Wm june 2014 by worldmission

inside: Still up in arms • A long way home • Angel of the war victims

BETWEEN ARMS AND peace j u n e 2 014 • n o. 278 • VO L X X V i • 5 0 p es os • ISSN 0116 - 8142

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editorial

The scandal The Asian Catholic Monthly Magazine

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“

ar is a scandal to be mourned every day,” Pope Francis stated in one of his inspiring homilies at the Vatican’s Casa Santa Marta. But what is the scandal of war? The thousands of innocent victims, those whose lives are taken away and irremediably changed by the cruelty of war? Indeed, these are big scandals! But there is more. Even before considering the direct and more tangible effects of war, war already has a long list of injustices attached to it – the deprivation of people of their basic needs like education, food, housing and infrastructures for development, and job opportunities, among others. The billions invested in the arms trade are a crime against those who are deprived of their basic needs. Nations across the globe spend overwhelmingly for arms. The summary of the military expenditure presented by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) YearBook 2013 is appalling! It estimates the world military expenditure in 2012 reached $1.756 trillion; this corresponds to 2.5% of world gross domestic product (GDP), or approximately $249 per person in the world (www.globalissues.org). If the economic crisis forced many nations to cut back on all sorts of public spending, it certainly was not the case with military spending. The report notes, however, that a decline was felt in world military expenditure in 2012, but it was rather insignificant. The scandals of war do not end there. The huge investments in weaponry are often the consequence of fear and are justified by the need for security and peace. However, security and peace among peoples can never be achieved by arms. Actually, the basic problems affecting the world today cannot be solved by the power of arms. There is no possible justification for what is evil, for what destroys, and for what makes millions of innocent

Dave Domingues EDITOR

The problem is that we have become so used to these atrocities, that they are now routine news for us – even to the point that they no longer scandalize us. Have our tears run dry?

victims. The scandal of “justifying” military interventions becomes all the more ironic when it is all done “for the sake of peace and security.” Can weapons and arms keep us secure? It is good to bear in mind the huge profits armed conf licts make, either at a large or small scale. In fact, some $2.4 trillion (£1.5T) or 4.4% of the global economy “is dependent on violence,” according to the Global Peace Index, referring to “industries that create or manage violence” – or the defense industry. Could this be a justification for war? Not at all! The military might generate huge amounts but, unfortunately, they never reach the poor, the needy or even those who, in one way or another, have been victimized by armed conflicts. The present raging conflicts in the world (from South Sudan, Central African Republic to Syria and in so many other places), the killing of people for a piece of land, racial hatred, and power grabbing, can never be justified. Instead, we should mourn the fact that there are still human hearts capable of such atrocities today, valuing their interests and ambitions above all else. The problem is that we have become so used to these atrocities, that they are now routine news for us – even to the point that they no longer scandalize us. Have our tears run dry? Our indifference and apathy toward such human tragedies are, indeed, the biggest scandal of all. And to fail to be scandalized by them is tantamount to denying our own humanity.

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subscribing to world mission Subscribers and friends: For your convenience, you may now remit renewal fees by: • Bank transfer (BDO, Villa Mendoza – Sucat Branch, Acct. No. 005280011577, Acct. Name: Comboni World Mission). If you will use this method, please send us, by fax or ordinary mail, the copy of the deposit slip with your name and address. • Money order in favor of World Mission Magazine. • Crossed cheque payable to World Mission Magazine. • Dial 829-0740/829-7481 for pick up. (In Metro Manila, we will send our messenger to you on a scheduled date.) Note 1: If, by any chance, you are having problems in receiving World Mission Magazine, please let us know soonest so that we can take appropriate action. Note 2: We would like to encourage our valued subscribers who have not updated their record with us to do so as soon as possible. Please help us to provide you the best service you deserve. Thank you!

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www.worldmission.ph events to remember in june 01 - Solemnity of the Ascencion of the Lord 05 - World Environment Day 08 - Pentecost Sunday 12 - Philippine Independence Day 20 - World Refugee Day 22 - Corpus Christi 27 - Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus prayer For Evangelization

That Europe may rediscover its Christian roots through the witnessing of believers.

inside CONTROL ARMS, PROMOTE PEACE

The world we live in has been greatly affected by bloody conflicts which have not only destroyed millions of human lives, but also compromised the future of our young generations. Indeed, today’s conflicts are not only fought on battlefields away from populated areas. They are taking place even in our streets, markets and even our homes. From the large-scale armed conflicts fuelled by powerful economic interests behind humongous arms deals, done legally or illegally, to the more ‘domestic’ yet deadly conflicts around us due to the proliferation of loose firearms, a call to control the arms trade and implement the necessary regulations to defend human rights and to avoid even greater loss of human lives is imperative. The Arms Trade Treaty has been a small but important step in this direction. However, much more needs to be done both at the international and local levels. To control arms without promoting a culture of peace will always be a lost battle.

06 11

WM special | BETWEEN ARMS AND PEACE

world touch frontiers

Millions of refugees with no place to call home By Tony Magliano

wm insight | HIGH HOPES

The realism of global optimism By Bjørn Lomborg

IN FOCUS | burmese refugees

A long way home

By Fr. Dave Domingues, mccj

meditation | fishers of men

To the last limits of human existence

Still up in arms

Staring authority in the face

By Martin Butcher, Lorey Campese Emma Ensign and Allison Pytlak

By Arch. Thomas Menamparampil

Missionary vocation | Fr. Carlo Gnocchi

Angel of the war victims By Fr. Lorenzo Carraro, MCCJ

THE LAST WORD

Peter’s death and resurrection

By Fr. SILVANO FAUSTI, sJ

By Ed Quitoriano

Activism against Arms By Allison Pytlak

WORLD MISSION has the exclusive services of the following magazines for Asia: ALÉM-MAR (Portugal); MUNDO NEGRO (Spain); NIGRIZIA (Italy); NEW PEOPLE (Kenya); WORLDWIDE (South Africa), AFRIQUESPOIR (DR of Congo); ESQUILA MISIONAL (Mexico); MISION SIN FRONTERAS (Peru); and IGLESIA SINFRONTERAS (Colombia).

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w o r l dto u c h vatican

alliance to fight trafficking

Despite the best endeavors of so many in so many countries, modern slavery and human trafficking continue to expand. Victims are hidden away: in places of prostitution, in factories and farms, on fishing boats, and illegal establishments, in private homes behind locked doors and in many other places in cities, villages and slums, in the world’s richest nations and poorest nations. This was one of the opening reflections contained in an agreement to eradicate modern slavery and human trafficking by 2020, presented at a press conference in the Holy See. The agreement was signed by the Pontifical Academies of Sciences and Social Sciences on behalf of the Holy See and representatives of the Church of England and Sunni Islam. Significantly, a representative of Cairo’s Al-Azhar University was also present. The University had suspended dialogue with the Vatican in the past. The Global Freedom Network’s signatories signed a joint declaration underlining that “the physical, economic and sexual exploitation of men, women and

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children condemns 30 million people to dehumanization and degradation. Every day that we let this tragic situation continue is a grievous assault on our common humanity and a shameful affront to the consciences of all peoples.” Global Freedom Network is the name of the initiative launched in collaboration with the Walk Free Foundation. “Any indifference to those suffering exploitation must cease. Only by activating, all over the world, the ideals of faith and of shared human values can we marshal the spiritual power, the joint effort and the liberating vision to eradicate modern slavery and human trafficking from our world and for all time. ...The agreement that was signed today promises initiatives of a spiritual nature – prayer, fasting and almsgiving,” a world day of prayer for the victims and for their freedom and dedicated prayer networks that will be formed in all parts of the world” – as well as other more practical ones. For example: “Action plans for the first year will be developed to engage: All

global faiths to modern slavery-proof their supply chains and investments and to take remedial action if necessary; all global faiths to mobilize their youth sections to support programs to eradicate modern slavery and human trafficking; families, schools, universities, congregations and institutions, to educate on the nature of modern slavery and human trafficking, how to report it and the destructiveness of harmful social attitudes and prejudices and social systems in relation to modern slavery and human trafficking; government leaders to modern slavery-proof public sector supply chains; 50 major multinational businesses whose CEOs are people of faith or of goodwill to commit to modern slavery-proof their supply chains; 162 governments to publicly endorse the establishment of the Global Fund to End Slavery, with 30 heads of state publicly endorsing it by the end of 2014; the G20 to condemn modern slavery and human trafficking and adopt an anti-slavery and human trafficking initiative and support the above-mentioned Global Fund.” www.ucanews.com

arms

Recent arms seizures and arrests of traffickers in Cameroon’s Far North Region have highlighted the escalating insecurity caused by Boko Haram in neighboring Nigeria and the impact of the unrest on the Central African Republic (CAR) and Sudan. In January, Cameroon’s security forces arrested a man attempting to transport 655 guns to Nigeria. In September 2013, 5,400 AK-47 rifles were seized on a pickup truck in Maroua, the capital of Far North Region, according to officials and local media. “Many firearms have been seized from traffickers in the region in recent days, coming from crisis countries like Sudan and CAR. The number could be higher due to the disarmament taking place in CAR. This region remains a zone for traffickers because it is closer to Nigeria,” a Maroua police officer said. Cameroon has stepped up security in the Far North Region following Nigeria’s military crackdown on Boko Haram, which has pushed back the insurgents to border regions and forced thousands of civilians to flee into Cameroon. “Before the deployment of the special security forces of the Rapid Intervention Unit in 2009 to the Far North of Cameroon, the Region was highly plagued by highway robbers armed with light machine guns. But today, armed robbery has reduced in the Far North, giving way to arms traffickers now targeting new markets in neighboring Nigeria,” said a gendarme official with the intelligence division. “Because of the vast nature of the region’s borders, traffickers sometimes can pass through the region without being detected.” Porous borders

Security threats in the Far North Region include kidnappings, the undocumented movement of foreigners, and the influx of refugees from CAR, Chad, Nigeria and Sudan. Officials fear refugee camps may conceal militants or become targets for attack. Cameroon cur rently host s some 100,000 refugees, mainly from CAR. And the relentless Boko Haram's attacks and clashes with the Army forced around 5,000 Nigerians to seek refuge in Cameroon last

month, raising the number of Nigerian refugees to about 12,000, of whom 2,185 have been settled in a U.N. refugee agency (UNHCR) camp in the Far North Region. “Maroua faces many security challenges right now, coupled with the [movement of] numerous refugees of different nationalities into Cameroon’s eastern and western borders. But several security measures are taken,” Bob-Iga Emmanuel, head of the police division at the governor’s office in the Far North Region, stated. Regional unrest fuels trade

Observers point out that the Boko Haram insurgency in northeastern Nigeria is a major factor driving the arms smuggling. “The present regime in CAR is yet to evaluate and recover millions of arms reported to have been looted from government armories. Where do these arms go to after the war? The Boko Haram war is heightening, explaining the high trafficking of arms through Cameroon’s Far North, which links Nigeria with other crisis zones such as CAR, Sudan, Libya and DRC [the Democratic Republic of Congo],” said David Mekong, a Yaoundé-based political analyst. “After wars, firearms are sold at relatively low prices, a real business opportunity for traffickers. As disarmament and demobilization is taking place in CAR, arms from the conflict can easily reach Boko Haram and other crisis zones,” Mekong said. www.irinnews.org

Sheryl Sandberg

Smuggling to Boko Haram threatens Cameroon

women

A record number of women billionaires A total of 172 women, up 25% from 2013, have made Forbes 28th annual billionaires' list. Women now make up 10% of the global super-rich, thanks to a huge influx of female wealth, led by Sheryl Sandberg. With a personal fortune worth more than $1B (£599M), she became one of the highestprofile new entrants to the Forbes list, joining Meg Whitman of Hewlett-Packard as the only other female tech billionaire. The self-made businesswoman Folorunsho Alakija, Nigeria's first female billionaire, also made the Forbes list for the first time, as her oil investments netted her a $2.5B fortune. One of the top U.K. entrants was Denise Coates, the British online gambling queen who, along with her brother, owns Bet365. Coates was at school when she started working as a cashier in her father's betting shops and has now amassed $1.6B in personal wealth. According to Forbes, a record number of 42 women broke into the list for the first time, although only 32 female billionaires (1.9% of the total) built their own fortune, rather than inheriting it from a parent or husband. The world's richest woman is Christy Walton, who shares a $36.7B chunk of the Walmart fortune, edging out one of L'Oréal's principal shareholders, Liliane Bettencourt. Some emerging markets buffeted by currency instability saw a crop of superwealthy fall out of the Forbes list. Turkey lost 19 billionaires to inflation, while Indonesia saw eight of its wealthy drop out of the list, after its currency plummeted 20% against the dollar. But 2013 will be remembered as a good year for the world's super-rich, who now have a collective wealth of $6.4 trillion, up from $5.4 trillion the previous year. www.theguardian.com

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“The mafia kills hope, there is too much silence in the church.” – Fr. Luigi Ciotti, president of Italian network, Libera, at the prayer vigil for victims of mafia violence, last March, in Rome. www.vaticaninsider.lastampa.it

