Toncontin Airport: Highway or runway?

Caroline Knell & Tess Gool
Honduras This Week

Toncontin Airport in Tegucigalpa is well known for being one of the trickiest airports in the world to land. So well known in fact, that one individual has actually taken the time to film a plane coming safely in to land at the airport and subsequently posted it on the video website ‘YouTube’ for everybody to see. Rest assured, however, only the best trained pilots are allowed to land at Toncontin Airport and in most cases, a safe landing will often receive a rapturous applause from relieved passengers.

The main issue with the airport, apart from its physical location next to a sierra, is its surprisingly short and only runway, a mere 2,500 meters in length, which causes pilots to break very fast when they are preparing to land.

In addition to the runway, vultures that are attracted to the litter in the Comayaguela markets located near the airport are becoming not only a real nuisance, but dangerous. As they fly so close to the airport, they are in hitting the cockpit window or worse, getting caught in the turbine. For many of the international carriers, this is not a major problem, as Ernesto from Continental Airlines explained, “Birds are usually a problem early morning, and late afternoon. So, they are not a problem for Continental because our flights are midday.”

This does not solve the problem for other airlines flying later and is very much still an issue for the government to resolve. The Direccion General De Aeronautica Civil, Guillermo Seaman, mentioned that although there have been “written requests made, there are still difficulties because of the markets.” These markets, located below the planes’ flight paths a couple of miles away from the airport, are a huge problem with regards to rubbish. Despite the numerous problems linked to the rubbish, the government has still yet to do something about it. The only suggestion so far is more a deterrence than anything else: to divert the airplanes and get them to avoid the markets, making an already difficult and skilled landing, even more complicated and lengthy.

Despite this, and the issue of the length of the runway Seaman still maintains that Toncontin is “one of the safest airports in the world,” with only “12 crashes in 72 years of operation.” In a contradiction to this, they are just finishing a 400 meter extension of the runway because as Seaman said himself, “one more day of safety is worth it, is very important and cannot wait.”

As Ernesto from Continental mentioned, “everyday, you worry, no matter how experienced, because it’s tricky; even the most experienced pilots find it difficult to land.” Indeed, Martin Rosales, manager of Copa Airlines at Toncontin airport, who have had a presence there for the last 5 years and have had no crashes, commented, “at Toncontín we all have to work together, all the airlines.”

Although they may work together at the airport, there is an evident lack of working together between the private companies and the Honduran government.

Both Martin and Ernesto were apprehensive about the idea of the government building a highway connecting Comayagua and Tegucigalpa, which would enable the current military airbase (used by both the U.S. and Honduran governments) in Comayagua to be used as an international airbase. Seaman confirmed that work was already under way and it is being completely funded by the Honduran government with no international financial aid. That said, Seaman admitted that they have not gotten enough funds to finish it, the hope being that once it is started, the international community will help contribute. Whether plans are being drawn up or actual construction was underway was not made clear.

The lack of communication between the public and the private organizations concerning the airport may cause further problems for Toncontin. Ernesto from Continental said he preferred the idea of moving the international airport status to Comayagua (for peace of mind), Martin from Copa was not so sure. He said, “The best solution would be to cut into the hill (around Tegucigalpa) and extend it for operational convenience.” Further lack of communication was demonstrated by Carlos Cerbantes, head manager of Inter airways (the private company that owns the airport) as he responded “no comment,” therefore implying that he is not comfortable discussing it before understanding the governmental department of aeronautical viewpoint.

Japanese volunteers arrive in Honduras

A group of eight Japanese volunteers, sponsored by the volunteer programs of the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA), has recently arrived to Honduras in order to facilitate technical assistance in different professional fields. The volunteers will be providing their services for two years.

Three of the junior volunteers will be collaborating in the areas of elementary education, sewing, and music education. The rest of the group includes five senior volunteers who provide input and expertise at the Professional Training National Institute (INFOP.)

Presently, there are 60 junior volunteers who are working all over Honduras in the areas of education, health, sports, archeology, textile production, art, and Japanese as a second language, among others. There is also a group of senior volunteers who cooperate in the fields of tourism, flower-growing, environment education, curricular design in mechanical metal industry, and handicraft instruction to persons who have a disability.

