The Cartagena Conference

Ned Chalker

Now that the Cartagena conference is over, what did it accomplish? Our mission was to reconnect with Colombia and the Colombian people. Many had not returned before this because of the unsettled and unsafe conditions in the country. We wanted to focus on the positive changes taking place. FOC continues to support many projects in Colombia, and we hoped to acquaint everyone with a few of those while everyone was there.

We tried to highlight the many issues facing present-day Colombia as the government and institutions of Colombia and her people try to make progress against the legacy of the drug wars, illiteracy, and violence, and to detail the importance of the reforms currently underway leading to a fairer, freer and safer society.

Our intent was to inform participants over the three days of the progress Colombia has made since we served here in the Peace Corps.

A succession of high-level speakers, including President Álvaro Uribe, described the changes in their culture and society since we left, and the changes in their economy leading to their current situation. We discussed some of the political obstacles facing Colombia today. Rep. Sam Farr (PCV 1964-66) gave a thorough description of how trade agreements affected his own district, and in general described the pluses and minuses of renewing our trade agreement with Colombia.

We finished up with specific ways that we might become involved again with Colombia, including updates on the projects that FOC supports. During the conference, Friends of Colombia received La Cruz de la Orden Nacional al Mérito (The Silver Cross of the National Order of Merit) from President Uribe for all the work FOC supports in Colombia. In a symbolic move, he asked the young woman who organized the anti- FARC demonstration in Cartagena to hand the award to FOC President Arleen Cheston.

We sang the Colombian national anthem, many with tears in our eyes. We rode chivas to the tall ship Gloria, and danced the cumbia under the stars. We went to dinner with our friends and toured Cartagena. In our original planning and budgeting, we thought 60 would make a successful conference. An amazing 184 people showed up. On the second and third days, nearly 100 visited three self-help projects in Cartagena. Over 100 traveled back to their sites or visited other parts of Colombia before returning home. Some continue to live and work in Colombia.

One letter summed it up this way: “The conference agenda was a perfect mix of official speeches and personal recollections and was all put together with unequalled professionalism but con mucho cariño. My wife had heard about Peace Corps and Colombia for 42 years and was able finally to put it all together in a few short days.” For many, the reconnection was very personal. For others, the whole experience of the conference and visits to the country afterwards was much more than expected. For those who were there for “The March” against FARC, they saw first-hand the enthusiasm of the young people of Colombia involving themselves in the future of their country. We saw Colombian women playing prominent roles in their government. We observed enthusiastic leadership trying to wrestle with the reforms needed for a modern-day Colombia.

Many of us experienced the passion that characterizes Colombia today. We learned that acción comunal is still regarded as a model for successful community development work in the country. We heard about the individual success stories of Peace Corps supporting and encouraging the education of kids, like the José Casteñeda story—the kid from the campo who is now a successful judge in Port Chester, New York. But in many of the discussions that followed the conference, what become important to our aging group of RPCVs was that once again we want to do something, if not as a group then as individuals, to help Colombia and the Colombian people.

One simple way to do this is to join and be active in FOC and the projects FOC supports in Colombia. FOC reviews the projects, so there is some assurance that contributions go directly to the intended recipients. Others talk about organizing a branch of FOC on the West Coast, while others are inserting themselves directly into the process of trying to get the Free Trade Agreement with Colombia passed.

Some individuals, like Maureen Orth (1964–66) have renewed their interest in projects they started years ago. Escuela Marina Orth is now a big success in Medellín and Maureen is once again heavily involved in helping her school. She is currently trying to get laptop computers for every student.

Howard Ellegant (1964–66), now a retired architect, visited Ebejico after the conference and was asked by community leaders to help design low-cost housing. Howard is planning to go back to help with the project. Helene Dudley (1968-70) continues to work as a member of South

Florida’s RPVCs, with micro-credit projects in Cartagena and Santa Marta. Her Colombia Project receives support through a small grant from FOC.

For many of us, if the conference accomplished nothing else, it rekindled our enthusiasm and love for Colombia and the Colombian people. What more can you ask?