TEACHING GOD'S WORD IN THE LAND OF FEAR AND DEATH

COLOMBIA is one of the most violent places on earth with an average of
30 murders and seven kidnappings a day.

In the last 15 years, 200 bombs have exploded, four presidential
candidates, 200 judges, 151 journalists and 300,000 ordinary citizens
have been murdered.

All of this murder and endemic violence is intimately bound up with the
drug trade, paramilitaries, and long-standing rebellion against social
injustice.

Against this background an Irish priest, Fr Brendan Forde, has taken a
stand with ordinary Colombians, displaced people who have refused to be
forced from their lands.

In a country where human life is cheap and where militias offer $1,000
rewards for kidnapping a foreigner, there are, not surprisingly,
growing fears for Fr Forde's life. Since Barbara Forde first heard that
her brother Brendan, a Franciscan, was in Colombia she has hardly had a
night's sleep.

93I don't want to be the sister of a martyr,94 she said from the famil
y
home in Clontarf yesterday. 93I wish there was more of an outcry about
Brendan but nobody seems to care that something awful might happen to
him.94

Fr Brendan Forde went to Colombia at the beginning of the year.
Initially, he only intended to stay for a few months. However, when he
discovered first hand what life is like for ordinary Colombians living
in constant terror of being murdered, especially by the pro Government
paramilitaries he decided to stay.

The presence of a foreigner, while no guarantee of immunity for the
local community, offers them a modicum of protection in a country where
everyone is vulnerable, especially the poor.

Barbara Forde's anxiety is justified. Since Brendan arrived at the
beginning of the year there have been several massacres. Only a few
weeks ago in the village of La Union where Brendan is living, six
villagers were executed in what Amnesty International described as a
joint army and pro state paramilitary operation.

Last month when Brendan opened his front door he found what's known as
a necktie the decapitated corpse of an 18 year old women. But he has
chosen to remain and stand by his parishioners as the intimidation
against him increases.

Paramilitaries have threatened that they are coming for him next. In
Colombia no one takes these threats lightly.

Despite being one of the most developed states in Latin America, over
two million Colombians have been forced to flee their homes in the
civil war. Much of the conflict is inevitably played out over
Colombia's narcotics industry which adds $4bn to the economy.

Fr Brendan Forde went to Colombia because nobody else seemed willing to
go there. The Peace Community of San Jose de Apartado needed a priest,
ideally a foreign priest, to give them some little protection. Their
community is made up of displaced people who do not want to be part of
the 40 year old civil war. They have been evicted but refuse to move
away from their area. They are being killed because they refuse to move
off their own lands.

Brendan had planned to go to Costa Rica initially but after spending a
short time with the impoverished communities in that remote part of
North West Colombia he decided to remain.

I spoke to Brendan Forde on the telephone and typically he refused to
see himself as some kind of hero. He was much more concerned to ensure
that the people were supported for their courage in saying no to the
war and the continual oppression it has brought in its wake. 93I'm fine
.
Keep the focus on the community that is what is important.94

In his early 50s, he has spent most of his ministry in El Salvador, one
of the most dangerous and conflictive areas of the civil war. Few know
how he survived running the gauntlet between the guerrillas and the
army. He was expelled from Chile during the Pinochet regime and sent
back to Ireland with nothing but the clothes he wore.

93Other places have been bad but this is the worst I've been in,94 he
told his sister.

He had the support of his fraternity in the other countries but is
alone in Colombia. Being alone in a country described as having the
worst humanitarian crisis in the western hemisphere is not easy. His
courageous stand has already brought some welcome attention to the
plight of the people of La Union. Since last year alone a quarter of a
million people have become refugees in their own country. Those working
with them and other internally displaced people have said it's the most
overlooked crisis in the world today.

His sister Barbara knows from her conversations with him that he is
nervous and edgy. 93I can read between the lines,94 she says as she is
very close to her brother and has supported him for the last 25 years
in his work in Chile and El Salvador.

93At least in Salvador and Chile he had his community but in Colombia he
has nobody. I have no idea about his security, he is eight miles from
the nearest phone. He is very isolated and walks for hours between one
parish and the next. Anything could happen, he is so vulnerable,94
Barbara said.

Since the recent massacres in La Union, the Forde family have been
working with a small group of concerned friends. They have lobbied
politicians here and in the US.

They have also tried to get media attention to give Fr Forde and his
parishioners additional security in the hope that the Colombian
government, conscious of its international image, may restrain the
military and paramilitaries.

Yesterday President Bill Clinton left Colombia after a brief visit to
highlight Washington's Plan Colombia described as a $1.3 billion
strategy to negotiate peace with the guerrilla groups, build the
Colombian economy and destroy the illegal drugs industry.

However, many feel that Plan Colombia, the biggest aid ever package
offered to a Latin American country, will do little to solve Colombia's
problems or strengthen democracy. With its heavy emphasis on military
assistance, it is argued it can only increase the misery for the poor.
And by destroying their livelihood in a ruthless manner and not
providing any alternative to growing the coca plants this will do
little to really improve things.

Indeed, many commentators have begun to examine the growing power of
some of Colombia's notorious paramilitary leaders like Carlos Castano.
He has been offered US support in return for help in combating drug
traffickers. Combating the drugs trade is necessary, but the role of
some of the paramilitaries in mercilessly terrorising many rural
communities cannot be ignored.

Ireland may face difficult questions as Plan Colombia is expected to be
endorsed by the European Union shortly. A final decision on EU support
is expected soon.

At a time when the whole country seems transfixed by Big Brother,
Barbara Forde is disappointed at how little reaction there has been to
her brother's stand.

93I am terrified he is going to be killed. I don't want him to have a
huge funeral which is guaranteed in Ireland. He needs the support now
because he will not desert the community.94