comments!
Changes in US Aid to Colombia and Guatemala
The following is a press release sent out by Human Rights First, and non-profit, nonpartisan international human rights organization based in New York and Washington D.C. Human Rights First has no connection to other material posted on this blog
New Appropriations Law has Unprecedented Funding to Protect
Human Rights Activists
(New York, NY – January 7, 2010)
Human Rights First today praised passage of legislation that, for the first time, links U.S. aid to Colombia and Guatemala to the protection of human rights activists in those countries.
The 2010 Foreign Operations Appropriations Law, approved by Congress late last year, contains two groundbreaking provisions that have long been the focus of Human Rights First recommendations. The bill creates a new condition on U.S. aid to Colombia that requires the Colombian government to protect the rights of human rights defenders. With regard to Guatemala, the law earmarks $2 million for the Guatemalan police and Interior Ministry to fund specific protection programs for human rights defenders.
“We congratulate lawmakers for seizing this opportunity to make a real difference on the ground in Colombia and Guatemala. This legislation will literally save lives,” said Human Rights First’s Andrew Hudson.
Hudson notes that having a condition on U.S. aid to Colombia related to defenders will require the State Department to certify that the Colombian government is respecting the rights of defenders and provided another layer of protection for these often targeted activists. To complement this new requirement, Human Rights First is urging the State Department to redouble its diplomatic efforts to encourage the Colombian government to comply with this new condition. In particular, the Colombian Attorney General must take firm steps to end the use of trumped-up charges and arbitrary detention to stigmatize and silence activists.
In Guatemala, the bill provides a total of $2 million for the Interior Ministry’s Institute for Attacks against Human Rights Defenders, officers within the Criminal Investigation Division of the Police who are assigned to work with the Institute, as well as the Department for the Protection of Personalities of the Police and its Unit of Risk Analysis. This funding will enable Guatemala to establish a state-of-the-art and live saving protection program for human rights defenders at risk, such as bullet-proof cars and bodyguards. Human Rights First urges the U.S. government to work closely with Guatemalan human rights defenders and trusted allies within the Guatemalan government to ensure that the funding is implemented effectively.
Human Rights First has long advocated for these changes to U.S. aid, including in congressional testimony before the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission in 2009.
Further information:
Information about human rights defenders in Colombia
I Spent $26,000 at the Dollar Store…
Yep, it’s true. I just spent $26,000 at Dollar King.
Okay so it was in Colombian pesos, but it is still true. (And yes, they do use $ when they write prices.)
We have more or less gotten used to operating in the thousands as we order food, or take a bus, or go to a movie, but there are times it can still take your breath away. ”Oh, $6,000 for an umbrella? Sure!” ”$80,000 for a fan…my pleasure!”
In Colombia the smallest bill is a $1,000 peso note and $50,000 is the largest. Coins are for their hundreds and function like our nickels and dimes. The exchange rate fluctuates (of course), but today it is 2,017.50:1 – nothing like easy math, eh? The quick and dirty conversion when you are trying to figure out how much your $2,000 coffee would be in dollars is to cut off the thousands and then divide by two (so about $1 USD).
Of course, the real value of the money is not so much its exchange rate but its purchasing power. The challenge in many cases here is that the flat cost is not wildly different from the cost of items in the Unites States, it just happens to be communicated in thousands. Of course, with much lower average incomes, and roughly equilvalent costs for many items, you have a huge struggle of keeping afloat in the global economy for most Colombians.
To give you a sense of some costs here:
- Our rent is $350,000 a month ($175 USD – quite inexpensive actually. We’ll have another post later about housing).
- A trip to the grocery store varies a lot based on our purchases, but I’d peg an average at $50,000-$80,000 ($25-$40 USD) a week.
- A bus ride to Cartagena (2 hours away) is $19,000 ($9.50 USD).
- A movie is about $7,000 ($3.50 USD – but $14,000 for last night’s 3-D showing of Avatar)
- A bottle of water is $1,500 ($0.75 USD – though you can get it in a bag for $500 or $0.25 USD).
