Politics Daily: Peace Corps turns 50 amid charges of rape, murder and coverup

[BeachSkin]

On the night of March 11, 2009, a 24-year-old Peace Corps volunteer named Kate Puzey was tied up and knifed on the front porch of her house in West Africa. Her throat was cut. She was killed the way you would slaughter a goat, Puzey's cousin told ABC's "20/20" in a Jan. 15 broadcast. Kate Puzey was the 23rd volunteer to be murdered in Peace Corps history.

More at link: http://www.politicsdaily.com/2011/01/17/peace-corps-turns-50-amid-charges-of-rape-murder-and-cover-up/?ncid=webmail

[Beans]

This little tidbit had me floored:

"In 1976, Gardner was known as the prettiest girl in the Peace Corps. Rightfully so. She taught high school on an island in the South Pacific. She was stabbed 22 times by Dennis Priven, a fellow volunteer who was stalking her. He pleaded insanity. Due to technicalities in the law, her killer not only went free, he ended up with a high-paying job in the Social Security Administration. He retired at the age of 51, probably with a nice pension."

[Rudechain]

While I never was in Peace Corps ( though I did work with VISTA for a while) I think it has done some good in this world. Not only for the communities the Peace Corps works with but those individuals volunteering.

One individual I know worked in the Peace Corps and was stationed in SE Asia creating irrigation systems. He met his wife who was an RN working with the Peace Corps. Both of these people feel the time they served opened them up to more cultural influences and set of a spark of compassion. ( probably not the only reason but in speaking with them you can tell the time in the Peace Corps had a great impact on them and they speak very positively.)

I do feel bad for the 23 who have been murdered though. However, with the number of volunteers who have worked in the Peace Corps, I would have suspected that number to be a little higher actually.

Just based on past experience in Vista, I think volunteering to aid our fellow man is a very good thing and I would encourage anyone to give it a try. While I did not go abroad, I did work with the homeless and mentally ill homeless in DC. I learned so much about mental illness, alcoholism, drug abuse and how resilient the human spirit can be. As a result of my time with Vista, my level of compassion for my fellow man did rise. ( and I think we could all afford to show a little more compassion in this day and age)

[Burgold]

Interesting choice... instead of celebrating fifty years of the accomplishments, friendships and cultural bridges built they focus on the tragedies. Thankfully, 23 is a small number over 50 years which I think makes them the exception and not the rule. Anyway, the murders and attrocities that happen are terrible, but we shouldn't lose sight of all the good, generosity, and growth made over the years either.

[Madison Redskin]

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[dockeryfan]

But is the job any more dangerous than any other job? I would think no.

[Rudechain]

But is the job any more dangerous than any other job? I would think no.

Well I think it's what you do and where your stationed. Some members of the Corps function only in an administration basis while some teach and others work on building infrastructure. Of course there will be inherent dangers based on location ( disease, snake bites or civil strife) but like you I don't believe looking at the whole it's not.

I can say that when I worked with VISTA I was placed in some uncomfortable situations that had the potential to be dangerous but it was overall a chance to face any fears and build my own character. It's sad that 23 people have died in it's history but that number is no more out of line than any other profession. And given some of the climates volunteers work in, it's actually interesting more have not lost their lives at the hands of others.

[JMS]

I spent 2 years in west aftica as a peace corps volenteer ( got paid as a local). I spent an additional year as a consultant helping new volenteers with their assignments.

I entered the peace corps to help people. What I took away from the experience was how totally unprepared and ineffective most organizaitons are with regard to helpoing folks in the third world.. I went away from the experience jaded, and pragmatic. My inditement was not at all directed at the Peace Corps, because their venue gave me a birds eye seat to witness all the NGO's who attempt to decend upon a country to offer assistance. The waste is unbelievable. The stupid mistakes. The corruption and yes the danger..

In the villiage I worked at we had a witch doctor who often sat in for the doctor at the local hospital when the doctor was traveling. I thoujght that was pretty peculier until I figured out what he was really all about. People would come to this man an pay him to "curse" folks. you would see the witch doctor overtly observing his potential victems to see "if they deserved to be cursed". If they were deserving the man would use a machette on them, murder them, and the villagers would speak of it as a super natural visitation. This was one of the leading men in the village.

