Peace Corps Mourns the Loss of Volunteer Thomas Maresco:
Peace Corps Director Aaron S. Williams is saddened to announce the death of Peace Corps volunteer Thomas “Tom” Maresco in Lesotho. Tom, 24, died as a result of a gunshot wound on Sept. 3 in Maseru, the capital of Lesotho. The investigation into this incident is ongoing, but at this time it appears it may have been an attempted robbery.
Lesotho has been one of the Peace Corps' most dangerous locations, and has a long record of violent criminal attacks on volunteers.
Volunteer safety is basically an intractable problem for the Peace Corps, given the nature of volunteer work in very remote and frequently unsettled places.
2 comments:
How awful. This just goes to remind you of the sacrifice many of these volunteers make. My condolences to his family.
Awful, indeed. And as uniquely awful as homicide is, that wasn't the entire crime toll on PCVs this week; in other incidents in other countries, two female volunteers were raped during home invasion robberies.
The Peace Corps does what it can through crime awareness training and safety procedures, but the victimization of volunteers continues pretty much unabated.
Post a Comment