Schools of Americas Watch
Fr. Jon Sobrino, S.J., of the UCA in El Salvador was one of seven Jesuit priests targeted for murder in November of 1989 by Salvadoran troops who were trained at the SOA at Fort Benning, Georgia in the United States. On November 16, 1989, six Jesuit priests, their housekeeper and her daughter were killed by members of the Atlacatl battalion. Fr. Sobrino escaped this fate because he was in Thailand. United States support of the government (Arena Party) in the 12 year civil war in El Salvador marked another instance of the U.S. backing a violent and repressive government responsible for over 75,000 Salvadoran deaths.
Fr. Sobrino challenges what he now calls "the themes of Western cultural dominance." Father Jon suggests that Westerners have come to the point that they now believe that it is necessary that some people die in order for others to live as they do. That is, the poor who are expendable will often die working to maintain the standard of living of the wealthy. He adds that Westerners live in the slumber of inhumanity, indifferent and disinterested in the marginalization, the oppression and the suffering of the Developing World.
The United States Army School of Americas, now known as the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation, is still being used as an enforcement tool of United States values and foreign policy in Latin America. Make no mistake, the implementation of United States foreign policy requires enforcement because the impact of these economic and political policies adversely affect the lives of the poor majority in the region. The marginalization of human life through our economic policies and the systematic elimination of the protections of the poor from Mexico to South America requires a well-trained enforcement mechanism. This is the purpose of the training at the WHISC located on the grounds of Fort Benning in Georgia.
The primary tool of U. S. diplomacy in Latin America is the military. While the justification for our military involvement is the "war on Drugs" and the "war on terror," the reality is that we are protecting United States economic interests of private corporations. This Administration has demonstrated with great clarity that our national security and economic policies are one and the same. Virtually every region in which our military carries out violence, there lies a rich bounty of oil and other resources. Clearly, policies that cause great harm to the poor, policies that deny the poor their dignity require enforcement. We must stand in opposition to these policies of exploitation.
Maryknoll Priest, Father Roy Bourgeoise has led the movement to close the SOA for the past decade. Through his efforts and those of his early companions, thousands gather each November for the Vigil in commemoration of the lives of the six Jesuits priests of the UCA their house-keeper and her daughter and all of our brothers and sisters of Latin America who have been murdered or terrorized by U. S. trained SOA graduates. But, the problem is not simply in the past.
The policies that generated the need for this institution continue to expand to this day. Globalization and neo-liberal economic practices represent a form of economic imperialism, the new conquistadors of Latin America. Legitimized by treaties whose conditions were negotiated behind closed doors, these policies exploit the powerless for their labor and their countries resources leaving little behind for those whose sweat produces the huge profits that result.
It is our goal to inform and to persuade the people of the United States to close the former School of Americas, now known as, WHINSEC, and to promote new policies which enhance the dignity and quality of human life. The bill’s main sponsor is Congressman Jim McGovern of Massachusetts and the bill will receive a new HR number shortly.
