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The Holy City of Copan

Marco Cáceres
Special to Honduras This Week

Graphics/Honduras This Week
Copan Ruinas - A site for pilgrimage?

For the Jewish people, it is Jerusalem. For Muslims, it is Mecca. For Catholics, it is Vatican City. For non-Catholic Christians, it is Bethlehem. For Buddhists, it is Bodh Gaya. For Hindus, it is Varanasi. For Tibetan Buddhists, it is Llasa. For Sikhs, it is Amritsar. And on and on.

It seems that every religion has its "Holy City" - a place that holds special significance to that particular faith, belief system, or movement. These wonderful cities provide a spiritual connection to the past and a place where individuals can go to feel closer to something beyond their limited physical existence. They offer a location where people can come together with others of like-mind to worship, pray, meditate, and become better human beings by recommitting to radical teachings of how to better treat each other and thus eventually truly become One.

I would like to add the town of Copán Ruinas, Honduras to the list of holy cities. Strange, you might think. "What religion has a unique connection to Copán?" My answer is. "None, if you only think of religion in terms of specific traditions and hierarchical structures designed to pay homage to a deity or deities."

I think that all too often religions get way too caught up in their operational aspects. In other words, those things that allow them to thrive as unique entities and remain separate from each other. Most religions have their own set of rules, regulations, and guidelines by which their members are encouraged to abide in order to be deemed members in good standing.

This emphasis is unfortunate, in my view, because it misses the point of what those special individuals who inspired the founding of the world's great religions were trying to make. It is the messages of these spiritual masters that were central to their lives. The religions that subsequently sprang up evolved from these new ways of thinking, speaking, feeling, and acting. Over time, they were influenced by various cultures, events, and agendas, which led to different translations and interpretations of the teachings, divisions within the religions and further divisions, hierarchies and sub-hierarchies, and rules and more rules.

For me, religion represents two things. First, it represents following the spiritual teachings of someone in whom you trust and believe. These teachings should provide the path toward enlightenment and unity with each other and with the beating heart, mind, and power of creation. Secondly, it represents following these teachings within a community. We humans tend to be happier within communities, and we certainly can accomplish so much more working together.

If you allow me to simplify "religion" on my terms, then it is not such a far stretch to conceive of Copán Ruinas as sacred ground.

For the past three years, Copán Ruinas has served as the site of an annual pilgrimage by people from all walks of life, various faiths, and different countries. The purpose of the pilgrimage has been to come together as a community to find ways to become more enlightened and learn how to work as One. The ultimate aim has been to better support the poor and underprivileged within Honduran society by empowering them through education, healthcare, and a variety of community building projects. And to do so in a positive spirit of compassion, harmony, and joy. This annual pilgrimage has brought people face to face with others who enjoy giving of themselves to others in need. I sense that these individuals do this for no other reason other than that is what they feel compelled to do, rather than for any promise or expectation of rewards. Somewhere along the line, they have discovered the truth that it is by "emptying oneself" selflessly to others that we become One in the spirit and gradually start to transform the world for the better, starting of course with a little piece of it known as Honduras.

It is no small feat for more than 200 people from diverse backgrounds to meet each year for four days and four nights and then leave with renewed energy, confidence, goodwill, and new contacts to continue their work in partnership with the people of Honduras. That is exactly what the Conference on Honduras has accomplished during three conferences in Washington, DC and three in Copán Ruinas.

Copán is extremely well suited for this particular kind of gathering. Its proud but humble people, its central park, its coffee shops, its colorful restaurants and hotels, its cobblestone streets, its marketplaces, its river and green mountains exude charm, warmth, something mystical. The place is accessible spiritually. It has the effect of bonding those who visit it, and that is precisely what we seek. It is that effect that, to me, provides meaning to the concept of a Holy City.

Several people ask me each year to send them a report of the results, conclusions, recommendations, and expectations of the Conference. When I say to them that there will be no such report, they look puzzled.

