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| JPIC Journal July, 2004 | ||
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A publication of the OMI Justice & Peace / Integrity of Creation Office, Washington, DC |
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| Volume 6, Issue 2 | ||
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The Harvest of justice is sown in peace
for those who cultivate peace.
Being is more important than doing, the heart is more important than the mind, and doing things together is more important than doing things alone. Henri Nouwen
The search for the key elements that promote and sustain development continue to attract plenty of attention in many arenas throughout the world. One of the latest attempts was articulated at the millennial assembly of the United Nations in the form of the Millennium Development Goals. More than 35 years ago Paul VI offered his assessment of the future challenge in the encyclical letter Populorum Progressio, and encouraged us to join together with men and women of good will to respond.
The widening gap between rich and poor both within countries and between nations and regions has continued to widen in the intervening 30 years. The gap is calculated by using such basic criteria as access to shelter, safe food and water, education, and healthcare. Bridging that gap does not lend itself to easy answers and challenges some very strongly held convictions about both personal lifestyle and the political and economic ordering of our societies.
There are many public policy issues and challenges embedded in the struggle to frame our response to development. There are scores of private organizations and public institutions that work very hard to provide the relief services needed to respond to the immediate challenges. Millions of people generously join together to make these efforts possible.
Additionally our daily scriptures and the wisdom of many other religious traditions invite each of us to examine our lifestyles and to support programs and policies that will respond to the needs of those who continue to be excluded from services necessary for life. Reality suggests that it takes both carrot and stick to move most of us to personal conversion and change
Sustainable development is underpinned by the care with which we tread upon the earth and the policies and programs that we promote. We hope that you will find some insights and resources in this issue of our newsletter to help you and yours to look again at what this invitation means in your life.
We must make haste: too many are suffering, and the distance is growing that separates the progress of some and the stagnation, not to say the regression, of others. Yet the work required should advance smoothly if there is not to be the risk of losing indispensable equilibrium.
From the Populorum Progressio by His Holiness Paul VI, Section 29
News and Advocacy
Updated Brochures on Environmental Issues
In an effort to help Oblates promote practices
that help the environment, the JPIC Office has just updated the brochures
that originally flowed from the “Environmental Resolution” the US Province
passed a few years ago. We will be happy to send you copies of either the
brochures or the resolution if you contact us.
The brochures include: Earth-Friendly Products – Encourages the use of products that will make our environment healthier and gives leads on how to do this; Organic Eating – Gives rationale for eating organic food and ideas on ways to do so; Reduce, Reuse, Recycle – Promotes these practices by giving reasons for and ways of doing them; Gardens Alive: Hints for Saving Water in the Garden – Gives procedures for using less water in gardens. A Look at Fair Trade – Explains the benefits and criteria for Fair Trade and gives websites.
Video on Bangladesh Now Available
Recently, our partners (Joseph Gomes, Sanjeeb Drong and others) in Bangladesh produced a video called “Behind the Green.” It focuses on Oblate work with Indigenous Peoples and the struggles of the indigenous peoples of Bangladesh with regards to the destruction of their way of life. This is a well produced video which could be useful in both adult education and catechesis. A limited number of videos and DVDs are available without charge by contacting the Oblate JPIC office. It is approximately 30 minutes long. Please call 202-483-0444 for more information or e-mail maryoh@omiusa.org..
Under-funding of No Child Left Behind National Priorities Project (www.nationalpriorities.org)
While the Bush Administration has identified education as a priority, programs from pre-school through college are under-funded. For national and state-by-state information go to: http://www.nationalpriorities.org/issues/edu/fallingshort/index.html?fs1 This publication looks at: the number of children in each state who are eligible but un-enrolled in Head Start; the state level impact of the under-funding of the No Child Left Behind Act; the national shortfall in higher education grants; the state loss in federal funding for adult and vocational education; the under-funding of special education by state and the prospect for future spending cuts.
Join Peaceful Tomorrows’ Stonewalk – Boston to NYC (July 26-Sept 2)
Family members of 9/11 victims will make a dramatic statement of solidarity with victims of terrorism, violence and war from around the world. From July 26 through September 2, they will walk from Boston to New York, pulling a 1400-pound granite memorial. Through this walk, and through speaking events in dozens of communities along the way, they will bear witness to the tragic reality that civilian casualties constitute 80% of the deaths in wars. For more information, see: www.peacefultomorrows.org/
Items from Bangladesh for Sale
The Oblates in Bangladesh work with the indigenous Garo and Khasi people there. In an effort to raise much-needed financial resources they have produced crafts for sale.
