On Sunday 25th a megamarch of over 50,000 marched the 6km from the airport to the Zocalo. The march left at 8am and didn't arrive at the Zocalo until midday. Consisting of mainly teachers there were also many represatives of other groups in Oaxaca state and from other states like Chiapas and Guerrero. A small group of masked-up youth around 50 strong ensured the surroundings were liberally redecorated en route.
Despite the calls for a combative rather than festive spirit the latter mood prevailed on the warm, sunny morning as those on the megaphone repeated their calls for justice in Oaxaca and the unity of the social movements. The fragility of this unity briefly surfaced when the hoodies tried to disrupt the order imposed on the march by the APPO security and march at the front. The over-zealous security tried to physically stop them before calmer voices managed to quieten the situation and the march proceeded into the city centre.
In the Zocalo the usual podium was set up and and a few speeches given by APPO 'leaders' before the crowd dispersed for Sunday lunch. The grafitti in the historic centre was then swiftly removed by council officials.
A few hours later, around 4, a crowd started to gather in the Llano park for an indigenous ceremony to 'restore spiritual equilibrium' or mourn the dead from last year's repression. Many people injured, psychologically or physically or both on November 25 2006, lit candles and turned to face the four cardinal points, while women spiritual leaders dressed in white wafted burning copal and prayed, to help heal the participants. Among the 'healers' stood Chiapas men in their ritual hats of ribbons. It was an event supported by and attended by civil organizations such as Limeddh, EDUCA, and VOCAL. As night fell a candlelit march of around 300 headed for the Pañuelita garden by Santo Domingo and then on to the Zocalo where the ceremony continued and was followed by traditional dancing.
Both in the Llano and Zocalo the state government had laid on rival musical events in its desperate attempts to attract attention away from its murderous activities last year and the militarisation of Oaxaca. Despite the lack of police presence on the day in the week before the police were deployed in numbers across the city centre and helicopters regularly circled overhead. It was widely publicised that the security forces had just been kitted out with new 'toys' like riot gear, uniforms etc. In the days since the march the centre has also been full of police, if not in the Zocalo, then lurking in neighbouring streets.
Wednesday 28 November 2007
Tuesday 20 November 2007
Chiapas disaster zone deprived of wealth it generates
An article in last Saturday's Jornada, the national left leaning PRD-supporting paper, commented on the tragedy in Juan de Grijalva in Chipas, where 25 villagers were killed by a landslide, highlighting the poverty in an area which generates energy and petrol but which doesn't benefit from its natural resources.
Ostuacan is the main town in the Ostuacan municipality, where JdeG is also located, but Ostuacan has an irregular supply of electricity. According to a local doctor the town was only granted a constant supply of electricity a day before the arrival of President Calderon and Chiapas governor Juan Sabines Guerrero in the area.
A transformer in the town burnt out 2 months ago but despite repeated calls to the national power company it wasn't fixed, leading to blackouts in 2 blocks. When there is light wind or rain the lights go out for 10-15 days although there is a hydroelectric dam 26km away.
There are 40 oil wells in the municipality but to get petrol the residents must travel to a neighbouring municipality 60km away along a narrow road that suffers landslides. Those who try to sell petrol in Ostuacan are threatened by the local cops.
Meanwhile in the capital of Tabasco, Villahermosa many streets are still filled with furniture and household goods destroyed by the floods and thousands are still waiting to be vacinated - nothing like the scale of Bangladesh but a country with the natural resources of Mexico could be expected to be capable of organising rubbish collection and the provision of vaccines.