The results of the Conference lie in the benefits of the relationships that develop from the event. The conclusions are that focusing on education, healthcare, and community building are the right strategy for empowering the people of Honduras and changing the country for the better over the long-term. The recommendations are that those who are helping Honduras should continue to do so consistently, selflessly, wisely, creatively, and with a positive attitude. The expectations are that within one or two generations Honduras will be transformed into a model for other developing countries to emulate. In the final analysis, isn't religion really all about transformation?

If you're interested in participating in the next pilgrimage to the Holy City of Copán Ruinas during October 12-15, 2006, see http://www.projecthonduras.com/conference

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Closing the net on Money laundering

The Law against Money Laundering, in action since June 2002, has recently increased the penalty for the laundering of funds derived from illicit activities such as drug and people trafficking and kidnapping. Furthermore, legal reforms are pending which will further penalize the laundering of money associated with terrorist activities. Although many companies now possess sophisticated software capable of earmarking potentially illegal transactions involving suspicious funds, in the past 4 years there have been nearly 200 reported cases of money laundering.

El Heraldo

Honduran women exporting to Germany

With the help of the European Union and Oxfam (who donated 9 million euros over three years), women from rural Honduras have begun exporting the coffee they grow to Germany. According to the manager of Oxfam International, Sonia Cano, over a million lempiras' worth of coffee has been exported to Germany after it was grown and processed by the women of COMUCAP, an organization for rural women in the La Paz area. The coffee will be distributed with the aid of a Catholic association and the help of the EU.

La Tribuna

Assembly plants to receive audit.

For the first time in their history, Honduran assembly plants will receive a comprehensive audit at the hands of the Dirección Ejecutiva de Ingresos, or DEI. Armando Sarmiento, head of the DEI, explained: "we are going to the factories because we want to know whether they are making good use of their tax breaks - the State has a right to know these details." The assembly industry generates over 131 000 jobs in the country and in 2005 raised over $2,700 million US in exports.

La Prensa

US to spice up chili market

The USA has changed the laws governing the export of Centro American chilies, including those from Honduras, in order to facilitate commercial interdependence and thus import 31,040 tons annually, at the cost of $1,300 million US. The change in the law comes with the objective of "permitting the importation of certain types of chili cultivated in Honduras, Guatemala, Costa Rica, El Salvador and Nicaragua", clarified a statement released by the American Embassy in Guatemala.The new law, demanding rigorous quality control, was announced by APHIS, a sub-section of the US Department of Agriculture, and is intended to prevent certain types of pests, such as the Mediterranean fly, from entering the USA.Honduras is one of Centro America's largest exporters of chili, and demand continues to rise.

La Prensa

Multifon gains control of telephony

In a deal worth 39,500,000 lempiras, the Honduran company Multifon took control of telephone communications throughout the country.

This deal allows Multifon to offer greater coverage in areas of lower population density, where Multifon hopes to expand its services to 150, 000 lines to meet market demand.

The Multifon telephony company gained permission to operate the services of telephony from the National Commission of Telecommunications, Conatel.

According to Rasel Tome, president of Conatel, "Through this deal, more of the population will be connected, and all business will be conducted with total transparency."

La Prensa

Monday, March 06, 2006 Online Edition 8

Demystifying the chamber's secrets

George Reynolds
Honduras This Week

George Reynolds/Honduras This Week
Juan Carlos Casco, American Chamber of Commerce, encourages commerce between Honduras and the U.S.

Juan Carlos Casco is a man on a mission. In charge of the non-profit-making, apolitical American Chamber of Commerce in Honduras (AmCham for short), he has a task that is simple to describe but that he acknowledges will be hard to achieve, at least in the short term: to promote and encourage commerce between Honduras and the USA and through this protect Honduras' economic interests. Casco sees himself as a middle man ("we work like a liaison between businessmen in the US and businessmen here in Honduras"), and AmCham is proactive in realising its goals it even has its own legal committee to examine and evaluate any new legislation.