“I wish to share this hope with you: that a sense of responsibility will slowly prevail over corruption in every corner of the world. But this needs to come from within, from people’s consciences. Attitudes and social fabric need to be healed. So that justice can spread and put down roots, eradicating unfairness. I will be with you on this journey which requires tenacity and perseverance.” – Pope Francis at the prayer vigil for victims of mafia violence, last March, in Rome. www.vaticaninsider.lastampa.it

“Secularism is too fragile a basis for a free society…the Gospel alone can offer an authentic humanism able to transform human living.” – Bishop Philip Egan of Portsmouth, in his March 6 address at his alma mater, King's College, London, where he studied in the 1970’s. www.catholicnewsagency.com

“The Church is called to demonstrate what Christianity, not secularism, can offer…a transformation of meaning and value that leads to human flourishing. In a word, Christianity proposes an authentic humanism, able to ground a free, democratic and pluralist society.” – Idem, Ibidem

“Structural change to the government of the Church is vital, but it must follow from a new way of being Church, in which we get out of the sacristy, engage with people, know their suffering and their puzzlement from within.” – Timothy Radcliffe, OP, former master of the Dominican Order, commenting on the first anniversary of the pontificate of Pope Francis. www.cathnews.com hunger

U.N. report on food – dire warning for the world A worrisome report by the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization predicts that food production may not keep pace with population increases and dietary changes as some people become wealthier and consume more calories. Up to half-a-billion people could be chronically hungry in Asia alone, according to the report. Already, it is Asia, not Africa, which suffers the most from malnourishment and hunger. Developing nations, according to the report, need to boost their food production rated by 77% just to meet projected demand by 2050. Currently, the world has 842 million undernourished people, according to the U.N. Two-thirds of those people live in Asia. Other reports show that, possibly, over a billion people in the world suffer from some form of food insecurity, meaning that some people may not be hungry now, but face food shortages in the near future as a result of poor weather or conflict, or economic risk factors. One in four children around the world

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under five is stunted due to malnutrition. A major part of the problem is that food production is not keeping pace with demand. The report explains that, in the 1980’s, food production in the developing world increased by 3.5% annually, and in the 20 years previously, that figure moderated to about 0.6 to 0.8%. Projections say that the number needs to be about 1% in order to keep pace with population growth and other demands, so if the trend does not improve, the world food supply will slowly shrink. Other problems mentioned by the report include extreme variations in the weather over the past several years. The

report suggests this could be a result of global climate change. As the Earth's overall temperature increases, even in tiny increments, the amount of energy in the atmosphere and oceans is increased which can lead to more frequent weather events. Weather has destroyed harvests in the past three years in Australia, Canada, China, Russia, and the United States. Finally, increasing development around the world means that some populations are increasing their daily intake of calories. This places additional demands on food resources. Pope Francis referenced other problems with food distribution when he gave a speech launching his global campaign of 'Prayer and Action' to end world hunger by 2025. Pope Francis pointed out that the world does produce enough food, but it is distributed scandalously. Other threats to food supplies include fuel shocks, especially oil, which can increase the price of food production. www.catholic.org

brazil

World Cup 2014: A reason for celebrating? When the former President Lula decided to bring the World Cup of 2014 to Brazil, he thought he was giving a big gift to his people known worldwide for their passion for soccer. Only to know later how equally big the problems would be! First of all, like most of the public enterprises in the country, the expenses of the preparation for the event doubled since the beginning. According to government data, the investments are estimated to reach 25.6 billion reais (about US$13 billion): 8 billion of them to build the stadiums; another 8 billion for urban mobility; 6.3 billion for the airports; 600 million for ports; 1.9 billion for security projects; 400 million for communication infrastructures; 200 million for tourism infrastructures and another 200 million for other installations. All these data elicited a strong reaction from the public as the country still needs a huge amount for its education and public health systems, especially in abandoned areas in the north and in the periphery of its big cities. The demands made by FIFA were too high and were not well-accepted by a great part of the population. The people´s opposition, shown in public manifestations all over the country in 2013, threatened FIFA´s demands and the use of police forces was needed to repress the protesters. What were behind all these demonstrations? The first reason was the aprooting of people from urban peripheries to give way to stadiums and buildings of urban infrastructure in the fourteen cities chosen to be the sites of the World Cup. In the city of Rio de Janeiro alone, about 30,000 families, or around 250,000 people, are believed to have been moved out of the urban areas, especially in Rio City. Also the restructuring work was done without any consultation with the areas' residents. Development priority was given to the south zone (the wealthiest zone) and to the

Port of Rio zone with a new city center in Barra da Tijuca (high middle-class district) that will be the venue of the Olympic Games in 2016. All these urban interventions are done also to get rid of the slums and shanty towns, thereby increasing the cost of properties in Rio to its highest level in history. Prioritization of the middle-class of Rio was to the detriment of the millions of people living in Baixada Fluminense (just beside Rio) which is one of the poorest regions of the state, known for notorious violence and drug trafficking, and where millions of Rio workers live. Rio politicians have become unpopular with their re-election projects seriously hampered. For these reasons, there was resistance not only in Rio but also in São Paulo, Salvador, Porto Alegre, Belo Horizonte and other Brazilian cities. The International Amnesty, national and international human rights organizations and the U.N. denounced this forced

displacement of people. Another factor that infuriated human rights advocates was the “general law of the World Cup,” imposed by FIFA and IOC, with commercial demands which are considered a real intrusion to the sovereignty of the country. It resembles the Institutional Act No. 5 promulgated by the military dictatorship in the seventies, suspending civil rights over 'state security.' Now, to serve international commercial interests, the local legislation on sport and commerce is sacrificed due to social and popular pressure to submit to the demands of international sport institutions known for their corruption scandals and ties with the world market. Law No. 2330/11 was imposed by FIFA without the people knowing its real content. According to some experts, such as Guilherme Varela and Thiago Hoshino, the law has a number of restrictions and ill effects. Among them are the following: end of right of students and other social vulnerable groups to half-price entry to the stadiums; prohibition of vendors during the games in or around the stadiums; prohibition of local TV, radio and internet to make transmissions of matches; the federal government will be responsible for any damage caused during the event; repression of the freedom of expression, spontaneity and creativity of the Brazilian people during the event; violation of the statute of soccer supporters; changes to school calendar due to the competitions, permission to sell alcoholic drinks in the stadiums which is prohibited by the Brazilian legislation and violations of the Brazil Consumers Code. All of these to favor the international enterpreneur promoters of the World Cup! Rather than being a brotherly global sports competition, celebrating the Brazilian passion for soccer and sports, the World Cup is obviously becoming a commercial event controlled by outsiders and at the service of international capitalism. Fr. Ozanan Carrara

In West Africa, the Malian and Ivorian political crises have resulted in the biggest number of refugees in the region. The brewing insecurity could mean that they will be unable to return home any time soon as armed groups remain a threat to West Africa. − www.ipsnews.net

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global

Time to reassess the goals of humanitarian aid For the first time, the U.N. has declared three simultaneous crises – in South Sudan, Syria and the Philippines – as level 3, the highest band of emergency. So this is a period of intense activity for NGOs such as the International Rescue Committee. But it is also a good time to reflect on the goals and working methods of the humanitarian system. Approximately $18B (£11B) are spent annually on humanitarian aid by more than 140,000 staff. U.N. appeals solicit lifesaving help for 52 million people across 19 countries. Yet the entire system is under unprecedented strain. Civil strife means that whole populations are caught up in conflict. In Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Syria and Zimbabwe, an average of 75% of the entire populations have been directly affected. Worldwide, more than 172 million people were touched by conflict in 2012. Last year, there were 35 million people displaced – 10.5 million across borders, and double that number within countries. These trends have profound implications for humanitarian action. First, while huge numbers of people in Asia and Africa continue to rise out of poverty, those who remain are increasingly in fragile states, exposed to war and crisis. In 2005, just 20% of the global poor were in conflictaffected and fragile states. Today, that figure is 50% and set to rise to more than 80% in 2025. For many years, people have questioned the conventional distinction between the humanitarian system that responds to emergencies caused by wars and natural disasters, and the development community

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that, in the longer term, seeks to tackle poverty. When the majority of the global poor live in fragile states, and when the average refugee spends nearly 20 years outside his home country, the distinction has, in reality, dissolved – yet it still conditions many of the institutions that govern this work. Second, we need to think hard about the modern needs of those displaced by conflict. The face of the refugee is no longer only someone living in a tent in a vast camp – it is increasingly that of a family squatting in an abandoned building in an urban area, or crammed into a one-room apartment on the outskirts of a small town, with nowhere to send their kids to school. With the urban populations of Africa and Asia set to double or even triple in coming decades, their services and systems will come under ever more stress. We need to think about the universal services, infrastructure and local economies used by both host communities and those displaced by conflict, as well as targeted services for refugees. That means, among other things, working with and through local partners and governments, not bypassing them. Third, the demands on the humanitarian system are set to grow not just in scale and duration, but in complexity. This is not just from the civil wars in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia. Population surge, concentrated in cities, combined with the droughts, water shortages and natural disasters that are the consequences of climate change, will increasingly affect the most fragile areas of the world. With new players coming into the humanitarian system, notably from Muslim-

majority countries, there is pressing need for common purpose. The millennium development goals (MDGs), despite some shortcomings, brought focus, attention and resources to development efforts. We need a similar coalition for change in response to humanitarian crisis. Do we need humanitarian goals? The classic definition of humanitarian action is simple: we exist to save lives. But, in fact, we have other priorities too. Protecting women and girls from violence, investing in disaster risk reduction, promoting economic livelihoods are part of the humanitarian enterprise. Humanitarian goals (HuGos) could take several forms. They could be distinct from the successor to the MDGs post-2015, or integrated within them. They could rationalise existing – and overlapping – humanitarian norms and technical standards (so-called Sphere standards that, for example, specify the minimum amount of water a person should receive per day), and give them teeth through global commitment and monitoring. They could raise the bar of quality for the entire humanitarian system through global quality standards. More challenging, given the diverse contexts, they could define outcomes, such as response times, literacy rates or child mortality. With the MDG revision process under way, and a humanitarian summit announced for 2016, now is the time to debate what purpose humanitarian goals could serve, and what they should be. At the moment, we are playing catch up. It is time to get ahead of the curve. www.theguardian.com

f r o n t i e r s

Millions of refugees with no place to call home by

Tony Magliano *

mergency: Syria! Emergency: Sout h Sudan! Emergenc y: Democratic Republic of the Congo! These are the alarming messages being displayed on the homepage of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (www.unhcr.org). According to the UNHCR, Syria has more people forcibly displaced than any country on earth. Over 9 million Syrians have been uprooted from their homes due to civil war – over 2.5 million of them have fled to neighboring countries as refugees. And the most distressing fact of all is that more than half of the displaced are children. In South Sudan, UNHCR reports the civil war and growing food shortages have led to approximately 2,000 people crossing into nearby countries each day. Many of these refugees have been arriving exhausted, nutritionally deprived and in poor health. According to UNHCR, armed conf lict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has caused about 450,000 people to cross into neighboring countries as refugees. Meanwhile, the armed conf lict in the Central African Republic has created a refugee population of more than 312,000. While its number of refugees is not the continent’s largest, the violence there is so overwhelming that Steve Hilbert, foreign policy advisor for Africa at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, believes it is Africa’s most desperate nation. These tragic examples highlight the massive refugee crisis throughout much of the world. While many poorer countries are stretching their meager resources to accept and aid refugees, most rich nations are not adequately responding. For example, UNHCR reports that Lebanon continues to host nearly 1 mil-

lion refugees from Syria, while according to legislative specialist Jill Marie Gerschutz-Bell of Catholic Relief Services, the U.S. took in only 30 Syrian refugees in 2013. She said CRS is urging the Obama administration to allow 15,000 Syrians into the U.S. this coming year. The number of Syrian refugees hosted in Lebanon would be equivalent to over 73 million refugees in the U.S., reports UNHCR. Kevin Appleby, director of migration policy for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, explained that the U.S. must set the example so that other rich nations will follow. He said the U.S. needs to significantly increase financial refugee assistance to the UNHCR, and allow many more of the world’s refugees in. Appleby said, on average, the U.S. takes in 60,000 refugees per year. He noted that during the height of the Vietnam War, the U.S. took in 132,000 Vietnamese in a single year. He said the U.S. could easily take in at least 100,000 annually. To help, please e-mail and call U.S. senators and congresspersons (Capitol switchboard: 202-224-3121) urging

them to significantly increase funding for international humanitarian assistance. Such an increase would provide much-needed added assistance to the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees’ efforts in aiding refugees. Also, urge the congressional delegation to push for a significant expansion of the number of refugees allowed into the U.S. each year. You can provide additional help to refugees by sending a check to Catholic Relief Services, P.O. Box 17090, Baltimore, MD 21203-7090. Kindly earmark your check “refugee aid.” Or you can donate online http://crs.org/donate/. Recently canonized Pope John Paul II said: “Concern for refugees must … highlight universally recognized human rights,” and “that the effective recognition of these rights be guaranteed to refugees.” During this time, when the faithful are called to remember the poor in a special way, we would do well to remember that Jesus, Mary and Joseph were once refugees. * Tony Magliano is an internationallysyndicated social justice and peace columnist.