The film about the electoral fraud last year came out at the weekend, imaginatively entitled 'Fraude 2006' and cinemas were packed out all over the country and in some places where it wasn't put on people protested. In Oaxaca the out of town multiplex where I saw the film on Sunday night was full. The multiplex is in a huge shopping complex of US chains which 10 years ago were fields. The film is more blatantly pro-PRD than 'Fahrenheit 9/11' was pro-Democrat, only 'Fraude 2006' has come out after the elections not before. There are numerous interviews with the PRD leader AMLO, Lopez Obrador, and footage of the encampment in the Mexico City Zocalo in the summer last year. The encampment was dismantled as the security forces stepped up their presence unlike here in Oaxaca where the barricades lasted until November with their removal requiring Federal Troops and costing the lives of 27. The film also focused on blatant incidents of electoral fraud such as a film crew recording the opening of ballot boxes before the selective recount and some electoral commision recounting some votes which hadn´t been counted correctly. However only a fraction of the votes were recounted - you were left with the feeling that the overwhelming majority voted for AMLO. Somehow although some of the details were revealing the film didn´t leave me with the sense of having learnt anything new.
Ostuacan is the main town in the Ostuacan municipality, where JdeG is also located, but Ostuacan has an irregular supply of electricity. According to a local doctor the town was only granted a constant supply of electricity a day before the arrival of President Calderon and Chiapas governor Juan Sabines Guerrero in the area.
A transformer in the town burnt out 2 months ago but despite repeated calls to the national power company it wasn't fixed, leading to blackouts in 2 blocks. When there is light wind or rain the lights go out for 10-15 days although there is a hydroelectric dam 26km away.
There are 40 oil wells in the municipality but to get petrol the residents must travel to a neighbouring municipality 60km away along a narrow road that suffers landslides. Those who try to sell petrol in Ostuacan are threatened by the local cops.
Meanwhile in the capital of Tabasco, Villahermosa many streets are still filled with furniture and household goods destroyed by the floods and thousands are still waiting to be vacinated - nothing like the scale of Bangladesh but a country with the natural resources of Mexico could be expected to be capable of organising rubbish collection and the provision of vaccines.
The film about the electoral fraud last year came out at the weekend, imaginatively entitled 'Fraude 2006' and cinemas were packed out all over the country and in some places where it wasn't put on people protested. In Oaxaca the out of town multiplex where I saw the film on Sunday night was full. The multiplex is in a huge shopping complex of US chains which 10 years ago were fields. The film is more blatantly pro-PRD than 'Fahrenheit 9/11' was pro-Democrat, only 'Fraude 2006' has come out after the elections not before. There are numerous interviews with the PRD leader AMLO, Lopez Obrador, and footage of the encampment in the Mexico City Zocalo in the summer last year. The encampment was dismantled as the security forces stepped up their presence unlike here in Oaxaca where the barricades lasted until November with their removal requiring Federal Troops and costing the lives of 27. The film also focused on blatant incidents of electoral fraud such as a film crew recording the opening of ballot boxes before the selective recount and some electoral commision recounting some votes which hadn´t been counted correctly. However only a fraction of the votes were recounted - you were left with the feeling that the overwhelming majority voted for AMLO. Somehow although some of the details were revealing the film didn´t leave me with the sense of having learnt anything new.
Saturday 17 November 2007
Demos on day of third annual report of Oaxaca Governor
On November 15th four large marches paralysed the streets of Oaxaca in the morning in protest at the governor Ulises Ruiz' delivery of his third annual report. Whilst three marches converged from the city boundaries on the Zocalo thousands of teachers marched to the out of town shiny Congess of Deputies to blockade it and prevent the arrival of the Deputies. However when they arrived there at around 9am most of the Deputies were already inside but the governor was prevented from giving the report in person with a lackey handing it over instead. With the Congress surrounded by mostly teachers, grafitti was spray painted on the entrance by the few autonomous elements and the local press reported 3 smashed windows and some other minor property damage.
However the march security ensured there was little spontaneous activity, which was unlikely anyway given that almost all the marchers were teachers-they even tried to erase the grafitti when everyone had dispersed. A few speeches were given, the teachers held their sectional meetings and by midday everyone had dispersed, most to enjoy the rest of their day off whilst a few made their way to the Zocalo.
At the Zocalo there had been similar scenes with thousands of teachers cramming the square to hold their meetings whilst the speeches given from the bandstand in the centre by the Section 22 Secretary Ezequiel Rosales Carreño and a few other spokespersons were largely ignored. Rosales Carreño gave an interview to national commercial TV station Televisa before rushing off after around 15 minutes surrounded by his personal security detail.
