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The members of the GRE (Grupo de Reflexión Emaús – Emmaus Reflection Group), from Argentina, Chile, Peru, Denmark, Spain and France, who met at Callian (Var Emmaus Community, France) on 16th-19th November, 2011, after a lengthy debate about the current validity of the legacy of Abbé Pierre:
- within the political context of the world today and of the Emmaus Movement,
- and using the popular liberation education method,
We declare our observations, statements and suggestions with regard to the current socio-political and economic context and the reality of the Emmaus movement:
WE OBSERVE
Within the social and political sphere:
- That Mother-Earth is being exploited irrationally, drawing Life towards an unsustainable situation. Mother-Earth has lived for thousands of years without human beings, but human beings cannot live for a single second without Mother-Earth.
- That the economy has become separated from human needs and the finances of the economy, with everything subordinate to the interests of profit at any price, this being the cause of the current crisis, and the poor countries and the poor being those who are paying for it.
- That this is not just an economic crisis, but also a crisis in values. Today, what we have is more important than what we are.
- That in the midst of the chaos of destruction and exploitation there are States and Movements, native peoples and the indignados (the outraged), opposed to this capitalist dynamic, who are putting up resistance to it and providing other alternatives; all of these are being denigrated by the mass media.
Within the Emmaus Movement:
- That Emmaus International, which came into being as an organ for interconnection, meeting and reflection, has been transformed into a “multinational charity”, with the balance of power which originally lay with the national and regional groups and organizations having now shifted to an elite which oversees the rest as branches of itself, there being continuous conflict between the needs of the groups and the needs of the elite. For this reason the term “Regional Representative” was changed for “Emmaus International Councillor”, thus changing the mechanism of confidence for control.
- That the founding values of Emmaus, shelter, community, work, service and struggle, have been redefined according to a technocratic way of thinking, which departs from the original method and motivations which indicate “in the face of any human suffering we must concern ourselves with providing an immediate response, while continuing to fight to destroy the causes of that suffering”.
- That the mechanisms for participation are neither real nor effective. Groups do not have complete and timely information with which to exercise their right of participation.
- That a constant factor in recent years has been the lack of respect for the processes of the groups, and of comrades, with actions or solidarity projects being imposed upon them.
- That there are groups which faithfully live according to and carry out the founding values of Emmaus.
WE STATE
Within the social and political sphere:
- That the “people’s time” has come; those who are in charge do not represent popular wishes because the concept of democracy and of participation has been adulterated.
- That we need to be in a state of alert in the face of the mechanisms for silencing, for undermining, and for falsifying which are being furthered in the current system; today, more than ever, we need critical discernment so that true lies will not be false truths.
- That we must be on the alert to avoid reproducing the practices of the capitalist model (consumerism, abuse of power and the deification of the market) which leads peoples towards slavery and debt, while at the same time looting and destroying the natural world.
Within the Emmaus Movement:
- That the founding values of the Emmaus Movement and the Legacy of Abbé Pierre are valid today and are capable of opening up new alternatives; and in particular, today, more than ever, and in the face of the technocracy of society, the “Emmaus Community” is a real and concrete form of resistance to capitalism.
- That there is a need to encourage the sense of belonging in Emmaus, for the development of active participation and commitment to “others” as a liberation politics project.
- That we should be more influenced by ideology and struggle with noble objectives than by funding and technocratic efficiency.
- That the Groups and the Regions should recover their identity and autonomy.
- That all our comrade members should be given equal recognition as being in possession of rights; nobody in Emmaus should be considered a “user” or a “client” or the “object of charity”.
And, for all these reasons, WE SUGGEST
Within the social and economic sphere:
- A move forward in food sovereignty practices through the distribution of natural resources, because of the impact this has on politics, on the economy and on the natural world.
- Work on awareness-raising about the consequences of the western way of life for the poorer countries and the natural world, and the recovery of lifestyles with greater harmony between the natural world and human beings in a living and historic context.
- Taking the “Good Living Practices” of native peoples as an example.
- Work for the organisation of popular power.
Within the Emmaus Movement, “as we near the 100th anniversary of the birth of Abbé Pierre, the fifth anniversary of his death, and before the forthcoming World Assembly of Emmaus International”:
- The revival of the Social and Political Legacy of Abbé Pierre, with work for food sovereignty and the undertaking of Political Training Schools.
- Solidarity through Networks and Alliances with the different involvements and struggles for the transformation of society.
- The recovery of political debate and respect for diversity, the best elements to strengthen the feeling of belonging and relationships between equals.
- The politicization of reflection, discussion and action.
- The annulment and/or modification of all the statutes, regulations and practices which stand in the way of freedom and autonomy for the groups and regions, in addition to the restructuring of the international Secretariat as an organ for interconnection, returning competencies and funds to the regions.
- The “deconcentration” of the decision-making power of Emmaus International.
CALLIAN, 19th NOVEMBER, 2011
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