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Still up in arms

Over the past 10 years, Control Arms Coalition has been pushing for a legally-binding Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), which would bring the arms trade under control and would help prevent future arms transfers that fuel conflict, poverty and inequality. Despite the obstacles and difficulties, the Coalition’s campaign efforts finally paid off and have led to the signing of the Arms Trade Treaty by the world’s governments in 2013. In spite of this victory, however, much still needs to be done to ensure that both legal and illicit arms trade will no longer curtail human rights and claim further lives. by

Martin Butcher, Lorey Campese Emma Ensign and Allison Pytl ak | contributors

he Control Arms Coalition was launched in 2003 by Oxfam, Amnesty International and the International Action Network on Small Arms (IANSA) as a platform to campaign for the regulation of arms and ammunition, the legal and illegal trade of which has caused much suffering and death the world over. Control Arms’ expertise in campaigning is driven by its members. While efforts stem from

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its Secretariat in New York, deployment is done through the 100 organizations and hundreds of campaigners, policy specialists, and media experts throughout the world. Control Arms members can be found in all major international regions. In addition, Oxfam and Amnesty International have decades of experience to mobilize the public for change. When it is determined that a specific measure warrants campaign

efforts, messages are developed in close cooperation with regional partners and then spread to the global network for use at national-level campaign efforts. Armed with a clear motivation and supported by a strong network, the coalition then set out its campaign to lobby for an Arms Trade Treaty (ATT). In its initial stages, however, the campaign faced considerable challenges. At the time of its launch, only three

governments, Costa Rica, Mali and Cambodia, publicly supported the idea of an ATT. Other arms-related initiatives, such as the Mine Ban Treaty, had to be agreed upon outside of the United Nations due to resistance from certain states. Recognizing this, Control Arms, along with a group of Nobel Peace Laureates, including Oscar Arias Sanchez and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, asked governments to explore the possibility of establishing a global regime within the U.N. to regulate the arms trade. To build public awareness, Control Arms focused its campaign on highlighting the death toll because of the unregulated arms trade, tapping upon its growing member base to illustrate diverse examples of crimes and conf licts fuelled by weapons proliferation.

Even if local or regional controls existed, they were easily violated. In fact, at least $2.2 billion worth of arms and ammunition were imported by countries under arms embargoes between 2000 and 2010. Clearly, global controls were needed.

People’s Voices

As momentum grew, Control Arms expanded its membership and its activities. In 2006, Control Arms presented the “One Million Faces” petition to then-U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan. In a time when the use of social media and smart phones was not yet widespread, the "Million Faces" campaign was a momentous accomplishment. The campaign collected drawings and photographs of one million people from around the world to put pressure on governments to start a process to establish an ATT. One year later, Control Arms helped organize “people’s consultations” in over 50 countries. While the U.N. solicited input from governments on the next steps to pursue for the ATT process, Control Arms held parallel consultations with ordinary people, to ensure that their voices would be heard. The campaign attained the desired effect. In 2009, the majority of the world’s governments recognized the suffering caused by the global arms trade. The United Nations then voted to begin negotiations for a treaty to control that trade, recognizing that the irresponsible trade of arms is devastating lives and livelihoods around the world.

For example, in West Pokot, Kenya, Kiptela Tum related how his family’s life has been permanently affected by the easy access to weapons and ammunition: “Arms are a big problem. All of my three brothers have died because of guns. Now I am the only one to take care of the whole family and life is very hard.” His story sadly reflects the global harm done by both legally, but irresponsibly traded, or illicitly traded arms. In conflicts across the world, as well as in armed violence caused by organized crime, people are dying, being injured, and suffering economic loss.

trols existed, they were easily violated. In fact, at least $2.2 billion worth of arms and ammunition were imported by countries under arms embargoes between 2000 and 2010. Clearly, global controls were needed. Beyond embargoes, t he arms trade is a global business that requires global controls. A case in point is the Egyptian K-8 trainer aircraft that is assembled in Egypt but built in China and Pakistan, with parts from the U.S., U.K. and elsewhere. This is typical of the globalized nature of the trade, making the ATT essential.

The Arms Business

Skewed Government Priorities

For decades, the global trade of most consumer goods has been regulated and carefully controlled, in contrast to the global trade of arms and ammunition. Before the ATT, there were no legally binding and universally applicable criteria governing the transfer of weapons across borders. This is despite the fact that more than 2,000 people are killed every day due to armed violence. This had profound implications for the lives and livelihoods of millions of women, men, and children throughout the world. Even if local or regional con-

The global arms trade costs lives and harms development. Military expenditure in fragile and conf lict-affected countries around the world increased by 15% between 2009 and 2010, while Official Development Assistance (ODA) to these countries increased by only 9%. In 2010, this group of states accounted for less than 1% of global wealth, but 7% of all arms sales, amounting to around $1.7 billion. Furthermore, Oxfam’s research has shown a clear link between corruption and the arms trade. All low-income and

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lower middle-income countries that allocated more than 10% of their central government expenditure to the military in 2009 scored poorly on global corruption indices. The socio-economic development of these countries is stunted by the irresponsible trade in arms, and the conflicts the trade fuels. After the 2008 vote, Control Arms members were mobilized in national capitals and at the U.N. to keep up the pressure, including staging media stunts and hosting meetings and activities to raise awareness and knowledge. In 2011, a global Secretariat was established in New York, which allowed for greater collaboration among Coalition members and a more cohesive civil society presence at negotiations. Between 2009 and 2013, there were six major conferences at the U.N. dedicated to the development of an ATT, including two official diplomatic negotiations. Control Arms engaged proactively in these negotiations both within and outside the U.N., launching a new global campaign, the "Speak Out" campaign, to raise public awareness, and to provide technical expertise, legal advice and strategic advocacy to governments throughout the conferences. CA members also held media stunts and actions, both in capitals and outside the U.N., to better engage local media and increase the public focus on the negotiations. Faith-based Organizations

Faith-based organizations have been an important component of the Control Arms Coalition. Their involvement is based on combating the proliferation and effects of the arms. For example, churches, mosques and other places of worship have often been used as arms collection sites. Religious leaders, regarded as a source of spiritual well-being and moral authority by their communities, are able to take on a different and more readily acceptable role in comparison to the administrative role played by law enforcement agencies and governments in the promotion of arms control norms

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and activities. Faith communities also frequently tend to the victims of gun violence by providing much-needed medical care and support and reach out to the perpetrators through rehabilitation and reintegration. In 2011, many of the faith-based organizations of Control Arms came together to draft an Interfaith Declaration in Support of an Arms Trade Treaty. This included Caritas International, Pax Christi International (PCI), Swedish Fellowship of Reconciliation (SweFOR) and the World Council of Churches (WCC). The large international networks were able to further mobilize many of their national-level member churches or chapters. The Declaration echoed the major points that Control Arms was advocating but also elucidated why the ATT matters to people of faith. Senior religious leaders and faith-based organizations were invited to sign it after it was launched during the “Dozen Days of Action” in September 2011. Over the following months, these organizations, along with many of their national chapters and member churches, and many other secular members of the Control Arms Coalition, moved to raise support

for the Declaration. In total, over 300 senior religious leaders and nearly 90 faith-based organizations, representing 46 countries and many religious traditions signed the Declaration. It was presented to U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon during a ceremony that took place at the start of the ATT negotiations in July 2012. Apart from the Declaration, faithbased groups have also worked alongside secular members of the Coalition to lobby governments and provide expertise and information throughout the ATT process. As the first round of treaty negotiations became more difficult, the WCC, PCI, the World Evangelical Alliance and Caritas released a joint statement on the importance of including ammunition in the Treaty. Religions for peace joined forces with other members in advocating for the inclusion of gender-based violence as a treaty criterion. The WCC led an “Ecumenical Campaign for a Strong and Effective Arms Trade Treaty” which leveraged support from its global network for letter writing and in-person advocacy. The campaign mobilized approximately 60 representatives of churches, related agencies and faith networks in

Religious leaders, regarded as a source of spiritual well-being and moral authority by their communities, are able to take on a different and more readily acceptable role in comparison to the administrative role played by law enforcement agencies.

wm special • BETWEEN ARMS AND PEACE 30 countries and highlighted the important role of faith-based organisations in such efforts. ATT ‘s Substance

In March 2013, the second ATT negotiating conference met in New York. After two weeks of intense talks, a draft was reached which commanded overwhelming support. However, Iran, Syria and North Korea blocked the adoption of the Treaty. Nevertheless, supportive governments and civil society could not be silenced. Delegates decided to submit the matter to the U.N. General Assembly. On 2 April 2013, the Assembly adopted the ATT with a vote of 154-3. Three months later, the Treaty was signed. The Treaty sets a framework for states to control the global arms trade. It creates a global norm to control the arms trade based on international humanitarian and human rights laws. Specifically, the Treaty controls the trade of battle tanks, armored combat vehicles, large-caliber artillery systems, combat aircrafts, attack helicopters, warships, missiles, missile launchers, small arms, light weapons, ammunition, as well as parts and components. In addition, the Treaty encourages states to further regulate “the broadest range of conventional arms.” The ATT forbids states from sending arms to destinations where the arms would be used to perpetrate war crimes, genocide, attacks against civilians, and other grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions. If these prohibitions do not apply, then states must still carry out a risk assessment to establish whether the proposed transfer could lead to certain kinds of harm. For example, states must decide whether there is a risk of serious violations of international human rights or humanitarian law, contravening conventions relating to terrorism and organized crime (which include corruption), facilitating gender-based violence or violence against children, or diversion from the legitimate buyer to other states or non-state groups.

Arms Fairs

ne of the main avenues for arms companies to showcase their products, and for military buyers to discover new products, is through arms fairs hosted by countries around the world. These are often enormous events, with thousands of companies from dozens of countries showing their latest products and making multimillion dollar deals. The armed forces, defense ministries and internal security forces of almost all governments send large delegations to evaluate the latest in weapons, ammunition and other military and police equipment. Aside from large defense exporters, importers, many of whom are extremely controversial, host such fairs, too. Eurosatory One such show is the Eurosatory held in the outskirts of Paris, France every two years. Hundreds of manufacturers attend this show. Most are from the European Union; others court controversy. For example, the Russian state arms export firm, Rosboronexport, which currently supplies weapons and munitions Lusa to the government of Syria to fight their civil war, will be a big exhibitor in 2014. Israel, which maintained military sales to South Africa throughout the apartheid era and now advertises weapons that are battle-tested for the "Operation Cast Lead" and others, is also a major exhibitor. During the 2012 Eurosatory, some official delegations were also controversial. They included Chad, which was fuelling rebellion in the Central African Republic at the time, as well as Egypt, which was repressing its own protestors. Russia was also buying as well as selling. DSEI London is home to DSEI, another defense show that happens every two years. During the 2013 show, organizers failed to spot manufacturers advertising torture equipment and leg irons in contravention of U.K. law. This is the second time this has happened at DSEI in recent years. The goods were only removed from the show after campaigners informed police of their presence. Another exhibitor at 2013 DSEI was Condor Non-Lethal Technologies of Brazil, which sold teargas to Egypt and Turkey and used for the repression of Arab Spring and Gesi Park protests. National delegations to DSEI can also be controversial. The government of Bahrain was invited to shop at DSEi in 2013, in the midst of a three-year crackdown on political opposition, which has seen thousands killed, imprisoned without trial, and tortured. Even doctors were jailed for treating injuries of peaceful protestors. Securex Meanwhile, Securex was held after sanctions on Libya were lifted during the dictatorship of Colonel Gaddhafi, to allow military and internal security exporters to sell arms to the Libyan government. In 2011, the U.K. government approved a license for an exporter to send sniper rifles for exhibition purposes to Securex as the Libyan Armed Forces began shooting protestors in the streets. France and other E.U. nations also displayed equipment to support the Libyan military and security police during that period.

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 UNCERTAINTY. The Syrian conflict is an example of how arms blur the future of the young.

