Interact Winter 2006/07
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issue 014lo 22/1/07 16:06 Page 1 interact The magazine of Live Simply Show your solidarity and help tackle poverty In this issue: Water in El Salvador Indigenous rights in Namibia Deforestation in Somaliland ISSN 1816-045X Winter 2006/7 issue 014lo 22/1/07 16:06 Page 2 interact winter 2006/7 Contents David Tanner/Progressio editorial 5 3 first person: coming in off the streets Live Simply 4 news: sharing and learning in Latin America Solidarity is one of Progressio’s key values, and it is one of the key messages of Populorum Progressio 7 agenda: ‘live simply so that others may (‘On the development of peoples’), a document simply live’ written by Pope Paul VI in 1967 which calls on all people of goodwill to work for human insight: livesimply development and fight injustice. This year, 2007, is the 40th anniversary of Populorum Progressio. To mark the occasion, a 8 Populorum Progressio – still relevant today? number of Catholic organisations have joined Why the message of solidarity should still inspire us together to promote its message of solidarity. Under the livesimply banner, the organisations are 10 What you can do calling on people in the UK to consider the impact Practical suggestions for joining the 12 that our lifestyles are having – and the impact that livesimply campaign our actions can have – on the lives of people who struggle in poverty in our globalised world. 12 Faith in action This issue of Interact explains why the Living with the poor in East Timor livesimply message is important to Progressio – and what you can do to show your solidarity. action Throughout the year, Progressio, along with other organisations in the network, will be promoting livesimply by highlighting the links between our 13 The fight for water lifestyles in the global North, and the lives of Villagers in El Salvador act to protect people in the global South. We will also be asking their water resources you to join with us in taking action that can help tackle the injustices that keep people locked in viewpoint poverty. 15 Pope Paul VI wrote: ‘the development that leads to peace can come only when all peoples 15 Back from the edge help each other’. As Interact shows, Progressio The struggle of the San people in Namibia seeks to work together with people around the world to help them find solutions to the problems they face. I am sure that, in the year ahead, in our reportage work and with the livesimply message, we can 1619 continue to rely on your solidarity and support. 16 A burning issue Charcoal’s role in deforestation in Somaliland 18 18 reflection: compassion in truth Cover picture: A window to the world: a 19 reflection: livesimply welcoming face in Ossorua, East Timor. Photo: Nick Sireau/Progressio. Published January 2007 by Progressio Progressio Ireland Editor Alastair Whitson Unit 3, Canonbury Yard c/o CORI, Bloomfield Avenue Sub-editor Anne-Marie Sharman 190a New North Road, Off Morehampton Road Executive Director Christine Allen London N1 7BJ Donnybrook, Dublin 4, Ireland Design Twenty-Five Educational tel +44 (0)20 7354 0883 tel +353 (0)1 6144966 Printing APG (ISO 14001 accreditation for fax +44 (0)20 7359 0017 e-mail [email protected] international environmental standards). e-mail [email protected] Charity reg. in Ireland no. CHY 14451 Printed on REVIVE 100% chlorine free website www.progressio.org.uk Company reg. no. 385465 recycled paper. Recycle this magazine! Progressio is the working name of the Catholic Institute for International Relations Charity reg. in the UK no. 294329 Company reg. no. 2002500 issue 014lo 22/1/07 16:07 Page 3 first person David Tanner/Progressio Coming in off the streets FTER THE YEARS OF CONFLICT in and Volunteers Organisation (GAVO), only just arrived. They sleep outside, Somaliland many children has worked with the street children, possibly under cardboard, near Ahave to cope on their own, as providing literacy classes and where they search for food during they have no adults to care for them. practical training. GAVO also runs a the day – the markets, the beach. The severe drought we are suffering community programme to raise Only four of these children had means they are being forced into awareness of HIV and AIDS and in learnt to read and write – skills they towns to try to earn a pittance and December we organised a one-day have forgotten. survive. In the town of Berbera there workshop to explore how to adapt Many of them chew qat, sniff are at present about 500 street this for the street children. glue or petrol and smoke to forget children struggling to survive. They A team of 10 youth volunteers their hunger for a while – all of have not had any schooling. The spent a day searching for which carry health risks. One boy boys mainly shine shoes for 200 participants, visiting the places in stood up