Strike!

It's our first strike or "huelga" of the school year. Public transportation leaders decided to take a few hours off to march to the capital and make more demands. It isn't an all day strike, but because of the time it comes, it will interfere with our students and staff's arrival at school. These strikes aren't always announced, so one may find oneself in the street, far from home, with a long walk ahead.

People here feel powerless against the mafia of public transportation. Frankly, public car drivers I've spoken with feel the same; they don't dare keep driving when they are told to strike. The public transportation sector shuts down the country any time it wants to, and usually that's once a month or more. The impact on the economy is devastating. These strikes assure that the country will remain in poverty for the foreseeable future.

I don't want to get political. But this is something that is constantly affecting our ability to minister here. A single leader, could turn the whole thing around, and empower the people. Where is that leader? Pray that the Lord will raise up a Dominican David who is willing to defy the Goliath of this mafia.