September 2003 Newsletter
Article written by Emily Dulcan
All of a sudden the pace has picked up in San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas, as the Yucatan Peninsula prepares for the WTO conference, CPHP co-founder Colin Bossen prepares to launch a website for partner organization Jolom, and I prepare to train two new Field Staff who will replace me in mid-October. While this is all very exciting, the MOST exciting thing to happen at the Peace House during the past month is a neighborhood cat's selection of our front yard as the best place to have her five kittens. They're only a few days old, and they are the cutest things ever! Colin and I have dubbed the writhing, furry mass a "pelota" (ball) of kittens. We'll have pictures posted on the website soon! In order to tide you over, here's the second edition of our new and improved Peace House newsletter.
I. Chiapas Peace House PROJECTS
II. WTO Meeting in Cancun
III. Analysis: The On-Going Struggle and the Birth of the Caracoles
IV. The Peace House Parties Down in Oventik
V. Work with Jolom Mayaetik
I. Chiapas Peace House PROJECTS
New Volunteer/Cultural Opportunity
I was lucky to spend a few days in central Guatemala last month,
visiting a good friend who teaches poetry and theater to students in
indigenous communities. I accompanied him on one of his community
visits, spending two days and two nights in Pueblo Nuevo, a small
community about an hour from the bustling rural village Playa Grande
(also known as Cantabal), which is itself three hours away from a paved
road. Pueblo Nuevo is home to the Instituto Maya Guillermo Woods, a
high school for 16 to 22-year-olds who are studying to be teachers in
other communities. Everyone was excited that Andrew had brought along a
friend ("they don't get a lot of Americans out here," he said). When
we arrived on Sunday I helped the kitchen staff "tortillar" (make
tortillas--yes, it's its own verb!), and that evening we watched a
number of students perform dances and present poetry.
The directors wanted to take advantage of my presence, so they asked me
to give a presentation to one of the classes (about 45 students) about
my work. I talked to the students about indigenous movements in
southern Mexico, the use of violence for political ends, and the
importance of political organizing. They also shared with me how they
felt about Guatemala's (corrupt) political system, the importance of
education, and their hopes for the future of Guatemala. Needles to say,
I don't know when I'll have another opportunity like this, unless I go
back and volunteer at the Instituto next year! The directors were
pleased to learn that I would like to come back, and they encouraged me
to spread the word about the good work of the school. They would love
to host volunteers (one month minimum) or individuals interested in
observing the school to learn more about their culture and curriculum
(3-7 days).
On-Going PROJECTS
Interviews with Al Sol
On-Going Projects at the Peace House:
Human Rights Observation
Translation
Interviews with Al Sol
For more information go to http://www.uupeacehouse.org/diary/aug2003.php.
II. WTO Meeting in Cancun
September 10-14 the World Trade Organization (WTO) will be holding its
biannual? meeting, this time in Cancun, Mexico, located on the Yucatan
Peninsula. It's pretty close to us here in San Cristobal, but those of
us associated with the Peace House won't be attending, since
participating in public political action (like protests) is one of the
easiest ways to get kicked out of Mexico. Sigh. There are however,
thousands of people who will be participating in protests, teach-ins,
and actions to denounce neoliberalism, the economic model promoted by
the WTO. For more information on what's happening in and around Cancún,
check out Mexico Solidarity Network's wonderful website at
http://www.mexicosolidarity.org/cancun_page.html
III. Analysis: The On-Going Struggle and the Birth of the Caracoles
After the Ejercito Zapatista de Liberacion Nacional (EZLN) armed
uprising on 1 January 1994, there was hope among indigenous peoples,
human rights defenders, and civil society that the desperate situation
of Chiapas's indigenous population would begin to improve. In 1996,
representatives from the CCRI (Comité Clandestino Revolucionario
Indígena, or Clandestine Indigenous Revolutionary Committee)- EZLN and
the Mexican government signed the San Andres Accords, aimed to ensure
Chiapanecan indigenous communities with relative autonomy from the
Mexican government. Then President Mexican Ernesto Zedillo ultimately
refused, however, to enforce the Accords, leading to the end of
negotiations with the insurgency movement. Legislation regarding the
rights of indigenous communities in Chiapas was not introduced in
earnest to the Mexican Congress until five years later. The final
version of the law, know as the Law for Indigenous Rights and Culture,
was promoted by Mexican President Vic! ente Fox and passed through
Congress in 2001. The CCRI-EZLN, support NGOs, and members of civil
society denounced the law as insufficient and disparate from the San
Andres Accords and the Cocopa Law (the law embodying the agreements of
the San Andres Accords) introduced to Congress in 2000.
