Milwaukee Catholic Herald – October 27, 2005

Nobel Peace prize recipient preaches compassion

Rigoberta Menchu describes hurricane devastation in Guatemala

By Amy Guckeen
Special to the Catholic Herald

SMILES — Rigoberta Menchu Tum hugs a boy after her presentation at the Latino Arts Gallery Oct. 14. (Catholic Herald photo by James Pearson)

WAUKESHA — “This is a beautiful day,” Rigoberta Menchu Tum told the Latino Arts Gallery audience on Friday, Oct. 14. “It is a good day for us because we have life. Life is very special, because when you don’t have life, you are dead.”

Menchu, a 1992 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, knows about life and death. A member of the Maya-Quiche indigenous community in Guatemala, Menchu has witnessed firsthand the recent destruction of Hurricane Stan in her native country. During a short visit to Milwaukee, she spoke to audiences ranging from middle school students to adults and told of the horrors she has seen in her homeland.

“Seven days ago a hurricane began in Guatemala,” Menchu said. “You couldn’t even imagine the impossibility of saving one or two or five people’s lives who could die if they weren’t rescued immediately.”

Menchu, accustomed to serving her country, stepped in immediately to help out with relief efforts, but was saddened by the bleak outlook in many areas of the country.

“There were places where we were not able to get the bodies out,” said Menchu. “At times there’s nothing you can do but declare the area a danger zone. You’re wearing a mask to guard against the odor of humans who were able to do nothing about this.”

With phone lines down, electricity out and roads that were too torn up for traveling, the ability to reach out to those in need was even more overwhelming and, in some areas, virtually impossible.

“I felt an incredible powerlessness,” said Menchu. “The coordination of all the government organizations talked of 134 dead in the places where we had reached. There are still some places we haven’t reached and we don’t have the numbers.”

As of Oct. 11 at least 650 people were confirmed dead in Guatemala, as survivors continued to seek food and shelter.

“Just on Monday people were in tears,” said Menchu. “There are at least 136,000 people in shelters. It’s simply an overwhelming situation. We have seen great solidarity from the families nearby, but they are also starting to run out of food and water. The scarcity is becoming multiplied.”

While the search for food and water is the top priority in the effort to help the people of Guatemala, Menchu noted another aspect of relief in respect to the culture of the land.

“People have gathered to help out the victims, donating food and clothes,” Menchu said. “But the Mayan women have never worn anything other than their traditional dress. There is a danger of losing ancestral traditions. It’s my people. We must, if possible, avoid these kinds of cultural losses. This is a very important moment for Guatemala. When rebuilding housing, what is culturally appropriate?”

Given the recent natural disasters, Menchu is also concerned about who will care for those suffering in Guatemala.

“The most serious thing is that the world knows very little about the situation because of the recent situations in Pakistan and here in the U.S. Who is going to be thinking about Guatemala? We need to rebuild communities, establish services, and move people into these new communities. Working together we can help the situation.”

The youngest winner of the Nobel Peace Prize and first indigenous woman, Menchu is known for her work in trying to end the oppression in Guatemala and her strong belief in advocating the struggle for Indian peasant people’s rights. Menchu spoke to the youth in the audience, calling them to become humble and generous people who will make a change in the world.

“I believe that the greatest thing about humanity is generosity and humility,” said Menchu. “Humble people are wise people and normally end up doing many great things in their lives regardless of how long they live. It is when we are generous that our Creator responds by giving us more blessings.”

Menchu also stressed it is never too young to start developing characteristics to become great leaders.

“What our humanity most needs is wise leaders who not only think about themselves but think of everyone and everything. This is a quality that is never too young to cultivate. The younger, the better. A young person who says, ‘I’m going to help out and learn from others;’ these people go far and become great leaders.”