To support this effort, the JPIC Office of the US Province has purchased some of these items and offers them to you at cost plus postage. Each item is made from a heavy, colorful fabric and is carefully crafted. A list of objects and the cost for each is below. Please contact the JPIC office at 202-483-0444 or maryoh@omiusa.org if you are interested in any of these items. Most items come in red, blue, and orange.
Item Cost Each
Passport Holders $ 2 Unisex travel pouch with a thin fabric strap. Multicolored (almost Guatemalan looking) pattern
Small Shoulder Bags $ 5 These brightly colored textile bags come with a sturdy nylon strap, two zippered compartments and several slots for pencils
Wallet with Velcro Closure $ 2
Fabric Wallets that fold shut $ 2
Toiletry Bags $3 Small bags that zipper shut
Coin Purses $1 These 6” by 3” zippered coin purses come in black, blue and red.
Pencil Cases $2 Fabric cases that zip shut, great for carrying pencils in an open bag.
Little Purses $2 Zippered pouches (some fold over and some do not)
Shoulder Bags $15 Attache case with a woven fabric strap. Approximately 12” X 16”
The Global Fight Against Poverty: The Millennium Development Goals by Marjorie Kambala
Marjorie Kambala joined the Oblate JPIC Office in the spring of 2004
“We will spare no effort to free our fellow men, women and children from the abject and dehumanizing conditions of extreme poverty to which more than a billion are subjected”
United Nations Millennium Declaration,
September 2000.
The first seven goals are aimed at reducing poverty in all it’s forms: lack of income, education and health care; hunger; gender inequality and environmental degradation. Prior to the 25th April 2004 meeting of the Development Committee of the IMF/WB held in Washington, DC, the Global Monitoring Report 2004, on the policies and actions for achieving the MDG’s and related outcomes was released as a working guide to review progress made on the pledge. According to the report, we are faced with a mixed picture on the progress made thus far as certain countries/regions are seemingly on target such as China and Taiwan and other countries/regions such as Sub Saharan Africa are regressing and if left at the same pace will not be able to achieve the goals.
Accomplishing the MDG’s of halving the world’s population living on less than a dollar a day by 2015 relies on a strong decentralized people-centered approach which will include and project the voices of the poor. To achieve these goals developing countries have been given the mandate to draw up broad-based, coherent, country-owned development strategies in the form of Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSP), that will be the foundation of development planning. This approach calls on developing countries to systematically diagnose what it will take to achieve these goals. The successful creation, adoption and use of the PRSP is the bridge between the ‘visions’ of the MDG and accomplishing the goals. The challenge therefore lies in identifying credible National Governmental Organizations, Civil Society Organizations, Labor Movements and Church Organizations that can build and re-energize grassroots movements that will not be undermined by either internal and external forces. One such organization is Oxfam, which in February 2004 organized a Budget Tracking Workshop in Malawi with participants from Asia, Africa, and South America. Among the issues addressed was how to get broad-based participation in the formulation of National Budgets and how to track the flow of expenditure from National Treasury to education , health and other social issues such as clean water, sanitation and shelter.
Budget tracking mechanism is a helpful double-edged sword. On the one hand, it would ensure that funds are allocated and disbursed towards poverty reduction programs; on the other hand, through active participation of the masses in the pre and post budget analysis, it could help curb corruption by being transparent and accountable.
Unsustainable debt levels have crippled developing countries’ ability to satisfactorily deal with issues that could directly reduce poverty such as health, education and social issues. The HIV/AIDS pandemic is taking a toll on SSA economically and socially as it robs the continent of people in their most productive years, between 15-35years of age. The HIV/AIDS pandemic is claiming 7000 lives a day and this has put a toll on the already over burdened health care systems. Instead of addressing the above issues, two-thirds of developing countries budgetary resources are allocated towards debt servicing, and they are left with a meager one-third to address national issues. This has created a new dimension in the fight against poverty: developing countries dependence on foreign aid.