During his presidential campaign in 2000, one of Fox's platforms was
solving the "indigenous problem" in Chiapas within "15 minutes" of
taking office. But it took the President over six months to introduce
and pass a bill related to, but by no means solving, the "indigenous
problem." During his third presidential informe, similar to the US
President's State of the Union Address, on 2 September, President Fox
made no mention of the plight of indigenous people in Chiapas nor of
the EZLN.
In addition to the Mexican government's affected attempt to mollify
indigenous dissatisfaction legislatively, it has added injury to insult
by maintaining a strong military presence in the state of Chiapas. The
military withdrawal from some military bases has been "only for
appearances' sake," maintain the Network of Community Defenders of
Human Rights in Chiapas. "The reality for the indigenous and peasant
communities in our state of Chiapas is in fact very different: there
has been no diminishing of military forces in Chiapas, only a
repositioning of military posts and an increase in army actions against
our communities. The strategy of low intensity warfare has been
renewed, now taken on by president Vicente Fox" (Press Conference
14/8/00). In 2003, the army and paramilitary forces continue to
intimidate and harass indigenous villages and individuals. Enlace
Civil, a civil society organisation that supports Zapatista communities
by providing them with infrastructure, funds, and human rights
observers issued an official denouncement on August 16 this year,
documenting nine instances of members of the Mexican military illegally
entering ejidos (communal land holdings) in Chiapas.
Despite the ample military presence, lawlessness abounds and indeed at
times is perpetuated by soldiers. In the August 18 edition of La
Jornada, the newspaper reported on a riot and prison break outside
Tuxtla Gutierrez, Chiapas's capitol city. A total of 47 prisoners
actually escaped the grounds of the prison, and only 30 of these were
found and brought back. Apparently the presence of more than 70,000
soldiers is not enough to deter prisoners from making a run for it. The
military presence also contributes to heightened disorderly conduct due
to drunkenness and prostitution.
Facing continued intimidation by the Mexican military and the deaf ears
of the Mexican government, the EZLN once again took matters into their
own hands. Members of the EZLN asserted their independence and rights
as indigenous people during a celebration at the newly designated
Caracol (literally conch and the Mayan glyph for the action of
speaking; today's Caracoles were previously known as Aguascalientes) of
Oventik the 12th through the 15th of September. Zapatistas, Zapatista
supporters, and civil society were invited to attend the fiesta. The
summit at Oventik inaugurated the Zapatista Caracoles as juntas de buen
gobierno (juntas of good government), centers that support the
self-governing Zapatista communities. "Autonomia sin permiso, "
(Autonomy Without Permission) announced the 10 August edition of La
Jornada. In an article of the same date, Miguel Angel de los Santos, a
human rights lawyer "assures that the centers are not
anti-constitutional because . . . they are supported by international
conventions."
The zapatista indigenous communities have been committed for several
years now to a process of building autonomy. For us, autonomy is not
fragmentation of the country or separatism, but the exercise of the
right to govern and govern ourselves, as established in Article 39 of
the political Constitution of the United Mexican States. Today, the
exercise of indigenous autonomy is a reality in zapatista lands, and we
are proud to say that it has been led by the communities themselves
(from comunique The Thirteenth Stele, Part Five: A History,
Subcomandante Insurgente Marcos, July 2003)
The new Zapatista Caracoles will serve to balance the development in
different Autonomous Communities, mediate conflicts between Autonomous
and government municipalities, promote and monitor projects in
municipalities, monitor municipal laws, help civil society connect with
Autonomous Communities, and promote community member participation in
outside events.
