02. Reports of the Commissions USG

a SOME HIGHLIGHTS 1997-1998.
JPIC COMMISSION USG/UISG

Frans Thoolen,SMA

1. Organization

The JPIC Commission is composed of fourteen members. Quite some changes appeared in the membership of the Commission. Four new members joined the Commission. Fr. David Fleming took over the co-presidency from Fr. Claude Grou.
The Commission met twice, in May and in December. At present the Commission has the following members:

The JPIC Executive Committee met 6 times.
Several times we executed a decision taken this year to invite members of the Commission to participate in the Executive Committee if members of this Committee are out of town. This worked quite well.

2. Activities of the Commission

A. Public Meetings
The central theme of the year 1997-1998 was the jubilee year. Different aspects were high lightened during the three public meetings.

The first public meeting treated the "Biblical Aspects of the Jubilee". Liberation from forces that imprison people. Father Jean Louis Ska, SJ from the Pontifical Biblical Institute was our speaker.

27 January had as theme: "Where does our money go?" Ethical Criteria and investment. Bro. Patrick Sopher, CSC challenged us on our ways of investing by stressing ethical criteria. Mr. Van Maanen spoke about alternative investments by explaining the Ecumenical Development Cooperative Society. The following morning about 50 bursars were present to go in a more detailed discussion with Mr. Van Maanen.

The theme of the third pubic meeting was Civil war and Conflicts: Mission as Reconciliation. Missionaries as bridge builders between opposing groups. Father Brian Starken, CSSP, Sierra Leone introduced this theme.

The year 1998-1999 opened with the theme ‘Faith Response to Consumerism. Vow of poverty or vow of economy’ introduced by Dr. Brichetti, director from the ‘Cooperazione Terzo Mondo’. Father Vargas from Costa Rica was invited as witness.

Different working methods for these sessions were used to animate the participants.

Though we approached the themes in a more practical way, the participation of USG Congregations decreased further. 9 Congregations USG attended the last public meeting of October 1998 while 81 Congregations UISG were present.

Just like last year the sisters of Paoline Multimedia were present during the March meeting with literature on the themes we treated. Furthermore participants could buy fair trade products.

B. Publication / Information
This year Notitiae appeared three times in four languages to approximately 300 Generalates, of which 104 belonged to USG and 198 to UISG. Approximately 50 other organizations are also on our mailing list.

Survey

As follow-up of the enquiry of last year a Spanish JPIC Promoter' group has been launched. Their first meeting will be in December.

C. Solidarity in Crisis Network.
The Forum Congo started recently her activities again. The Secretary is participating in their meetings.
Other forms of solidarity expressed was the following:

We did not receive any reply on our letters written this year and last year. However the Commission urged the Secretary to continue letter writing but also to develop other forms of action.

D. Other activities
Debt issue
A meeting of the Co-Presidents took place with the Executive Council of the UISG concerning the cancellation of unpayable debt of Third World Countries. The Executive Council answered positively which led to an invitation for an intervention at the UISG General Assembly. Later this was followed by an invitation by the USG.
In the end the Commission was invited to give a short presentation on Jubilee 2000 (remission of debt). The UISG meeting adapted the Jubilee 2000 Initiative. Their Secretariat wrote to different organizations.
During the USG meeting in Ariccia an intervention by the Commission on the debt issue was made. On individual base general superiors could sign a petition. After the meeting all congregations with e-mail address who were not present were approached. It resulted in a petition signed by 63 Superior Generals. This petition with an accompanying letter was sent to political leaders. Reactions from the following have been received: Office of the Prime Minster of Canada, Canadian International Development Agency, HM Treasury - London, Department of the Treasury - Washington, Mr. Chirac - President of the Republic, Cabinet Prime Minster - Paris, Mr. Prodi - president of the Council of Ministers - Rome, IMF - External Relations Department, Word Bank - HIPC Unit, Office of the Prime Minister - Bonn.
It would be worthwhile to continue and to deepen the dialogue with these political leaders.

JPIC Promoters
The executive secretary participates in their monthly meetings. At the beginning of the working year the secretary became contact person between the Pontifical Council Justice and Peace and the Promoters Group.
Last year the JPIC Promoters published a Justice and Peace Manual.
The Secretary is doing the administrative work, accounting, distributing of the books. 650 copies in English were ordered and are now sold out. A second edition has been published. There exists also a computerized version. The French edition appeared in 350 copies and the Spanish one counts 300. After consultation an edition also was printed in The Philippines.

Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace
A meeting took place of the two co-presidents with Cardinal Etchegaray.
Two members of the Commission ( Patricia de Quevedo and Frans Thoolen went) were invited for a meeting on HPIC initiative concerning the world debt, organized by the Pontifical Commission Justice and Peace with representatives of a number of Catholic Organizations and the World bank and the IMF.
A similar meeting concerning poverty was also attended by the Co-President UISG and the Secretary.

Networking by E-mail
The Secretariat is using E-mail to draw attention for certain urgent matters and/or distributing back ground documents on certain situations. This works already quite well with the JPIC Coordinators of the different institutes. We foresee that this medium increasingly will be used for the different congregations. We still invite Congregations to mail their e-mail address to the Secretariat.

SEDOS
SEDOS started a working group on Mission in conflict situations. The secretary is member of this group, but also functions as its coordinator.

4. Concluding remarks

...not more shall the sound of weeping be heard in it, or the cry of the distress. Not more shall there be in it an infant that lives but a few days, or an old person who does not live out a lifetime,... They shall not build and another inhabit; they shall not plant and another eat... They shall not labour in vain, or bear children for calamity; for they shall be offspring blessed by the Lord... (Isa 65,19-23)

On 6 May Bishop John Joseph from Pakistan offered his life on behalf of those he led. Basil Fernando from the Asian Human Rights Commission wrote:

"The challenge then was either you do something that mattered or just bow down to the situation. Of course one could have gone on with the ritual protests knowing well that such protests would not produce any results. Bishop John Joseph was no hypocrite. He was a loved a leader of his people. For over a decade he had been the Chairperson of the National Justice and Peace Commission. He has been well known for his human rights activism. Instead of the poor and the weak been allowed to be attacked, it was time for a leader to come face to face with the challenge. ...The simple question he has left is, will you just sit and watch or engage only in gestures that really do not matter, or will you do something that really matter for the people who are so unjustly treated?"

A question we as Commission also have to reflect upon for our activities.