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Paraguay

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Images of the Volkswagen Amarok which will cross Latin America from North to South, in a challenging 19,220 km journey, passing through over 14 countries including Uruguay, Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala and Mexico.  Asuncion, Paraguay. 23/03/2010.

Started on February 25, 2010 at Montevideo, Uruguay, 3 pick up Volkswagen Amarok will cross Latin America from South to North, challenging 19.220 km., passing over 14 countries including Uruguay, Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala and Mexico.  Asuncion, Paraguay, 2010/03/23.

Partiendo el 25 de Febrero del 2010 desde Montevideo, Uruguay, 3 pick up Volkswagen Amarok atravesaran Latinoamerica de Sur a Norte, desafiando 19.220 km., pasando por 14 paises incluyendo Uruguay, Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala and Mexico. Asuncion, Paraguay, 2010/03/23.

Sports

Latin American Stage of Amarok Challenge, Paraguay

DMTX. Images of the Volkswagen Amarok which will cross Latin America from North to South, in a challenging 19,220 km journey, passing through over 14...

by Andre M. Chang in Paraguay on 23/03/2010

A storm moved through the Alto Parana, in Paraguay today. After strong winds, the torrential rain forced vehicles and buses to stop beside the road. Alto Parana, Paraguay. 13/03/2010.

Una tormenta llegando al Departamento de Alto Parana, Paraguay. Despues de fuertes vientos, la lluvia torrencial obligo a vehiculos y autobuses a que parasen al costado de la ruta. Alto Parana, Paraguay. 13-03-2010.

Environment

A storm over Alto Parana, Paraguay

DMTX. A storm moved through the Alto Parana, in Paraguay today. After strong winds, the torrential rain forced vehicles and buses to stop beside the...

by Andre M. Chang in Paraguay on 13/03/2010

The soil in Paraguay is of such a deep red that it seems to be stained with blood. But for this country the likeness is more than mere coincidence.  

Ko´aga Roñe´ëta means Hear Us Now in Guarani, Paraguay’s indigenous language. It is the title of a book published in 1990 that documents a series of testimonies made by land workers from Missiones province against state terror during the dictatorship of Alfredo Stroessner from 1954 to 1989. Some three to four thousand people were killed under his regime, which used kidnap, torture and assassination.

From 1976 onwards Misiones suffered greater repression than any other region. It was the cradle of the Christian Agrarian Leagues (LAC), which Stroessner accused of being Communist. Its members – landless peasants and the poor – pioneered a reinterpretation of the bible with the help of priests allied to liberation theology.* It espoused the idea that they had been forsaken by God.

In February this year I went to Misiones and worked on two projects. The first was a series of portraits of LAC members who had been kidnapped, tortured, raped and imprisoned from 1976 onwards. The second was to photograph the daily life of the subsequent generations of peasants who live and work in a cooperative on land that they have acquired through their struggle.

On the 20 April Paraguayans will celebrate the first anniversary of the priest Fernando Lugo’s victory in presidential elections. This milestone brought to an end the Colorado Party’s sixty years in power. On the 15 August Lugo will have served one year in office. 

In a country that has yet to prosecute a single person for human rights violations, this photo essay is in honour of the definition of photojournalism that appears in the prologue of James Nactwey’s book, Hell: to give a voice to those who are silent. Ko´aga Roñe´ëta. Hear Us Now.

* Today eight out of ten hectares are owned by one per cent of the population.

Hear Us Now, Víctimas de la Dictadura en el Paraguay

En Paraguay la tierra es tan roja que parece regada con sangre. Pero en este país, esto no es metáfora.

Ko´aga Roñe´ëta -que en lengua Guaraní significa Ahora Hablaremos- es el título de un libro editado en Paraguay en el año 1990 y que condensa una serie de testimonios de campesinos de la provincia de Misiones sometidos al Terrorismo de Estado durante la Dictadura de Alfredo Stroessner (1954-1989)*.

Misiones, la Provincia paraguaya más castigada desde 1976, fue la cuna de las Ligas Agrarias Cristianas del Paraguay (LAC). Sus miembros -campesinos sin tierra** pobres, desnutridos y analfabetos- llevaron adelante, con la colaboración de sacerdotes alineados en la Teología de la Liberación, una reinterpretación de la Biblia. Entendían que hasta Ñandejara hesarái orehegui (“hasta Nuestro Señor se olvidó de nosotros”, en lengua guaraní).    

En febrero de este año viajé a Misiones y dividí mi trabajo en dos: por un lado, una serie de retratos de campesinos de las Ligas Agrarias Cristianas secuestrados, torturados, violados y encarcelados por un promedio de 2 años a partir de 1976; por el otro, imágenes de la actual vida cotidiana de la nueva generación de campesinos que viven y trabajan en los campos adquiridos de manera colectiva como fruto de su lucha. 

El próximo 20 de abril, los paraguayos celebrarán el primer aniversario del triunfo del sacerdote Fernando Lugo en las elecciones presidenciales. Este hito acabó con la ininterrumpida continuidad del Partido Colorado en el poder central por más de sesenta años.
El 15 de Agosto de 2009, Fernando Lugo cumplirá un año en el Poder. 

En un país que a la fecha no ha juzgado ni condenado por violaciones a los Derechos Humanos a uno sólo de sus dictadores, este ensayo fotográfico pretende hacer honor de aquella definición sobre fotoperiodismo que apareciera en el prólogo del libro Inferno, de James Nachtwey: dar voz a quién no la tiene. Ko´aga Roñe´ëta. Now we will talk.

* Durante su régimen fueron asesinadas entre 3000 y 4000 personas. Empleó la tortura, el secuestro y el asesinato político. 
** En la actualidad, en Paraguay, 8 de cada diez hectáreas están en poder del 1% de la población.

Politics

Hear Us Now, Victims of the Dictatorship in Paraguay

Paraguay lived under military dictatorship from 1954 to 1989. Under the regime of dictator Alfredo Stroessner were killed, at least between 3000 and...

by Andrés Riveras in Paraguay on 17/03/2009

23/03/2010 - Latin American Stage of Amarok Challenge, Paraguay - Paraguay - DMTX. Images of the Volkswagen Amarok...
13/03/2010 - A storm over Alto Parana, Paraguay - Paraguay - DMTX. A storm moved through the Alto...
17/03/2009 - Hear Us Now, Victims of the Dictatorship in Paraguay - Paraguay - Paraguay lived under military...

Latest News

Latin American Stage of Amarok Challenge, Paraguay
DMTX. Images of the Volkswagen Amarok which will cross Latin America from North to South, in a challenging 19,220 km journey, passing through over 14 countries including Uruguay, Argent...
A storm over Alto Parana, Paraguay
DMTX. A storm moved through the Alto Parana, in Paraguay today. After strong winds, the torrential rain forced vehicles and buses to stop beside the road. Alto Parana, Paraguay. 13/03/2...
Hear Us Now, Victims of the Dictatorship in Paraguay
Paraguay lived under military dictatorship from 1954 to 1989. Under the regime of dictator Alfredo Stroessner were killed, at least between 3000 and 4000 people. He used torture, kidnap...