To give this a little more perspective:
- $496,900 per month is the minimum wage in Colombia (a little under $250 USD). If you look at our expenses, this covers housing and two trips to the grocery store each month. This does not include utilities, clothing, transportation, food for more than 2 people for the remaining 2 weeks of the month, education costs, medical care, etc. It is also hard to pin down how much of the workforce this number covers since it does not apply to the informal economy (see next bullet) and it does not prevent the common practice of firing people just before benefits like the minimum wage kick in (see future post on maquilas). As little as it may be, the ‘minimum wage’ is higher than many (if not most) wages.
- There is a burgeoning “informal sector” here in Colombia that does not qualify for minimum wage regulations. It is economic activity that is neither taxed nor monitored by a government; and is not included in that government’s gross national product. The term itself is a bit wiggly in trying to study; our own wiggly equivalent is work done “under the table” or “off the books.” Here it often looks like people selling fruit or snacks at street intersections, cleaning your windshield when you are stopped at a stoplight, selling bootlegged CD/DVDs outside the empanada stand, and the like. Depending on the work, this will get you between $200 and $3000 COP each time ($0.10/$1.50 USD). There are 10 more like you at the next stoplight/empanada stand.
For Gini Coefficient Calculation
- Though Colombia’s economy has grown over the past decade, 49.2% of the population is below the poverty level according to the CIA World Factbook. And, according to the UN, Colombia scores poorly according to the Gini coefficient (a measure of statistical dispersion that is commonly used as a measure of inequality of income or wealth) as it is placed 119th out of 126 countries. Another way to look at this problem is to say that in 2003 the richest 20% of the population had a 62.7% share of income/consumption and the poorest 20% just 2.5%, and 27.9% of Colombians live on less than $2 a day. All in all, it does make you wonder who is gaining when the economy grows and serious inequality remains.
All of this offers us a lot more to think about as we consider whether to buy something or not, and it often leads us to conclude that we’re fine without. Still, you know that if you do need something then you can probably go to the dollar store, or the $2.017.50 store, to get it if you must.
And we’re back…
So after a brief holiday pause, we’re back with lots of energy for the new year. We’ll start out with some holiday cooking, as a part two of the “Richard and Latin@ Cooking” series. Look for it soon on cable…
One Campesino Went to Market…
Early in the morning an older man comes to market with a load of yucca. He is a campesino (a rural peasant farmer) whose living is essentially subsistence farming. He walks into the burgeoning market and is greeted by a younger man who is part of the paramilitary which currently controls the prices in the market…
Paramilitary (P): Hey tio (uncle, though they are not related), you look like you have a lot of yucca there today!
Campesino (C): Si mi hijo (my son, though they are not related), it is very good yucca, very fresh.
P: Oof, tio, you know the market for yucca today, it’s not looking very good.
C: No? But this is very good yucca. I have cared for it myself
P: Si tio, it looks good. What are you asking for this load?
C: Oh mi hijo, I need to get $200,000 (Colombian Pesos – about $100) for this yucca.
P: Oof, tio, didn’t I just tell you the market isn’t looking so good today? It’s just not a good day for yucca. I’m not sure you’ll get anywhere near that amount. Listen, I can offer you $100,000 for your yucca today if you sell it to me now.
C: Oh hijo, muy poco. I need to make the $200,000 just to cover my costs and give my kids a little something to eat. I came this morning without anything to eat, and after paying to get here and get home, and after all I have put into this crop, I need to be able to take a little home to feed my family.
P: Tio, you haven’t eaten anything yet? That’s terrible. Let me go get you some breakfast!
The paramilitary man leaves and returns with a hearty breakfast. The campesino accepts it, begins to eat, and then asks what he owes the other man for the food.
P: Me? Nothing, don’t worry about it tio. You are hungry and you have been working so hard for this good yucca. I’m happy to give it to you. Good luck with your yucca, eh?
The paramilitary man walks away, and the campesino thinks about the kind man who gave him breakfast. The campesino finishes breakfast and begins to set out his yucca. It is good yucca. Even on a bad day, this yucca should sell. No one is talking to him yet, but it is still very early.
After walking away the paramilitary man goes to each buyer and tells them they are not to buy from the old man that he just gave breakfast. Though several people walk up to the campesino they do not offer to buy anything, they simply sigh and shake their heads and move on.
It is now 4:00pm and the market is emptying. People who have came to buy have mostly left and sellers are packing up to leave. The campesino is now quite worried. A policeman, recently paid $20,000 by the paramilitary man, walks up to the campesino.
