Angry PCVs write Celeste: Leaving El Salvador 1979 – 80 Part Four
On February 27th, 13 Volunteers who had been evacuated to Guatemala wrote and signed a letter to Celeste. In the December 27th letter, entitled, “Volunteers Perspectives on the Voluntary Evacuation, December 1979 ((DNSA/GWU, Collection: El Salvador – The Making of U.S. Policy, 1977 – 1984. Item Number: ES00340), Volunteers wrote: Dear Mr. Celeste: We are Peace Corps Volunteers from El Salvador, Central America. We arrived a few days ago in a few days ago in Guatemala on a strong but confusing “suggestion” from the director that we leave El Salvador. We are but a part of the entire Peace Corps Volunteer personel in El Salvador. The others are in the United States, Honduras or are still in-country. Quite naturally we are upset….We recognize the immense strain the Peace Corps Staff, and ourselves, have been functioning under but feel this is a very poor excuse for the inefficient and ineffective . . .
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I had to write or help write emergency evacuation plans for a couple of our embassies. These evacuation plans covered…