The volunteer programs are well-regarded in developing coun­tries such as Honduras an initiative that directly benefits its people. In 1975, Honduras and Japan signed an agreement to have Japanese volunteers in Honduras to assist with its development. From 1976 through June of 2007, Honduras has received a total of 946 junior volunteers and 150 senior volunteers from Japan.

3 billion lempira payment agreement reached between thermal energy companies and gov’t

Alvaro Morales Molina
Honduras This Week

Government representatives and thermal energy generators met and agreed upon a deferred payment plan of more than 3 billion lempiras, the amount owed by the National Energy Company (ENEE) to three Honduran thermal energy providers.

“Blackouts never should have been discussed, much less considered,” said Oscar Galeano, president of the Honduran Counsel for Private Entrepreneurs (COHEP), based in Tegucigalpa.

After a lengthy meeting that took place in the Presidential House, representatives of COHEP, the National Association of Industry (ANDI) and offi­cials of the Secretary of Finance announced that the government has committed to pay 300 million lempiras toward its debt for energy supplies, an amount that was previ­ously budgeted. The rest will be paid in deferments, based on the financial standing of the State.

The agreement was reached during a meeting held in the Constitutional Hall of the Presidential House and included the president of COHEP, Oscar Galeano, the president of ANDI, Adolph Facusse, representatives of thermal companies LUFUSA, ENERSA and ELCOSA, and members of the Honduran Association of Banking Institutions (AHIBA).

Government representa­tion included President Zelaya, Minister of the Presidency, Enrique Flores, Minister of Finance, Rebeca Santos, Minister of Energy and new Manager of ENEE, Riccy Moncada and as an honor witness, the president of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Tegucigalpa (CCIT), Amilcar Zúniga.

Until now, the ENEE has maintained a contractual commitment of more than 3 billion lempiras to industrial conglom­erates LUFUSA, ENERSA and ELCOSAH. In spite of the delay in payments, company officials questioned reports of possible suspension or interruption of elec­trical service in Honduras.

Oscar Galeano, president of COHEP, affirmed that the meeting allowed for open dialogue concerning a viable solution to the financial problems affecting the national electrical company. “All parties were able to discuss freely, the situation at hand between the thermal companies and the govern­ment,” Galeano commented at the press conference. He added that options were discussed and that he felt confident a solution would be reached. “People must be assured that power will not be interrupted,” concluded Galeano.

About the distribution of energy, Galeano reiterated that “the blackouts should have never been spoken of as a possibility.” Meeting participants discussed mechanisms for timely payments that would allow for uninterrupted flow of fuels to support energy demands.

The business leader assured that there are no imposed terms on the government, and no one has demanded the fulfillment of quotas. To prove his point, Galeano explained that, “boats (that carry oil) continue arriving on schedule into Honduran ports. There is a perception of a crisis situation, when, in fact, there is none.”

The President of ANDI assured that 200 thousand barrels of oil (at a price of $70 USD per barrel) is about to arrive at the country. Meanwhile, the government must resolve some 14 million dollars owed to the thermal companies and look for a system of fluid and sustainable payment.

He also expressed his approval of the international fuel transac­tion agreement with PetroCaribe, because, according to the official, “the financing with Venezuela will help the ENEE and the country in general.”

Salomón Ordoñez, a representative of ELCOSA, a thermal energy generator, explained that “the Minister of Finance has informed us that in the coming weeks, they (the government) will present a payment plan with a long-term solution that can be supported by the national budget.”

“The only thing that we are solving is the short-term crisis. The government is preparing the distribution of 300 million lempiras, but specifically we have seen good reception from the ministers with President Zelaya. Ordonez also added that nevertheless, the financial situation does not justify the possibility of presumed blackouts or cuts in the electrical service in the country.