to show the plastic bottle Somali shillings (about three US and around Berbera where the street from which he sniffs Arabic gum to cents) a pair, or sometimes wash children congregate, notably the alleviate his stress. They know that cars, while the girls wander about market places, the beach by the Red if they fall ill they are likely to die begging. They are often driven to Sea, the tea shops and qat selling and some are aware of HIV and steal in order to eat. points (qat is a leaf that is chewed AIDS. I very much want to help these for its stimulant properties). We ran Only boys came to the workshop, vulnerable children become aware of the meeting in an interactive and and we must find ways of making HIV and AIDS and learn how to stay friendly way, encouraging the 37 contact with the girls who live on healthy. Sexual relations outside children and young people who the streets. We are also planning marriage are forbidden by Islam and came to contribute and get involved. courses for GAVO’s trainers, so that by tradition, but these children no We wanted to find out about their they can incorporate HIV and AIDS longer have a family framework to lives, tell them about how GAVO education into their work. support and guide them as they could help them and begin to My vision is that GAVO will be become young adults. We don’t address the issue of HIV and AIDS. able to empower these children and actually know whether they are The children told us how they had young people to face up to the sexually active, but it is important become street children – some are challenges of HIV and AIDS. that they know how to avoid orphans, others have run away from transmission of the virus. home to escape abuse and violence. Rogasian Massue is a Progressio A local community development Most (80 per cent) have been in development worker working with organisation, the General Assistance Berbera for 10 years, but others have GAVO in Somaliland. Winter 2006/7 interact 3 issue 014lo 22/1/07 16:07 Page 4 news Sharing and learning in Latin America ensured real participation, exchange of ideas and learning. N OCTOBER 2006, Progressio there are fundamental We wanted representatives from brought together 47 people from disagreements about the way Progressio’s Africa, Middle East Iacross Central and Latin America forward. and Asia programme there to to a seminar in the Dominican The international financial contribute to cross-regional Republic on civil society institutions – World Bank, organisational learning. This participation and local International Monetary Fund, meant overcoming language development, writes Belisario Inter-American Development Bank barriers and added to the expense. Nieto. – favour technocratic solutions to Christian Aid, One World Action, This initiative was to enable achieve economic stability and Trocaire and the European Union members of local non- growth, cutting social expenditure supported us financially. governmental organisations and allowing countries to increase Participants from El Salvador, (NGOs), Progressio development their foreign debt. They support Nicaragua, Honduras, Peru, workers and others to share their civil society participation but wish Ecuador and the Dominican experiences and thus enable all of to stay in control – something Republic came to Santo Domingo. us to learn from each other. obvious from the very low The economist and urban planner Many countries in Latin participation in elections. Yves Cabannes, who has a wide America are only now beginning The NGOs and development experience of the region, talked Belisario Nieto to know peace and rebuild their agencies, including Progressio, about the strengths and speaking at the Progressio communities, after 30 years of favour a truly participative weaknesses of local development seminar. dictatorships and civil wars, but approach, developing inclusive in Latin America. We tackled three democratic processes and main themes: how to produce empowering people to make municipal development plans that choices for themselves. We work serve the local communities; how with local communities on their to influence national plans for the issues – poverty, the role of poor; and how to motivate a women, the environment, water. significant democratic participation. We train municipal election This is one more step towards candidates and work with enabling people to take control of municipalities to involve the local their lives. people in decision-making. Organising this event was Belisario Nieto is Progressio’s challenging. We had to find a way Programme Coordinator for Latin of running the seminar that America and the Caribbean. Chega! Enough! to the Timorese parliament a year contributing factor to the serious ago. It documents widespread and unrest that destabilised the ROGRESSIO JOINED with other systematic violations of human country earlier this year.