The Treaty’s text also provides for reports to be made publicly available, thereby improving transparency in the global arms trade. This is essential to proper control of the legitimate trade, and also to understanding the illicit trade. Very importantly, states will be required to submit annual reports on international transfers and national implementation activities. The Treaty’s text also provides for reports to be made publicly available, thereby improving transparency in the global arms trade. This is essential to proper control of the legitimate trade, and also to understanding the illicit trade. Finally, a conference of states parties will be established, with a mandate to review implementation by states parties and define the work of the ATT Secretariat. In addition, the establishment of a trust fund is also mandated to help countries with ratification and implementation responsibilities. States which lack the technical capacity and resources to implement the Treaty will be given the help they need to make the Treaty as strong as it can be. ATT's Enforcement

The ATT mandates states to enforce the Treaty through national laws and regulations. It also requires states to cooperate on the implementation and enforcement by information sharing, providing mutual assistance, and by cooperat-

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ing in tackling corruption. Monitoring of the Treaty’s implementation will be undertaken by both states parties and civil society. For its part, Control Arms and other NGOs will press their national governments to produce and to make public the most comprehensive national reports possible. Conferences of states parties will have a broad mandate to review implementation of the Treaty, to consider issues arising from the interpretation of the Treaty, and to consider and adopt recommendations regarding its implementation and operation. The Work Ahead

The mere fact that the Arms Trade Treaty negotiations had been started was already a key campaign victory. The signing of the Treaty in 2013, the first global treaty ever ratified to regulate the trade in conventional arms and ammunition, and the strength of the provisions of that treaty are proof that global pressure through campaigning can achieve the change the world desperately needs. In 10 years, Control Arms had helped transform the ATT, from an idea, into a U.N. process involving all

member states and, finally, culminating into an actual treaty. Campaigning has always been at the center of Control Arms efforts. It helped raise the collective voices of millions of people for over 10 years. The signing of the Arms Trade Treaty was, in many ways, the culmination of these campaign efforts. However, much work needs to be done in order to achieve the real impact the ATT intends to have. With 50 ratifications needed for entry into force, the campaign now shifts to the national level to urge the first 50 nations to take this critical step. To this end, Control Arms has launched the "Race to 50" campaign. The campaign urges countries to “sprint into action” and become part of the treaty that will save lives and protect livelihoods. Control Arms is employing new digital campaigning techniques. In a field where petitions and letters to Members of Parliament used to be the exclusive methods for achieving change, Control Arms is now harnessing the power of online platforms, to raise awareness and create change. Whether through handwritten letters to a Senator or by sharing an educational graphic online, Control Arms is determined to continue to drive global audiences to engage in a conversation that desperately needs their voice. Politicians, diplomats, and the arms industry cannot be the only voices in the international arms trade. Campaigning will ensure that the humanitarian principles in the Arms Trade Treaty are at the heart of future decisions. Control Arms will be there throughout the entry into force and “universalization” processes, drawing on the latest strategies to ensure that popular audiences stay informed and hold governments to their promise to end the irresponsible arms trade. In years to come, millions of lives will be saved, and enormous economic damage to communities prevented, because campaigners stood steadfastly for an Arms Trade Treaty.

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Staring authority in the face

Despite the enactment of regulations to control gun ownership over the years, the “long arm of the Philippine law” seems to be helpless in its campaign to curb, if not eliminate, the proliferation of loose firearms in the country. Only with a thorough re-examination of its laws, an unyielding assertion of its authority, and a firmer implementation of existing gun-related laws can the Philippines attain a safer, if not gunless, society. by

Ed Quitoriano * | contributor

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n Quezon City, Archie, a former Communist Party of the Philippines New People’s Army combatant, supplements his income by selling Black Widows, a copy of the Derringer pistol made of high-end T2 aluminum that is half the length of a man’s palm. His source: a moonlighting policeman who gets his supply from Danao City in Central Philippines and passes it on to Archie at US$55. The gun sells like hotcakes at thrice that price in Metro Manila. Taxi drivers, arming themselves against robbers, are the usual customers. Meanwhile, in the uplands of Danao City, 63-year old Santoy, his son, and grandson gingerly craft barrels, triggers and bolts of homemade caliber 45 pistols and shotguns. Since 1968, Santoy has been making guns, a primary source of income for him in the absence of any other opportunity for ironsmiths in the area. Santoy is just one among 500 craftsmen, with skills inherited from three preceding generations, who have resorted to gun-making for livelihood. Financiers provide the ironsmiths with the raw materials and production equipment, and pay them on a per unit basis. A semi-finished caliber 45 retails at about US$45, for example. The financiers then sell the units to consolidators at US$375. In turn, the consolidators sell them in bulk at US$510 per unit to a host of buyers. Demand for these guns reaches its peak before elections. When there are no elections, buyers range from low-income groups, policemen, insurgents and security agencies.

Illegal Guns Bazaar

No one exactly knows the extent of illegal gun production in Danao. One can only surmise, based on the number of Danao-made guns used by criminal gangs, political warlords, and rebels, as seized by authorities or disclosed by financiers themselves. In May 2013, for example, Elias, a 62-year old financier, recounted his transaction with two clients: a manager of a security agency

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Ed Quitoriano

 FOR A LIVING. Artisanal gun-making is still a means of livelihood in Danao City.

Santoy has been making guns, a primary source of income for him in the absence of any other opportunity...Santoy is just one among 500 craftsmen, with skills inherited from three preceding generations, who have resorted to gun-making for livelihood. who asked him to repair 40 handguns, and a broker for a political warlord in Mindanao who wanted to buy 200 submachine guns. Elias revealed that Danao-made guns are preferred over most foreign brands mainly because they are 50 to 70% cheaper. To be sure, Danao occupies a niche in illegal gun production. However, it is probably just a small contributor to the supply side of the illicit trade. The growth of the gun market in the country is a confluence of domestic production, both legal and illegal, as well as the importation and recycling of old inventories. Since the country’s liberation in 1945, the influx of loose firearms served as the rationale for civilian demand for self-protection. Over time, the licit and illicit trade in firearms coexisted, thrived, and mutually inf luenced the liberal legal and regulatory framework on guns. The Thin Line

There is a parasitic relationship between legal and illegal gun trade where state officials are involved in subverting

state regulation or where regulation itself creates incentives for the illicit trade. One glaring example is the “complicity of Customs officials in the smuggling of guns.” While many believe that guns are traded through old-style, backdoor transfers, gun smuggling actually stares regulatory agencies in the face. Import data from the U.N. Commission on Trade indicate a huge discrepancy between reports by the Philippine Customs and exporting countries. From 2000 to 2010, such discrepancies amounted to 26,969 units worth around US$ 54.04 million. Unfortunately, this delicate line between the legal and the illegal has enabled the transmutation of firearms from illegal to legal and vice versa. Among the many ways of legalizing illegal firearms is through amnesties. As part of its annual verification program, the Philippine National Police (PNP) conducted house visitations of licensed gun holders in early 2013. The visitations revealed that: (a) 71,438 owners have addresses that cannot be located; (b) 74,250 transferred residences; (c)

4,293 denied ownership of the firearm; (d) 7,365 registered using fictitious names; (e) 18,178 sold their firearm without transferring the license to the buyer; and, (f) 23,492 declared loss of the firearm. Only 21% of those visited were able to renew their license without any problem. Aside from the guns that were unaccounted for during these visitations, the whereabouts of â&#x20AC;&#x153;firearm(s) whose license and registration has(ve) expired or a firearm(s) that has(ve) never been registeredâ&#x20AC;? will never be traced. Unless surrendered, confiscated or voluntarily registered, the number of these guns will never be known. In addition to loose firearms that are unaccounted for, the weak enforcement of gun control laws adds to the problem. Currently, almost half of the 1.6 million registered firearms are moving towards the loose category, due to the failure of most owners to re-register. If unaddressed, this will add up to an estimated 1.9 million illicit firearms. Exacerbating this problem is the absence of an operating unit under the PNP that will effectively control the ballooning number

of illegal guns. Although there is a Firearms and Explosives Office (FEO), it only has an administrative reach that extends only up to the regional offices. Laws through the years

An essential element of a stable state is the monopoly of coercive authority, which, unfortunately, the Philippine government does not have. With close to 4 million firearms in their possession, civilians alarmingly outgun state security forces, which only have 261,602 guns based on FEO records. The government has always connected loose firearms with threats to peace and national security. However, its attitude towards the problem has been ambivalent. Since 1945, the government has enacted a gamut of policies to control the escalation of illegal firearms including (a) an increase in penalties; (b) amnesties; and, (c) buyback schemes. Such policies were implemented despite the lack of resources and persuasion mechanisms to entice gun holders to surrender loose firearms as well as the absence of facilities for decommissioning.

Currently, almost half of the 1.6 million registered firearms are moving towards the loose category, due to the failure of most owners to re-register. If unaddressed, this will add up to an estimated 1.9 million illicit firearms.

ď&#x20AC;ľ ALARMING. There are over half-a-million loose firearms in the country according to the PNP.

Only during the Martial Law era, from 1972 to 1981, was the state able to re-emphasize its monopoly of the use of force, by ordering the arrest of any person for possession and carrying a firearm without authorization, restricting firearm possession only to members of the Armed Forces, the Police and Security Agencies, as well as raising the penalty for illegal possession to life imprisonment or death. In effect, almost half a million loose firearms were confiscated because of the implementation of these strict rules. In the 1980's, however, the government reverted to a policy of enticement through restoring amnesty periods and enabling license acquisitions/buy-back schemes. To codify all laws on firearms, ammunition and explosives, the Marcos gover nment issued President ial Decree 1866 in 1983. The same law also imposed the penalty of death for illegal possession of firearms in the commission of murder or homicide or furtherance of insurrection, subversion or rebellion. After the fall of the Marcos regime, one of the first acts of the Corazon Aquino administration was Executive Order (EO) 107 that offered a 6-month amnesty period to loose f irearm owners. This EO explicitly emphasized the necessity of a liberal scheme on the assumption that the majority of the owners of loose firearms were not using the same for the commission of any offense. Only in 1990 did the Aquino government shift to a hardline stance with the issuance of the Presidential National Emergency Memorandum Order No.6 that cancelled all licenses of firearms. Meanwhile, the Ramos administration issued three amnesty orders: EO 122 (1993), E.O. 122-A (1993), and, EO 122-B (1994), offering wide amnesty periods for both unregistered and unlicensed firearms. The Arroyo administration also issued amnesty orders, namely: (a) EO 171 (2003); (b) EO 390 (2004); (c) EO 585 (2006); and, (d) EO 817 (2009).

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In May 2013, President Benigno Aquino III approved a new law: the Comprehensive Firearms and Ammunition Regulation Act, an even more liberal law that encourages “qualified” individuals and juridical entities to own from two firearms to more than 15 firearms. The basic requirement for qualification is age, income and profession. The law also provides a “final general amnesty” that will allow gun owners to retain ownership of highpowered firearms. Ironically, the almost dozen amnesties since the 1980’s failed to curb the proliferation of loose firearms. Neither has the leniency extended by the government enticed gun owners to surrender loose firearms or to acquire a license and get the gun registered. From a 1993 baseline of 328,322, the volume of licensed firearms has grown to 929,034 by 2010, and 1.69 million by October 2013. Sixty-five percent of licensed firearms are in the hands of individuals and another 35% are in the hands of juridical entities. Also, as of October 2013, the licenses of 597,707 firearms would have expired and now fall under the category of loose firearms. All in all, the bulk of loose firearms consists of firearms with expired or unrenewed licenses (50.3%, with 38.8% from Metro Manila), unregistered firearms (47.6%), those possessed by threat groups (15,676 firearms) and crime groups (5,762 firearms). While the existing structure and functions of the FEO may be adequate to administer and regulate the behavior of compliant citizens and entities, there is no purposive structure and mechanism designed to pursue the elimination of illicit firearms. Even under the Department of the Interior and Local Government Act of 1990, which mandated the organization of the FEO, there are no provisions that would establish an operating unit in-charge of systematically controlling the increasing number of illicit firearms. In terms of policy settings, the liberal framework on civilian ownership

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of guns and the leniency towards noncompliant citizens and entities have fallen short of their objectives of curbing the proliferation of loose firearms and preventing the diversion of legal supply to the shadow economy. The weakness of the policy framework is also reinforced by the lack of a focal structure and mechanism that focuses on illegal and prohibited firearms and explosives. An Unyielding State

The state’s monopoly of coercion has been threatened by the proliferation of illicit firearms that it seeks to control. This is largely due to institutional flaws and regulatory weaknesses. The same damage has left unhindered the reproduction of shadow structures that nurture the persistence of the illicit trade in firearms. The loss of the protective capacity of the state has multiplied the spaces for the illicit markets that have induced citizens to individually invest in firearms as a means for protection. There is a need to restore the state’s monopoly of the legitimate use of force and limit the space for the exertion of coercion and/or possession of the means of coercion. This requires a stronger push against non-compliant actors of the trade in firearms and, on the other hand, strengthening the protective capacity of the state and reinforcing the predictable realms of behavior of compliant citizens. In addition, an effective and realistic gun policy is important in reinforcing the state’s ability to negotiate peace with rebel groups and insurgents and demonstrate its protective capacity. The state will not have enough leverage to negotiate terms of normalization and decommissioning of rebel weapons if, in parallel, it promotes a liberal gun policy that allows political elites to maintain armed groups or rebel groups to hide behind the façade of registered juridical entities to accumulate guns. The state needs to reconsider the ‘legal firearms versus loose firearms’ approach to citizen’s demand for security and protection.

T he gover nment peace panel recently signed the “Annex on Normalization” with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). The deal is a promising starting point, but the government needs to undertake parallel steps with regard to other nonstate armed groups, crime organizations and political warlords. There has to be a programmatic campaign to eliminate illegal firearms and the immediate confiscation of high-powered firearms. The state has to have the means to undertake the following measures: 4 Limiting civilian access to handguns/small arms; 4 Prohibiting gun dealers from selling high-powered firearms to civil-

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The state will not have enough leverage to negotiate terms of normalization and decommissioning of rebel weapons if, in parallel, it promotes a liberal gun policy that allows political elites to maintain armed groups. ians except authorized agents of the law and security agencies; 4 Programmed, budgeted, decentralized and open decommissioning of confiscated firearms; 4 Extending the outreach of the CSG and the FEO up to the provincial level, including establishment of FEO storage facilities at the provincial level; 4 Arriving at political settlements with armed communities that are willing to assist the government in the provision of security and pro-

tection under the supervision of the PNP; and, 4 Strengthening the coordination between the Philippine Customs and the P.N.P. in the country’s major international ports to prevent smuggling of firearms. The above requires legislative action, specifically towards amending the new gun law (RA 10591) and the law reorganizing the PNP (RA 6975) as well as accession to international norms in reporting, marking and tracing of small arms.