At a time when many members of civil society were wondering what is
happening with the Zapatistas, the Autonomous Communities have taken a
notable step by inaugurating their Caracoles and asserting their
independence "without permission." Indeed, asking for permission
would have belied any real assertion of autonomy. Today we witness the
beginning of a new stage in the indigenous struggle for justice . . . a
peaceful manifestation of rebellion and solid proof that our is a world
in which fit many worlds.
IV. The Peace House Parties Down in Oventic
The "Festival of the Carocoles" was a wonderfully odd event and Peace
House co-founder Colin Bossen and volunteer Brendan Hill were there to
witness it. The mix of music, dance, basketball and, of course,
communiques gave the event, by turns, the appearance of an outdoor rock
concert, sporting event and political rally.
Among the 15,000+ people in attendance were many friends, new and old,
and we were pleased to see some faces that we hadn't seen in several
years. We also got to meet the good folks from Narco News
(www.narconews.org). It turns out Narco News' webmaster Dan Feder is an
old friend of CPHP webmaster Ben Mazuar! Narco News is, incidentally,
one of the better sources for information on Latin America that we
know. Their coverage of the events at Oventic was excellent.
Highlights of the festival include an indigenous women's basketball
tournament, two all night dance sessions, the installation of the junta
de buen gobierno and the premier of the Zapatista radio station, Radio
Insurgente. At times the behavior of the press bordered on the surreal
with hundreds of micro-phones, cameras and video recorders almost
blocking the Zapatista authorities as they made their addresses.
The words of the EZLN at Oventic are available in Spanish and English
at chiapas.indymedia.org. Copies of the Radio Insurgente broadcast are
available through the peace house for a donation of $10, e-mail
cbossen@mindspring.com for more details.
Pictures from Oventic will be posted to the peace house web site soon.
V. Work with Jolom Mayaetik
In August the CPHP launched a new initiative with partner organizations
Kinal Antzetik and Jolom Mayaetik. Kinal Antzetik is a women's rights
organization that works with indigenous women in Chiapas. Kinal offers
resources, trainings for promotores and workshops--ranging from bread
making and weaving to economics and health care-- to women throughout
the state of Chiapas. Jolom Mayaetik is a mayan women's artesian
weaving cooperative primarily made up of Tzotzil and Tzeltal women from
the municipalities of San Andres, Chamula, Huixtan and Oxchuc. The CPHP
is working with Jolom Mayaetik to market their goods outside of Chiapas
through the use of a print catalog and an on-line store. For the past
month CPHP co-founder Colin Bossen has been in San Cristobal de Las
Casas working with both Jolom and Kinal to design the print catalog and
discuss the beginnings of an on-line store. A web page for Jolom should
be up mid-October and we hope to have a basic version of the on-line
store complete sometime next year. Stay tuned for further developments!
VI. PAPAYA: The Fruit We Love to Hate
I, in fact, love to love papaya, but I'm not joking when I say that
this polemical fruit has been the source of many heated disagreements
in the Peace House, and on a number of occasions has almost lead to the
dissolution of friendships. But the fact that papaya is such a
controversial food makes me love it all the more. My history with
papaya really began only eight months ago, when I arrived in Mexico. My
first forays into papayadom were suspicious at best, and a few times I
was convinced that it was one of the few foods I do not like, mainly
because it smelled faintly of vomit. If you've ever tasted and disliked
a papaya, you know exactly what I mean. For some reason, however, it
became important to me to like papaya, so I kept eating it until I came
upon a really good one; and let me tell you, a good papaya is one of
nature's true delicacies. A good papaya tastes like what sweet,
fragrant flowers would taste like if they tasted as good as they
smelled. I must concur with the conclusions of one Peace House guest
that papaya is best when cold. It is also delicious in smoothies
(licuados) with water (agua) or milk (leche) and oats (yes, oats in
smoothies are delicious).
Papaya contains the enzyme called papain, which can digest nine times
its weight in protein, and therefore aides digestion. Papaya is good
for many other ailments, from healing infected flesh wounds, to curing
scorpion stings, to stopping chronic diarrhea. The fruit is an
excellent source of Vitamin A, a good source of Vitamin C, and contains
Vitamins B. Take heed gentlemen! Papaya seed extract can cause
functional sterility in the male rats and Papaya extract promises to be
a potential male contraceptive.