The Myth about Volunteerism in Honduras

Marco Cáceres
projecthonduras.com

Back in 2002, President Ricardo Maduro wisely established the Agency on Volunteerism. Its official name was the “Agencia Presidencial para el Voluntariado,” and its director was a businessman by the name of Otto Martinez. The mission of the agency was to promote volunteerism in Honduras and strengthen the organized participation of society in the search for solutions to community problems.

The idea was a good one because it sought to create a thoughtful system for inspiring, structuring, and coordinating volunteer efforts to help people in need in Honduras. It sought to dispel the myth that Hondurans do not naturally possess a spirit of volunteerism… the desire, willingness, and ability to give selflessly of themselves and their resources to others.

I say it’s a myth because it is not based on reality but rather an unfortunate stereotype of Hondurans being apathetic.

The stereotype is fed by the difficulty (or perceived difficulty) of getting Hondurans to regularly give their time, treasure, and knowledge freely to humanitarian causes. However, merely because something is difficult doesn’t mean that it does not happen, or could not happen with greater frequency.

The fact is that the spirit of volunteerism is fairly common in Honduras’ rural communities where people generally know, trust, and relate to each other. I have seen countless examples of this in dozens of villages in the mountains around the towns of Copán Ruinas and Santa Rita de Copán. Volunteerism is extremely evident in the country­side because that is how things that need to get done in a community for that community to survive often end up getting done.

I think the myth that volun­teerism is alien to Honduran culture has evolved largely in Honduras’ towns and cities where perhaps there is more of a tendency for people to be disconnected from each other and thus indifferent to the plight of others. Thus, the issue is not about the presence of a volunteer spirit. It has to do with the relative isolation that many Hondurans feel in urban areas—an isolation resulting from any number of factors.

One factor is certainly tied to the mass migrations of poor Hondurans from the countryside to the population centers of Honduras. The migrations have had the effect of decimating rural communities and producing tens of thousands (perhaps more) of defacto nomadic exiles, leaving these individuals without the minimum level of mental peace they require to give of themselves freely.

It is in these new, unknown and often scary environments that people find it difficult to want (or be able) to volunteer for anything. And even if they were willing to volunteer, many people simply would not know where to begin to get involved.

But it is not because Hondurans lack the desire to volunteer. It is just that the isolated circumstances in which many Hondurans find themselves do not lend themselves easily to creating opportuni­ties for the spirit of volunteerism to express itself. Volunteerism is expressed best within communities, not in isolation.

Note that the problem of isolation is not only a lower class problem. It also exists within the middle and upper classes of Honduras. The wealthy in Honduras are some of the most isolated people I’ve ever observed. While they may not feel isolated from each other, they are relatively isolated from the vast portion of Honduras’ population, both physically and empathetically. Part of this has to do with the sizeable class differences. Part of it has to do with fear of crime.

One symptom of this isolation is the relative lack of incentives and ready avenues that exist for the wealthy to consistently volunteer to assist those in need. Again, it is not that wealthy Hondurans do not possess the spirit of volunteerism. It has more to do with the circumstances of living in isolation.

Hondurans have within them the spirit of volunteerism. The chal­lenge is finding ways to nurture this spirit and allow it to come out in practical ways that make a difference in the lives of millions of Hondurans. I had hoped that the Agency on Volunteerism would serve as a catalyst for Honduran volunteers, and that it could work together with projecthonduras.com and its network of international volunteers. I’m not sure that the agency ever truly got off the ground or even exists anymore. But Mr. Maduro was on the right track.

I believe Honduras This Week can help fill the vacuum that exists for some sort of informative and coordinating body for volunteer efforts in Honduras.

The first step in this vision will be the creation of a new segment within the newspaper called “Volunteerism.”

The Traditional Bio-fuel: Firewood, Part 1

Robert Conklin
Honduras This Week

Wars, invasions and the deaths of millions: this is a high price for an addiction to oil. A power-outage can shut down 400,000 air-conditioners and turning tons of ice cream into pasty mush. Petro-Caribe alliances create hysteria. We respond to these. But who cares about firewood? The answer: at least three million Hondurans who use it everyday.

