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Father of Rural Reconstruction Movement Remembered
(SILANG, Cavite, Philippines - January 18, 2010) - Staff and personnel of the International Institute of Rural Reconstruction (IIRR) gathered in the Yen Memorial in Silang, Cavite today to offer prayers and flowers in remembering the 20th death anniversary of this humble but great man of the masses.
Y. C. James Yen, founder of a movement to combat illiteracy, ill health, poverty and hunger in developing countries on three continents, died of pneumonia 20 years ago at St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center in the US. He was 96 years old.
In 1960, Dr. Yen, a Chinese-born and Yale-educated teacher, founded the International Institute of Rural Reconstruction, a network that coordinates his program to promote self-help for the poor in dozens of countries.
‘‘We do not offer relief to the poor, but release,’’ Dr. Yen said in 1986 when he was awarded a People to People Eisenhower Medallion recognizing his more than 60 years of work with the world’s destitute.
Dr. Yen was born Yen Yang-chu on October 16, 1893, in the province of Sichuan, then a remote region, to an aristocratic family whose members were traditionally scholars and officials. He learned English as a child and became a Christian at the age of 12.
The institute that he founded in 1960 will turn 50 this year. IIRR celebrates a rich history in rural reconstruction, a participatory, integrated and people-centered approach to development. To date, IIRR has enhanced the capacity and professional confidence of over 100,000 development managers, practitioners and community leaders across Asia, Africa and Latin America. IIRR documents and disseminates its field-based experience through publications produced through the writeshop process.
Many non-governmental organizations in the Philippines and around the world continue to be inspired by the work of Dr. James Yen, and these include the National Rural Reconstruction Movements in the Philippines (PRRM), India, Thailand, Colombia, Ghana, Guatemala and Honduras. Rural Reconstruction Nepal (RRN) and Rural Reconstruction Alumni and Friends Association (RRAFA) are two other national organizations that follow the rural reconstruction philosophy and principles. Senator Juan Flavier was President of IIRR from 1978 to 1992 wherein he became famous with his book Parables from the Barrios.
During the short but solemn service in the Yen Memorial, Emily Monville Oro, Officer in Charge of the Regional Center for Asia, stressed that the staff of the institute will carry the vision and mission of Dr. Y.C. James Yen in liberating the masses from the rural communities from illiteracy, poverty, disease and civic inertia, a legacy which this great leader started over 80 years ago in China.
IIRR will also be celebrating its 50th year anniversary in October of this year.
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