When my sister came and visited me I introduced her to him because to do otherwise would be a slight. I instructed her not to tell him any details about herself that were personal or she cared about. In the conversation my sister spoke of her sorority at college. Took a little explaining. I told him it was a kind of substitute family for people when they are away from home at school. The man quickly tried to use what little knowlege my sister had given him to try to extort a bribe from her. "There will be a huge fight in your sorority, and you will be in the middle of it"; Fenses will be broken which can not be mended... You can avoid this by paying me two chichens and a goat.

Then there were the theives. if you were unfortunate enough to catch somebody stealing from you, you could expect the fight of your life to subdue them or even escape with your life. In the country I was in thevery brought a death sentence; and folks would fight like hell to escape. Simple burgulary could easily turn into murder because the theif really had nothing to loose. The most dangerous time was when it rained. The huts folks lived in had tin roofs. The rain would create a deafening noise. That's when it was the most dangerous becuase the theives would come out and could be in your home and you totally unaware of them. Walking to your kitchen could get you killed.

Coarse then their are the deseases. I contracted milaria in Africa. Something that will be with me for the rest of my life.

The graft and corruption were beyond what I could possible believe. In africa there is no nationalism. People are loyal to their families and their tribes, country means nothing. Coutry reflects a arbitrary line some Brit drew on a line decades ago. Nothing else. Typically tribes reside in different countries. Many africans would knowingly and actively sabatoge public works projects because it meant providing services to rival tribes. That those same works projects would also provide services to themselves was secondary.

Anyway my big take away from the Peace Corps wasn't that I had done good or helped people. I did try. My big take away was just to experience how these people lived. Gave me some little understanding of what motivated them; and how futile and really unsophisticated western aid organization are in dealing with their problems....

The country I was in was lucky enough to get a "donation" / grant of a multi million dollar piece of equipement from the American Rotery Club. The Rotarians thought they were prety smart, never having stepped foot in africa. They hired an expert and determined what was needed was a modern crain to improve the local economy. Help their import and exports and improve the fine natural harbor these people enjoyed. So they packed up a ship with the multi million dollar crain and the experts needed to unload and construct the infrastructure for the port. They forgot the bribe money. The harbor master couldn't steal pieces of equpement; he wanted cash. The rotarians refused to pay bribes or be "taxed" on a donation. The crain was never unloaded much less installed. That's kind of symbolic of all the aid groups I saw visit that country over the few years I was there. Well financed, well meaning people who fundimentaly didni't understand what they were doing or how to go about it in country.

[Special K]

I spent 2 years in west aftica as a peace corps volenteer ( got paid as a local). I spent an additional year as a consultant helping new volenteers with their assignments.
Cool experience JMS. What year were you in the Peace Corps? There has been a pretty dramatic change with NGO approach to humanitarian aid and sustainable projects in the developing world, just in the last decade or 2...

Sounds like your experience wasn't exactly what you expected, but definitely opened your eyes to many things...which, IMO, is one of the very important aspects of the Peace Corps.

I got to meet up with a bunch of the PCV's during my time in Madagascar and had an amazing time with them. This was the first cadre of PCVs let back into Madagascar after one of their volunteers was beheaded a few years back (by a villager who would not take no when he proposed marriage to her, stalked her, and eventually murdered her - as a side note, he was caught, placed in prison, escaped, and the Peace Corps hired a man to hunt him back down and put him back in prison, where he currently now is). Incidently, they were originally set to be in Niger, but were relocated to Madagascar after westerners started getting kidnapped more frequently in Niger.

Anyway, not only was I excited to be able to speak to people in fluent in both my home language and culture after several months of relative cultural isolation, it was very interesting to observe how they lived and worked. Where they were was definitely no picnic. We stayed a weekend at one of the girl's bungalows in the bush, helped her garden and do stuff around her little home, and visited with the locals...it was fun because I had her and another friend around. I can't imagine how I'd do 60 km into the bush, completely isolated, and homesick, gardening for my food and trying not to starve to death a prized chick the villagers gave me on my first day in the village so as not to offend them.

Anywho, I came away with much more respect for PCVs after our little trip to our friend's village. While I think that what the volunteers do is important for facilitating goodwill in developing countries, I think it's a great program for Americans to enter and learn more about themselves and life outside our plush, cushioned little bubble here in America. If I had a child who wanted to enter the Peace Corps, even a daughter, I would be very supportive of her doing so. I think the dangers are blown out of proportion, personally.