This leads us to goal number eight which is “to develop a global partnership for development”. Prompt action is needed for donors to make funds available and recipients to address implementation constraints. The use of PRSP as a guide will allow donor countries to channel aid funds towards education, health and social assistance services for poor people. Another front in the fight against poverty that is worthy of mention is the trade restrictions that developing countries face in the form of subsidies and trade tariffs. Developed countries have provided their farmers with big subsidies that impairs developing countries ability to sell their products for a profit both locally and abroad. And while import tariffs protect developed countries markets, these same tariffs are preventing developing countries from maximizing their full export potential. A balance ought to be struck since increased trade in agricultural, textile and industry sectors is a primary key for sustainable economic growth as it creates jobs and boosts income for both developed and developing countries. Unfortunately, the ability for both developed and developing countries to address these issues is undermined by the unfair and undemocratic representation at the World Trade Organization (WTO).
What we saw at the turn of the 21st century was an unprecedented solidarity of the 147 world leaders from both developed and developing countries pledging to work together to eradicate poverty, promote human dignity, and equality and achieve peace. Today the challenge is reiterated to turn that pledge into reality by collectively acting upon it.v
Vision without action is merely a dream. Action without vision is a waste of time. Vision with action can change the world.
Bishop P. Diegaardt.
The following article is re-printed from the April 23, 2004 edition of the Rocky Mountain News and was written by Bill Johnson.
Father Carl just got back in town. It was good to see him again. And, yes, he’s fresh out of a stretch in jail.
A lot of people know Carl Kabat, not the least of whom is federal Magistrate Boyd Boland, who this time around didn’t even bother with bail bond issues and simply asked the Roman Catholic priest to, well, just please show up in court when arraignment time comes.
They had arrested Carl Kabat, once again, dressed up like a clown inside a military nuclear silo facility in Weld County.
The 70-year-old priest has spent the bulk of the past 16 years in a jail or federal prison for doing just that sort of thing.
It is precisely that passion for doing what he believes he is called to do, and his unflinching willingness to spend jail and prison time doing that, that I – and a good many others – admire in Carl Kabat.
“You didn’t…,” I stammered when I ran into him the other day.
The priest slouched over, scratched the back of his head and said, “Well…”
It was Good Friday.
He’d not been long in town from St. Louis, where he was emptying trash and doing other odd jobs at a women’s shelter there.
That morning, he put on the long strands of a mop and fitted a baseball cap over it. He slathered his face in a clown’s greasepaint, put on a checked shirt, stepped into patch-covered knickers and tennis shoes, and headed for the Weld County nuclear silos.
It was a protest some three years ago near the same spot that landed him in federal prison for a little more than a year. It was near the same silos where three hammer-wielding Catholic nuns protested shortly afterward, for which they received up to 40 months in federal prison, sentences they continue to serve.
Soldiers ordered Carl Kabat to the ground, ripped the mop from his head, handcuffed and shackled him, and turned him over to Weld County sheriff's deputies.
The priest, unwilling to promise he’d appear on a personal recognizance bond, spent more than a week in jail in Greeley before the feds came for him.
Magistrate Boland, who’d tried him two years earlier, just told him to show up. “I guess he knows who I am,” the priest says.
He is charged with unlawfully entering a military installation, a misdemeanor, which thoroughly dismays Carl Kabat.
There will be no jury trial this time. The most he faces is six months federal time or, more likely, just a fine. One he swears he will not pay.
They got him before he got around to using the jackhammer he brought along, one he swears he was not going to use on the missile silo. All he did, he said, is put a score of anti-nuclear missile signs everywhere.
All of which begged the question: Why? Carl Kabat just laughs, amused at my naiveté.
“Nuclear weapons are an insanity,” he later says, with stone-cold seriousness.
It is impossible to do justice to Carl Kabat’s life and his callings in this space. He fought just as hard against world hunger in a different life, before 1976, when he participated in his first anti-nuclear protest.
It was in Plains, Ga. Jimmy Carter, a nuclear physicist, had just been elected president. Holding a sign two blocks from the president-elect’s home netted him five days in a Georgia jail.
He produces a sheaf of papers. It is his arrest record, “my rap sheet,” he says with a laugh. It is nearly half an inch thick.