Meanwhile a vigil and fast had been set up outside the cathedral for the victims of last year's state terrorism. The fast, which lasted from 9-5 included ex-prisoners of the Tepic Nayarit prison over 1000km away who were sent there after being arrested on 25/11/06 where they spent over 20 days, widows of the victims, relatives of those still detained and NGO members. Unfortunately neither the Section 22 spokespersons nor the majority of the teachers attended the fast to pay their respects. Photos of last year's state repression were on display in the tent and canvases of resistance art were placed in the square outside the cathedral.
During the afternoon the Zocalo was full of plain clothes cops to make sure the fast ended on time and nothing disrupted the official event in the evening in the Museo del Palacio on the other side of the Zocalo. 300 specially selected guests heard Ulises Ruiz deliver his report assisted by video screens displaying the 'achievements' of the state govt in the last year.
A report was given by an International Commission of Human Rights Jurists into the human rigts violations in Oaxaca last year in the nearby uni law dept. This was organised by the German NGO Diakonie and addressed by La Liga Mexicano de Derechos Humanos and other NGOs. Some of the torture victims also spoke. Some are still physically damaged, being left crippled or with facial deformities, as well as the thousands psychologically damaged by the repression.
However the march security ensured there was little spontaneous activity, which was unlikely anyway given that almost all the marchers were teachers-they even tried to erase the grafitti when everyone had dispersed. A few speeches were given, the teachers held their sectional meetings and by midday everyone had dispersed, most to enjoy the rest of their day off whilst a few made their way to the Zocalo.
At the Zocalo there had been similar scenes with thousands of teachers cramming the square to hold their meetings whilst the speeches given from the bandstand in the centre by the Section 22 Secretary Ezequiel Rosales Carreño and a few other spokespersons were largely ignored. Rosales Carreño gave an interview to national commercial TV station Televisa before rushing off after around 15 minutes surrounded by his personal security detail.
Meanwhile a vigil and fast had been set up outside the cathedral for the victims of last year's state terrorism. The fast, which lasted from 9-5 included ex-prisoners of the Tepic Nayarit prison over 1000km away who were sent there after being arrested on 25/11/06 where they spent over 20 days, widows of the victims, relatives of those still detained and NGO members. Unfortunately neither the Section 22 spokespersons nor the majority of the teachers attended the fast to pay their respects. Photos of last year's state repression were on display in the tent and canvases of resistance art were placed in the square outside the cathedral.
During the afternoon the Zocalo was full of plain clothes cops to make sure the fast ended on time and nothing disrupted the official event in the evening in the Museo del Palacio on the other side of the Zocalo. 300 specially selected guests heard Ulises Ruiz deliver his report assisted by video screens displaying the 'achievements' of the state govt in the last year.
A report was given by an International Commission of Human Rights Jurists into the human rigts violations in Oaxaca last year in the nearby uni law dept. This was organised by the German NGO Diakonie and addressed by La Liga Mexicano de Derechos Humanos and other NGOs. Some of the torture victims also spoke. Some are still physically damaged, being left crippled or with facial deformities, as well as the thousands psychologically damaged by the repression.
Wednesday 14 November 2007
APPO in the Congress
Here is another article from Noticias, written by a political prisoner which sheds some light on the division within APPO between those seeking political representation and autonomous groups. David is a member of VOCAL (Voces Oaxaquenas Construyendo Autonomia y Libertad)
With the judgement in favour of the 'coalition for the good of all' by the TEPJF (electoral commission) to grant them political representation in the person of Zenon Bravo Castellanos, the ex-APPO advisor, a clear strategy on the part of the criminal state can be discerned to undermine the struggle of the people of Oaxaca, who even today, despite the terrible times we are living in , oppose the murderous governor with peaceful and brave resistance and seek their own paths to liberate themselves.