In his study inside a sprawling property at Valley Golf Club in Antipolo, east of Manila, Nandy Pacheco, founder of the Philippines’ “Gunless Society,” has been compiling news clippings about gun-related crimes since 1985. Despite his age and a seemingly quixotic advocacy given the number of clippings he has collected over the years, Nandy remains optimistic that someday, something will change. His motto has always been “People don’t kill, guns do.” “A gunless society might only be a dream, but gun control is doable,” he says. * Ed Quitoriano is an independent conflict analyst and risk management consultant. He currently works as Consultant to the International Alert Philippines – Myanmar Program and the GIZ COSERAM Program in Caraga Region, Philippines.

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wm special • BETWEEN ARMS AND PEACE

Activism against arms

Despite the many difficulties faced, advocacies and campaigns by many concerned groups to push for disarmament and arms control have slowly but surely gained ground over the decades. Aside from non-governmental organizations, civil society has been thrust into the limelight as a key player in important deliberations in policy-making bodies and other important fora. Such an involvement by NGOs and civil society in this campaign has not only increased the voice and influence of advocates in policy deliberations but has also introduced new and clever ways to lobby for disarmament around the world. by

Allison Pytl ak | Peace advocate

 GAINING GROUND. Disarmament and arms control have been the advocacies of concerned groups aiming at a more peaceful living for all.

“The room was teeming with energy in the only way that a room full of activists can; many of us friends and former colleagues who only meet a few times a year at conferences, such as this. Warm hugs and smiles mixed with friendly jokes and jabs. It was early on a Saturday morning and we were tired but energized by the prospect of a great weekend ahead. I am describing the opening session of the 2013 Humanitarian Disarmament Campaigns Forum. The Forum is a now annual meeting that brings together a wide cross section of individuals working in the areas of humanitarian disarmament or arms control. Some are policy wonks, others are advocacy veterans; there is a sprinkling of diehard activists and always a welcome contingent of new faces offering questions and fresh perspectives. The purpose of the Forum is to give an opportunity for our diverse and wonderful community to come together for a few days, share experiences and deliberately break out of our boxes to learn from each other.”

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he paragraphs above are taken from a Control Arms blog post written last Autumn, shortly after the close of the annual deliberations of the U.N. General Assembly’s First Committee on issues of international security and disarmament. The First Committee has, in recent years, been overtaken by a surge of civil society advocates and experts who have injected a new kind of optimism and energy into the discussions there and in other relevant fora. Many are using the rubric of ‘humanitarian disarmament’ to describe their work, and it’s a term that is rapidly gaining currency with government decision-makers as well. Yet what does this renaissance in disarmament activism mean, and what substantial results will it yield? Despite the great challenges that exist in disarmament and arms control campaigns in past years, progress has not only become possible but necessary.

A rich tradition

Disarmament advocacy is not new. Anti-war movements have existed throughout much of history and in more recent decades, there have been many strong and vivid examples of activism from the anti-nuclear movement, for example. There has always been a rich tradition of speaking out against the misuse of arms but, for many years, efforts were disparate and the space for impact too narrow. Cold War power dynamics, largely defined by state-centrism and zero-sum politics, made it difficult for non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to be part of any policy debates on the subject. It was certainly impossible for them to change the parameters of those debates in which disarmament and arms control were largely seen as the domain of national security. The end of the Cold War made new approaches possible though because the international landscape slowly opened up to allow new actors to play a greater role, among them, civil society. These years also put new kinds of arms

 VICTIM. Landmines are not just a strategy of war; the suffering they have caused is real.

Disarmament advocacy is not new. Anti-war movements have existed throughout much of history and, in more recent decades, there have been many strong and vivid examples of activism from the anti-nuclear movement, for example. issues on the agenda, including those relating to the small arms and light weapons (SALW) and the first calls for global regulations on the arms trade. In addition, several years of negotiation on a chemical weapons ban were nearing fruition. It was in this context that a new drive on the part of global civil society came about, one that had humanitarian imperatives at its core and transformed the way in which advocacy for disarmament and arms control is being approached. The movement to ban anti-personnel landmines is often credited as a game changer in the area of humanitarian disarmament and advocacy. The International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL), established in 1992, was one of the first major transnational advocacy networks to effectively mobilize people and organizations from around the world to pressure states to ban a weapon through the establishment of a new international treaty. The ICBL employed a number of tactics which, at the time, were considered groundbreaking and have been frequently emulated

since by other international coalitions. These included working with middle power and like-minded governments, using evidence-based campaigning, taking advantage of emerging technologies, and also shifting the ‘burden of proof’ onto governments. Significantly, they also presented the suffering and problems caused by anti-personnel landmines as a humanitarian problem. This helped take the discussions about a treaty out of the usual realm of national security and defense and quite literally put a human face on it. By presenting personal testimonies and shocking stories of harm, the ICBL was able to expand their movement and win public support which made it increasingly difficult for governments not to respond in a meaningful way. This type, of campaign is novel in the early 1990s but is the normal or logical way to do it today. The resulting 1997 Mine Ban Treaty prohibited antipersonnel landmines while also including humanitarian provisions requiring clearance of affected land, and victim assistance as well as disarmament

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 REALITY. The nuclear threat is real and with far-reaching consequences for all humanity.

Noteworthy about the last few years is that the number of international coalitions rallying around specific policy objectives or issues, including nuclear weapons, depleted uranium, the arms trade, landmines, cluster bombs and killer robots, is growing. obligations, such as stockpile destruction. It was, in many ways, a break from the traditions of the majority of earlier disarmament instruments and inadvertently laid the groundwork for much of the disarmament activism happening now. A new norm

Because of such breakthroughs, some observe that a renaissance in the area of disarmament and arms control advocacy has dawned. This “era” has extended until today. In particular, progress has been made in three distinct issue areas over the last year. At the same time, new ways in which advocates are working together to effect change have also emerged. In November 2013, governments agreed to begin international discussions on fully autonomous robot weapons early next year. Such weapons would select and engage targets without further human intervention. Considering that the 'Campaign to Stop Killer Robots' was only launched earlier this year, and that no one was talking

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about this issue a few years ago, the rate of progress has been remarkable. The topic was taken up this May at the meeting of the Convention on Conventional Weapons, laying a possible framework through which autonomous robot weapons will be banned – before they are even created. The Campaign works closely with the scientific community, which is where a lot of the momentum to act originated. Finally, the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) scored a big success in October 2013 when 125 governments signed a joint statement at the UNGA First Committee expressing their concern over the humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons. That statement, and the high number of governments that co-sponsored it, was a massive step forward in demonstrating that nuclear weapons should be prohibited on the basis of their humanitarian impact. This was truly a breakthrough moment for modern anti-nuclear campaigners, who have long struggled to make progress within the narrow confines

of existing non-proliferation and disarmament instruments like the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), which tend to favor the status quo and do not go far enough in enforcing the disarmament obligations of nuclear weapon states. With nuclear issues, it’s been far more difficult to make the same arguments about humanitarian impact as with conventional weapons like landmines, cluster bombs and SALW, which is why the UNGA statement was so significant. A few months after it was delivered, delegates representing 146 governments, as well as the UN, the International Committee of the Red Cross and numerous civil society organizations, participated in the Second Conference on the Humanitarian Impact of Nuclear Weapons held in Nayarit, Mexico, on 13 and 14 February 2014 to discuss global and long-term consequences of any nuclear detonation, accidental or deliberate, from the perspective and concerns of the 21st century society, including areas such as public health, humanitarian assistance, the economy, development and environmental issues, climate change, food security and risk management, among others. Many of the tactics and methods being used by advocates in the issue areas listed above are similar to those employed by the ICBL nearly two decades ago; tactics which were also built on and expanded by the ICBL’s sister campaign, the 'Cluster Munition Coalition' (CMC). The CMC was instrumental in bringing about the 2008 ban on cluster munitions, again by emphasizing the humanitarian impact of clusters and working closely with like-minded and often, middle-power governments. What is also noteworthy about the last few years is that the number of international coalitions rallying around specific policy objectives or issues, including nuclear weapons, depleted uranium, the arms trade, landmines, cluster bombs and killer robots, is growing. Some have existed for years while more are newly emerging. They are also now

wm special • BETWEEN ARMS AND PEACE a more regular feature of the international landscape. For many organizations, coalitions represent the best way to effectively mobilize resources toward collective goals and to open up new channels for dialogue and information exchange. Having such a broad reach has transformed the ability of NGOs to successfully affect political change at all levels and has altered the ways in which governments and NGOs interact. States are no longer the only actor when it comes to addressing the world’s most pressing issues. NGOs and civil society coalitions offer expertise, ideas, and solutions that are increasingly welcome in the international arena. In addition, opportunities, like the Humanitarian Disarmament Forum, have enabled many coalitions to build on each others’ successes over time to avoid duplication of efforts while, simultaneously, sharpening the skills of their staff and members. It also fosters collaboration. For example, the International Peace Bureau (IPB) has been organizing an annual Day of Action

on Military Spending since 2011. This year, IPB partnered with some of the major anti-nuclear campaigns like 'ICAN' and 'Global Zero' to not only raise the profile of the day but also demonstrate the interconnectedness of these problems. After all, the issues that each coalition focuses on are all building blocks which, when pieced together properly, will pave the road to a safer and less violent world. Only a dream?

Yet, despite the progress outlined above, it would be naïve to pretend that challenges don’t remain. When the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) recently released its report on global military spending in 2013, they noted an alarming trend. While global military spending has decreased by 2% from 2012 and now totals US$1.7 trillion, China, Russia and Saudi Arabia sharply increased their spending between 2012 and 2013. In fact, Saudi Arabia rose from seventh to fourth in the world. In 2013, its military

Disarmament advocacy does not exist in a vacuum. The use of arms in conflict of any kind has repercussions to socio-economic development, can exacerbate poverty, is often related to instances of gender-based violence, and can be connected to corruption.

 AT THE CENTER. The focus of all the disarmament campaigns is on the protection of life.

expenditures totaled US$67 billion, an increase of 14% from the previous year. A related concern that frequently makes headlines is the high level of resources required to maintain and improve existing nuclear arsenals. This is a regularly a topic of concern, particularly in the United States. Meanwhile, other critics of disarmament and arms control have pointed out that certain governments that have recently signed and ratified the ATT are still moving ahead with arms deals with Russia and other countries with dubious human rights records; deals that should be denied once the new treaty is enforced. Given these challenges, does the upsurge in disarmament advocacy matter? Will these new treaties make a difference? The answer is an unequivocal 'yes' and the evidence lies in what has already been accomplished. Consider that, over the past decade, almost 1,981 sq, km. of previously contaminated land has been cleared of mines and more than 3.3 million mines have been removed from the ground because of clearance obligations mandated by the Mine Ban Treaty. If these obligations did not exist, then it is entirely possible that landmine casualty rates would remain high and the barriers to socio-economic development would still be impenetrable. The same can be said for cluster munitions, thousands of which have been destroyed due to stockpile. Were it not for the Chemical Weapons Convention, the international community would not have been able to take legitimate action in Syria after the attacks in Ghouta. Finally, it is also worth remembering that disarmament advocacy does not exist in a vacuum. The use of arms in conf lict of any kind has repercussions to socio-economic development, can exacerbate poverty, is often related to instances of gender-based violence, and can be connected to corruption. If policy-makers seek to make improvements in those arenas, then the role that better arms control or disarmament measures can play should not be overlooked.