He has been in so many jails and prisons, he says, he has lost track. “They are all the same,” he says, deadpan, “none worth a damn.”
Yet, Carl Kabat says he feels freer inside them than out here. He doesn’t know, he says, how to live his life differently.
“You can write to the president or to the senator, but nothing ever changes. I don’t say what I do is the best thing, if my answer is the only one or the right one. “I’m just called to be faithful.”
Even if it means going to prison?
Carl Kabat looks up, puzzled. “I don’t go to prison,” he says earnestly. “That’s where they always put me.”
So he goes. He never harbors regret. “You do what you can and, then, you sing and dance,” he says. “Weeping and wailing helps nothing and no one.”
He will not pay any fine, Carl Kabat says. He will not apologize for calling out the nuclear weapons industry in this country. If need be, he will do yet another stretch in prison.
“What else can I do? We got 600-plus young boys killed, supposedly because we wanted to get rid of weapons of mass destruction, weapons they still haven’t found.”
“I found one, and it’s right here in Colorado. I had no trouble doing it, and they’ll put me in prison for it. “I’ll go and I will sing and dance.”
Carl Kabat, OMI was convicted on June 21, 2004. On July 8,the Denver courts sentenced him to 3 years probation and 300 hours community service.
Nuclear Weapons at a Glance
Eight countries are known to possess nuclear weapons: the five acknowledged nuclear weapon states-Russia, the United States, France, China, and the United Kingdom-and three countries-India, Pakistan, and Israel-that are not accorded the status of nuclear weapon states under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty but nonetheless are known to have developed and stockpiled the components for nuclear weapons. A ninth country, North Korea, also may have produced a small number of nuclear weapons. In May 1998 India and Pakistan conducted 5 and 6 nuclear tests respectively, demonstrating extensive nuclear capabilities and beginning what could become an intense nuclear arms race in South Asia.
South Africa is the only country to
have acquired nuclear weapons and subsequently eliminated its nuclear
arsenal.
At its peak in 1986, the total number
of nuclear weapons in the world was about 70,000. The explosive power of the world’s arsenal is equivalent to approximately 500,000 bombs of the size that were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
These facts come from the website of the Canadian organization Project Ploughshares which can be found at: www.ploughshares.ca
The early morning silence and serenity that filled the amphitheatre were shattered by shouts of: “The buses are coming!” “The buses are coming!” Earth Day 2004 at the Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows was under way! Buses from 28 elementary schools began their slow descent into the arena where some 36 exhibitors would captivate the curiosity of some 1500 youth on April 29 & 30.
In no time, all present were swinging, singing, swaying and clapping in response to or along with the animators on stage. After a dramatic reading of one of the creation accounts from Genesis and an opening prayer lead by Maurice Lange, OMI, the groups were directed to their scheduled exhibits each of which lasted about 20 minutes.
During the reading of our creation story from Genesis I was struck by the fact that the age-old question of creation (where, who, how, when, why) has from all ages inspired a multitude of creation stories coming from a diversity of religions, cultures, peoples and continents.
Now, however, through the persistent probing, piercing and penetrating research of the curious human mind we have one, single, scientifically proven creation story. That fact and the fact that this discovery was made during our generation which finds itself within a creation process that has been unfolding for nearly 15 billion years has the power within it of setting one ablaze with amazement.
It is at times like these that feelings of being as if ‘autistic’ invade my being. We humans are ill equipped to ‘take in’ the wonders of our truly awesome God.
I have not read the multitude of creation accounts that exist today but I am absolutely certain that none can rival the newly-discovered universe story that now belongs to all.
Senator Gaylord Nelson declared the first Earth Day in 1970. Twenty years later in speaking of current ecological problems he stated that “they are a greater risk to Earth’s life-sustaining systems than a nuclear war.”
I can think of no better way to care for the Earth than to learn our sacred story and all the while giving God the GLORY!
For more information on bringing Darrell Rupiper, OMI to your parish, please contact him at drupiper2000@hotmail.com.
The Current State of Challenges to the Death Penalty
In Maryland, Steven Oken was executed on June 17, thus ending a hard-won moratorium on the death penalty in that state. Efforts continue, however, to urge Maryland’s Governor Ehrlich not to allow this execution to become the first of many.
