Theories "Just Peacemaking" much more than non-violence There is a compassionate rebel in everyone Healing the wounds Peacemakers Children can learn to be Peacemakers Local Peacemaker Makes a Difference The landmine issue Banning landmines: why the US won't sign the treaty Kids on the edge of a minefield |
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Guatemala - Civil war More on civil war Center for victims of torture Amnesty International MN advocates for human rights |
What Is NORMA Carrillo's voice wavers and she looks near tears through parts of her presentation. Tentative in her descriptions and sometimes filled with emotion, the past in Guatemala is still real to her and still distressing. Carillo knows torture and for over 30 years, experienced the effects of war in Guatemala. She lived through fear, nightmares, and paranoia. The stress from the war followed Carillo to her new home in the United States. Many times, panic would set it in while driving. She would feel fear when a van, especially a white van, might be seen behind her for more than a few blocks. In Guatemala white vans carried soldiers. Healing through learning Carrillo has experienced war since she was seven years old. "After awhile, torture becomes normal. You are no longer shocked by experiences around you." In Guatemala, a news flash would sometimes break into television programming. A soldier biting off the head of a chicken would be seen. To Carrillo, the message was, "Watch out or this may be you." Carrillo talks of walking past corpses on the street. She talks of the constant news of men kidnapped, never to be seen again. Of women watching their children die. Of rape. As she describes some of the torture methods used to destroy her community, she presses her fingers together, against her lips, as if to push the pain back so she can continue with her speech. Carillo asks, "After the war, what do we do? A whole country is suffering." What is real peace? According to Carillo, war starts in our minds with a thought such as, "If they are not me, they are against me." Eventually this thought grows and drives our decisions; it becomes our culture. This culture is learned and transmitted throughout society and eventually causes physical war. "In order to operate toward a single goal with many possibilities," Carillo says, "the concept of peace needs to be attached to real individuals." Carrillo would like others to find the peace she is beginning to experience. She would like to find a way to help others heal. "When I arrived in Minnesota," Carrillo says, "it was the first time I experienced peace...and that is so hard to explain." Carillo's story is one of many all over the world. As she searches for her own answers, there are others who understand and they are trying to help. One organization that is making a difference is the Center for Victims of Torture in Minneapolis. Doug Johnson, Director of the Center for Victims of Torture in Minneapolis can see that the tragedy of torture every day. He heads one of only a small number of torture centers worldwide and works diligently to heal the wounds of his patients. Torture Leaders, men, women, families, children and grandchildren are affected for generations. This transformation of fear into the next generation is a sad fact of war and torture." Johnson cites one example from a study of the tragedy of the Holocaust and its effect on its victims. The study indicates that grandchildren of Holocaust victims have a higher rate of clinical depression and suicide than the general population. "The culture of fear and torture disorganizes the responses between parent and child," Johnson says. "The parent is unavailable to respond to the needs of the child, so security and trust are lost." Leaders and individuals must find a way to restore themselves and pull their families together so their communities can once again flourish. In Johnson's opinion, our society's current training of institutional leaders, such as judges, lawyers and political parties, only deals with part of the solution needed to help victims. Ineffective tactics are repeated over and over. Torture happens, people deal with the aftermath and then wait for the next event. An associate of Johnson's from Chicago says the campaign to aid torture victims in 1999 is not much different from 1972. This lack of change is due in part, to the fact that we are working on the same linear model as suggested above. A new model Each year, the Minneapolis center receives over 150 referrals for complex cases but they are only able to accept 50 of these referrals as patients. Many of these victims have narrowly escaped death or severe harassment and look to the center to help them obtain asylum. The situation seems even more daunting when estimates indicate there are more than 14,000 torture victims living in Minnesota. A place of comfort and healing Johnson sits casually on the couch talking to his guests. The receptionist sits behind an old ornate, wooden desk with a built-in hutch behind her overflowing with documents. She greets everyone with a smile and offers them coffee to drink, fixing it as they like it. A young man sits comfortably in the chair near the window and sips his coffee as he waits. Someone will listen It is apparent the Somalian gentleman is anxiously trying to make arrangements for a family member to come to the United States and he needs some assistance. The counselor offers to help and sets up an appointment after giving him some brief instructions. The man leaves, apparently comforted, and the next man follows the counselor upstairs. Individual solutions A psychotherapist does the initial interview with the client. Highly trained individuals are in this position to assess the patient's needs and create a sense of trust with the individual. An individualized program is developed to address short-term needs such as food, clothing, public health issues and other basic needs. Many volunteers work with the center to help with these basic needs, ESL, mentoring and developing friendships. The center works closely with individuals on long term programs that focus on reintegrating the individual into a social being within their new community. Reaching out to all victims in the community |