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wm insight • HIGH HOPES

The realism of global optimism

A close look at media across the world reveals a seemingly endless number of problems put on the spotlight, making headlines. It sets one to wonder: Is the world getting worse? But, then, could it be that the world is a better place overall than we think? by

Bjørn Lomborg*

ead a newspaper or watch the evening news, and the world always seems to be getting worse. One problem after another is put under a spotlight. The more death, destruction, and despair, the better. As one Danish journalism textbook puts it: “A good story is usually bad news.” Only occasionally do we get uplifting, things-are-getting-better stories. When we do, they feel like a guilty plea-

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sure. As a result, we often think that the world is in worse shape than it is – even if, we think, our own lives are improving. Consider this: Since 1978, American consumers have been asked whether their current financial situation is better or worse than it was a year earlier. Over the past 25 years, an average of 38% have said they are doing better, while 32% have said they are doing worse. But, when asked the same question about the

overall U.S. economy, an average of 47% have said it is doing worse, compared to 38% who think it is doing better. More people think their lives are improving, while others are doing worse, probably because of journalists’ persistent bias in favor of bad news. The phenomenon is not limited to the United States. Since 1977, Gallup International has asked people around the world whether they believe their

lives will be better next year than they were the year before. For 2014, almost 50% of those surveyed said that their lives will be better, with just 20% saying they will be worse off. Yet, asked for their opinion of how the world economy will fare, the score is almost even, with 32% believing that it will be better, and 30% that it will be worse. So it is worth stepping back and recognizing that many indicators point to a world that is improving. New data from the World Bank show that the proportion of extremely poor people has more than halved over the last 30 years, from 42% of the global population in 1981 to 17% in 2010. While 1.2 billion people in the developing world still live on less than $1.25 per day – a problem that we certainly must address – the rate of extreme poverty has never been lower. Economists estimate that in 1820, more than 80% of all people were extremely poor. Similarly, consider the amazing improvements in education. Illiteracy today still afflicts 20% of the world’s population, but that is down sharply from an estimated 70% in 1900. In the prosperous West, rapid increases in literacy were achieved early in the twentieth century. In developing countries, similarly large (and continuing) gains were made from 1970 to 2000, with China recording the biggest improvement. The costs of poor education are substantial. For example, Pakistan and South Korea started with about the same level of education and income in 1950. Today, the average South Korean has 12 years of education, whereas the average Pakistani has fewer than six. South Korea’s per capita income grew twenty-threefold over this period, compared to Pakistan’s threefold growth. Together with the Copenhagen Consensus, economists have attempted to assess the cost of illiteracy. We estimate that if there had been no illiteracy in 1900, the world would have been $240 billion richer (in inf lation-adjusted terms), equivalent to about 12% of the global GDP at the time. So, the global illiteracy problem in 1900 can be

 A SYMBOL. Malala Yousafzai has become the voice of the voiceless, a ray of hope.

There are still plenty of problems in the world, as the news media points out every day. And we do need to focus on eliminating poverty, stamping out illiteracy, and promoting peace. But we need to remember that the world is a better place overall than we think. said to have cost the world 12% of the GDP. Today, the cost of global illiteracy is down to 7% of the GDP. By 2050, when illiteracy will reach about 12%, the cost will have dwindled to just 3.8% of the GDP. Likewise, war carries a high economic and human cost. But, while the images of it that we see are more immediate and vivid than ever, our perception of ubiquitous conflict is wrong. In the twentieth century, conf lict killed 140 million people, including 78-90 million in the two world wars. The good news, which is not often publicized (precisely because it is good), is that scenarios in which military spending is higher, the same, or lower in the future suggest that the high military costs of the twentieth century have been turned into what looks like a permanent peace dividend. World War I cost about 20% of the global GDP, and WWII cost almost twice as much. When examining the cost of conf lict, the Copenhagen Consensus economists estimate the actual costs of

global military expenditure. If one also takes into account the lives lost in battle, the estimates increase by about 50%. According to these estimates, annual military costs in the twentieth century averaged about 5% of the GDP. Yet, since the Korean War peak of 7%, global costs have declined steadily, reaching 3.5% in 1980 and about 1.7% today. Even a pessimistic outlook suggests an increase only to about 1.8% by 2050; under a more optimistic scenario, military costs could decline further, to 1.6% of the GDP. There are still plenty of problems in the world, as the news media points out every day. And we do need to focus on eliminating poverty, stamping out illiteracy, and promoting peace. But we also need to remember that the world is a better place overall than we think. * Bjorn Lomborg is the editor of "How Much Have Global Problems Cost the World?" A Scorecard from 1900 to 2050. Copyright: Project Syndicate, 2014. www.project-syndicate.org

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IN FOCUS • burmese refugees

A long way home

The internal conflict in Myanmar, the clashes between government forces and ethnic groups which lasted for many years, often made it to the international headlines. It also created one of the most prolonged refugee situations in modern history in the Asian region. An estimated 140,000 Burmese refugees had to flee from conflict areas and from human rights abuses and currently live in nine official refugee camps along the Thailand-Myanmar border. This number doesn’t include the thousands who have been internally displaced because of the conflict. by

Fr. Dave Domingues | comboni missionary

Dave Domingues

 ON A JOURNEY. Burmese refugees in Camp 1 trailing the dusty roads hoping for a better future for themselves and their children.

he beautiful mountains of Mae Hong Son (MHS) shelter two of the nine refugee camps in Thailand where Burmese nationals from different ethnic groups have settled. Ban Mai Nai Soi Camp (or Camp 1 as it is commonly called) has a population of about 13,000 and is less than an hour’s ride from Mae Hong Son town. Meanwhile, Ban Mae Surin (known as Camp 2) takes three hours to reach and has a population of around 3,400. These camps have been functioning as ‘temporary’ shelters for more than 20 years now.

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Serving her own people

The Jesuit Refugee Services (JRS) is one NGO among the more than ten others that has been answering the needs of the refugees in the different camps. Rosalyn, herself a Burmese national from the Karenni State, has been involved in the JRS operations in Camps 1 and 2 for the past four years. She is fully committed to helping her own people. She recalls the journey they made: “In the 1980’s, there were a lot of conf licts in our state between the tribal and the Burmese government. So the people, frightened by the

Burmese army, tried to move away and went to live close to the border, hoping the situation would improve. When the situation became very bad, they f led to Thailand. They arrived in 1984 by the thousands. At that time, there was no official support for the people; the NGOs were not yet on the ground. Only in 1997 were the NGOs allowed to enter the camps to work there. However, at that time, there was already some help pouring in from some organizations to help the refugees. In 1996, there was again another massive exodus of people from the Karenni State due to

the violence there. The Burmese army burned many villages. Around 100 villages were completely destroyed. Nothing was left and people ran for their lives. Many were also arrested. At that time, I was already working with the local Catholic Church. I went to those villages and I witnessed firsthand the massive destruction of entire villages. Nothing was left, only charcoal! They were completely destroyed. So most of the people from those villages fled into Thailand and ended up here in MHS camps. Most of the people from Shadow township fled to Camp 1 and the people from Mawchi village to Camp 2.” Pastoral and education

The people’s needs are many. Therefore, the different NGOs have coordinated with each other to focus their work on specific fields. JRS has been developing the “Pastoral and Accompaniment Program” which aims to strengthen the spirituality of the Catholic refugees through pastoral care and other services. Since all the refugees belong to different ethnic groups (Kayah, Karen, Kayan, Kayaw, and Shan), enhancing their community

spirit was necessary. With the support of two priests from Loikaw Diocese in Kayah State, Myanmar, and the Sisters from FI Congregation, the Program not only provides pastoral care, but also addresses some of the most urgent needs of the refugees. One of the two priests, Fr. Mikele Shay Phe, explained the scope of their work: “Our mission here goes beyond the mere sacramental and catechetical assistance. We aim at being a presence of hope and we also support those who are easily forgotten. At the moment, we are assisting by providing food to the elderly and we have built an orphanage for the young students who lost their parents in the conflict or those whose parents are still in Burma.” Education is, however, the main focus of JRS in the camps. They have partnered with the Karenni Education Department (KnED) in delivering basic education services. The goal is not only to ensure continued education for the numerous young people - many of whom were born in the camp - but, simultaneously, to develop the capacity of Karenni educators for self-sufficiency. Basic education, curriculum development, building of schools, teacher

Our mission here goes beyond the mere sacramental assistance. We aim at being a presence of hope and we also support those who are easily forgotten... we are assisting the elderly with food and we have built an orphanage for the young students.

Dave Domingues

 A PRESENCE OF HOPE. Fr. Mikele, in his ministry, helps those who are easily forgotten.

training, school administration and management training, special education, vocational training, non-formal education, and adult literacy, among others, are the focus of the educational program developed by the JRS. As of the academic year 2013-2014, 16 schools in Camps 1 and 2, serving 4,553 students, and giving employment to more than 250 teachers, are in operation. Training educators

Because of the variety of languages spoken in the camps (Kayah, Karen, Burmese and Kayan), the formation of teachers from among the refugees, who can commit to serving their own people in their own language, has been a priority. However, the low stipend provided, the workload, the poor community support, and the desire to move to greener pastures (some apply to be resettled to a third country like the US, Australia or Finland) have created a shortage of skilled teachers in the camps. In addition, students lack the proper mindset and motivation to learn. Many come from the rural areas across the border and have had no education whatsoever. Meanwhile, those born in the camps do not value education because there are no job opportunities in the camps anyway. Officially, refugees are not allowed to seek work outside the camps, except in nearby rural villages where some take on the hard chores of rice planting and harvesting for which they are given a very small wage of 80 to 120 baht per day, compared to 250-300 baht per day paid to Thai workers. Rosalyn identified three major concerns in their educational program. First, how the students and teachers' learning will be recognized, validated and accredited upon their return to Myanmar. Second, how to encourage refugees to support themselves, given the limited market opportunities within the camps and restricted movement outside the camps, rather than just relying on dole outs. And, third, how to access higher education skills

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Dave Domingues

 WHERE TO? For many of the young refugees, the camp is the only home they ever knew.

After more than 20 years in the camps, the refugees have developed different dreams. Some have applied and have been approved for resettlement in a third country. Others are hoping to be given proper documents to be able to stay in Thailand. and levels within the camps which can prepare the refugees for their return to Myanmar. At present, education-oriented NGOs and CBOs are looking at how students' learning can be validated and teachers' qualification accredited. Vocational trainings are being offered as well, based on the market demand analysis done by some NGOs in Myanmar. In addition, a needs-assessment for higher education was conducted by JRS in 2011 and in 2013, while a Community Service Learning Track on the English Language is being offered in coordination with Jesuit Common: Higher Education on the Margins. On the road to peace

After more than 20 years in the camps, the refugees have developed different dreams. Some have applied and have been approved for resettlement in a third country. Others are hoping to be given proper documents to be able to stay in Thailand. (This, however, is still a remote possibility, with the Thai police keeping close watch around the camps and along the main roads for illegal immigrants.) Still, others, who have fled their homes, dream of one day

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returning to their villages or to what is left of them. A combination of hope and fear reigns in the hearts of those who long to go back. John Buereh is one of them. He was accused of supporting the Karenni army and was imprisoned in 2005. Subjected to torture to force a confession, he stayed in prison until 2008. The following year, he made it to Camp 1. Now, he is the chairman of the Catholic Action in the Camp and the deputy director for the Karenni Education Department (KnED). (Last November, he was appointed Director of KnED after the former director resettled in Australia.) “Life in the camp is safe even if we are poor. Many of us want to go back but we fear the intentions of the government. They say we can go back; that we have peace, but we know the government is increasing its troops. So we are afraid,” he said. In Myanmar, some steps have been taken towards the path of peace. Among them are the first general election on November 7, 2010 and the release from house arrest of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi on November 13 of the same year. Later, in October 2011, 200 political prisoners were released. In

December 2011, the Myanmar President signed the assembly law and allowed the U.N. access to Kachin State to provide humanitarian relief. More recently, in January 2012, a ceasefire agreement was reached with KNU. As a result, many prisoners were released and 651 detainees were granted amnesty. Meanwhile, the IMF declared Myanmar as the next economic frontier in Asia. However, a series of sectarian violence between Muslims and Buddhists in 2012 and 2013 destroyed thousands of homes, killed hundreds of people, and displaced thousands of people. Despite these clashes, most of Myanmar's ethnic groups sat down with the national government on November 4, 2013 to reach a countrywide ceasefire deal. Recently, the Burmese government announced a tentative plan to have a nationwide ceasefire agreement with all armed groups, followed by an all-inclusive political dialogue as early as mid-2014. However, despite the steps that have been taken towards peace, nothing concrete has been discussed about the fate of the refugees who wish to return to their country. Because of the skepticism and fear about the real intentions behind the peace deal, the reality of returning home remains an elusive dream for the refugees. Repatriation

Even as talks are underway for possible repatriation, there are still people coming into the camps. Some say they are seeking an opportunity to have an education in a safer place; others want to avail of the help provided by the different NGOs in the camps, such as health, food, and legal assistance to be able to resettle in a third country. “The idea of repatriation is still there, especially now that some improvements in the peace process have been achieved. There are some works being done, such as the UNHCR Voluntary Repatriation Framework; quarterly stakeholders’ meeting wherein UNHCR, CCSDPT, CBOs, and refugee committees discuss durable solutions; plan to set up information centers in the camps where all

IN FOCUS • burmese refugees refugees can access correct information; and UNHCR's cross border meetings. All NGOs working in the camps here are trying to prepare refugees by providing correct information about the situation now in Myanmar so that they may make the correct decision. We cannot force them to leave or to go back; repatriation must be voluntary. We provide information and skills to equip them for such a move,” Rosalyn said. Wit h t he a ssi s t a nce of t he U.N.H.C.R., a profile exercise was undertaken to find out if refugees want to return to their country, be resettled to another country, or be integrated in Thailand. The results from the pilot study in one camp revealed that the majority do not want to go back, mostly the young refugees who were born in the camp. The reason cited was that they do not know how life will be back in Myanmar. All they know about their country are the stories of war and destruction. While not wanting to return, they also do not want to stay in the camp because of the helpless situation there. They want to explore what is outside. If possible, they want to resettle. What is important to them is to get out of the camp and discover what is outside. Some already venture beyond the camp to find work. “The Thai authorities in charge of the camp are quite considerate and understand the desires of these young people. So, unofficially, they may allow them to go out to the nearby village to search for work and make a living. They are not allowed to venture farther than the nearby village of Nai Soi. However, some of them venture even farther into the cabbage and corn fields. They stay there for a few days and, then, come back to the camp. The NGO in charge of the ration of food updates its records. Those who are not in the camp are removed from their list and will not receive food,” according to Rosalyn.