The privileged classes (a much higher percentage in the industrialized world) run their homes on electricity, with the addition of piped-in natural gas in some situations. Lower on the socio-economic scale, bottled propane gas and kerosene cut into electricity use. As we descend the class and money scale, we see electricity fall from use, then propane, and finally kerosene. But even before we had barely begun our descent toward poverty, a traditional bio-fuel had entered into the energy pool: fire­wood.

In most of the third world, fire­wood is clung to, even sometimes by the very rich, as a domestic fuel of choice, at least for some regular operations, including roasting meat, baking tortillas, and toasting or brewing coffee. It is not uncommon to see a luxury, four-wheel drive pickup pulled up behind a mansion in the city unloading firewood. On the other hand, no banking wizard is likely to order his soup boiled on a kerosene stove.

Firewood is used by billions of human beings, and probably for at least one billion of them, it is the only domestic fuel available. A rise in the cost of gasoline or of a kilo-watt-hour of electricity will not bring gasps from the firewood users, though you wouldn´t guess that if you listened to the whiners on the radio or TV. You would think everybody drives a Toyota of some sort and understands what a rise in gasoline prices means to their pocketbook. In Honduras, the opposite is true: most people don´t drive anything and can´t sympathize with the miseries of someone fortunate enough to own a car in the first place. Raise the price of firewood, or cut back on the fire­wood supply, you will get to them all right.

It needs to be pointed out that the interconnectedness of all this is not lost on our ¨humble¨ neighbors. They know that somewhere down the line, high prices for gasoline will push demand and price up on firewood, but somehow they can´t quite avoid smiling about the car-owners plight. Still they do know, in at least a rude sense, that high energy prices hit everybody, though they may not completely understand the specifics.

And after all, just how much do we know about the price of a mule-load of firewood? (Here in the Siguatepeque area of Central Honduras, firewood in the rural areas costs about $2.50 to $3.00 per load of 200 pounds. In town, the cost doubles.)

One of the enduring rituals of rural life in Honduras is the rituals of searching, gathering, and burning of firewood, called ¨leña.” Burning of firewood is a mainstay of the rural-life atmosphere. Years after people leave the countryside, no matter where they may end up, they often gather to do the fire­wood ¨ceremony¨-- “get your sticks so we can heat some tortillas.” One of my early memories of Honduras is of children in the capital city scrounging for burnables, sometimes just dried, tough weeds. Occasionally it was a table leg. It was obvious that these youngsters felt that they were engaged in a worthwhile task.

For me and my neighbors, there is nothing ¨cultural¨ or ¨folkloric¨ about firewood. We bring in the firewood if we want to eat, because the alternatives are too expensive or too unavailable. A frequent housewifely complaint is, “I never have any firewood around here. What´s the use of having men in the house if they can´t keep up a stack of firewood?” There is really no good answer to that question, so then and there you dash off to the trees, rain or shine. If it’s raining, the wood comes in wet, and more complaints will follow. My boys would like to say, “We´ve been cutting and hauling cane grass all day,” but they tried that before and only got “You think more of those cows than you do of your own mother.”

To know something about fire­wood, you have to be dependent on it for awhile. Then you begin to develop a feeling for the smoke wafting from adobe houses or from their add-on kitchens. You watch kids ascending the mountains each day, returning with packets of sticks wound in old feed sacks. You smile at the toothless lady with her chin nearly touching her nose, an Arab-style swirl of towel crowning her head, topped off by fuel sticks cinched together with rope, nearly a hundred pounds-worth.

Then there are the mature men, not kids anymore, hauling tree trunks on their shoulders down the mountain after their work in the fields. You can imagine them finding that sylvan treasure on a work-break and planning to haul it home, in hopes of some homely compliment. “That oughta burn for at least fifteen minutes, Juana!” Our hero throws what looks like a huge crocodile down in front of the kitchen and then machetes it into lengths and axe it into sticks. These are daily dramas, repeated over and over across the mountain sides of the tropics.

