Article written by Emily Dulcan

This is Emily Dulcan, Chiapas Peace House Project (CPHP) Field Director saying hola from beautiful, sunny San Cristobal de las Casas in Chiapas, Mexico! I am excited to say that work on establishing the CPHP in San Cristobal is moving along at an excellent pace! I am making a slew of valuable connections, meeting amazing activists, and just having an all-in-all fabulous time. Here's a brief outline of what's contained in this, my first, web diary:



I. The Peace House needs a HOUSE

II. Meetings with NGOs in San Cristobal

III. Organizations I have yet to meet with

IV. Other cool stuff that I've done

V. First Hemispheric Forum on Militarization May 6-9, San Cristobal

I. The Peace House needs a HOUSE


As I'm figuring out my way through San Cristobal, I am keeping my eyes
and ears open for houses for rent, so that the CPHP actually has a
house. I've seen one place so far that is perfect in terms of space but
a little sparse when it comes to amenities. I definitely want to do
some comparison shopping and have hooked up with some Americans who
know of a lot of places for rent. I will begin looking in earnest for a
house next week when my work load permits. Colin is currently in
contact with a woman who owns a house in San Cristobal and may be
interested in letting us use it for the project. All of the leads we
have for housing are good, and we should have an actual house for the
project no later than early May.





II. Meetings with NGOs in San Cristobal


I have spent the past two weeks doing the majority of my CPHP work from
pay phones and internet cafes, arranging meetings with representatives
from many of the NGOs doing solidarity work in Chiapas. Every meeting
has been successful, with a lot of good ideas and feedback from fellow
activists.


Before I left San Cristobal for my two month vacation in Guatemala, I
spoke with representatives from Enlace Civil, Promedios, and La red de
los defensores comunitarios de derechos humanos.

--Enlace Civil organizes projects in communities and coordinates
community stays for human rights observers (campamentistas). I spent
two weeks in a community in February through Enlace Civil. Their
campamentista coodinator was receptive to the vision of CPHP and said
he was always looking for more volunteers. Our connection with Enlace
is the most promising opportunity for volunteers who would like to do
human rights observation.

--Promedios works with indigenous communities to record and document
community histories, events, and human rights violations. Their
representative was particularly interested in working with volunteers
who have media and graphic design skills.

--La red del los defensores comunitarios de los derechos humanos trains
members of indigenous communities to organize to protect human rights.
Their representative was extremely helpful to me by identifying other
organizations in San Cristobal that I should contact. She also said
that La red is always looking for volunteers to do translation work and
train organizers to work with computers.



Upon my return to San Cristobal I made more contacts with representatives from local NGOs.

--Estacion libre is an organization by and for people of color. They
have already established a house similar to the vision of CPHP, where
individuals live and reflect together on the work that they are doing
in Chiapas. While CPHP will help volunteers plug into work
opportunities, those who stay at Estacion libre are mainly working on
their own projects, such as research and art. I was really excited to
meet with the representative from Estacion libre to find out more about
their ideology and services. In addition to running a house, employees
organize two delegations a year. Participants in delegations choose
what kind of focus they want to have while learning about Chiapas and
reflect on how they want to use their experience in the future. I think
Estacion libre will be a wonderful resource for me and CPHP volunteers
in terms of working with people of color in Chiapas, learning about the
ongoing struggle for human rights, and reflecting on volunteer
experiences. I will learn more about their resources and house this
weekend.

--Fray Bartolome de las Casas is a long-established organization in San
Cristobal that works to defend the human rights of indigenous people
and communities. They offer opportunities to do human rights
observation in communities and promise to be a good connection in
addition to Enlace Civil. Their campamentista work is a little more
formal than Enlace's. Orientation for campamentistas includes a
two-hour orientation to Chiapas's political situation and a next-day
logistical orientation. Volunteers who want to work through Fray
Bartolome must make a commitment of at least two weeks of observation,
the same requirement as CPHP.

--SiPaz is an organization that deals primarily with
inter/intracommunity peace and conflict issues. They also send out
action alerts and information on a regular basis to a wide network of
international activists. The representative from SíPaz was excited to
learn about CPHP and said SiPaz would be happy to host future
delegations that would like to learn more about their work. Every once
in a while they also need translation work, and I am currently working
on translating a six-page document from Spanish to English--a true
exercise for my brain. This is my first real stab at translation, and
while it's difficult it's also quite enjoyable. It's fun to think
intensely about the subtleties of language.

--Capise is a research organization that focuses on the affects of
militarization on indigenous communities and economies. Their
representative was extremely receptive to the CPHP vision and said,
"you're going to be very popular." In the future, Capise will provide
CPHP volunteers with translation work.





III. Organizations I have yet to meet with


Tomorrow I will be meeting with a representative from Ciepac, a
research organization that focuses on free trade and its impact on
indigenous communities. I am hopeful that Ciepac will also be able to
provide CPHP volunteers with translation work. I also hope to meet in
the near future with a representative from Junax, an organization that
plugs college students and international volunteers into projects in
communities.





IV. Other cool stuff that I've done


Yesterday morning I settled myself in at Museo Cafe to sip an Americano
con leche (yes, I'm a coffee addict again) and continue translating the
document for SíPaz. After some intense pen, paper, and dictionary time,
I looked up to find myself surrounded by people and turned around to
see a long table lined with microphones and cassette recorders. A man
holding a pen and small pad of paper sat down at my table. What's going
on? I asked. It's a press conference, he replied, people from Montes
Azules who are going to talk about attempted dislocation. Wow. Talk
about being at the right place at the right time. I abandoned my
document and quickly organized myself to take notes on the speakers,
four men from two communities in the Montes Azules region of Chiapas,
now a hotbed of human rights violations due to the government's and
transnational corporations' desire to get at the region's precious
natural resources. Two of the men testified to being threatened by a
large group of indigenous men carrying machetes and firearms. These are
most likely people supported by the government in some indirect way.
They pressure members of established communities with violence and
robbery so as to force them off of their land. But we have nowhere else
to go, stated one witness. The sentiment of the communities is one of
defiance: they refuse to be "peacefully removed" from their current
homes. One community has been on the disputed land for only ten years,
after relocating from their original village and lands. The primary
thrust of the conference was the indigenous people's call for more
human rights observers. While the news of threats and dislocation was
troubling, it was important for me to hear that the work of the CPHP is
necessary and in fact directly requested by community members.





V. First Hemispheric Forum on Militarization, May 6-9, San Cristobal


In early May I will attend the First Hemispheric Forum on
Militarization "In times of war, the Hemispheric Forum represents the
first immediate space in which networks, organizations and people from
the entire continent will have the opportunity to sit down and talk,
listen, and design initiatives and coordinated actions together to
allow us to influence in a more effective manner the protection of all
human rights, and work together to find the mechanisms and strategies
in order to push the role of the United Nations to the level that
international civil society demands."



For information on the Forum, visit:
www.sitiocompa.org/desmilitarizacion/english.html
Well that's it for my first web diary installment! A second web diary
will be available at the end of the month to update everyone on CPHP's
progress. In the mean time, we will be developing applications for CPHP
and begin accepting volunteers! If you have any questions, answers,
suggestions, or just wanna give me props, please write to me at info@uupeacehouse.org.



Your sister in the struggle for peace and love,

Emily

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