Remembering the victims of enforced disappearances is my way of concluding the Lenten season
“Unless there is Good Friday in your life, there can be no Easter Sunday,” said the late Fulton J. Sheen. As we celebrate Easter Sunday, this quotation reminds me of a bittersweet event that occurred almost two decades ago, in December 2004.
Titled “Healing Wounds, Mending Scars,” the four-day conference was participated in by survivors and family members of enforced disappearance from Asia, Latin America, Europe and Africa. Held in the picturesque mountain town of Puncak, a couple of hours away by car from Indonesian capital Jakarta, the event was attended by 60 people, 40 of whom were survivors and family members of the disappeared.
One of the most beautiful events I have ever seen during my decades of work with families of the disappeared, the memorable occasion was characterized by a process of catharsis. Catharsis comes from the Greek word katharirein, meaning to cleanse, to purge or to purify.
The conference was opened with a public event graced by representatives of the diplomatic corps, the human rights community as well as participants who, in the name of solidarity, flew all the way from their countries. Families of the disappeared from Indonesia likewise participated, of course.
In my keynote address, I underscored the destructive impact of enforced disappearance and the lack of adequate psychosocial accompaniment for survivors and victims’ families. The value of such accompaniment stems from the importance of transforming victims into human rights defenders.
The whole event was a combination of input, presentations, focused group discussions, reflection sessions, relaxation exercises and practical activities. With the core objective of facilitating healing, the activity emphasized the personal dimension, with more attention focused to the wisdom of the heart. In recognition that the body is also affected by psycho-social trauma, the resource persons facilitated Qigong movements every morning during the entire conference.
Reminding me of Christ’s passion and death on one hand, the testimonies, on the other hand, resembled a metamorphosis that ushers in a constant hope of the truth of the Resurrection
United in the same pain, in the same hope, in the same struggle and in the same envisioned victory, participants from Bolivia, Guatemala, India, Indonesia, the Netherlands, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Western Sahara spoke distinct languages. Amazingly, during the whole process, with limited translation, they understood each other.
Randomly divided into small groups, they were instructed to tell their stories and to dramatize the result of their sharing. As each group dramatically presented their workshop results, filled with emotions, the participants portrayed common as well as distinct stories of their loved ones’ disappearance and their journey of hope and struggle in their search for truth and justice.
Heart-rending testimonies confirmed the global magnitude of the crime of enforced disappearance.
Dr. Nila Heredia of Bolivia lost her husband and mother-in-law due to enforced disappearance. A survivor of enforced disappearance, Omar Abdeslam from Western Sahara, shared the latter’s political conflict involving Spain and Morocco. Omar survived to tell that in December 1984, he was arrested with his co-students in Marrakesh, brought to a secret location, tortured and released after two weeks. Nila and Omar were instrumental in the formation of victims’ organizations in their countries.
Coming from the host country, Mugiyanto recalled how he was apprehended in a room by elements of the military. Blindfolded, he was taken to an unknown place and tortured. Later, he was brought to a police station where he established contacts with family members and friends. Coinciding with the lifting of the law against subversion, he was released three months later,
Reminding me of Christ’s passion and death on one hand, the testimonies, on the other hand, resembled a metamorphosis that ushers in a constant hope of the truth of the Resurrection. These are true-to-life stories of victims that refused to remain in their state of victimization. These are tales of transformation from victims into human rights defenders. Being instrumental in forming organizations of victims and survivors in their respective countries, they are living witnesses that in pain there is hope, and in hope there is empowerment
The most gratifying testimony was that of Marco Antonio Garavito Fernandez, director of the Liga Guatemalteca de Higiene Mental, whose organization has a program “Todos por el Reencuentro.” Marco shared the Guatemalan situation of massive discontent brought about by dictatorial and repressive governments that resulted in a 46-year civil war.
Marco’s organization has facilitated the reunification of 513 children with their biological families. These beautiful reunions are grand victories that are reminiscent of the triumphs of Easter when Christ resurrected from the dead
Children who the government feared would follow in the footsteps of their insurgent parents were forcibly taken away by security forces and given away for adoption in different countries. During the time of the conference, Marco’s organization documented 283 cases that yielded positive results in finding the children and reuniting them with their biological families.
Marco’s organization has facilitated the reunification of 513 children with their biological families. These beautiful reunions are grand victories that are reminiscent of the triumphs of Easter when Christ resurrected from the dead.
I remember the other group activities conducted during the conference, which included clay molding, enabling participants to express their feelings by molding significant characters of their lives; the power of healing touch through massage therapy; kite-making to enhance creativity; and kite-flying that facilitated letting go of negative feelings.
Marco performed a ritual using little Guatemalan dolls symbolizing the world’s disappeared children. The ritual ended by replanting to its original place an uprooted plant, which symbolized determination to return to normal life after being uprooted by the impact of disappearance.
In conclusion, the resource persons, Father Ben Moraleda and Josephine Callejo, identified stages of grief such as shock and denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance and healing. Furthermore, they identified stages of recovery from trauma such as establishment of safety that gives survivors power and control; remembrance and mourning that seek to reconstruct painful events and reframe these in constructive and meaningful ways that help victims deal with losses; and, finally, reconnection that signifies renewal of relationships with a perspective that is forward-looking.
Remembering this meaningful conference of survivors and victims of enforced disappearances is my way of concluding the Lenten season and in savoring the hopes and triumphs that Easter brings.
* The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official editorial position of UCA News.
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