It has been observed by energy statisticians that the energy value of wood consumed as fuel is three times that consumed as food, presumably by the users of fire­wood; mull the implications of that for awhile. About one mule-load (200 pounds) of wood will last a Honduran household about a week if that is their only fuel source. Some Hondurans switched to propane gas, but when gas prices rose, they went back to firewood. Still, firewood supplies are dwindling, while alternative fuels are rising in price.

Using firewood as a domestic fuel affects the life of the user. Firewood use is a constant. Every day before dawn, a flaming match touches the kindling in the clay stove and the last smoke drifts away long after dark. The stove with its flicker and glow draws family and visitor alike to its side. On cold, rainy days the kitchen fire is especially inviting.

Nearly everyone in the family gathers firewood. Some contribute a stick or a branch every time they return from work. Others, usually the older children, are sent out to bring in loads on demand. Occasionally the lady of the house organizes firewood brigades of from six to twelve gatherers, some of them mere toddlers. The end result is a pile of sticks near the kitchen and sometimes posts, logs and branches scattered about the yard. Often, well into an evening when our lady complains that there is no firewood, a hasty collection of the woody material scattered about the yard is sufficient to satisfy the immediate demand.

There is no vacation from the demands of the wood-burning stove. Two to three hundred pounds of wood will be burned each week, fifty-two weeks per year; it´s not a weekend camping trip.

Part 2 of "Firewood: The original Bio-Fuel" will appear in next week's edition of "Honduras This Week."

Health Matters
Physical Therapist vs. Sports Physical Therapist: What’s the difference?

Ivonne Van leest
Honduras This Week

As this is my first article about health issues and, as I am a certified sports physical therapist, I would like to start by explaining some basic terminology in my profession. If I were to ask you the difference between a horse and an animal, you would probably reply, “well, a horse is a type of animal, but not all animals are horses,” right? Now, let me ask you: what’s the difference between a physical therapist and a sports physical therapist? My response is similar to the horse scenario: a sports physical therapist is a physical therapist, but not all physical therapists are sports physical therapists and further, not all are able to treat sport injuries correctly. You might think the only difference is that sports physical therapists only treat sports-related injuries. That’s close enough, but there are some distinctions.

Physical therapy (or physio­therapy) is a healthcare profession focused on the prevention and management of movement and pain disorders arising from conditions and diseases occurring throughout the lifespan, using specially designed exercises and equipment.

That’s what best describes the initial approach of both professions when treating a sports-related injury. The customary laser, ultrasound, electrical stimulation, ice pack, etc., to reduce pain and swelling will do for the first 2 to 5 days, but then we’ll have to start doing some mobilizing exercises in order not to have the patient leave with mobility problems or ROM (Range of Motion) problems. So, starting the exercise program to regain normal ROM starts somewhere from day 2 up to day 5, and will take about 14 days, depending on the injury. Most doctors and physical therapists will release the patient after that, because the pain has subsided, swelling has gone down and the ROM is normal. And when we think that a athlete can then just go back onto the field and pick up his sport again, we are so wrong. It doesn’t matter whether we are dealing with a professional athlete or a recreational one; somebody has to fill the gap between being without pain and performing again. And that is exactly what the Sports Physical Therapist has studied: sports specific exercises.

The Sports Physical Therapist is specialized to treat sport injuries with a wide range of sports specific exercises. So, no ultrasound, electrical stimulation or laser - just sports specific exercises. We might use special equipment including the Power Plate, weights, or a tread­mill inside the clinic, but in general we’ll, recommend sport specific exercises or exercises related to the sport that the athlete performs. Our goal is to get the athlete back to his/her normal competition level in terms of speed, muscle strength, flexibility, muscle coordination and cardio-vascular capacity. So, it’s inevitable that the sports physical therapist has some sort of sport experience and/or can evaluate the different sports to suggest the right exercises. In professional teams all over the world, the sports physical therapist is working in the field together with the physical trainer, and in some countries, their specialty is referred to as “Recuperation Physical Trainer.” Unfortunately, here in Honduras, we are far from that reality, but we are trying to do the best we can by educating athletes in a medical gym designed to help them get back in their game and prevent them from reinjuring themselves.

Do you have questions or ideas for this column? Please write me at ivleest@yahoo.com!