Papaya is thought to have originated in southern Mexico and central
America though it was found as far south as Lima, Peru in pre-Spanish
times. There are two types of papayas, Hawaiian and Mexican. The
Hawaiian varieties are the papayas commonly found in supermarkets.
These pear-shaped fruit generally weigh about 1 pound and have yellow
skin when ripe. The flesh is bright orange or pinkish, depending on
variety, with small black seeds clustered in the center. Mexican
papayas are much larger the Hawaiian types and may weigh up to 10
pounds and be more than 15 inches long. The flesh may be yellow, orange
or pink. The edible seeds have a spicy flavor somewhat reminiscent of
black pepper
I enjoy making papaya salsas with any combination of the following
ingredients, to taste: papaya, white onion, red onion, scallions,
tomato, jalepeño, cilantro, parsley, ginger, lime juice, and salt. The
flavor of papaya, unlike mango, is delicate, so be sure not to drown it
with too much ginger or cilantro, for example. You can also make salsas
with multiple fruits. Not only are these salsas delicious, they are
beautiful to boot. Papaya is also tasty cut into bite-sized pieces and
drizzled with lime juice. Following is a recipe from www.epicurious.com
for papaya seed salad dressing, good for fruit salads and coleslaw.
Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon English-style dry mustard
1 cup tarragon vinegar
1 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup minced onion
1 papaya, halved, reserving 3 tablespoons of the seeds and reserving the fruit for another use
In a blender or food processor blend the sugar, the salt, the mustard,
and the vinegar until the mixture is smooth. With the motor running add
the oil in a stream and blend the dressing until it is emulsified. Add
the onion and the reserved papaya seeds and blend the dressing until
the papaya seeds are the consistency of ground pepper. The dressing
keeps, covered and chilled, for 2 weeks.
Makes about 3 cups.
For more info, questions, answers, concerns, and comments about papaya, email info@uupeacehouse.org
Til next month!
Peace & Love
Emily
All of a sudden the pace has picked up in San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas, as the Yucatan Peninsula prepares for the WTO conference, CPHP co-founder Colin Bossen prepares to launch a website for partner organization Jolom, and I prepare to train two new Field Staff who will replace me in mid-October. While this is all very exciting, the MOST exciting thing to happen at the Peace House during the past month is a neighborhood cat's selection of our front yard as the best place to have her five kittens. They're only a few days old, and they are the cutest things ever! Colin and I have dubbed the writhing, furry mass a "pelota" (ball) of kittens. We'll have pictures posted on the website soon! In order to tide you over, here's the second edition of our new and improved Peace House newsletter.
I. Chiapas Peace House PROJECTS
II. WTO Meeting in Cancun
III. Analysis: The On-Going Struggle and the Birth of the Caracoles
IV. The Peace House Parties Down in Oventik
V. Work with Jolom Mayaetik
I. Chiapas Peace House PROJECTS
New Volunteer/Cultural Opportunity
I was lucky to spend a few days in central Guatemala last month,
visiting a good friend who teaches poetry and theater to students in
indigenous communities. I accompanied him on one of his community
visits, spending two days and two nights in Pueblo Nuevo, a small
community about an hour from the bustling rural village Playa Grande
(also known as Cantabal), which is itself three hours away from a paved
road. Pueblo Nuevo is home to the Instituto Maya Guillermo Woods, a
high school for 16 to 22-year-olds who are studying to be teachers in
other communities. Everyone was excited that Andrew had brought along a
friend ("they don't get a lot of Americans out here," he said). When
we arrived on Sunday I helped the kitchen staff "tortillar" (make
tortillas--yes, it's its own verb!), and that evening we watched a
number of students perform dances and present poetry.