The effort continues to secure a moratorium on the death penalty in North Carolina, as citizens urge their representatives to pass a bill which passed in the Senate last spring. More information on this can be found at the website of the North Carolina Coalition for a Moratorium.
One successful tactic has been the passing of local moratorium measures in states that currently have the death penalty. Over 100 such measures have passed.
Other good news in the fight to end the death penalty is the “near extinction” of the juvenile death penalty. Three states have banned the execution of juvenile offenders in the past year, and the US Supreme Court will soon consider the issue. Currently, the United States is one of the few nations in the world to continue to execute juveniles. Polls show that only 26% of the US public currently supports this practice. In the 1990s on average, more than ten juveniles were sentenced to death each year, while in 2003 only two received the death penalty. Many professionals in the medical and scientific communities have opposed the use of capital punishment against minors on the basis that they do not fully understand the consequences of their actions. Clearly, minds have been changed on this part of the issue due to the hard work of many (Oblates among them) and there is potential for policy change on other parts of this issue.
President Vicente Fox of Mexico has publicly called the US to task for placing several of its nationals on death row without notifying local consular officials of their arrest, a violation of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations which the U.S. ratified in 1969. The International Court of Justice ruled on this matter on March 31, 2004 stating that the US is not fulfilling its obligations under the Vienna Convention. The State Department reports that it is studying the ICJ decision and consulting with agencies that would be affected.
Some have noted that many of those accused of leading abusive behavior in the Iraqi prison scandal had worked as corrections officers in US prisons. An article in the New York Times on May 8, 2004 noted that “Physical and sexual abuse of prisoners, similar to what has been uncovered in Iraq, takes place in American prisons with little public knowledge or concern, according to correction officials, inmates, and human rights advocates.” Clearly, a close examination of prison conditions would be beneficial in both nations.
Recently, Sr. Helen Prejean’s organization “The Moratorium Campaign” became part of Equal Justice so as to present a more united front in the issue and consolidate their efforts.
You can find more information on the death penalty and the efforts to secure a moratorium on executions at the web site of Equal Justice: http://www.quixote.org/ej/index.html.
Jesus, our brother, From a prayer by Sr. Helen Prejean
Bangladesh and Human Rights: Testimony to the UN
The following is a statement by Fr. Joseph Gomes OMI in conjunction with the Bangladesh Indigenous Peoples Forum and Justice and Peace Integration of Creation, Bangladesh.
My name is Fr. Joseph Gomes, and I am representing Justice and Peace Integration of Creation, Bangladesh, and I work with Khasi, Garo and other indigenous peoples living in the Tea Estates in the north-eastern part of Bangladesh.
Mr. Chairman, indigenous peoples are the main victims of violations of human rights all over the world. They are under heavy pressure from developments beyond their control. In many regions, they have been facing an uncertain future and their life, languages, way of life, cultural diversity are constantly under threat. So, the Permanent Forum should have a vital role to ensure the rights of indigenous peoples to their entire life. It should be ensured that indigenous peoples are controlling their own development.
Therefore, Mr. Chairman, we would urge the Permanent Forum to consider the following matters:
Encourage States and UN agencies, financial institutions and other specialized bodies to take special measures in relation to indigenous issues so that indigenous peoples are really benefited in those areas such as economic and social development, culture, education, environment, health and human rights
Encourage States and UN specialized agencies to formulate special policies for indigenous peoples that affirm their cultural identity and right to self-determination.
The following is a statement made by Sanjeeb Drong who has worked closely with the Oblates to assure that the rights of indigenous people are protected:
My name is Sanjeeb Drong, and I am representing the Bangladesh Indigenous Peoples’ Forum, a national forum for indigenous peoples of Bangladesh. I speak on behalf of our organizations and my Garo community of northern part of Bangladesh.
As in many other parts of the world, the indigenous peoples of Bangladesh are facing serious human rights violations. Our land, forest and territory where we lived have been taken away without our free, prior and informed consent, to build National parks, dams, Eco-parks, reserve forests, protected areas, tourism and even establishing military bases and training centres. In some of the areas known as “reserved forests”, not only are the original inhabitants regarded as encroachers and treated as serfs, but they are also victimized by assaults of Forest guards and hundreds of oppressive criminal cases. It is our misfortunate perhaps that we are discriminated against not only as indigenous peoples, but also as linguistic and religious minorities.
