UPDATE & INVITATION: PROPOSED MPT TEAM TO PANAMA Also: How to Get Involved if you can't go! Dear Nicole:   Perhaps by now you have heard how MPT has been working around the clock to deploy an Emergency Response Peace Team to Panama in response to a request from the Ngabe-Bugle indigenous group recieved little more than 48 hours ago.  MPT is asked to provide observation and documentation of the conflict, as well as Human Rights reporting to the United Nations special council for Panama in anticipation of their April review of this matter.  We currently have a team of 2 to 4 people, with two strong MPT co-anchors, and we'd like two more team members.  We are working to raise funding so that team members will not have to pay out of pocket costs; our first goal is to cover airfare expenses for this team, as in country expenses will be very minimal in the rural area.    The current dates for this team deployment are February 29/30 through March 10/12th (slightly flexible).  We have adjusted the prospective dates of the team based on travel conditions and more information from our host organizations.   In addition to our hosts (the Ngabe-Bugle) and several local environmental and civil society groups, we will be partnering with Costa Rica Peace Team for this work, whose leader was trained by Nonviolent Peaceforce.  We are proud to partner with a local latin-american organization, who are nearly on the border with this area of Panama, and feel this issue is close to their home and hearts.   We will also be exploring opportunities for protective accompaniment and skill sharing while in the region.  We are asking the team to be very conservative in managing risk in part as this is our first team to the area, and we believe this will be a moderate-risk peace team; please read our open letter about Safety for our teams below.   Team meetings and location-specific training begins immediately and will continue via phone/skype and email from Friday to Wednesday, most likely in the evening primarily.   If you have been through the MPT nonviolence training and are interested in joining this team, please contact  Nicole Rohrkemper (our International Teams Coordinator) immediately at (586) 419-1070.   The location of the Ngabe-Bugle Comarca in Panama   Details about the proposed Peace Team and Conflict Situation:   Michigan Peace Team (MPT) has recieved an emergency request for a Peace Team to Panama's  Ngabe-Bugle Comarca (autonomous indigenous tribes or “reservations”).  The Peace Team has been asked to arrive within days, as negotiations and demonstrations regarding mining rights on native lands resume next week.  Nonviolent demonstrations against mining on indigenous lands have met with police violence (tear gas, rubber bullets, and other weapons labeled of U.S. origin).  Locals report that the government has cut cell phone reception on at least one occasion. There have been seven deaths acknowledged by the Panamanian government in relation to this matter, and many more reported by local civil society organizations.  Indigenous people and their supporters have reported hundreds of injuries at the hands of police and an unknown number of arrests.   MPT will provide observation and reporting of human rights violations to the United Nations, and offer protective accompaniment to people who are threatened with police violence as they attempt to nonviolently protest the proposed destruction of their lands via mining. We will follow the lead of local Ngabe leaders, and are also coordinating and partnering with Costa Rica Peace Team. Previous rounds of negotiations between the Ngabe-Bugle tribes (headed by first woman tribal leader Silvia Carrera) and Panamanian President Ricardo Martinelli's government have stretched out over many months. The Ngabe-Bugle people have opposed government mining on native lands and appealed through the Panamanian court system.  Recently at least one decision (a law that would provide environmental protection to their lands) is reported to have been overturned.      Can't go with us to Panama... but want to support the Team or participate in future urgent response Peace Teams?   1. Attend the required Step One and Step Two trainings below, and get on the list to be called next time we have an emergency request!   2. The Panama Team needs financial donations to make this Peace Team possible, please see the end of this email or visit: www.MichiganPeaceTeam.org and click "donate now" in red.   3.  Can you donate airline miles?  Contact Nicole at 586-419-1070 if you'd be willing to shrae your frequent flyer miles!   4.  Call and let us know you want to support the team at 586-419-1070, and watch your email for more opportunities to get involved.   Step Two: Nonviolence Skills Retreat One amazing weekend, open to all who have already taken our one-day nonviolence training.   Build Skills, Community, and learn more about Nonviolence and MPT Teams.  Lodging (mats and sleeping bags!) and meals on-site.   Sign Up: Nicoler.mpt@gmail.com or 586-419-1070.    Chose any of the following dates:  March 30 - April 1, 2012 (Coming Up!) May 25-27, 2012 July 20-22, 2012 Oct. 19-21, 2012 Step One: Basic Nonviolence Skills Training   June 16, 2012 Sept 9, 2012   Additional Dates TBD!   Various Dates & Locations in 2012.  Call Mary at the office, 517 484 3178. Train-the-Trainer August 3-5, 2012 Learn to be an MPT Trainer and deepen your nonviolence skills; build community and have fun!  Call Mary at the office, 517 484 3178.      An Open Letter about Safety and MPT Teams Dear Friend, Michigan Peace Team (“MPT”) is pleased that you or a loved one are considering volunteering with MPT on an international team. We understand that having as much information as possible about MPT's programs and our commitment to the well-being of our team members is very important for potential volunteers and their loved ones. Any venture in a conflict/war or occupation zone comes with inherent risks, and  MPT cannot guarantee the safety of anyone volunteering with us (nor frankly, can any other organization operating in such theatres of which we are aware).  The type of conflict intervention work Peace Teams do necessitates contact with potentially dangerous situations.  It is up to each individual to weigh the risks associated with Peace Team work, and to chose whether to assume those risks and also to manage them with their team while in the field.   That being said, MPT considers Team safety to be paramount, and to such we devote extensive training/preparation time, as well as staff and volunteer time to supporting teams in this regard. Michigan Peace Team has been training and deploying Peace Teams  to do conflict intervention and nonviolence work in conflict/war zones for 16 years.  In that time, we are happy to report that none of our 150+ peace team members have suffered life-threatening injury or death.  