Vida Humana Internacional

2003

Annual Report

 

In the wake of a nationwide economic and moral crisis, 2003 set a precedent for the work of Vida Humana Internacional (VHI), Human Life International’s Hispanic Division. Our efforts were streamlined to accomplish two goals: (1) to strengthen the work of our affiliates in the Hispanic world and (2) to broaden our base of support. The onslaught of anti-life attacks would become increasingly strong throughout the year and our support of our affiliates was, in many instances, a deciding factor in their hard-won victories. Some of these efforts are related below.

 

It is with great admiration and appreciation that we dedicate this Annual Report to the magnificent pro-life warriors who are the last line of defense against the onslaught of the culture of death in the last Catholic continent. And, to our friends and benefactors who made these efforts possible with their prayers and financial sacrifices.

 

 

Year in Review

 

þ   VHI welcomed two new affiliates from Uruguay: “Asociación Esperanza Uruguay” and “Asociación Vivir en Familia”.

 

þ   As a result of the Aid to Women Network, established in the year 2000 as a joint project of VHI and its affiliate in Mexico, the first Crisis Pregnancy Center in Venezuela opened with funds provided by VHI’s benefactors.

 

þ   VHI produced two important educational tools for the Hispanic pro-life movement: The Mini Pro-life Encyclopedia in CD format and a manual for Catholic counseling on homosexuality. Both works are available from VHI.

 

þ   VHI held its first ever Radio-marathon for Life on Radio Peace 830 AM, the archdiocese's radio station, on the anniversary of the infamous Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion in the US. Thousands of dollars were raised to support the pro-life efforts of VHI’s affiliates in Latin America.

 

þ   To cap a year full of hard-won victories and to plan for the next, Fr. Thomas J. Euteneuer, President of HLI, summoned the First Hispanic Region Affiliate Meeting in November. In attendance were 40 pro-life leaders representing 17 countries.

 

þ   VHI’s weekly radio program Defiende la Vida, and Electronic Newsletter were well received in 2003, with many new listeners and subscribers thanking us for the strength and clarity with which we present the teachings of the Catholic Church.

 

þ   Important additions to our bilingual website included an entire section dedicated to the promotion of the worldwide celebration of the Day the Unborn, spearheaded by VHI’s affiliates in many countries. Also, VHI’s website now has a fully functional PayPal program installed, which enables users to purchase our materials in Spanish on-line through our web site catalog and to send donations.

 

þ   VHI has participated in numerous radio and TV programs throughout the year. VHI’s articles were published by important news outlets, such as: Diario Las Américas, a Hispanic newspaper of wide circulation in South Florida and in the U.S., El Visitante, the weekly newspaper of the Archdiocese of San Juan, Puerto Rico, Militante, the magazine of the Hispanic Cursillo Movement, and La Voz Católica, both of the Archdiocese of Miami.

 

 

Affiliate Projects Funded

 

·       Pro Familia – Buenos Aires, Argentina: Nazareth home for destitute mothers; User course on Natural Family Planning; Domestic violence project.

·       ANE Provida – Cochabamba, Bolivia: First International Conference “For Life and Family”.

·       ProvidaFamilia – Brasilia, Brasil: Operation expenses.

·       Fundación Cultura de la Vida Humana – Bogotá, Colombia: Operation expenses.

·       Movimiento Anónimo por la Vida (MAV) – Santiago, Chile: MAV’s Home for destitute mothers.

·       Fundación Sí a la Vida – San Salvador, El Salvador: Crisis pregnancy center and Home for destitute mothers.

·       ANPROVIDA – Managua, Nicaragua: Operation expenses.

·       SEAVI – Asunción, Paraguay: Pro-life Youth Training; Educational materials.

·       CEPROFARENA – Lima, Perú: Ten month Family Counseling Project; Educational materials.

·       Centro San José – Guaynabo, Puerto Rico: Administrative needs; Educational materials.

·       Voluntarias por la Vida – Edo. Vargas, Venezuela: Home for destitute mothers and orphaned children.

 

 

Missionary Trips to Central and South America.

 

A steadfast commitment of our founder, Fr. Paul Marx, OSB, Ph.D., was to take the Gospel of Life to every country in the world and to do whatever was necessary to support the local pro-life movement. Our president, Fr. Thomas J. Euteneuer, continues that legacy with his many travels around the world. Fr. Tom, as he likes to be called, has a special devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe and every year he begins his missionary trips with a pilgrimage to Mexico, where he prays for the conversion of all who want to establish a culture of death in our societies in front of the tilma that has the miraculous imprint of Our Lady.

 

Fr. Tom’s main goals during his missionary trips are to encourage our local affiliate, to rouse support for the pro-life movement and to give witness to the culture of life in as many forums as possible. To this end, he visits with pro-life leaders, bishops and seminarians. Fr. Tom, who is fluent in Spanish, is often the main speaker at conferences organized by our affiliates on the occasion of his visit. He also participates in press conferences and makes guest appearances on TV and radio programs.

 

On many occasions, Fr. Tom has been invited to meet with high government officials, as was the case when he visited Nicaragua in June of 2003 and had the opportunity to meet with President Enrique Bolaños. Their meeting took place on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception and Fr. Tom invited President Bolaños to consecrate his presidency to the Blessed Mother.