Mr. Chairman, indigenous peoples are under heavy pressure from developments beyond our control. Land dispossession is a serious problem in other parts of Bangladesh as well, in the south, northwest, northeast, and north-central Bangladesh including the greater Mymensingh area, which is my traditional home. However, large parts of the territories of our Garo and Khasi peoples are still considered as a “reserved forest”, which is guarded by Forest guards carrying guns. At one time our territory was constitutionally recognized as a specially administered area. That is no more, and without our consent.
In 2001, the Bangladesh government started a program to establish “Eco-parks” on Khasi and Garo land in Moulvibazar district for so-called tourism development. 1,000 indigenous families are threatened with eviction from their ancestral land. Another Eco-park project has been taken in Modhupur forest to evict 25,000 indigenous peoples from their ancestral homeland. Similarly, many other aboriginal lands, even those with private titles, have been unfairly and illegally taken over by non-indigenous people, in violation of the East Bengal State Acquisition and Tenancy Act of 1950 (Section 97), which restricts transfer of aboriginal land title to non-aboriginals.
Mr. Chairman, we are fearful that the situation of human rights of indigenous peoples of Bangladesh will not improve without the constitutional recognition of the indigenous peoples, the implementation of the CHT Peace Accord, and the inclusion of indigenous peoples’ representatives in the appropriate policy-making bodies, including the Ministry of Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs and the Special Affairs Division, in a substantive manner.
Mr. Chairman, we would urge the Permanent Forum to consider the following matters:
Encourage reforms within the ILO system to enable indigenous peoples to have formal access to the body and to play a more direct role in helping monitor the compliance of the Conventions No. 169 and 107;
States should have independent national human rights commission, and indigenous representation should be ensured in the commission;
Permanent Forum should have role to monitor that states are maintaining and implementing the rights of indigenous peoples written in the conventions they have ratified.
Socially Responsible Investing Grows
In early June I was invited by faith based investors in South Korea to give a number of presentations on the work of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility in the U.S. and to explore with them opportunities for collaboration in areas of common interest. This was one of an increasing number of invitations that ICCR has received from socially responsible investment groups at the international level in recent years. It has furthermore been encouraging that these invitations have come from different regions of the world.
In many instances religious and faith based investors are among the founding members of these new organizations and they continue to be active in providing resources and direction to these efforts. The see this dimension of their work and ministry as a way that they can more fully integrate their assets and resources into their mission and often at the same time witness to the values and beliefs that they share with followers of other faith traditions and men and women of good will. Reliable access to safe water continues to be an issue of concern for SRT investors and the global community. Cognizant of the ever increasing influence which corporations have in all areas of our lives including the environment, faith based investors work with corporations to ensure that this influence will make a positive contribution to the quality of peoples lives. Joined by other colleagues in the secular and for profit sectors we have just completed a very successful year of advocacy, debate, collaboration and education. The fact that we have also been able to connect with allies from other regions in the world promises even more successful efforts in the years to come.
Socially Responsible Investing Trends in the United States
The SRI trend in the U.S. has increased exponentially in recent years and has been closely watched by the traditional investing community. Many of the SRI funds which have been created were supported through the efforts of different religious groups and or individuals. Members of ICCR have been active collaborator in these efforts and they continue to work closely with members of the SRI community...
According to the data presented in 2003 by the Social Investment Forum, “socially and environmentally responsible investing in the United States has proven remarkably robust during 2001 and 2002 despite sluggish market conditions that have resulted in a downturn in assets in the wider investment universe. Most notably, socially screened portfolios counted by this report grew seven percent, while the broader universe of professionally managed portfolios fell four percent.”
Total SRI Assets
A total of $2.16 trillion in assets was identified in professionally managed portfolios using one or more of the three core socially responsible investing strategies – screening, shareholder advocacy, and community investing. More than one out of every nine dollars under professional management in the United States today is involved in socially responsible investing. The $2.16 trillion managed by major investing institutions — including pension funds, mutual fund families, foundations, religious organizations, and community development financial institutions — has remained stable, accounting for 11.3 percent of the total $19.2 trillion in investment assets under professional management in the United States, nearly equal to 2001.