When pressed on the current state of the Honduran economy, Casco is realistic: "Definitely, we're not in the best position at this moment…there is a lot to do. We still have to catch up with other countries in this region." The key thing to acknowledge about this "transitional period" is that, although a lot of good has already been done, there is still a long way to go; and it is now vital "to promote and do a lot more marketing of our country. Because actually Honduras has a lot to offer."

Perhaps CAFTA, or the Central American Free Trade Agreement, can help. Casco is effusive on the subject: "CAFTA is important…it's the most important thing that we have to work on now." It will not only allow Honduras to export more (crops, for example, not grown on US soil), but will also reassure foreign investors - provide "a guarantee for all investors that come to Honduras that will safeguard their investment." The workforce is capable; there are plenty of resources - with this added security CAFTA can only prove beneficial.

With the US dominating both the hopes and fears associated with CAFTA, how does Casco see the relationship between Honduras and the most powerful country on the planet? "It's always been a strong friendship. I could almost call it a brotherhood." The USA have initiated many programs that have done a lot of good for the Honduran economy, and their championing of Democracy and Liberty has rubbed off over the years, most recently in the course of the Good Governance initiative.

This is a project for which Casco clearly has a lot of time, and with good reason: a massive success in both Panama and Paraguay, it would involve Honduran businesses' committing to an ethical pact supported by the US Chamber of Commerce and looked on favourably by foreign companies. Along with a program of mutual trade missions, on which American investors come to evaluate Honduran opportunities and Honduran businessmen go to America to benefit from expertise there, it is one of the cornerstones on which Casco hopes to reconstruct his country's fortunes.

And what of the future? Casco's is a mixed message: on one hand unemployment could become even more of an issue, with over half the population under 15 years old and needing jobs soon. Education also leaves a lot to be desired in the majority of cases, and not just in terms of the curriculum - Casco holds poor education responsible for many of the social ills that receive such lurid and gory coverage in the media.

There is a flipside, however. The energy sector is one that invites a lot of favourable speculation, with replacements needed for fossil fuels and the potential for several large-scale hydroelectric farms. The lumber and textile industries have room to grow exponentially, and the assembly plants that have had such success in recent years have shown no sign of slowing. The keyword for Casco is diversification, and whatever rewards CAFTA brings in years to come, for now the Honduran economy is in determined and competent hands.

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Housing for the Middle Classes

With an investment of 42 million Lempiras, the Lafise Bank made its first steps last week in the construction of the Cerro Grande housing Project (zone eight), which will provide more than 280 houses in Tegucigalpa. Targeted at the middle classes, with a family income of between 12 and 15 thousand Lempiras, the houses will cost between 177,000 and 193,000 Lempiras.

El Heraldo

Hondutel promotes national industry

Hondutel, the company with the monopoly on telecommunications in Honduras, suspended the contracts of three foreign companies and rewrote its agreements with 225 Honduran businesses, through which it will create more than a thousand new jobs. The vice-president of Hondutel explained: "At the moment at Hondutel we are developing a project to give the power back to national business - whereas previously the installation of lines was conducted by foreign companies, we are now awarding this contract to Honduran businesses."

La Tribuna

Peasants want protection

The Honduran Coalition for Civilian Action (CHAC) has made a plea to the executive and legislative powerbase of the country that work in the countryside will be not be compromised by the upcoming Free Trade Treaty. The coordinator of the project, Trinidad Sanchez is concerned that there is not sufficient legislation to safeguard the nation's interests and stated "we are demanding that laws are brought into force that which will protect the country's economy but will also support the companies run by peasants, women, children and all the other industries that represent the enormous potential of this country that is currently going unexploited."

La Tribuna

Time runs out for Danmark

The National Commission for Banks and Insurance is set to cancel the permit originally given to the insurance company Danmark International Health Insurance for failure to begin operations by the agreed start date. In April last year, the Central Bank, through resolution 157-4/2005 approved the Danish company's plan to open a branch in Honduras, which Jorge Omar Casco, the company's legal representative, estimated would begin construction in November last year. The company, which has offices in England, France, Spain, and Japan, was unable to start work within the permitted nine months owing to a change of plans on the part of its business partners.

El Heraldo