 

In 2003, Fr. Tom visited the following countries in Latin America: Mexico, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Colombia. Adolfo Castañeda, VHI’s Director of Educational Programs, was also a speaker at conferences organized by our affiliates in Bolivia and Paraguay.

 

 

Affiliate Highlights

 

Brazil: Every year, on 28 September, pro-abortion feminists launch an international campaign for the legalization of abortion. Backed by the Ford Foundation and UNFPA among others, they organized anti-life seminars throughout the country. However, the conference held at the University of Brasilia ended abruptly, after the members of Youths For Life, an outreach of ProvidaFamilia, HLI Affiliate, voiced complaints during the talks and distributed materials denouncing the group Catholics for a Free Choice, one of the organizers of the event.

 

El Salvador: Fundación Sí a la Vida, HLI Affiliate, was instrumental in bringing to light the plight of a little girl, who was raped and became pregnant at nine years old. Known as The Ana Case, it was widely publicized throughout the country, after Fundación held a press conference and police authorities arrested the rapist, the girl’s stepfather. Ana was taken to the Fundación’s Home for Destitute Mothers where she received medical, psychological and spiritual assistance. She gave birth to a healthy baby boy whom she loves and refuses to give up for adoption, an option that was presented to her. In August, Julia Regina de Cardenal, Executive Director of Fundación Sí a la Vida, met in Washington D.C. with various members of Congress and of the State Department, to denounce the USAID for providing funds to the government of El Salvador to publish the second edition of an immoral sex education manual titled De adolescente a adolescente. The manual contains offensive drawings and promotes fornication, homosexuality, masturbation, contraception and brothels for teens.

 

Puerto Rico: With the United States Supreme Court decision in Lawrence v Texas in favor of the decriminalization of sodomy, local pro homosexual groups began to assert that they would ask for the rights of marriage and parenting. In response, Centro San José, HLI Affiliate, launched a radio and television campaign in support of family values with a coalition of pro-life groups. Over 175,000 signatures were collected in favor of marriage and the family at the parishes. On Sunday 24 August, hundreds marched with banners and boxes with the signed petitions, accompanied by Archbishop Roberto González-Nieves of San Juan, President of the Puerto Rican Catholic Conference of Bishops. Fr. Euteneuer wrote an article that was published in El Visitante. During the days following the march, several leading legislators announced that they would maintain the Puerto Rican Civil Code definitions of marriage and family. 

 

Argentina: In May, Judge Cristina Garzón de Lascano, federal judge of the district of Córdoba, granted a petition to forbid the sale and distribution of contraceptive abortifacients in the country, since Argentina’s Constitution defends human life from conception. Known as The Judge Garzón Case, there was a furor throughout June among the anti life forces in Argentina, to the point that several congressional members of the National Assembly of Argentina were seeking a political trial against the judge to obtain her removal from the judicial bench. Dr. Oscar Botta, Executive Director of Profamilia, HLI Affiliate, issued a worldwide call, particularly through HLI, asking for letters of support for Judge Garzón.  HLI President Father Thomas Euteneuer sent a letter of support  to Judge Garzón dated 12 June.

 

Colombia: Fundación Cultura de la Vida Humana, HLI Affiliate, achieved two crucial pro-life victories through arduous efforts. In June, it launched an information campaign through Catholic radio, about an impending pro-abortion legislation being debated in the Colombian Senate. The Fundación put together a packet of information that was sent to all the Senators. The packet included videos on prenatal development and critiques from Cardinal Pedro Rubiano, Archbishop of Bogotá, and doctors, lawyers, geneticists and educators. Over 100,000 signatures were sent to the Senate, where pro-lifers were able to make a strong impact with their literature and posters during an open forum before the Senators. Fundación sent a letter to the President of Colombia along with 1000 additional signatures. The Cardinal also sent a letter to the President at the request of Fundación. As a result of all these efforts, the bill was withdrawn at the behest of the Ministry of Health. During August, the Colombian Catholic Conference of Bishops publicly expressed their opposition to a proposed bill that would have granted “civil union” status to homosexual cohabitation. In the end, the bill was voted down due to the pressure exerted by the Bishops and the information presented by Fundación before members of congress.

 

 

On The Horizon

 

We continue to promote and support the work of our affiliates. We are working on a fundraising plan to help raise the seventy thousand dollars plus needed to fund affiliate projects. Already this year, we have received some urgent requests from our affiliates and have been able to grant a small part of the funds requested. We pray that the Lord will move many hearts to aid us in this endeavor.

 

Our affiliates are planning several pro-life conferences at the national level. Some will undertake new projects, such as: the Family Counseling Project in Peru, the Domestic Violence Outreach in Argentina, and a Legislators’ Outreach in Brazil. At least one new Crisis pregnancy center will open with the help of VHI through the Aid to Women Network in 2004, and possibly a second center if the funds allow.

 

We ask for your prayerful support for our affiliates, so they may remain steadfast and strong in defense of life, faith and family.

 

Our deepest gratitude to all our friends and benefactors who made these efforts possible with their continuing support.

CAPTION FOR PICTURE: Fr. Thomas J. Euteneuer, President of HLI, and Joseph Meaney, Director of International Coordination, present to the Holy Father a document stating the number of prayers said during the HLI 2003 prayer campaign for the conversion of International Planned Parenthood. HLI received over 7.9 million Rosary pledges, including over 3.4 from Latin America and Spain.