Community investing climbed 84 percent between 2001 and 2003. Assets held and invested locally by community development financial institutions (CDFIs) based in the United States totaled $14 billion in 2003, up from $7.6 billion in 2001. 1
Shareholder Resolutions in 2004
The annual meeting season at U.S. companies in 2004 has set a new record for the number of shareholder resolutions filed on all topics (1,110 up from the previous high of 1,081 in 2003) but particularly for proposals on social issues (340; up from the previous mark of 328 in 1991, of which 81 were South Africa related). The season also saw a number of new campaigns introduced and some creative responses from corporate managements. These included an agreement to implement what the resolution is asking for or recommending a vote in favor of the resolution.
A quick survey reveals that 57 resolutions were introduced on the environment, 52 on political donations, 34 on global labor issues, 32 on Equality, 27 on Sustainability reporting, 24 on health care, 16 on charitable donations, 14 access to medicines for HIV/AIDS, TB, Malaria, 92 “other”, including abortion.2
A summary of some of the voting reveals that the labor standards resolution at Disney concerning International Labor Organization core conventions received 28.8%. Global Warming resolutions at energy companies; Apache received 30-34%, Anadarko (28%) and Marathon (27%).
First year resolutions that went to a vote on increasing access to medicines for people struggling with HIV/AIDS, TB, and Malaria were also supported by shareholders: Abbott: 6.7, Bristol Myers Squibb: 7.2, Merck: 13.9, Pfizer: 9.8, Caterpillar: 4.8, ChevronTexaco: 8.0, Pepsi: 7.7, Coke: 97.0 (Management recommended a vote in favor)
On the Horizon
Behind all of this success are the commitments of concerned individual investors who continue to vote their own proxies and insist that their representatives on investment committees, pension boards and mutual funds include quality of life, social and environmental issues in their investment decisions. Their tireless efforts have been proven both financially prudent, good for the earth and for the human community. 1 2003 Report on Socially Responsible Investing Trends in the United States 2 ICCR Corporate Social Issues Reporter
A Journey to Laredo and the Rio Grande Valley Rebecca Phares
From May 9 to May 14, on behalf of the Border Pilgrimage Planning Committee, West Cosgrove of the Maryknoll Border Team, Roberto Martinez formerly of the American Friends Service Committee, Julia Dietz of the Religious Task Force on Central America and Mexico, and Rebecca Phares of the Oblate Justice and Peace/Integrity of Creation traveled from Laredo to Brownsville, meeting with some wonderful organizations and individuals and strengthening contacts along the way.
John Lasseigne, OMI hosted us in San Juan. He provided hospitality and arranged meetings with several local groups. We had a chance to meet with Armand Mathews,OMI, as well and hear a few stories from his many years in the area, as well as learn a little more about his “Project Youth Vote.”
Our purpose was two-fold: to get to know the issues facing the Rio Grande Valley and Laredo area, and to get to know some of the organizers in that area to facilitate better communication for any future joint projects. This brief summary provides a general picture of what we found.
Overall, Laredo and the Rio Grande Valley are politically conservative and economically depressed areas, which makes organizing very challenging.
In the Rio Grande Valley we met with organizers and groups in McAllen, Harlingen and Brownsville, most of whom focus on meeting local needs in this highly impoverished area. Some groups provide legal and social services to residents (BARCA, programs of Holy Spirit Parish, Pharr Community Outreach Project, Proyecto Libertad), tasks that are increasingly difficult as public hospitals leave the area, and as federal funding often will not cover services provided to undocumented immigrants.
Also, while some undocumented immigrants live in the area, several people noted that fewer undocumented immigrants settle in the area compared to other places in the US.
An Update on Haiti: “Security and civil administration essential in the north”
The preceding update on Haiti was released on March 24, 2004, but many of the realities described do, as far as we can tell, still hold true.
Legislative and Advocacy Update
SOA Legislative Advocacy Opportunity
We have news from the folks at SOAWATCH:
The best opportunity for the movement of legislation to close the SOA/WHINSEC is coming soon. It was recently announced that the Foreign Operations Appropriations bill may actually be coming to the House floor as early as July 19th. Historically, we have had a good deal of success in our legislative efforts when a Member of Congress has introduced an amendment to that bill to cut the funds for “scholarships” for the foreign security forces attending the school, rendering it inoperable.
