From: Jon Liechty Subject: LATIN AMERICA: RESTORE DAMAGE DONE BY EUROPEAN CONQUEST Message-ID: <9208141839b.AA27490@BU.EDU> Date: Fri, 14 Aug 1992 18:39:38 GMT Original-Sender: Jon Liechty From: PO%"CENTAM-L@UBVM.BITNET" 14-AUG-1992 12:20:49.39 Subj: IPS: Restore Damage Done by [ Address information deleted. -JL] /* Written 12:04 am Aug 14, 1992 by newsdesk in cdp:ips.englibrary */ Copyright Inter Press Service 1992, all rights reserved. Permission to re- print within 7 days of original date only with permission from 'newsdesk'. Title: LATIN AMERICA: RESTORE DAMAGE DONE BY EURPEAN CONQUEST, CLAI SAYS la paz, aug 11 (ips) -- the latin american council of churches (clai) has called on all members of the christian faith to face the challenge of restoring the damage done to the original inhabitants of the americas during the european conquest. clai is an ecumenical organisation which tries to bring together the different christian churches in the americas. its week-long conference called '500 years: martyrdom and hope', which ends on aug. 14, is being held in the bolivian city of cochabamba, some 380 kms from the capital city. the conference was attended by priests and representatives of different churches and indigenous leaders from ethnic and black communities in bolivia, chile, guatemala, peru. methodist bishop and clai president federico pagura from argentina said latin america's present situation can be traced back to the sufferings of the people understhe europeans. at present, he said latin americans were still suffering, but this time due to poverty caused by the decrease in trade with europe and north america, the sudden plunge in prices of the region's export products, excessive foreign debt and capital flight. ''we can measure the cruelty of this deteriorating process by the increasing number of children who now live in the streets of our cities, abandoned by a society which cannot take care of them,'' he said. he added that due to the region's poverty, the health, housing, nutritional and educational needs of most groups in the region have remained unmet. during this year's commemoration of the coming of the europeans, pagura stressed the importance of accepting what really happened 500 years ago during the conquest and conversion of the indigenous peoples to christianity. he said the challenge of restoring the damage done to the ethnic populations, black communities and other impoverished groups must be faced, and the great cultural and religious heritage of the indigenous americans recovered. he stressed the need for an ''evangelical rebellion'' against a system which, for several centuries, used christianity and western values to cover up for scandalous acts against the dignity of the region's inhabitants, pagura said. he said the indigenous peoples' recovery of their lands, the creation of new legal instruments to defend their rights, including the right to self-determination and the immediate attention given to the demands of the poor would only be acts of justice. pagura also called on all churches to fight for peace and justice in latin america. (end/ips/trd/rg/oh/cir/92)