SHARE Foundation

SHARE Announces the Visit of Bishop Medardo Gomez and Reverend Santiago Flores

On July 14 and 15, SHARE facilitated the visit of Bishop Medardo Gomez, Lutheran Bishop of El Salvador , and Presbyterian Reverend Santiago Flores, leader of the National Council of Churches of El Salvador, as they visited Washington to deliver messages of opposition to CAFTA.

SHARE facilitated the leaders’ nine visits with undecided Lutheran and Presbyterian Members of Congress and their staffs. During these visits, Bishop Gomez and Rev. Flores had the opportunity to bring a religious perspective to the ongoing and complex CAFTA debate.

Both leaders also participated in a press conference and rally held outside of the Cannon House Office Building on July 14 th. They were joined by Representative Hilda Solis (D-CA); Pat Davis, the Director of the Guatemala Human Rights Commission; Salvador Arias, Member of the National Assembly in El Salvador; Gabriela Lemus, Policy Director, League of United Latin American Citizens; and Burke Stansbury, Program Director, Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador (CISPES). The event critiqued CAFTA for its lack of regard for the human person, especially the poor of Central America and called upon Members of Congress to vote “No” on CAFTA.

“In the name of God, I ask you to defeat CAFTA. People in Central America need to be treated as human beings but CAFTA treats them like dollars, like second class citizens. Yes to dignity, no to CAFTA,” Gomez intoned during the conference.

The rally was also attended by a busload of Dominican, Salvadoran and solidarity communities from New York and many members of the Stop CAFTA Coalition, a diverse coalition of faith, environmental, trade justice, economic justice and solidarity groups who promote fair, equitable trade that enriches the environment rather than exploiting it.

Tara Carr-Lemke, Washington, DC Policy Office Director, prepares Reverend Santiago Flores and Lutheran Bishop Medardo Gomez for Congressional visits.

Two men from New York demonstrate that 95 environmental, social and labor groups in Central America oppose CAFTA in front of the Cannon House office building.