We still need to reach our goal of at least 150 co-sponsors before Rep. McGovern will move forward with this amendment.
That means you have the great opportunity to meet with your representative to get them to take a stand and co-sponsor HR 1258. As the summer campaign season draws nearer, they are much more open to constitituent concerns.
What you can do: - Write a letter. A sample letter is available online at: http://www.soaw.org/new/article.php?id=572. But if you can, hand written, personal letters are very influencial. Mail and/or fax a copy to the district and DC office. Then ask other people to write letters. - Start recruiting other people to attend your district meeting. It’s important to bring the broadest coalition possible—i.e. local religious leaders, labor union members, students, professors, local politicians, members/leaders of other organizations, etc.
Bill Offers Debt Relief
On June 3, 2004 Jubilee USA announced the introduction of the JUBILEE Act of 2004 (HR 4511) which would cancel the debts owed by impoverished countries to the IMF.
“The JUBILEE Act will help build a better, safer world by providing impoverished nations the fresh start necessary for development,” said Marie Clarke, National Coordinator of Jubilee USA Network. “The cancellation of debts owed to the IMF would remove a major impediment to poverty eradication and economic growth in Asia, Africa and Latin America and enable the nations to invest their own resources in health care, education, and poverty reduction.”
Please contact your congressional representatives and urge them to become a cosponsor of this piece of legislation, which would free up resources for the use of governments of impoverished nations, potentially allowing increased spending on education, social services, and development. Simply ask them to co-sponsor the JUBILEE Act (HR 4511).
Immigration Related Bills: the good, the bad and the ugly
Several pieces of legislation have emerged over the last year or so. The DREAM Act (S. 1545 and HR 1684, known as the Student Adjustment Act) would allow immigrant students who had completed high school in the United States and lived here for several years to attend state schools at the in-state tuition rate. Currently, high, out-of-state tuition rates prevent deserving immigrant youth from pursuing their educational goals. These bills would allow them significant new opportunities. Please call your Senator or Representative and urge them to sign on to this bill or thank them for their support.
The CLEAR Act (HR 2671) introduced by Representative Charlie Norwood (R-GA), would require state and local law enforcement agencies to enforce federal immigration laws even though they are not provided with additional resources or training to undertake this new role.
Numerous police departments and many conservative organizations have spoken out against this act, saying that it would hinder local law enforcement and create additional burdens on already-overburdened enforcement agencies. Clearly, undocumented immigrants would be less likely to seek help from law enforcement, thus leading to more dangerous communities for everyone. Urge your Representative to oppose the CLEAR Act.
The OMI Justice and Peace/ Integrity of Creation Office coordinates the advocacy efforts of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate on behalf of the interests of the poor and abandoned in the U.S. and in the more than 65 countries where the Oblates are in mission. These efforts include serving as a resource for province member-ship, supporting the community organizing efforts of the Oblates in the United States, and coordinating the Corporate Responsibility Program to insist on just practices and policies by corporations in their worldwide operations. Our work also includes advocacy with the United States government and other international institutions on a variety of justice and peace issues.
U.S. JPIC Committee Rev. John Cox, OMI Rev. Sal DeGeorge, OMI Rev. Séamus Finn, OMI Rev. Maurice Lange, OMI Rev. John Lasseigne, OMI Rev. Darrell Rupiper, OMI Rev. Thomas Rush, OMI Rev. David Ullrich, OMI Rev. Bob Wright, OMI
JPIC Staff Rev. Séamus Finn, OMI Director Rebecca Phares Associate Director Mary O’Herron Associate for GA JPIC Service and Corporate Responsibility Marjorie Kambala
JPIC Report is a publication of the OMI Justice and Peace/ Integrity of Creation Office 391 Michigan Avenue NE Washington, DC 20017
Tel: 202..483.0444
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Celebrating
the Earth 
The
two texts that follow were presented at the UN as part ot the UN Permanent
Forum on Indigenous Issues, Third Session, UN Headquarters, New York 10 – 21
May 2004. If you regularly read this publication you will be
familiar with some of these issues already, but I think you will agree that
both Sanjeeb Drong (who has worked closely with both Oblates in Bangladesh
and with our office here in the US) and Joesph Gomes, OMI, eloquently
present the situation of indigenous people in Bangladesh.