Police: Hey old man, you know you can’t stay here all night. You need to sell your yucca and get going. I will give you 15 minutes, and if you are not gone by the time I get back then I am going to take you and your yucca to jail. Do you understand me?
C: Yes sir. 15 minutes sir.
The policeman walks away. The campesino peers around desperately trying to catch someone’s eye when the nice man who bought him breakfast comes walking around the corner.
P: Tio! What are you still doing here? Oh no, it looks like you haven’t sold hardly anything today. I told you that it was a bad day for yucca didn’t I? It’s a shame too because that is really good yucca.
C: It is good yucca. Mi hijo, you wouldn’t still be interested in buying the yucca would you?
P: Oh tio, it’s awfully late now. I have already sold what I needed to sell, and I am on my way home. Plus, your yucca is good today, but it won’t be so good tomorrow. Then I am stuck with your bad yucca.
C: No mi hijo, if you put this yucca in water it will last for 4 or 5 more days with no problem. I could take the $100,000 you offered me this morning and you would have good yucca for the morning.
P: $100,000? That was the price this morning tio. If I buy your yucca now then I have to take it home and bring it back. I will lose money on this tio because I am taking over your problem. I couldn’t possibly offer you the same thing I did earlier today. The most I could do now is $30,000 (about $15).
Meanwhile the policeman walks by a little further away, casting glances over at the campesino.
C: Okay, okay. I will take $30,000. You can have my yucca. I have to go home.
The paramilitary man brings the yucca back the next day and sells it for $250,000. Only days later, after talking with other people in the market, does the campesino find out just how expensive his free breakfast was.
Action Alert – Call by Friday, Dec 4th!
There are a variety of groups in the United States that are working hard on US policy toward Latin America. One of those is the Latin American Work Group (LAWG), for whom we have great respect. You can read more about them and their work on their website.
Dolls representing the displaced of Colombia (photo by CRLN)
Occasionally they send out opportunities to put your support for Colombia into action politically, calling them action alerts. You have such an opportunity today.
As of November 6th, a letter, written by Representatives McGovern, Schakowsky, Payne, and Honda, is circulating throughout the halls of Congress with a clear message: let’s spend our taxpayer dollars on supporting victims of violence, not funding military abuses. This is our chance to get Congress behind the changes that we want to see and have our government start standing by our brothers and sisters in Colombia.
The letter makes a strong case for why there is no time to waste in changing our policies towards Colombia. It paints a vivid picture of the Colombian government’s failure to protect human rights, raising issues like the killing of civilians by the army, the persecution of human rights defenders, and the humanitarian crisis of over four million people who have been forcibly displaced from their homes. Echoing what we have been saying for a long time, it demands a cut in military aid and an increase in support for victims and those who are working for peace and justice in Colombia. It also calls for an end to harmful and ineffective aerial fumigations, investing instead in drug treatment in the United States. To get all the details, click here to read the full letter.
But, this letter needs the support of many members of Congress to be effective. So, that’s why we need you make sure your congressional representative signs on now. Several representatives from Illinois have already signed (I’m so proud), so consider calling them just to say thanks. We can never be thankful enough. As for others reading the blog, there is still plenty of room on the paper for your representatives to add their name.
Click here to see if your representative has signed on already, and how to contact your representative either way. Included in the link is a place to look up your representative and a sample script you can use. It takes less than five minutes. Consider it an way to join Colombians in their Advent waiting for peace.
And don’t stop there: Tell your friends. Tell your family. Re-post on Facebook. Make a link on your blog. Go ahead and forward this on to your whole address book! Whatever! For the Presbyterians out there, know that this action is in line with the General Assembly Resolution passed in June 2008. Your church is behind you. We won’t get another chance like this again for a long time, so let’s pull out all the stops and make it happen together!
War and Rumors of War
This morning in papers here and beyond were headlines of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez’s most recent statements in his ongoing war of words with Colombia’s President, Alvaro Uribe. Tensions between Colombia and Venezuela have been escalating in recent months, and they have been brought to a head by the recent agreement between the United States and Colombia to station US military troops throughout this country. We are sure to return to the US base treaty more in the future, but for now, a few words on this war of words.