Although in February APPO debated and declared to the media their intention to conduct a social struggle from below, in a peaceful manner and separately to the institutions of corrupt power like political parties and the government, and decided by consensus that anyone or any organisation taking part in the August and October elections as candidates of any political party should remain outside of the APPO council, there was a clear majority in favour of not participating in the electoral process. On finding the names of ex-APPO advisors among those of electoral candidates, the government of Ulises Ruiz Ortiz didn't hesitate in 'welcoming APPO' to the democratic struggle in its corrupt institutions of power, and the media referred to these people as 'APPO' candidates. This wasn't a result of misinformation or an ignorance of APPO agreements and much less an off-the-cuff comment, but simply wrong. On the contrary, the government of Ulises Ruiz with the collaboration of the ex-APPO advisors turned electoral candidates Maria del Carmen Lopez Vasquez and Zenen Bravo Castellanos (FPR candidates -note: Frente Popular Revolucionario - a Marxist-Leninist party) and Jesus Lopez (FALP candidate) has tried to undermine the whole social movement, which confronts not only those who hold power but power itself as the source of authoritarianism, corruption and injustice which does so much harm to our peoples. By coopting certain key figures and creating a real or imagined leadership in the media, the government has been able to tame the social movements until they are unrecognizable from how they looked at the start, devoid of content and honest aspirations.
In Oaxaca we have the dramatic experience of the honourable and combative COCEI (La Coalición Obrera Campesina Estudiantil del Istmo), once feared by the rulers, now turned into 5 COCEIs, which are just as corrupt and debased as the political parties with which they have established alliances. For this to happen there have to be ambitious people inside the social movements capable of twisting their ideological debates and doctrines with a cynical pragmatism that allows them to negotiate and betray without qualms. The APPO council is full of such people, most of them, although not all, are involved with the FPR, and one of these is Zenen Bravo, the very same whose dark political career includes having participated together with Enrique Rueda Pacheco in October 2006 in secret talks with the then govt secretary Carlos Abascal to arrange the teachers' return to classes, which paved the way for the entry of the PFP and subsequent repression of the social movement. Furthermore the accusations made by the now deputy (Zenen Bravo) against me of being a policeman and thief, prepared the ground for my arrest and imprisonment last April. This certainly isn't the first time that the deputy and his organisation the FPR, have served the criminal state govt in having abandoned their principles and demoralized the APPO struggle, although most effective in this respect has been the eternal spokesperson and persecuted politician Florentino Lopez Martinez, also of the FPR, who on numerous occasions has expressed in the name of APPO political positions and opinions at odds with those of the Assembly, but which match the petty interests of his own org. With a deputy in Congress the FPR now wants to demolize the social movement even though this has to be passed by a majority, which at the last APPO assembly on November 3rd, decided to form a Third Assembly with a view to reorganising the social movement. The FPR, headed by Florentino Lopez, unable to prevent this decision being taken by the majority, left the Assembly in a failed attempt to disrupt it again revealing their sectarian and hegemonic interests.
Despite the enormous harm which this Stalinist org does, the FPR and its deputy Zenen Bravo, whose obscure role exceeds the vileness of its deeds, it is his former membership of APPO which is most damaging, as there is no doubt that the new deputy will be used by Ulises and the political class as a symbol of the corruption and decadence political power has been able to instil in the social movement. The new Deputy sitting comfortably in the Chamber of Deputies will be the daily evidence for the other Deputies and social movements of what the movement has become: the taming of the movement symbolised by its most cowardly and opportunistic members. Fortunately long gone are the days when the aforementioned enjoyed the respect and credibility of the majority and today they debate in front of a discredited audience, enjoy physical liberty, power, money and the protection of the media, which their servile and submissive attitude towards the criminal govt allows, while many other orgs and people suffer persecution, aggression and imprisonment.
