So our Safety and Security Conference finished up last week with one good (no, great) piece of news. The Peace Corps El Salvador program is NOT getting shut down. Unless something extreme happens, I will be here my entire service. So, I would that is pretty…damn good news. The rest is pretty much not-so-great.
I am very happy we get to stay, but there will be several large changes that need to take place for the program here in order to keep the volunteers safer and continue operating in El Salvador. The entire conference was completely depressing with people asking questions that could not be answered and several times volunteers having to leave the room to cry out their emotions (I have never been the emotional type so I naturally kept eating the free candy they gave us, so I ate a year’s worth of jolly ranchers in four days). I am still not really sure WHY we had the conference, our regional director for Central America came and gave us a very long presentation for how we got into the situation we are currently in. A lot of people e-mailed me in response to my last e-mail all about the political unrest or other violence issues here, which actually is very untrue. I know there is not much news in the U.S. on Central America, let alone El Salvador, but the issue with violence and crimes here is the gangs and drug trafficking. There are several communities, villages and small towns that have zero gang presence (including where I live and most PCV’s as well), but it is something that happens here. This being said, most of the small theft and robberies happen on public transportation. Starting in March/April Peace Corps will establish the first ever Peace Corps transportation system of its own for this reason (this has never happened in the history of PC).
Washington wants to lower the number of volunteers in country to around or less than 50. When I came in July it was 130, so just scaling down a bit. But as of right now, we have to wait and are all put on a more lenient transportation restriction. After an outside team from Peace Corps vists mid-February, they will do a Security Assessment Evaluation (I know sounds very official), based on the areas that are considered safe and unsafe here Peace Corps will then create two or three “clusters” of volunteers in the country instead of being so spread out and therefore provide transportation less places. There is talk of the capital being completely off limits except for medical and possibly moving the office somewhere else in the country. So there will be a lot of changes, this also includes “clustering” us. This idea is good in some ways to be closer to other volunteers, but also means all of us have the possibly to change sites. I have a feeling I may be moved, even though I live in a very safe area, after April there will only be one to two volunteers within 2-3 hours from me (by bus). I will not find out till March if I have to move and where exactly which makes this time even more awkward, I cannot apply for grants because I may not be in this community, I can’t plan anything long term at all…which is kinda the point of my job.
So it is all up in the air, along with the hurry up and wait theory. As much as I do not want to start over from the beginning in a new place, meeting new people all over again, gaining trust of another community; there could be a lot of benefits somewhere else my community has not been able to provide. The good news is I have told the teachers at my school (they were all very worried I would have to leave the country) and we are going to try to get as much work done between now and mid-March/early April as possible. I already visited the Ferreteria (hardware store) to buy supplies to smooth out a wall at the school for a mural painting and started art classes this week. I am hoping to organize a youth group headed up by one of the teachers and a member of the community as well as a class for women in the community to learn how to make wallets out of plastic chip bags. So all of this has actually gotten things moving, I am trying to stay positive and hope for the best. I have no desire to leave La Loma, but whatever happens, I know I have no desire to quit and leave early.
The best news I have is that my mom officially is going to come to visit (well she needs to buy the plane ticket…but she is coming, she promised). I have already arranged all the places for us to go and as long as we use private transportation, Peace Corps will let me go (pretty much) wherever. I figured this was a good time than any to show the community that knows me so well in case I do have to move somewhere new. I am beyond excited and have told pretty much everyone in La Loma. She already has SEVERAL invitations for dinner, lunch, coffee and everyone wants to teach the volunteer’s daughter how to make Salvadoran pupusas. I cannot wait to introduce my American mother to several of the Salvadoran mothers who have taken me into their hearts, at least for my time here but I have a feeling they will influence me for many years to come. ;-)
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