In the case of accidental injuries (sprains, digestive ailments, once a broken bone from a slip and fall, etc.) we seek care from local facilities, which vary depending on the location of deployment.  We require that teams discuss health concerns prior and during deployment, and teams research and discuss the availability of health care in the conflict zone with our local partners.  We encourage all team members to check with their insurance regarding coverage abroad and in conflict areas, and encourage them to explore purchasing their own supplemental insurance from many travel-related companies (see the Department of State Travel page for a list of companies).   MPT has found that risk is best managed in five ways, which all of our team members are trained in and espouse:     1. Awareness of the potential situations and underlying issues one may come into contact with in the field is important, so that team members may effectively manage risk.  This includes: intensive pre-deployment training with Michigan Peace Team, including teambuilding and nonviolence skills training directed reading and self-study regarding the conflict zone and history opportunities to participate in Domestic Peace Teams in the United States prior to deployment overseas, when possible additional in-country training and situation briefing with our sister peace organizations located in the field Additionally, teams always include at least one veteran peace team member (the “Anchor”), who is familiar with nonviolent conflict intervention work and MPT's values; of course, each team member must take personal responsibility in each of these areas, and decisions are made by consensus. Each day, Peace Team members discuss potential activities as a team, including possible dangers, and chose by consensus only those activities which are acceptable.  Of course, unexpected and/or emergency situations do arise, yet we train team members to check in with one another before acting, to stick to the guidelines outlined here, and to avoid or remove themselves from situations if necessary. 2.  Acting as a team/“Affinity Team:”  Peace Teams are usually  3-7 persons, and no one is to ever act alone in the field.  Furthering the team dynamic, before each 'activity' or event on a daily basis, the team discusses personal roles and boundaries or concerns for the activity, and important points for safety.  For example, the team might decide, “while attending this nonviolent demonstration, we will stand toward the back to minimize risk and increase our ability to exit.  We will have 'affinity buddies' and maintain eye-contact distance and awareness of our buddies at all times.  Also, two team members will stand several feet behind to monitor the 'big picture' and take photographs.  If any one team members wishes to leave, we will all leave as a group... etc.”   3.  Staunch adherence to nonviolence, nonviolent communication and conflict de-escalation techniques.  We believe that our best safety measure is de-escalation of a potentially dangerous situation, for both team members and for the local populations.  This work follows the teachings of Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr., and has been practiced with great success for many years by international organizations in addition to MPT, including Peace Brigades International, Nonviolent Peaceforce, and Christian Peacemaker Teams.   4.  Strong relationships and connections in the communities where we work, as well as alliances with local nonviolence leadership and groups is key to MPT's work in the field.  We follow local leadership when it comes to safety and security, and look to them for advice on these matters.   5.  Support from staff and volunteers here at home is also critical to our program.  There is an experienced, trained cadre of staff and volunteers here at MPT which is dedicated to supporting our teams in the field with advice, counseling, assistance, a listening ear, and more.  Also, all returning team members debrief with MPT's psychological professional trained in supporting those involved in work in conflict/war zones. We hope this additional information is helpful.  Please do not hesitate to contact me directly for more information, additional resources, or clarification.   We hope that should you or a loved one chose to become a part of an MPT Team, the support of loved ones will be available, and safety will be high priority at all times. Sincerely,   Michigan Peace Team     Can't go to Panama?  Summer MPT Team to Palestine!   Could you share this very special Peace Team Invitation with a Teacher, Administrator, or School that You Know?      MPT Summer 2012 Teachers Peace Team to Palestine We'd like to invite you and educators you know to join a special Peace Team to Palestine: the MPT Summer 2012 Teachers Team! This Team will deploy to the West Bank (Palestine/Israel) in Summer 2012.  Each member will have the option to join the team from 3 weeks to 12 weeks in the field. We love our friends that are teachers, who already give so much for peace and justice-- and they make great Peace Team members.  We're currently talking with two of many wonderful returned team members that are teachers, to arrange for special a special teacher anchor or co-anchors for this Team if possible.   We need your help!  Do you know a teacher at any level K-12 or undergraduate/ graduate who would do great work for peace on a team?  Someone team-oriented, dedicated... in short just like all the teachers we know!  Could you forward this invitation to them with a short note from you telling them about this great opportunity, or invite them to contact Nicole or apply for a team?  Please share this announcement with your email lists or post it on your bulletin board.   Training will start as soon as February/March 2012.  In fact, March 30-April 4, we invite you to learn more about MPT, nonviolence, and this special team opportunity at our Step 2 information and nonviolence skill session.  If you're considering any team (Spring, Summer or Fall), this event is the next step to finding out whether a Peace Team is right for you.  More information about this event is at:  Idealist.org.  More information about training and International Teams is on our  FAQs page.  For more information on teams or to register for this weekend or an upcoming event please contact Nicole Rohrkemper at  NicoleR.mpt@gmail.com or  586-419-1070.   Continuing Education Credits: We are pursuing several options for arranging for CE Credits for teachers and others for our Steps1 & 2 Training, and also for our fieldwork.  If you are interested in CE credits, let us know!       What are the best ways to ways to donate to the work of MPT?: Through our secure on-line site By check or money order sent to:   Michigan Peace Team   808 West Barnes Ave.   Lansing, MI  48910 Or by becoming a member of our Sustainers Circle:  A small amount charged automatically to your credit card every month.  Just call us & ask to join (517-484-3178) Thank you so much!