The violent action of the govt of the recent November 2nd, the unjustified detention of around 20 movement members and the invasion of homes for more than 2 hours by Ulises' police, are the signs of continuing repression by the Oaxaca govt despite public declarations of reconciliation, peace and tranquility. But also these events are the unquestionable signs of a govt in complete collapse, hardly able to keep itself in power with rifles and bayonets. Even when the govt repression, the threats and the betrayal by leaders leads to an abandonment of principles and fear, and the electoral process with candidates of the supposed left leads to the betrayal of the efforts and hopes of the people at the ballot box and in the immorality of political parties, the people of Oaxaca who continue to mobilize and struggle in rebellion outside the political process are a convincing sign that APPO lives and is in a slow but steady process of revitalization. As a political prisoner of conscience I cannot but respond to this courage and spirit from inside, although the criminal Ulises in a fascist and vindictive misuse of the law, has accused me of new crimes, some as serious as rebellion and assault on communication routes and assault among others. I endorse once again and for always my committment to my people on this long and difficult road, full of obstacles and thorns, which we are embarking on, uniting the new resistance with that of 500 years of resistance of the native peoples of our parents and grandparents in search of a new world of justice, peace and dignity for all.
I take this opportunity to urge you once more not to ever relinquish your principles in this liberating and peaceful struggle. We have already resisted for over a year in collective confrontation with the govt, and the blood of the 26 fallen in battle still awaits justice, which only we are able to secure.
With the judgement in favour of the 'coalition for the good of all' by the TEPJF (electoral commission) to grant them political representation in the person of Zenon Bravo Castellanos, the ex-APPO advisor, a clear strategy on the part of the criminal state can be discerned to undermine the struggle of the people of Oaxaca, who even today, despite the terrible times we are living in , oppose the murderous governor with peaceful and brave resistance and seek their own paths to liberate themselves.
Although in February APPO debated and declared to the media their intention to conduct a social struggle from below, in a peaceful manner and separately to the institutions of corrupt power like political parties and the government, and decided by consensus that anyone or any organisation taking part in the August and October elections as candidates of any political party should remain outside of the APPO council, there was a clear majority in favour of not participating in the electoral process. On finding the names of ex-APPO advisors among those of electoral candidates, the government of Ulises Ruiz Ortiz didn't hesitate in 'welcoming APPO' to the democratic struggle in its corrupt institutions of power, and the media referred to these people as 'APPO' candidates. This wasn't a result of misinformation or an ignorance of APPO agreements and much less an off-the-cuff comment, but simply wrong. On the contrary, the government of Ulises Ruiz with the collaboration of the ex-APPO advisors turned electoral candidates Maria del Carmen Lopez Vasquez and Zenen Bravo Castellanos (FPR candidates -note: Frente Popular Revolucionario - a Marxist-Leninist party) and Jesus Lopez (FALP candidate) has tried to undermine the whole social movement, which confronts not only those who hold power but power itself as the source of authoritarianism, corruption and injustice which does so much harm to our peoples. By coopting certain key figures and creating a real or imagined leadership in the media, the government has been able to tame the social movements until they are unrecognizable from how they looked at the start, devoid of content and honest aspirations.
In Oaxaca we have the dramatic experience of the honourable and combative COCEI (La Coalición Obrera Campesina Estudiantil del Istmo), once feared by the rulers, now turned into 5 COCEIs, which are just as corrupt and debased as the political parties with which they have established alliances. For this to happen there have to be ambitious people inside the social movements capable of twisting their ideological debates and doctrines with a cynical pragmatism that allows them to negotiate and betray without qualms. The APPO council is full of such people, most of them, although not all, are involved with the FPR, and one of these is Zenen Bravo, the very same whose dark political career includes having participated together with Enrique Rueda Pacheco in October 2006 in secret talks with the then govt secretary Carlos Abascal to arrange the teachers' return to classes, which paved the way for the entry of the PFP and subsequent repression of the social movement. Furthermore the accusations made by the now deputy (Zenen Bravo) against me of being a policeman and thief, prepared the ground for my arrest and imprisonment last April. This certainly isn't the first time that the deputy and his organisation the FPR, have served the criminal state govt in having abandoned their principles and demoralized the APPO struggle, although most effective in this respect has been the eternal spokesperson and persecuted politician Florentino Lopez Martinez, also of the FPR, who on numerous occasions has expressed in the name of APPO political positions and opinions at odds with those of the Assembly, but which match the petty interests of his own org. With a deputy in Congress the FPR now wants to demolize the social movement even though this has to be passed by a majority, which at the last APPO assembly on November 3rd, decided to form a Third Assembly with a view to reorganising the social movement. The FPR, headed by Florentino Lopez, unable to prevent this decision being taken by the majority, left the Assembly in a failed attempt to disrupt it again revealing their sectarian and hegemonic interests.