The directors wanted to take advantage of my presence, so they asked me
to give a presentation to one of the classes (about 45 students) about
my work. I talked to the students about indigenous movements in
southern Mexico, the use of violence for political ends, and the
importance of political organizing. They also shared with me how they
felt about Guatemala's (corrupt) political system, the importance of
education, and their hopes for the future of Guatemala. Needles to say,
I don't know when I'll have another opportunity like this, unless I go
back and volunteer at the Instituto next year! The directors were
pleased to learn that I would like to come back, and they encouraged me
to spread the word about the good work of the school. They would love
to host volunteers (one month minimum) or individuals interested in
observing the school to learn more about their culture and curriculum
(3-7 days).
On-Going PROJECTS
Interviews with Al Sol
On-Going Projects at the Peace House:
Human Rights Observation
Translation
Interviews with Al Sol
For more information go to http://www.uupeacehouse.org/diary/aug2003.php.
II. WTO Meeting in Cancun
September 10-14 the World Trade Organization (WTO) will be holding its
biannual? meeting, this time in Cancun, Mexico, located on the Yucatan
Peninsula. It's pretty close to us here in San Cristobal, but those of
us associated with the Peace House won't be attending, since
participating in public political action (like protests) is one of the
easiest ways to get kicked out of Mexico. Sigh. There are however,
thousands of people who will be participating in protests, teach-ins,
and actions to denounce neoliberalism, the economic model promoted by
the WTO. For more information on what's happening in and around Cancún,
check out Mexico Solidarity Network's wonderful website at
http://www.mexicosolidarity.org/cancun_page.html
III. Analysis: The On-Going Struggle and the Birth of the Caracoles
After the Ejercito Zapatista de Liberacion Nacional (EZLN) armed
uprising on 1 January 1994, there was hope among indigenous peoples,
human rights defenders, and civil society that the desperate situation
of Chiapas's indigenous population would begin to improve. In 1996,
representatives from the CCRI (Comité Clandestino Revolucionario
Indígena, or Clandestine Indigenous Revolutionary Committee)- EZLN and
the Mexican government signed the San Andres Accords, aimed to ensure
Chiapanecan indigenous communities with relative autonomy from the
Mexican government. Then President Mexican Ernesto Zedillo ultimately
refused, however, to enforce the Accords, leading to the end of
negotiations with the insurgency movement. Legislation regarding the
rights of indigenous communities in Chiapas was not introduced in
earnest to the Mexican Congress until five years later. The final
version of the law, know as the Law for Indigenous Rights and Culture,
was promoted by Mexican President Vic! ente Fox and passed through
Congress in 2001. The CCRI-EZLN, support NGOs, and members of civil
society denounced the law as insufficient and disparate from the San
Andres Accords and the Cocopa Law (the law embodying the agreements of
the San Andres Accords) introduced to Congress in 2000.
During his presidential campaign in 2000, one of Fox's platforms was
solving the "indigenous problem" in Chiapas within "15 minutes" of
taking office. But it took the President over six months to introduce
and pass a bill related to, but by no means solving, the "indigenous
problem." During his third presidential informe, similar to the US
President's State of the Union Address, on 2 September, President Fox
made no mention of the plight of indigenous people in Chiapas nor of
the EZLN.
In addition to the Mexican government's affected attempt to mollify
indigenous dissatisfaction legislatively, it has added injury to insult
by maintaining a strong military presence in the state of Chiapas. The
military withdrawal from some military bases has been "only for
appearances' sake," maintain the Network of Community Defenders of
Human Rights in Chiapas. "The reality for the indigenous and peasant
communities in our state of Chiapas is in fact very different: there
has been no diminishing of military forces in Chiapas, only a
repositioning of military posts and an increase in army actions against
our communities. The strategy of low intensity warfare has been
renewed, now taken on by president Vicente Fox" (Press Conference
14/8/00). In 2003, the army and paramilitary forces continue to
intimidate and harass indigenous villages and individuals. Enlace
Civil, a civil society organisation that supports Zapatista communities
by providing them with infrastructure, funds, and human rights
observers issued an official denouncement on August 16 this year,
documenting nine instances of members of the Mexican military illegally
entering ejidos (communal land holdings) in Chiapas.
