2011.12.23: December 23, 2011: Because of worsening security, the Peace Corps is suspending operations in Honduras and freezing new applicants in Guatemala and El Salvador
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2011.12.21: December 21, 2011: Peace Corps Reviews Operations in Honduras while all volunteers will participate in a conference in January before returning to the United States on administrative leave :
2011.12.26: December 26, 2011: Honduras had 82.1 homicides per 100,000 residents last year, the highest per-capita rate in the world, according to a global homicide report published by the United Nations in October that included estimates for Iraq and Afghanistan :
2011.12.23: December 23, 2011: Because of worsening security, the Peace Corps is suspending operations in Honduras and freezing new applicants in Guatemala and El Salvador
Because of worsening security, the Peace Corps is suspending operations in Honduras and freezing new applicants in Guatemala and El Salvador
A Peace Corps volunteer (PCV) in Honduras was recently shot in the leg during a botched bus assault. I also heard that several PCVs in Guatemala were robbed on a bus about two weeks ago. The violence does not appear to yet have targeted PCVs, but they continue to be caught up in the violence that affects the Salvadoran, Guatemalan, and Honduran people daily.
Because of worsening security, the Peace Corps is suspending operations in Honduras and freezing new applicants in Guatemala and El Salvador
Peace Corps pullout a sad day for Central America
Because of worsening security, the Peace Corps is suspending operations in Honduras and freezing new applicants in Guatemala and El Salvador. It could be a long time before they return.
By Mike Allison, Guest blogger / December 23, 2011
Caption: One person was killed and three were injured including Peace Corps Volunteer Lauren Robert, 27, in an attack on a bus on the transportation route from San Pedro Sula to La Esperanza, Intibucá on December 4, 2011. The Peace Corps Volunteer was shot in the right leg and was taken to recover in a private clinic in San Pedro Sula and later back to the US. Honduras suffers the world's highest murder rate - 82 killings per 100,000 people a year. The army is currently taking on policing duties in response to a wave of violence. All 158 currently serving volunteers are safe and accounted for and will participate in a conference in January before returning to the United States on administrative leave. Peace Corps announced on December 21, 2011 that the agency will review the safety and security climate in Honduras before continuing with volunteer operations.
In case you haven't heard, the Peace Corps is pulling its volunteers out of Honduras and freezing new volunteers to El Salvador and Guatemala. It's a sad day indeed.
Kristina Edmunson, a Peace Corps spokeswoman in Washington, said the moves stemmed from "comprehensive safety and security concerns" rather than any specific threat or incident.
However, a Peace Corps volunteer (PCV) in Honduras was recently shot in the leg during a botched bus assault. I also heard that several PCVs in Guatemala were robbed on a bus about two weeks ago. The violence does not appear to yet have targeted PCVs, but they continue to be caught up in the violence that affects the Salvadoran, Guatemalan, and Honduran people daily.
I said on Twitter that they should send the volunteers to Nicaragua. I wasn't really joking. It's a beautiful country. The volunteers could learn a lot and the people of Nicaragua could use the help. It's still in Central America. And it's a lot safer.
The other destination is Colombia where the Peace Corps reopened in 2010 after a 29 year absence. There aren't that many PCVs serving in Colombia yet but the country should be able to handle more than the 20 or so that are currently placed.I sincerely hope that the Peace Corps does not pull out of El Salvador and Guatemala as I fear a return to the region will be a long time in the making.
--- Mike Allison is an associate professor in the Political Science Department and a member of the Latin American and Women's Studies Department at the University of Scranton in Pennsylvania. You can follow his Central American Politics blog here.
Links to Related Topics (Tags):
Headlines: December, 2011; Peace Corps Honduras; Directory of Honduras RPCVs; Messages and Announcements for Honduras RPCVs; Safety and Security of Volunteers; Evacuation; Peace Corps Guatemala; Directory of Guatemala RPCVs; Messages and Announcements for Guatemala RPCVs; Peace Corps El Salvador; Directory of El Salvador RPCVs; Messages and Announcements for El Salvador RPCVs
When this story was posted in December 2011, this was on the front page of PCOL:
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| Peace Corps: The Next Fifty Years As we move into the Peace Corps' second fifty years, what single improvement would most benefit the mission of the Peace Corps? Read our op-ed about the creation of a private charitable non-profit corporation, independent of the US government, whose focus would be to provide support and funding for third goal activities. Returned Volunteers need President Obama to support the enabling legislation, already written and vetted, to create the Peace Corps Foundation. RPCVs will do the rest. |
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Story Source: Christian Science Monitor
This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; COS - Honduras; Safety; Evacuation; COS - Guatemala; COS - El Salvador
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