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Dear
Friends and Benefactors,
Once
more Easter dawns after the Passion, as it happened 2000 years ago
in Jerusalem. After months of anguish, we hear the Paschal herald
announce the good news of the Risen Christ, bringing life after
death, light after darkness, joy after grief... Jesus’ greetings
sounds always the same: Peace! In these days, we pray that the
Prince of Peace heal the wounds opened during the recent conflicts!
Christian faith compels us to be optimistic and to keep the
conviction that evil will not have the lat word. The Asian continent
is aflame with wars in the west and upset in the east by the
onslaught of SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome). Nonetheless
our hope does not capitulate and dares to proclaim the good news to
whomsoever has ears to hear: Happy Easter!
VIETNAM
SERVICE has continued its campaign to help the poor, who do not know
of, or do not have the luxury to feel concerned by, the big global
issues. And yet, their fate might be affected for the worse, for
lots of resources of the international donors will be diverted to
alleviate the more publicized miseries. Vietnam still needs much
aid. Its 81,098,416 inhabitants have progressed some 4.7% this year,
reaching a per capita income of 400 dollars. But other less
agreeable realities have also progressed: AIDS, for example had
already 100,000 cases in 1999 and spreads on unchecked, the slums
around Saigon and Hanoi grow unstoppably, deforestation proceeds
irreparably, traditional fishing fields are depleted, and to darken
still more the picture, SARS jumps to the fore. On February 26, the
first case was diagnosed in Hanoi; in March 26, the Minister of
Health acknowledged 59 patients. We have to say that Vietnam has
reacted remarkably well; but although few new cases are discovered
now (four died in April), the collapse of the tourist industry has
been unavoidable. The great villain is China: the communist regime
kept secret the epidemic to its own people and to the world, until
Hong Kong, heavily infected, uncovered the source. By the Holy Week,
more than 2700 were thought to have been infected worldwide.
VIETNAM
SERVICE is unable to tackle such global issues; our direct concern
goes to poor individuals, families or hamlets; the poor who do not
appear in television. We concentrate our meager resources in zones
we deem most needy: the ethnic minorities - the government
recognizes 54 of them - and the two most northern and southern
areas. The minorities are 14% of the population, but they accumulate
29% of the poor.
We
can summarize this way the key characteristics of the poor in
Vietnam: the head of the household is most likely to be a farmer; in
1998 almost 80 percent of the poor worked in agriculture. Most live
in rural, isolated or disaster prone areas, where physical and
social infrastructure is relatively undeveloped. Most typically have
small landholdings or are landless. They have limited access to
credit. Households are more than likely to have many children or few
laborers. The poor are disproportionately likely to be from an
ethnic minority and children. The poor have limited education:
people who have not completed primary education make up the highest
incidence of poverty.
The
Montagnards in the central highlands live in state of tension, since
in 2001 exploded a rebellion because of lack of religious freedom.
Special target of the police has been “Dega Protestantism” (seen
by the regime as politicized) many of whom have been tortured and
forced to apostatize. Arrests have increased this year since the
ruling Communist Party central committee in January passed a
resolution further tightening its control of the six approved
religious movements. Yet, the regime wants to improve its poor human
rights image, and this April 2, the prime minister Phan Van Khai met
Ven. Thich Huyen Quang, patriarch of the United Buddhist Church, who
has been confined to a hut in Quang Ngai since 1982. In October
2001, the Catholic priest, Nguyen Van Ly, was condemned to 15 years
in jail for advocating religious freedom.
In
this context, VIETNAM SERVICE continues serving the poor. Here we
mention only some programs, such as the formation of catechists
(many are Montagnard) who can bring the Gospel to areas where
priests and sisters are forbidden. We continue helping seminarians,
whom the regime does not allow to enter a seminary. Religious
Sisters of the North are given access to higher studies; many of
them have only primary education.
Emergencies
are answered when possible. After the floods in the Mekong Delta, it
was found that more than 65 percent of homes in rural areas were
makeshift dwellings, while 80 percent were in a dilapidated
condition. With a population of 17 million, they need an estimated
2.5 million new houses, one million of which can be rebuilt from
existing, damaged structures. Thanks to your generosity, we were
able to help hundreds of families to repair their homes. They also
needed drinking water; hundreds of wells have been excavated in
polluted areas. In their name, Many Thanks!
As
you see, dear Friends, your open hand has been able to reach that
far, into areas that you will probably not find in the map, to
people whose name you will not manage to pronounce, but who are your
brothers and sisters in the Risen Christ. May His blessings be
always with you!
Felipe
Gomez, SJ
Vietnam
Service
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