The escalation of rhetoric and the increased violence along the Colombian-Venezuelan border have people concerned. We are certainly watching it, and more importantly, folks in the church who know much more than we do are watching it. We don’t expect any widespread hostilities, but we will be prepared just in case. Concerns should not be for us but for those most affected by these rising tensions – persons in the borderlands in both countries, the poor who are paying for the increased militarization on both sides, and all people of both countries who want to live together in peace. (Last week’s bi-national gathering of Colombian and Venezualan youth, where Mamie is pictured preaching, is a great testament to this hope.)
I can’t help but offer a little analysis. Both of the leaders of these two countries have much to gain internally by continuing to ratchet up tensions with the other. Both have re-election-esque fights going on to extend their terms, and both need more popular support than they currently have. Uribe benefits by having Chavez talk about war, giving him (Uribe) reason to continue pushing for more military control and less freedom of the press, dissent, and opposition, particularly in the run up to elections next year. Chavez benefits by having Colombia as a outside enemy in order to rally support for his continued leadership, particularly when Colombia can also serve as a proxy for an imperial United States. Note that both have interests in increasing tensions, not in actually going to full scale conflict. (Here is a helpful local link on the situation)
In Mark 13, Jesus talks about ‘war and rumors of war.’ The passage describes the way things are in this world – but Jesus offers a different alternative. A world where war is not learned anymore, and where weapons are turned into tools of peace and prosperity. I believe it is this word, Jesus’ word, that is the final answer, not the headlines that dominate the papers.
Hitting the Wall
I think Richard and I believed we would hit the language wall when we were in Guatemala. There we would be immersed in Spanish for the first time, and we were certain we would have great frustrations when we talked with each other because of the difference in our skill levels as well as with others to whom we were trying to speak. But while there were aggravating moments, overall we did not have significant problems. Richard and I practiced Spanish separately with each of our families, there was the sense of “just beginning”, and we had sufficient moments of success. We believed we were scaling the wall brick by brick rather than just hitting our heads against it, and life was good.
Unfortunately, while we were looking the other way, the wall moved, and we have slammed into it at approximately 60 mph.
Don’t worry, we were wearing our seat belts, and while we are experiencing some whiplash we are sure to be fine. But I have to say that the language wall is tough. It is slippery and tall and at times it feels like an insuperable barrier. It also has a fun-house mirror on our side that can distort how we see ourselves sometimes, and can make the wall seem even higher.
The great thing is that there are lots of people whose hands are reaching over the wall – waving at us, even if they can’t always reach us. They are also shouting words of encouragement, but unfortunately those are really fast and hard to understand. ;) We have confidence that all will be fine, but we have moments when the fun-house mirror wins and we are more frustrated than not, so we simply ask for your continued prayers for patience, understanding, the blessing of Holy Spirit moments of clarity, and a growing sense of confidence.
As ever, we are grateful for your help. Estamos muy agradecidos por su apoyo.
First Barranquilla Photos
We haven’t had the camera out a lot around here, but here are a few of the shots from our days around Barranquilla.
Sound Soup
Today I’m thinking about the sounds of a place — and how, like salt and spices, they give flavor to our days.
Sounds are easy to come by here, which is to say that this place is filled with them. We are staying at Universidad Reformada, which among other things has a flourishing music performance program. There are always folks practicing different instruments, from early in the mornign to far into the evening. Today, from the back of the apartment we are staying in, I could hear a symphony practicing some of the classical greats. From the front of the apartment, it was percusión practice, with a room full of drummers practicing to a rock beat. Inside of the apartment, Mamie and I were playing through some of the great new music Omar gave us in Guatemala. There are so many genres to explore – merengue, salsa, bachata, reggaton – and we’re not even into the Colombian music scene yet…
To further our sound soup , this afternoon Mamie and I have been siting in on a conference here at UR. It is a gathering of seminary professors from across Latin America, focusing on the heritage of John Calvin. We’ve managed to sit in on two presentations which are in Portugese. Nothing like a new language right now, eh? Anywho, we’ve both loved listening to the sing-song nature of Portugese, picking out words and phrases to add to the lengua bolsa.
Through all of this, it has been thundering on and off, threatening raing, and keeping the day relatively cool.
These sounds offer a taste of our life. Like adding salt and cumin and oregano to a simmering soup, they combine and mix and build to flavor our days here. It is a succelent mix.
Here is a link to a great song that Mamie and I heard on just about every Guatemalan bus ride. You’ll have to click one more time if you choose to listen, but enjoy!
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