move on. The peace process is ongoing in Myanmar. There have been some improvements in our country and it might be an encouragement for some to go back. But it will really depend on how the government will deal with the ethnic groups. Naturally, the Thai government wants the refugees to go back. However, they have also stated that this process must not be rushed and should be in accordance with international principles. Integration into Thailand is currently not an option to the refugee population. This could, therefore, prompt the refugees into becoming illegal immigrants here in Thailand. We have to look into this new situation that may drastically increase in the near future.” Certainly, without genuine reconciliation, it will not be possible to address all of the problems that decades of conf lict have created in Myanmar. Thousands of villages have been relocated or destroyed, hundreds of thousands of landmines have been deployed, basic infrastructure is non-existent in many areas, and local economies have been ruined. A comprehensive rehabilitation program will need to be

drawn up which will include provision for hundreds of thousands of internally displaced persons (IDPs) who may also wish to return ‘home.’ No doubt, the 140,000 refugees in camps in Thailand, the tens of thousands outside the camps, and the hundreds of thousands of IDPs across the border have an important role to play in the process of reconciliation and healing of the wounds left by ferocious violence. The transition from refugees or displaced persons to free citizens requires skills in community management and service delivery, and assistance programs that will make the return and reconstruction a reality. After more than twenty years, the question lingers – until when will the people in the camps remain refugees? The realization of repatriation obviously takes more than words. People want to see that the government is not only willing to welcome them back, but also to support them in rebuilding their lives. The irony remains: Though the refugees are close to their own country – in fact, only a few kilometers from the border – they have still a long way to go before they can finally make it home.

The 140,000 refugees in camps in Thailand, the tens of thousands outside the camps, and the hundreds of thousands of IDPs across the border have an important role to play in the process of reconciliation and healing of the wounds left by ferocious violence.

Going back home

Despite all this, Rosalyn remains optimistic: “I think there will come a time when people will realize it is time to

Dave Domingues

 ENCOURAGEMENT. Rosalyn (right) listens to a refugee's hopes and nurtures her dreams.

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meditation • fishers of men

To the last limits of human existence “Don’t be afraid; from now on it is men you will catch.” (Lk 5:10)

The challenge to heed Jesus' call to mission is undoubtedly daunting, even terrifying. However, armed with the right perspective and the encouraging words of Jesus Himself, one need not be afraid to push forward and carry out His mission, even to the "outskirts of human existence." by

Arch. Thomas Menampar ampil , SDB | Apostolic administrator of jowai

hen a divine intimation urges a person to be fearless, he or she must be afraid. For, to be sure, the Divine is summoning that person to a ‘fearful’ mission. Only those far advanced in faith would readily say “yes,” as the Blessed Virgin Mary did. When Peter was told by Jesus to “fear not” (Lk 5:10), little did Peter realize how far this call would take him. Little did Peter know that he was placing himself after a Prophet who had decided to lead him to the “last limits of human existence” and who, in the words of Pope Francis, would be rejected, put to trial and even led to the cross! The wonders that the Master had worked and the hundredfold blessings He had promised certainly did not point to such an impending doom! Peter’s weak character did not help either. He seemed the most unlikely person to lead the disciples, despite the Master’s patronage. He lingered behind Jesus who was determined to enter Jerusalem despite impending death (Mk 10:32) cowered before a strong wind (Mt 14:29), and cringed as a servant girl identified him as a follower of the arrested Nazorean (Mk 14:67). Most of all, Peter never dreamt that he would die a martyr’s death (Jn 21:18-19) – all for the sake of his Master. In human terms, he was making a disastrous choice. Peter’s trusting confidence in Jesus

But for all Peter’s faults, his unfailing trust in the Master eventually redeemed him. To begin with, Simon Peter was fascinated with this upstart Rabbi from Nazareth. Unlike many, he

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did not reject the possibility that something good could come from Nazareth (Jn 1:46). He did not ridicule the idea that the Messiah could come from Galilee (Jn 7:41). He also delighted in the freedom and unpretentious manner with which the Master climbed his boat to address the crowds a few meters from the shore. Peter’s enthusiasm grew as the excitement mounted among people over the stirring message that the Galilean Prophet preached. However, at one point, he was taken aback when the Master suggested that he push a little further and cast the net into the deep. He and his companions had been fishing all night and had caught nothing. Peter’s good sense told him it was not a worthwhile proposal. After all, the suggestion came from a carpenter’s son from inland Nazareth who was too little acquainted with deep waters and had no fishing skills. Despite that, however, he could not resist the wave of trusting confidence that swept through him at that moment. He didn’t know why, but he surrendered. “Master,” he said, “we worked all night long and caught nothing. But if you say so, I will let down the nets” (Lk 5:5). Leadership as service

The big catch he made threw Peter overboard. He felt he did not deserve that success. Only another fisherman would be able to understand the f lood of emotion that overcame him as he fell on his knees and said: “Depart from me, Lord! I am a sinner.” Jesus replied, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.” Peter was too overwhelmed to understand what

the Master meant by those words. It was too much for him to realize at that stage that he would emerge as a leader in society, that he would soon exercise authority in the Church. Furthermore, it took a long time for him to understand that authority in Jesus’ mind did not mean domination… but service. Like Peter, many who are called to “push a little further and cast the net into the deep” do not actually know what it entails. If anything, we are overjoyed at the fact of being chosen, without actually understanding the responsibility that goes with it. The notion of servant-leadership was so revolutionary that it is hard to say whether Jesus’ followers really understood the message down the centuries. That is why Pope Francis is making a supreme effort to take us back to the early intentions of the Master. Christian leadership, the Pope says, is not reveling in self-importance but in responsibility for the wider world. It also means reaching out to the ends of the earth with Jesus’ love, offering help to those struggling in the face of poverty and injustice. This was the Pope’s message when he announced the appointment of new cardinals in January. He prefers to see a Church that is scrambling and under pressure in serving others than one that is in a rat race for positions, security and comfort from within. A Church that does not dare to reach out or fears risk-taking in service has no future. Fish are caught, men are persuaded

Of course, the task is not as easy as it

sounds. For one, there are evident differences between fish and men. Fish are caught using a net; men need to be persuaded to make them follow. In short, unlike fish, people cannot be objectified. Unfortunately, in today’s world, human beings are being treated like fish and made to serve the stronger man’s purposes: business owners pay their workers low wages, commercial enterprises sway consumers thru false promises, leaders of militant groups push frontliners even at the expense of their safety, and rabble-rousers agitate the illiterate masses to their detriment. This is not Christian leadership, much less “textbook” leadership. Our Christian duty is (1) to be helpful to people precisely in areas of their weaknesses, including self-indulgence, (2) to look upon them with tenderness and love, and (3) to open up a horizon of hope for all. The Gospel is for the diffident, the different and the difficult as well. Pope Francis believes that if the Church we build is one of humanity, hospitality and unpretentiousness, there will be plenty of space for people of various characters and opinions. Even atheists, agnostics, radicals and nonconformists will not feel unwanted. We admit, they cannot be “caught,” pushed around, ordered, or forced to fall in line. But they may allow us to walk with them

as the disciples of Emmaus allowed Jesus to join their company. We may enter into conversation with them and grow in our intimacy with them. The atmosphere for a brief prayer may arise at some point. It is at that moment that their eyes may be opened (cf Lk 24:31). They, in turn, may go out announcing the Good News, like the Emmaus duo did. Life, after all, is a pilgrimage. Any progress can only be gradual. While we strive to reach out to others, we should not forget to search within. We can begin by getting over the spirit of individualism, selfishness and various forms of rivalries and quarrels among ourselves, prejudices against others, and the eagerness for self-advertisement. If only we would allow our eyes to be opened to see the true state of things within and around us, we would, like Peter, go out and weep bitterly (Mt 22:62). Open up a horizon of hope for the most helpless

Every Christian is a missionary, according to Pope Francis. This means that we are all fishers of men in every circumstance, even the most difficult ones. Persecutions should not break our spirit, they can only stimulate it. After all, the Church itself was born out of persecution. Christianity grew

 A CALL. Jesus' invitation to Peter is His challenge to all of us to reach out with mercy.

in China under heavy pressure, so, too, under other totalitarian regimes. Believers fought hard to preserve their faith and grew in number. Trials, therefore, can only serve to stir the lethargic. Our times are also proving to be a new age for martyrs. Even signs of danger can be a motivating cause to spread the Gospel in this era of New Evangelization. However, there is nothing as motivating as our genuine concern for the whole of humanity. We join hands with all those who believe in the betterment of the human family in a sense of common responsibility for the world and the whole of creation. To the last outskirts of human existence

However, the most motivating aspect of this mission is attention to the less fortunate, the weak and the suffering, those who yearn for justice, reconciliation and peace. Human pain itself is the best motivator. Matthew’s “hungry, thirsty, stranger, naked, sick, prisoner” (Mt 25:35-37) are easy to see in today’s slum children, street boys, unwed mothers, victims of violence, unemployed youth, exploited migrants, workers living in slave-like conditions, misguided young men under arms, and others, who need our mercy. We need to enter into their world, understand their anxieties, use a language they understand, merge our dreams with theirs, and envision a future for them and along with them. We must open up a horizon of hope for people who are suffering from horrendous nightmares in their families, workplaces, schools, both in our neighborhoods and in the most inaccessible places on the planet. Only then can we say that we have heeded Jesus' challenge to "push further into the deep." Lest we forget the Master's challenge, Pope Francis offers us words of encouragement, the very words Jesus Himself used: “Do not be afraid; from now on, you will be fishers of human beings. Come along with me to the last outskirts of human existence.”

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missionary vocation • Fr. Carlo Gnocchi

Angel of the war victims

He barely survived the defeat of the Italian army in Russia where he had served as a military chaplain of the Alpine Corps. Fr. Carlo Gnocchi (1902-1956), a diocesan priest of Milan Archdiocese in Italy, dedicated his short and intense life to the assistance and rehabilitation of the children, the innocent victims of the war. For them, he created a network of institutions called Pro Juventute. During his funeral, which was attended by an enormous crowd of people in the historical Cathedral of Milan, in front of Fr. Carlo’s coffin, a mutilated boy shouted: “Before I was telling you: Ciao, Fr. Carlo; now I tell you: Ciao, Saint Carlo!” Fifty-three years later, on March 9, 2009, in the same place, Fr. Carlo Gnocchi was proclaimed Blessed by Cardinal Dionigi Tettamanzi, following the decree signed by Pope Benedict XVI. His institution, now named Fr. Carlo Gnocchi Foundation, continues to assist thousands of children in need. by

Fr. Lorenzo Carr aro, MCCJ | Comboni missionary

t the outbreak of World War II, Fr. Carlo Gnocchi, a diocesan priest from Milan, volunteered as chaplain of the Alpine Corps and followed them in the Greek and Balkan campaign. In 1942, he went on to the Russian campaign, following the invading German army. As chaplain of the Tridentina Division, he took part in the battle of Nikolaevka and the disastrous debacle at the river Don, when a rigid winter helped the Russian counterattack and forced the invading army to retreat in disorder. Casualties were so numerous that the ruinous withdrawal became a massacre. Fr. Carlo witnessed the death of hundreds of soldiers because of wounds, frost, hunger, and exhaustion. He assisted innumerable dying Alpine Corps and comforted them in their last moment. He himself survived through a miracle. Once, when he had stopped to assist a soldier who was at the point of death, he collapsed out of exhaustion on the snow. It was his orderly, who came back looking for him, who saved him. Even his knapsack, which contained the letters, the identification plaques and the photos which the dying soldiers had entrusted to him, was saved.

The most basic instincts

Fr. Carlo gave an account of his Russian predicament in his book Christ Among the Alpine Corps which was reprinted several times. In it, he writes: “In those fatal days, I can say that I, at last, saw

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what human beings are: naked, totally stripped of any restraint or convention because of the violence of the events too big for them to bear, totally dominated by the most basic instincts, emerging from the depths of their being.” Back in Italy, Fr. Carlo went house to house, all over Lombardy, in the remotest valleys, to visit the families and bring to them the memories of their deceased loved ones. But the war was still on and the Gestapo became suspicious of the young wandering priest. As a matter of fact, Fr. Carlo was also secretly involved in helping the f light of the Jews to Switzerland and the youth to the mountains to join the partisans who were waging a guerilla war of resistance against the German occupation forces. Fr. Carlo could not avoid being arrested and experienced the horror of the prison. Fortunately, after only two weeks, he was released because of the intervention of a high-ranking member of the Church hierarchy. When the war was finally over, Fr. Carlo joined the Great Invalids Institute and started taking care of around thirty young orphans, with the help of three religious sisters, but with absolutely no financial resource. He used to go around on a small motorcycle, a gift of the Guzzi motorcycle factory. It was soon stolen from him and the firm was good enough to provide him with a new one. Alone with the mother

Blessed Carlo Gnocchi was born in a village of the plain of Lombardy, San Combano al Lambro, near the town of Lodi in Northern Italy, on October 25, 1902. His father Enrico was a stonecutter and his mother Clementina Pasta was a seamstress. He was the last of three siblings. He soon experienced the loss of his father, who was a victim of an occupational sickness, silicosis. After a few years, he lost his two brothers. Through the course of his life, he remained with his mother who was very close to him and who inf luenced him

 HOMAGE. Alpine Corps pay tribute to Fr. Carlo by carrying his remains through the streets.