Despite the enormous harm which this Stalinist org does, the FPR and its deputy Zenen Bravo, whose obscure role exceeds the vileness of its deeds, it is his former membership of APPO which is most damaging, as there is no doubt that the new deputy will be used by Ulises and the political class as a symbol of the corruption and decadence political power has been able to instil in the social movement. The new Deputy sitting comfortably in the Chamber of Deputies will be the daily evidence for the other Deputies and social movements of what the movement has become: the taming of the movement symbolised by its most cowardly and opportunistic members. Fortunately long gone are the days when the aforementioned enjoyed the respect and credibility of the majority and today they debate in front of a discredited audience, enjoy physical liberty, power, money and the protection of the media, which their servile and submissive attitude towards the criminal govt allows, while many other orgs and people suffer persecution, aggression and imprisonment.
The violent action of the govt of the recent November 2nd, the unjustified detention of around 20 movement members and the invasion of homes for more than 2 hours by Ulises' police, are the signs of continuing repression by the Oaxaca govt despite public declarations of reconciliation, peace and tranquility. But also these events are the unquestionable signs of a govt in complete collapse, hardly able to keep itself in power with rifles and bayonets. Even when the govt repression, the threats and the betrayal by leaders leads to an abandonment of principles and fear, and the electoral process with candidates of the supposed left leads to the betrayal of the efforts and hopes of the people at the ballot box and in the immorality of political parties, the people of Oaxaca who continue to mobilize and struggle in rebellion outside the political process are a convincing sign that APPO lives and is in a slow but steady process of revitalization. As a political prisoner of conscience I cannot but respond to this courage and spirit from inside, although the criminal Ulises in a fascist and vindictive misuse of the law, has accused me of new crimes, some as serious as rebellion and assault on communication routes and assault among others. I endorse once again and for always my committment to my people on this long and difficult road, full of obstacles and thorns, which we are embarking on, uniting the new resistance with that of 500 years of resistance of the native peoples of our parents and grandparents in search of a new world of justice, peace and dignity for all.
I take this opportunity to urge you once more not to ever relinquish your principles in this liberating and peaceful struggle. We have already resisted for over a year in collective confrontation with the govt, and the blood of the 26 fallen in battle still awaits justice, which only we are able to secure.
Tuesday 13 November 2007
Residents of Oaxaca district block roads to demand services
The first I knew of any local action taking place was the sound of traffic on the dirt track near my house which is usually quiet. There was a steady stream of traffic on this track which due to its poor condition isn´t used much by local traffic. Closer inspection revealed that this traffic was using the track as the parallel main road had been blockaded by residents of the district demanding services for the taxes they pay. Their banners demanded drinking water, proper drainage, security, street lighting, rubbish collection and pavements. Like many other local residents I have to dispose of my own rubbish, which I compost and burn unlike many who leave it in fields or on the verges of roads, and lack street lighting in my neighbourhood.
It turned out that local residents had blockaded many of the main roads in the area for a six hour period from 9am-3pm yesterday. There have already been many such actions in the state this week, which sees the governor deliver his third annual progress report. The residents are delivering their own verdict in the form of blockades and marches. In one town in the north of the state, Tuxtepec, the local 'Citizens Defence Committee' occupied the town library and tried to take over the municiple offices before being beaten and arrested by the local cops.
Here is a translation of an article from the local left-leaning paper 'Noticias' which is the most popular local daily. My local paper stand sells around 300 daily compared to 70 of the rival right-wing rag 'El Imparcial'.