Despite the ample military presence, lawlessness abounds and indeed at
times is perpetuated by soldiers. In the August 18 edition of La
Jornada, the newspaper reported on a riot and prison break outside
Tuxtla Gutierrez, Chiapas's capitol city. A total of 47 prisoners
actually escaped the grounds of the prison, and only 30 of these were
found and brought back. Apparently the presence of more than 70,000
soldiers is not enough to deter prisoners from making a run for it. The
military presence also contributes to heightened disorderly conduct due
to drunkenness and prostitution.
Facing continued intimidation by the Mexican military and the deaf ears
of the Mexican government, the EZLN once again took matters into their
own hands. Members of the EZLN asserted their independence and rights
as indigenous people during a celebration at the newly designated
Caracol (literally conch and the Mayan glyph for the action of
speaking; today's Caracoles were previously known as Aguascalientes) of
Oventik the 12th through the 15th of September. Zapatistas, Zapatista
supporters, and civil society were invited to attend the fiesta. The
summit at Oventik inaugurated the Zapatista Caracoles as juntas de buen
gobierno (juntas of good government), centers that support the
self-governing Zapatista communities. "Autonomia sin permiso, "
(Autonomy Without Permission) announced the 10 August edition of La
Jornada. In an article of the same date, Miguel Angel de los Santos, a
human rights lawyer "assures that the centers are not
anti-constitutional because . . . they are supported by international
conventions."
The zapatista indigenous communities have been committed for several
years now to a process of building autonomy. For us, autonomy is not
fragmentation of the country or separatism, but the exercise of the
right to govern and govern ourselves, as established in Article 39 of
the political Constitution of the United Mexican States. Today, the
exercise of indigenous autonomy is a reality in zapatista lands, and we
are proud to say that it has been led by the communities themselves
(from comunique The Thirteenth Stele, Part Five: A History,
Subcomandante Insurgente Marcos, July 2003)
The new Zapatista Caracoles will serve to balance the development in
different Autonomous Communities, mediate conflicts between Autonomous
and government municipalities, promote and monitor projects in
municipalities, monitor municipal laws, help civil society connect with
Autonomous Communities, and promote community member participation in
outside events.
At a time when many members of civil society were wondering what is
happening with the Zapatistas, the Autonomous Communities have taken a
notable step by inaugurating their Caracoles and asserting their
independence "without permission." Indeed, asking for permission
would have belied any real assertion of autonomy. Today we witness the
beginning of a new stage in the indigenous struggle for justice . . . a
peaceful manifestation of rebellion and solid proof that our is a world
in which fit many worlds.
IV. The Peace House Parties Down in Oventic
The "Festival of the Carocoles" was a wonderfully odd event and Peace
House co-founder Colin Bossen and volunteer Brendan Hill were there to
witness it. The mix of music, dance, basketball and, of course,
communiques gave the event, by turns, the appearance of an outdoor rock
concert, sporting event and political rally.
Among the 15,000+ people in attendance were many friends, new and old,
and we were pleased to see some faces that we hadn't seen in several
years. We also got to meet the good folks from Narco News
(www.narconews.org). It turns out Narco News' webmaster Dan Feder is an
old friend of CPHP webmaster Ben Mazuar! Narco News is, incidentally,
one of the better sources for information on Latin America that we
know. Their coverage of the events at Oventic was excellent.
Highlights of the festival include an indigenous women's basketball
tournament, two all night dance sessions, the installation of the junta
de buen gobierno and the premier of the Zapatista radio station, Radio
Insurgente. At times the behavior of the press bordered on the surreal
with hundreds of micro-phones, cameras and video recorders almost
blocking the Zapatista authorities as they made their addresses.
The words of the EZLN at Oventic are available in Spanish and English
at chiapas.indymedia.org. Copies of the Radio Insurgente broadcast are
available through the peace house for a donation of $10, e-mail
cbossen@mindspring.com for more details.
Pictures from Oventic will be posted to the peace house web site soon.
