Pacific Profiles
Speaking His Mind
Father Francis X. Hezel, a Jesuit priest, has been analyzing Micronesia’s changing social and political currents for more than t
Father Francis X. Hezel is unassuming in demeanor and dress, but the relaxed exterior may lead a first-time acquaintance to misjudge the intensity of purpose that Hezel brings to almost everything he does. The Pohnpei-based Jesuit is probably the most widely—read and listened-to social analyst in the north Pacific even though he readily acknowledges that he has few—if any solutions—to offer to the multiplying social problems that confront villagers and elected leaders alike in the rapidly modernizing freely associated states (FAS) of Palau, Federated States of Micronesia and Marshall Islands. “I’m attempting to get people to explore the issues and discuss them openly, and trust in their own ability to solve the problems,” Hezel says.
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Hezel first came to what is now the Federated States of Micronesia in 1963, as a Jesuit teacher at Xavier High School on Chuuk, and has been a fixture in the islands ever since. The Micronesian Seminar was launched in 1972 by the Catholic Church, with Hezel at the helm, to lead public education on issues of the day. With no limits, the Micronesian Seminar and Hezel have been eclectic from day one: At any given time, they may be producing articles on political status or land tenure issues, writing books on Micronesian history, sponsoring seminars on suicide or parenting skills, surveying high school students, and organizing workshops for church leaders.
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“A little bit of everything,” says Hezel of the Pohnpei-based operation. But while Hezel has a difficult time encapsulating in a word or two the work of Micronesian Seminar, that tends to explain why the center is a sought-after institution, contracted by many agencies both in and outside Micronesia. Nor has Hezel shied from tackling controversial issues, and lately has provoked a storm of comment and more than a little criticism for questioning what he believes is the perpetuation of a “victim mentality” by the Marshall Islands government’s lawsuit against the American tobacco industry. The Micronesian Seminar Web site (www.micsem.org) features sometimes-angry rebuttals to the organization’s position papers, but always interesting commentary on key issues.
“Why Governments Don’t Work,” a recently published critique of Micronesian governments that is alternately amusing and sobering, was probably the most commented on article that Hezel has produced. “It didn’t portray Micronesians as dolts, but as people in a cultural bind,” he says. “Their cultural norms are at variance with good bureaucratic management. What do you do?” Perhaps precisely because Hezel isn’t ramming his own solutions down people’s throats—but isn’t letting them off the hook, either—his critical analyses of Micronesia and modern day Micronesians are well-read and often prod people to action.
His grassroots approach to research and community education did more than just open Hezel’s mind to the conflicts between cultural norms and modernization; he learned what it takes to communicate effectively at all levels of society. “A lot of people who come in (to Micronesia) are clueless about how to get a message out,” he says. “We have developed an effective way of doing it that won’t necessarily please the Asian Development Bank, but people contracting with us usually agree (with our way of doing it).” Under Hezel’s leadership, the Micronesian Seminar now produces media packages on each of the topics it addresses, which include print materials, public seminars, video programs, radio shows in various island languages, and the Micronesian Seminar Web site.
And when Hezel’s not writing a book or leading a workshop, he can often be found on an outdoor court, shooting baskets with kids a third his age. All in a day’s work for the Micronesian Seminar’s director.