November one year on - testimonies of repression, by Victor Raul Martinez Vasquez
The testimonies of the brutality endured by those arrested are heartbreaking and include cases of sexual abuse. Many of those arrested have suffered serious harm, not only physical but also social and psychological.
Eliud Amni Martinez Sanchez, for example, turned up at the prison in Tlacolula with a fractured skull, dislodged eye, fractured nasal passage, dislocated right shoulder, fractured left knee, three broken fingers and multiple injuries to the back and face. Eliud was beaten for 45 minutes, on each question being hit : 'what is your political affiliation?', 'what barricade were you on?', 'who is your boss?'.
The architect Porfirio Dominguez Munozcano was arrested and beaten on 25th November on leaving a stationers near his home in the Old Town. He was imprisoned and almost lost his sight:
'The first blow I received to the head left me unconscious. I woke up 2 hours later with a bandaged head and my face and body soaked in blood with bruises everywhere. I was in the Oaxaca Zocalo with my hands tied along with another 50-60 people. I had somehow been bandaged, all us who had been arrested walked past the soldiers, who beat us with their rifle butts. We were then taken off to an unknown destination and tortured psychologically en route.
They told us they were going to drop us off on the side of the road so that some helicopters would pick us up and throw us into the sea. They kept us in a state of terror and continued hitting us. Fortunately we arrived at the womens´ prison in Tlacolula. It was about 2 or 3 in the morning. There they continued beating and threatening us until dawn. Then they said they were going to put us into the helicopters. You can imagine the terror we felt.'
Finally the architect was sent to hospital in Oaxaca where they had to perform surgery on his face to save his sight. Then he was sent back to Tlacolula prison where he wasn´t released until December 15th ´for lack of evidence´.
Edith Coca Soriano, a 30 year old biologist postgrad student, tells how she was arrested in the ´Él Pochote´cinema when police dressed in blue beat her in the head, threw her to the ground and started kicking her. She was dragged to a van with other women who had also been beaten in the head.
'Then they put us into other trucks and took us to an unknown destination, but I was told it was the hangars at the airport, where we were again asked for our name and address. Many insults were hurled at us and we were told we would be raped'. She tells that after spending 48 hours without food and only a bit of water in Miahuatlan prison, on the morning of November 21st the PFP (Federal Police) came for them, put them in a helicopter and tortured them psychologically, telling them they were being taken to Veracruz to be thrown into the sea. On 28th, without explanation, she had all her hair cut off: 'it had taken me 12 years to grow it - it was down to my knees and it was all cut off. On 29th we were taken to court and told that we were being kept in the medium security prison of San Jose del Rincon'.
In subsequent testimonies she said that she hadn´t been allowed to talk to her lawyer despite all the tine that had elapsed and that she wasn´t allowed to change her clothes until December 15th when 43 of those arrested were released.
Mercedes Cumplido Pantoja, a 47 year old farmer, stated : 'I was told I was going to be killed brutally, was beaten and sworn at, told that I was a bitch and an idiot and asked 'who paid you to go?' and 'how many thousands of pesos were you paid?'
Ruth Cabrera Vasquez, a 48 year old trader from Chiapas, tells how she was put in a truck with 11 other women and taken to the Llano park where they were thrown to the ground and had their photos taken while 'they continued to insult and mock us. We were taken to the police HQ in Santa Maria Coyotepec and from there to Cereso de Miahuatlan...we were kept standing in a cubicle for many hours in the cold and were terrified.'
Julio Hernandez, in his column, mentions that previously 'in Tlacolula prison, the police, knowing that the women were already suffering with the pain of the beatings, put sticks between their legs, implying they were going to rape them, even with the oldest'.
In the book 'Voices of Courage in Oaxaca' there are more testimonies by women who were the victims of human rights violations last year. In Nayarit various prisoners cite threats of castration. Relatives of the detained created the Commission of Relatives and Friends of the Disappeared, Detained and Political Prisoners of APPO (COFADAPPO) which set up a camp near the prison in Nayarit. To support them with their legal cases, on the initiative of the painter Francisco Toledo, various lawyers offices formed the 'November 25th Committee'.
