CPTnet
4 September 2012
COLOMBIA POEM: With faith and living hope
With faith
and living hope, communities hold on,
waiting for justice to come, after making their case
to the responsible institutions.
But not all give them a hearing, not all an appropriate response.
“So-and-so is not here,” they say, or “you’re at the wrong
office,”
paying no attention to their complaint. State and institutional dereliction of
duty?
Farming
families await titles to the lands where they live and work
but inspections, surveys and verification are required first,
because new owners laying claim to the land carry all the legal paperwork in
hand.
Constant threats flow from wealthy, armed men buying up huge tracts.
Farmers and miners hold on, trying not to lose everything for no reason.
After years of abandonment, their mine is given away in concession.
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Truth,
justice and reparation are on the way,
as are equal employment opportunities for men
and women regardless of race,
creed or age;
projects carried out and resources in place,
collaboration with local residents;
respect for wetlands, river banks and forest reserves.
We can and should hope for the reality
painted by the statistics in their final
report.
But let those who lost out in the process
tell the whole truth of their reality.
Bombardments to end subversion instead hit the civilian population.
Those who dressed the corpses in uniforms get a promotion.
Aerial
fumigations kill four coca plants they’d left as a justification
for day after day of a labor that entrenches militarization.
The fight against drug trafficking and its protection
keeps on creating more single mothers, orphans, widows, disabled.
This has got to stop; it’s not the solution!
Oh, the pain and indignation some media inflict
when they accuse communities and organizations of framing the nation!
Is it to tarnish the reputation of people who resist, denounce and take
action?
Why don’t they ever show up for the communities’ marches and demonstrations?
But thanks to alternative media participation, rumor has turned into celebration.
In spite of everything,
hope for a better tomorrow remains.
Let the peace talks continue, mediation, with more grassroots participation.
Colombia’s 43 million people live
on 1,141,748 square kilometers of land.
Let there be change in who takes part in land distribution, exploitation and
production.
There’s plenty of natural wealth for all to enjoy — all the intelligent, talented people
who are struggling to stay in their homeland and live with dignity.
-by a member of CPT Colombia
