By Carol Hollywood, member and solidarity tour participant
Development and Peace ― Caritas Canada has traditionally organized an annual solidarity tour on which members, who usually fundraise to cover their own expenses, meet our partners in the Global South; observe their work firsthand; and forge bonds of solidarity with and learn from the communities they support. Two of the people from this year’s tour have very kindly shared their experiences with us. This is the second of their two articles, the first being by Cristina De Fabritiis. To hear other testimonies, listen to the latest episode of our Voice of Solidarity podcast.
I had never been on a solidarity tour even though I am a longtime member of Development and Peace ― Caritas Canada (DPCC). And there we were, descending into the airport at Lima, Peru, ready to meet DPCC’s partners on what I came to see as my own pilgrimage this Jubilee year.
I found resilience, inspiration and hope in spite of the hard realities of life in Peru and came back to Calgary with a new perspective. I met Christ in the people we encountered and in the beautiful land.
Solidarity tour: the Iquitos experience
We had three unforgettable days in Iquitos, in the Amazon region. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants, Iquitos is the world’s largest city that cannot be reached by road. High heat and humidity can make it a challenging environment. Marshes and soft soils mean that rivers change course; banks erode and shift; and the water levels rise and fall each year, by up to 15 metres (≈50 feet) in some places. There are two seasons, the wet (December to April) and the dry (June to November). Water dominates life, making the milieu completely different from any other. Iquitos is a centre for trafficking of all kinds―in people, land, timber, wildlife and drugs.
The Vicariate of Water
Our visit to the Vicariate of Water was a hopeful sign. This unique vicariate focusses on the material and spiritual importance of rivers and other water bodies by studying local peoples’ water-related problems; participatively researching environmental health and communities’ “memory of water;” and strengthening community leaders’ and pastoral agents’ awareness of and ability to advocate on water-related issues. The Most Rev. Miguel Cadenas, the bishop of Iquitos, launched the vicarate last year, said, “It’s not possible to accompany the people without noticing the structures that work against them. We had to raise our voices.”
21 de Septiembre: a community fighting back
To understand some of the issues, we visited the 21 de Septiembre settlement in the Punchana district of Iquitos. In 2016, the settlement filed for an injunction against the burning and dumping of sewage and solid waste into its watercourse. It also sought remedy for the violation of the people’s right to health through the lack of essential services like drinking water, sewage disposal and garbage collection.
Although their case was upheld in 2023, nothing has been done. Effluent still flows untreated from the local slaughterhouse and hospital. Seasonal flooding still fills houses with animal blood, hospital waste, garbage and untreated sewage. Heavy metals, toxins and pathogens still permeate the soil and flow through the Nanay River into the Amazon. I cannot express how disgusting the smell was.
Over 4,000 people live in the area; many are Indigenous migrants. Such abandonment of poor urban areas is not isolated. Children and adults suffer sickness and poisoning. And yet, the people keep fighting with remarkable resilience.
Fr. Teddy, Mazan and the Indigenous students
We saw the vastness of the rainforest through the eyes of newly ordained Fr. Teddy Parellas. He told us about life on his mission in Mazán, a bumpy boat ride north from Iquitos on the Amazon. Communities are poor and isolated by vast distances and difficult and expensive transportation. Mission sites can be 18 hours away by boat. Because the Amazon region is youthful, much church work focusses on young people.
Back in Iquitos, we met representatives of the Organización de Estudiantes de los Pueblos Indígenas de la Amazonia Peruana (Organization of Indigenous Students of the Peruvian Amazon, OEPIAP), which is supported by one of DPCC’s partners. Its president, Liria Rojas, explained the unique problems Indigenous students face when attending university in Iquitos.
They have to learn Spanish and overcome the disadvantages of poor-quality schooling in local languages; adjust to city living; learn new technologies; and cope with poverty and discrimination in loneliness and without cultural supports. It can take eight to 10 days to travel from home to university. There is no special recognition of Indigenous rights. So, despite limited funds and no governmental will to help, OEPIAP defends their rights, advocates for these students and provides them friendship and a safe space.
The Rímac valley and Cerro de Pasco
In addition to the Amazon region, we experienced the Andean highlands, with a trip to San Mateo, on the banks of the Rímac river, which is a water source for the city of Lima. The river is threatened by heavy metal leachate from a huge mining tailings deposit.
And although we did not travel to Cerro de Pasco, Wilmar Cosme, director of DPCC partner organization Centro Labor, came to us.
He described how the lack of political will to constrain the open pit mine that dominates Cerro de Pasco have left many with high lead levels in their blood, learning disabilities and ailments associated with heavy metal poisoning. This is known to have already claimed the lives of three local youths. Despite these risks and its importance to water and carbon cycles, the high sierra region remains relatively neglected.
Liberation theology in practice
We experienced liberation theology as the presence of the Church in society, attentive to the people’s needs, seeking to discover the Holy Spirit everywhere, and so contributing to a more just and interconnected society. The parish of Nuestra Señora de la Paz on the outskirts of Lima supports 42 soup kitchens; runs organic gardens and commercial pastry-making workshops; offers therapy to children with behavioral, emotional and learning difficulties, and early intervention programs for children with speech difficulties and disabilities; renders legal aid; and offers programs for the sick and the elderly. The parish’s hospitality was as warm as its work was inspiring.
A cardinal’s call
Some of us had met Cardinal Pedro Barreto, Archbishop Emeritus of Huancayo, Peru, at the G7 Jubilee People’s Forum in Calgary this June. We got to meet him again in Lima. He encouraged us to listen, encounter and seek conversion of heart. At this is a critical moment, when Peru is celebrating 200 years of independence and the world faces climate collapse and great conflict, he encouraged us trust synodality and keep “walking together.”
What after the Amazon?
The same story continues…. Profits are extracted, and the cleanup is left to those who did not profit and have few resources. On the day after our return, my twin grandsons were born. Nothing could speak to me of hope and joy more poignantly. What better reason for could I have to fresh the resolve to work for justice and peace and to be inspired by the hope and resilience we encountered in Lima and along the Amazon.
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