Translated by Alise Rule
Mexico's assessment of poverty is wrong; it has been wrong for decades. That's why money invested in multiple programs hasn't solved the problem, affirmed representatives of civil organizations doing community work and forming part of the civic council of the National Crusade Against Hunger. They warned that this government program of Enrique Peña Nieto will not work either if the experience of the organizations and the reality that people live in their communities is not taken into consideration. They also indicated that it is essential that actions are carried out from a human rights perspective.
During a press conference, activists presented their proposals for the new agenda that countries would have to devise after 2015 and reported on the advancements and pending issues of the Millennium Development Goals. Some activists lamented that the past week's meeting, in which the creation of the civic council was formalized, was the first to which they were invited as part of the Crusade Against Hunger.
Anthony Caswell, director of international issues, governance and political influence of Save the Children, commented that although the federal strategy has already begun, there is still no information on the mechanics of implementation, nor on the rules for participation in the private initiative.
Nevertheless, he said, it is hoped that businesses won't have their own rules, but rather that they are governed by those issued by the government and that civil society is guaranteed they will be followed. He considered it positive that they have joined the Crusade, although “we would have liked to have been included from the start.”
In this respect, Yuñuel Cruz of The Hunger Project commented that in his case he attended six previous meetings at the Institute of Social Development and on every occasion more organizations joined. In these conferences, the groups have presented their projects, the activities they perform in the communities, and what they have learned from direct contact with poverty and inequality. He pointed out that what would be expected of the Crusade is that “besides listening to us, they take up our proposals.” Above all, he noted, the assessment of poverty should be improved.
He said that
“we understand little about what it is to live in conditions of poverty and marginalization, what it means to have less than a dollar a day to survive on, or what it means for a pregnant woman to have to travel six hours to get to the nearest hospital.”That's why, he insisted, the collaboration of social organizations with the federal government should translate into a joint effort in rural areas.
Activists recognized the willingness of the federal government to take up the issue of poverty and fight inequality. It is a work in progress from which good results are expected.
“But if not, this will be one more government like so many others in the past. We will keep doing our work.”The Hunger Project has been working for eight years in thirty-six communities in Oaxaca, Chiapas, San Luis Potosí and Zacatecas. Spanish original