2006.12.25: December 25, 2006: Headlines: COS - El Salvador: COS - Honduras: Blogs - Honduras: Personal Web site: Peace Corps Volunteer Josh writes: El Mozote
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2006.12.25: December 25, 2006: Headlines: COS - El Salvador: COS - Honduras: Blogs - Honduras: Personal Web site: Peace Corps Volunteer Josh writes: El Mozote
- 2007.03.14: March 14, 2007: Headlines: COS - El Salvador: Obituaries: Courage: Washington Post: Alma Guillermoprieto writes: Rufina Amaya, the woman who was often identified as the last, or only, survivor of the massacre at the village of El Mozote, died last week Wednesday, March 14, 2007 - 3:37 pm [1]
- 2007.02.19: February 19, 2007: Headlines: COS - El Salvador: Wikipedia: El Mozote massacre Monday, February 19, 2007 - 11:16 am [1]
Peace Corps Volunteer Josh writes: El Mozote
"Rufina, with the friends and family of the martyrs of El Mozote, have fought hard for justice. However, they continue to face persecution from a government that wants to forget the massacre, a government that refuses to punish, or even release information about who was involved or who ordered the slaughter of more than 600 people, the majority children. Amazingly, Rufina and others who stand with her have renounced any claims to vengeance for their wrong. For the good of the victims, themselves, and the perpetrators, Rufina is committed to forgiveness for those who have killed, but she doesn't know who to forgive."
Peace Corps Volunteer Josh writes: El Mozote
El Mozote
Caption: Memorial to the victims of the Mozote Massacre
I would like to share a story that involves some of my co-workers in El Salvador and Honduras. A few weeks ago, we attended the anniversary of a massacre in a neighboring salvadoran village called El Mozote. The ceremony was very powerful including a remembrance mass involving local and visiting priests from various countries, a walk through of the massacre site and monument, and song, dance, and theater about the massacre.
First, we relived the history of the massacre. The year is 1981 and we are in the small, mountainous village of El Mozote. Tensions are high in the country and there is talk of imminent civil war. As community groups organize and demonstrate to defend their human rights, they are met with violent repression from the government and the national guard. Since the assasinations of nuns and priests and even the archbishop 8 months earlier, poor communities have begun to consider the possibility of having to defend themselves and their families from their own country's military. On December 11, 1981 the national guard entered the village of El Mozote, searching for the community leaders. Word was out - there was to be a settling of tensions between the government and the community. All are to meet in the town square at noon.
By noon, more than 600 men, women, and children have gathered in the square. Soldiers begin to separate them into three groups - men, women, and children. The men are taken away to be tortured for information. Eventually, the torture ends as each one is killed. The women are led to the hillside above the church, where the soldiers beat and rape them. When the soldiers are satisfied, the women are also killed. Some children are taken to share the fate of the women on the hill, others are pushed off of second floor balconies and shot in mid-air, but the majority are stuffed into an addition on the side of the church. Locked inside, the building is set on fire and, hours later, the walls collapse, covering and preserving the small skeletons to be found some 12 years later by forensic scientists. Meanwhile, Rufina, a young woman of 22, has escaped her killer and is hiding in a ditch. She hears the screams of her daughter and the other children as they are burned alive, but she can do nothing. She is the lone survivor of a murdered village.
Rufina, with the friends and family of the martyrs of El Mozote, have fought hard for justice. However, they continue to face persecution from a government that wants to forget the massacre, a government that refuses to punish, or even release information about who was involved or who ordered the slaughter of more than 600 people, the majority children. Amazingly, Rufina and others who stand with her have renounced any claims to vengeance for their wrong. For the good of the victims, themselves, and the perpetrators, Rufina is committed to forgiveness for those who have killed, but she doesn't know who to forgive.
I meant to post this earlier and it is coincidence that I have just found time to do it on Christmas Day. It may seem an odd reflection for this festive day, but it is appropriate as we join with the angels in proclaiming the birth of Jesus, the Saviour who establishes peace on earth. To promote peace, we must have an understanding of the suffering caused by an absence of peace, by the presence of violence. Not only physical violence, but also the social and economic violence of injustice. We must support the cessation of war and violence, but also the promotion of justice and human rights to achieve the lasting peace heralded by the angels. This Christmas, I pray for this true peace in the war torn nations of Central America, in the village of El Mozote, and for the lone survivor Rufina.
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Headlines: December, 2006; Peace Corps El Salvador; Directory of El Salvador RPCVs; Messages and Announcements for El Salvador RPCVs; Peace Corps Honduras; Directory of Honduras RPCVs; Messages and Announcements for Honduras RPCVs; Blogs - Honduras
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Story Source: Personal Web site
This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; COS - El Salvador; COS - Honduras; Blogs - Honduras
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