Fr. Carlo witnessed the death of hundreds of soldiers because of wounds, frost, hunger, and exhaustion. He assisted innumerable dying Alpine Corps and comforted them in their last moment. He himself survived through a miracle. deeply because of her piety and sense of duty. God took her in 1939, just before Fr. Carlo went to war in Russia. Carlo grew up in an environment of diligence and hard work and especially of religious piety. It came natural to him to consider the vocation to be a priest and enter the seminary in the large Milan diocese. He was ordained in 1925, at a still very young age. His passion as a young priest was the formation of the youth through the parish’s Youth Center. His proficiency in this task was recognized when he was assigned by the Archbishop of Milan as spiritual adviser of the renowned Gonzaga Institute of the Brothers of Christian Instruction in 1936. A f ter t he war, he cont inued caring for the orphans of the Alpine Corps members who had died in the war, then he took charge of the many maimed children: a sad result of the bombing of the cities whereby thousands of civilians fell victim, including children. Eventually he took charge of the large army of children affected by polio, more than 100,000 of them. To look after them all, he covered Italy

with a network of colleges which, eventually, became very modern rehabilitation centers. Please take the child!

This is how it all started. One day, a woman came to Fr. Carlo accompanied by a child deprived of one leg. She exclaimed: “Father, I can’t make it anymore! It’s been two days that we have not eaten… Please take the child!” Fr. Carlo opened his arms to welcome the child, but the small boy struggled back to his mother who, in a desperate gesture, snatched away the crutches of the boy and ran away. The small boy crawled after her. For two days and two nights, the child became sick with high fever and the priest stayed beside him to feed him and held the boy’s small hand even when the boy scratched him. This was the beginning of the Foundation Pro Juventute (in favor of the youth). The first residence is an old villa which only had 100 beds. There were other institutes in Italy but there were 15 thousand maimed children, not including the orphans, handicapped, abandoned – an army of suffering hu-

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manity – too many to accommodate and to care for. The treasure of innocent suffering

Overburdened by this immense task, Fr. Carlo went to the media to ask for help. In Christmas 1949, Fr. Carlo shared the plight of the many mutilated children through a Swiss radio broadcast. A few months later, the priest entered the editorial office of Corriere della Sera, a prestigious daily, holding a thick envelope stuffed with the photographs and documents of the children he was assisting. He started talking about children who used to wake up in the middle of the night screaming because of the pain of their old wounds, about prosthesis that needed to be changed because the limbs were growing, glass eyes that got lost while the children were playing, etc. At the priest’s words, a great silence descended upon the hectic newsroom. Eventually, the newspaper decided to set up a fund-raising appeal. The material needs were daunting, but Fr. Carlo was more concerned about the spiritual welfare of so much innocent suffering. These people understood later when the extraordinary spirituality of Fr. Charles became more known. He himself said that he had asked a child: “What are you thinking about when your wounds are aching, when the nurses are tampering with them?” “Nothing” was the answer. Fr. Carlo commented: “Then, in that moment, I perceived that a very precious treasure was in danger to be lost. The innocents’ suffering that can redeem the world while united to that of Christ, was uselessly going down the drain…I had the duty of teaching the children not to waste such a treasure.” Here the true face of Fr. Gnocchi is revealed: not only the humanitarian organizer, but the priest who, in the disaster of the war, has meditated on the suffering of wounded, humiliated humanity, compelled to suffer without a reason.

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 REMEMBRANCE. The life story of Don Carlo was portrayed in a full-length movie.

Fr. Carlo became the prophet of a mass of defeated humanity to whom it was necessary to give back their lost dignity, showing them the nobility of suffering by lifting it up to the level of a loving self-giving. He understood the salvific function of suffering. This is how Fr. Carlo became the prophet of a mass of defeated humanity to whom it was necessary to give back their lost dignity, showing them the nobility of suffering by lifting it up to the level of a loving self-giving. He understood by personal experience the salvific function of suffering when united to Christ’s suffering. Thus, those who suffer lift up their pain to the highest level of dignity. To this suffering and handicapped infancy, Fr. Carlo dedicated his most significant work under the title "Pedagogy of Innocent Suffering." His last words were: “Thank you for everything!” In his last will, he had written: “Other people may be able of serving the children better than I could and

was able to. But no other person, perhaps, will be able to love them more.” Keeping a smile to the end

On January 21, 1956, Fr. Carlo Gnocchi died of leukemia in a hospital in Milan. It was on that evening when Fr. Carlo, holding a crucifix which he had received years before from his mother and which he loved very much, breathed his last. The metastasis of the cancer had reached the bones and the lungs. Fr. Carlo’s constitution was already weakened by the war deprivations and the hectic rhythm of work and gave way to the unrelenting attack of the terminal sickness. All the same, he knew how to keep a smile on his kind face to the end.

missionary vocation • Fr. Carlo Gnocchi A fellow soldier of the Alpine Corps came to tell him: “Fr. Carlo, all your former fellow members of the Alpine Corps are praying for you, even those who do not know how to pray, for they never did it.” At the point of dying, Fr. Gnocchi entrusted his immense legacy to those close to him with these words: “I recommend my ramshackle hut (baracca) to you!” This is how he used to call his great achievements. Archbishop Giovanni Battista Montini, the future Pope Paul VI, cried beside Fr. Carlo’s death bed. At the end of his life, Fr. Carlo had something more that he wanted to give: he donated his eyes to two blind boys, Amabile Battistella and Silvio Colagrande who, from then on, were able to see, work and dedicate themselves to others’ welfare because of Fr. Carlo’s eyes. Fr. Carlo’s gesture had an enormous impact because it was then unusual to donate organs. His example promoted organ donation which, eventually, became accepted. In Italy, the law allowing the donation of organs was approved in 1957, only one year following his death. The Saint of the Black Feathers

Fr. Carlo Gnocchi was considered a saint during his life and especially after his holy death. In 1992, during a national gathering of the Alpine Corps members, popularly called “Black Feathers,” Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini, during the celebration of the Mass at Milan Cathedral, emphatically stated: “In Russia, all the Black Feathers were heroes, but Fr. Gnocchi was a saint.”

The expression filled the crowd of ex-soldiers with deep emotion since they had always considered Fr. Carlo one of them. Many people testified that, after his death, when they invoked his help, they had received graces. The miracle recognized by the Church for his beatification took place in August 1979 at Orsenigo, Como, when a young electrician, a member of the “Black Feathers,” Sperandio Aldeni, who did not meet Fr. Carlo personally but who was a devoted helper and benefactor of his enterprise, was working on a 15,000volt transformer cabinet in order to connect the main switch. A storm was brewing and suddenly Aldeni saw lightning and heard thunder. It was too late to get out: a 15,000 volt electric shock hit the young man and threw him to the ground. He called to God, the Blessed Virgin Mary and Fr. Gnocchi because he initially could not feel his legs. Despite that, he survived and stood up alive and kicking. Fr. Carlo fulf illed the deepest call of his being because of his unifying power of love. He loved God and people, especially the mutilated children up to the last kiss on the crucifix on his death bed. His complex, rich personality expressed itself in three directions: (1) in his conscientiousness as a manager, almost an industrialist of charity; (2) in his strong stance with the government and Church authorities, and (3) in his extraordinary capacity for human relationship channeled to the welfare of the children he had adopted and to whose destiny he had devoted his life.

multidisciplined approach

Fr. Carlo’s dedication to charity at the service of the youth grew gradually through the circumstances of his life. The war experience was the beginning and the condition of Italy immediately after the war stimulated his loving commitment. It was his genius in involving thousands in the awareness of the tragic destiny of the youth that was crying to be healed and assisted, formed and directed towards the future. In an ever-increasing consciousness of his humanitarian ideal, Fr. Carlo found the strength to almost impose the demands of those whose extreme need he represented to the authorities of the Church and of the government. The more he managed to obtain, the more the courage to ask welled up in him. The field of rehabilitation he was entering was all but easy and simple. A multidiscipline approach was necessary to accompany the handicapped and mutilated youth gradually towards healing and selfsufficiency. Fr. Carlo managed with his burning dedication and his capacity of relationship to put together the immense network of expertise and care that was required by the task at hand. The Foundation Pro Juventute, now called “Don Carlo Gnocchi Foundation” continues his legacy with extraordinary, beneficial results. Blessed Carlo Gnocchi is truly an angel on the road of pain and suffering, healing and rehabilitating tens of thousands of youth in need.

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the last word

PETER’S DEATH AND RESURRECTION by

Fr . SILVANO FAUSTI, s.J. | BIBLIST & WRITER

“He did not know that what was done… was real…” – Read Acts 12:1-17

t is spring of the year 44 A.D., a little before Easter. Herod Agrippa I, now on the throne, is persecuting the Church and has ordered the beheading of the apostle James, John’s brother. Blood always pleases the crowd. He then imprisons Peter also, meaning to have him executed after the feast. It will be Peter’s Easter. Here, the Word ends the first part of its journey: from Jerusalem, it has reached Judea and Samaria, the persecution has spread it throughout Asia Minor and the proclamation to the pagans has given it an opening to the ends of the earth. Thus, Luke stresses the fecundity of the seed that dies. With James’ killing and Peter’s departure, the time of the Twelve Apostles in Jerusalem is accomplished. Up to now, Peter, brother among brothers, was the protagonist. Side figures, together with John and the other apostles, were the deacons with Paul and companions. After this “night adventure,” Peter disappears completely apart from a f leeting re-emerging at the Council of Jerusalem. From now on and until the end, the standing out figure will be Paul, the persecutor who becomes icon of the Master. The Jerusalem community is entrusted to James of Alpheus (Cf. Galatians 1:19) and the evangelization of the pagans to Paul who, soon after, will start his missionary journeys. The age of the Twelve Patriarchs of the New People ends in glory: one is a martyr and Peter, risen from a death already decreed, goes elsewhere. Herod, instead, will end as food for the worms. James will not be replaced like Judas was. In the place of the Twelve and of the apostles, there will be the bishops who neither belong to the Twelve nor are called apostles. The latter are the foundations that will remain forever. God’s house is built on them, but it is not confused with them. The descendants come from the fathers but are not mixed up with them. The Jerusalem community, persecuted and without the favor of the people, reacts praying to the Father and cementing the brotherhood. The account is a birth scene. It is the night after Easter. Peter is in darkness, inside the innermost cell of the prison. Watched by four detachments of four soldiers, he is bound by

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chains to another two. He is waiting for his capital execution at dawn. He is sleeping, like Jesus in the tomb. Behold an angel shines in the darkness and shakes him, awakes him and urges him to stand. The chains fall from his arms, and the angel orders him to dress up, put on his sandals and cover himself with his cloak and follow him. Peter obeys and follows him. He is thinking that it is all a dream. Having passed beyond the guards, the iron gate opens automatically. Having reached the road, the angel walks with him for a while. It is only when the angel disappears that Peter realizes that it is not a dream. We often exchange reality for a dream and vice versa. On that night, Peter escapes from the sleep of a certain death to the freedom of a new life. He rushes to the cenacle where all are praying for him. He knocks at the gate and a girl comes down to open. When she hears Peter’s voice, she gets excited and doesn’t open but runs to tell the others. But they do not believe her. Peter’s liberation from prison reminds us of Jesus’ Resurrection from the dead. In the meantime, Peter keeps on knocking. When they open and see him, they are out of themselves because of awe. Peter narrates what has happened and concludes: “Tell this to James and to the brethren.” Then, like the Dead and Risen Jesus, he disappears from the scene: he goes to a different “place.” His place is no longer the temple or the cenacle. The new temple is for him the whole world. Like the Son, in the same way, Peter and all of us, we have as our residence not the Church, but the world – that lost world on behalf of which the Father has given His Son. After so many years of gestation, Peter is fully born as an apostle. Sent to the extreme ends of the earth, he will arrive in Rome. Here, after twenty years, he will accomplish his beautiful witness: by being crucified head-down; he will be, at last, like Jesus. © Popoli – www.popoli.info

REFLECT AND PRAY – Why is Peter sleeping that Easter night? – How does liberation come? – What does his going away from Jerusalem mean?

“ To know you are an instrument of God’s healing is an incredible feeling.” - Br. Gene Gizzi, CFA

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in our prophetic and daring response to his Gospel.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Today, more than ever before, life must be characterized by a sense of universal responsibility, not only nation to nation and human to human, but also human to other forms of life.â&#x20AC;? - Dalai Lama