Lombana running for Communist Party in Elmwood
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This article was published 29/08/2019 (1302 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
German Lombana brings a lifetime of fighting for social justice to the ballot.
“I think I have a very clear idea of what we can do to get a better world,” said Lombana, 65, the Communist Party of Canada (Manitoba) candidate for his home riding of Elmwood.
Originally from Colombia, he has been involved with the Communist Party since 1968. His studies took him to the Soviet Union, then to Angola in 1975. From there, he returned to Soledad, Colombia in 1984, where he worked with community groups and local labour unions until he was forced to leave the country in 2000.
“I had (death threats) … because of the civil war we had there,” Lombana said.
After spending six years in Cuba, Lombana moved to Canada over a decade ago, and works with people who are dealing with the justice system. While he served in municipal government in Soledad, this is Lombana’s first time running for office in Canada. He said he was driven to put his name forward as a means of providing voters with options.
“Other parties don’t have options for the problems with society,” he said. “They lack opportunity for young people, which is a result of the crisis of the capitalist system.”
Lombana also feels that the current political and economic system fails women disproportionately.
“We are facing a horrible situation with discrimination,” he said. “Women are not treated as equal.”
While he acknowledges that health care is a major concern among Elmwood residents, Lombana said he would like to see more jobs remain in the area.
“We need more jobs for people in our riding,” he said. “There is no really good jobs for the people, the young people coming out from school. They are not going to spend their lives working at McDonald’s.”
Affordable housing was also chief among issues Lombana would like to see addressed in Elmwood.
“We need to be making housing a right, not a privilege,” he said. “We need more housing for everybody here, good housing.”
Sheldon Birnie
Community Journalist
Sheldon Birnie is a reporter/photographer for the Free Press Community Review. The author of Missing Like Teeth: An Oral History of Winnipeg Underground Rock (1990-2001), his writing has appeared in journals and online platforms across Canada, the U.S. and the U.K. A husband and father of two young children, Sheldon enjoys playing guitar and rec hockey when he can find the time. Email him at sheldon.birnie@canstarnews.com Call him at 204-697-7112