V. Work with Jolom Mayaetik
In August the CPHP launched a new initiative with partner organizations
Kinal Antzetik and Jolom Mayaetik. Kinal Antzetik is a women's rights
organization that works with indigenous women in Chiapas. Kinal offers
resources, trainings for promotores and workshops--ranging from bread
making and weaving to economics and health care-- to women throughout
the state of Chiapas. Jolom Mayaetik is a mayan women's artesian
weaving cooperative primarily made up of Tzotzil and Tzeltal women from
the municipalities of San Andres, Chamula, Huixtan and Oxchuc. The CPHP
is working with Jolom Mayaetik to market their goods outside of Chiapas
through the use of a print catalog and an on-line store. For the past
month CPHP co-founder Colin Bossen has been in San Cristobal de Las
Casas working with both Jolom and Kinal to design the print catalog and
discuss the beginnings of an on-line store. A web page for Jolom should
be up mid-October and we hope to have a basic version of the on-line
store complete sometime next year. Stay tuned for further developments!
VI. PAPAYA: The Fruit We Love to Hate
I, in fact, love to love papaya, but I'm not joking when I say that
this polemical fruit has been the source of many heated disagreements
in the Peace House, and on a number of occasions has almost lead to the
dissolution of friendships. But the fact that papaya is such a
controversial food makes me love it all the more. My history with
papaya really began only eight months ago, when I arrived in Mexico. My
first forays into papayadom were suspicious at best, and a few times I
was convinced that it was one of the few foods I do not like, mainly
because it smelled faintly of vomit. If you've ever tasted and disliked
a papaya, you know exactly what I mean. For some reason, however, it
became important to me to like papaya, so I kept eating it until I came
upon a really good one; and let me tell you, a good papaya is one of
nature's true delicacies. A good papaya tastes like what sweet,
fragrant flowers would taste like if they tasted as good as they
smelled. I must concur with the conclusions of one Peace House guest
that papaya is best when cold. It is also delicious in smoothies
(licuados) with water (agua) or milk (leche) and oats (yes, oats in
smoothies are delicious).
Papaya contains the enzyme called papain, which can digest nine times
its weight in protein, and therefore aides digestion. Papaya is good
for many other ailments, from healing infected flesh wounds, to curing
scorpion stings, to stopping chronic diarrhea. The fruit is an
excellent source of Vitamin A, a good source of Vitamin C, and contains
Vitamins B. Take heed gentlemen! Papaya seed extract can cause
functional sterility in the male rats and Papaya extract promises to be
a potential male contraceptive.
Papaya is thought to have originated in southern Mexico and central
America though it was found as far south as Lima, Peru in pre-Spanish
times. There are two types of papayas, Hawaiian and Mexican. The
Hawaiian varieties are the papayas commonly found in supermarkets.
These pear-shaped fruit generally weigh about 1 pound and have yellow
skin when ripe. The flesh is bright orange or pinkish, depending on
variety, with small black seeds clustered in the center. Mexican
papayas are much larger the Hawaiian types and may weigh up to 10
pounds and be more than 15 inches long. The flesh may be yellow, orange
or pink. The edible seeds have a spicy flavor somewhat reminiscent of
black pepper
I enjoy making papaya salsas with any combination of the following
ingredients, to taste: papaya, white onion, red onion, scallions,
tomato, jalepeño, cilantro, parsley, ginger, lime juice, and salt. The
flavor of papaya, unlike mango, is delicate, so be sure not to drown it
with too much ginger or cilantro, for example. You can also make salsas
with multiple fruits. Not only are these salsas delicious, they are
beautiful to boot. Papaya is also tasty cut into bite-sized pieces and
drizzled with lime juice. Following is a recipe from www.epicurious.com
for papaya seed salad dressing, good for fruit salads and coleslaw.
Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon English-style dry mustard
1 cup tarragon vinegar
1 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup minced onion
1 papaya, halved, reserving 3 tablespoons of the seeds and reserving the fruit for another use
In a blender or food processor blend the sugar, the salt, the mustard,
and the vinegar until the mixture is smooth. With the motor running add
the oil in a stream and blend the dressing until it is emulsified. Add
the onion and the reserved papaya seeds and blend the dressing until
the papaya seeds are the consistency of ground pepper. The dressing
keeps, covered and chilled, for 2 weeks.
Makes about 3 cups.
For more info, questions, answers, concerns, and comments about papaya, email info@uupeacehouse.org
Til next month!
Peace & Love
Emily
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