According to statements by these professionals there is a 'mountain of judicial inconsistencies right from the moment of the arrests. Many of them have been shown to be passers-by on November 25th. Lawyers weren´t granted access to the files until long after the arrrests. There is proof that the persons concerned are innocent of any crime'.
Even the president of the Nayarit State Human Rights Commission stated that it was 'inconsistent that the judge dealing with the cases was 1200 km away from where the detained were being held and that they must be transferred to Oaxaca so they can be guaranteed a fair trial'. The relatives even turned to the UN offices in Mexico. There they applied to the UN High Commisisoner for Human Rights, Louis Arbour, to send envoys to Oaxaca. They testified that during the conflict between APPO and the governor Ulises Ruiz, '500 people had been imprisoned, of which 200 were still being held under various charges. 122 suffered serious injuries, 64 of them from firearms and 52 required urgent hospitalization. Furthermore 15 were killed and hundreds tortured.'
Note - actually at least 26 were killed and some are still disappeared but their families daren´t speak out for fear of reprisals. There is still a lot of fear in Oaxaca.
It turned out that local residents had blockaded many of the main roads in the area for a six hour period from 9am-3pm yesterday. There have already been many such actions in the state this week, which sees the governor deliver his third annual progress report. The residents are delivering their own verdict in the form of blockades and marches. In one town in the north of the state, Tuxtepec, the local 'Citizens Defence Committee' occupied the town library and tried to take over the municiple offices before being beaten and arrested by the local cops.
Here is a translation of an article from the local left-leaning paper 'Noticias' which is the most popular local daily. My local paper stand sells around 300 daily compared to 70 of the rival right-wing rag 'El Imparcial'.
November one year on - testimonies of repression, by Victor Raul Martinez Vasquez
The testimonies of the brutality endured by those arrested are heartbreaking and include cases of sexual abuse. Many of those arrested have suffered serious harm, not only physical but also social and psychological.
Eliud Amni Martinez Sanchez, for example, turned up at the prison in Tlacolula with a fractured skull, dislodged eye, fractured nasal passage, dislocated right shoulder, fractured left knee, three broken fingers and multiple injuries to the back and face. Eliud was beaten for 45 minutes, on each question being hit : 'what is your political affiliation?', 'what barricade were you on?', 'who is your boss?'.
The architect Porfirio Dominguez Munozcano was arrested and beaten on 25th November on leaving a stationers near his home in the Old Town. He was imprisoned and almost lost his sight:
'The first blow I received to the head left me unconscious. I woke up 2 hours later with a bandaged head and my face and body soaked in blood with bruises everywhere. I was in the Oaxaca Zocalo with my hands tied along with another 50-60 people. I had somehow been bandaged, all us who had been arrested walked past the soldiers, who beat us with their rifle butts. We were then taken off to an unknown destination and tortured psychologically en route.
They told us they were going to drop us off on the side of the road so that some helicopters would pick us up and throw us into the sea. They kept us in a state of terror and continued hitting us. Fortunately we arrived at the womens´ prison in Tlacolula. It was about 2 or 3 in the morning. There they continued beating and threatening us until dawn. Then they said they were going to put us into the helicopters. You can imagine the terror we felt.'
Finally the architect was sent to hospital in Oaxaca where they had to perform surgery on his face to save his sight. Then he was sent back to Tlacolula prison where he wasn´t released until December 15th ´for lack of evidence´.
Edith Coca Soriano, a 30 year old biologist postgrad student, tells how she was arrested in the ´Él Pochote´cinema when police dressed in blue beat her in the head, threw her to the ground and started kicking her. She was dragged to a van with other women who had also been beaten in the head.
'Then they put us into other trucks and took us to an unknown destination, but I was told it was the hangars at the airport, where we were again asked for our name and address. Many insults were hurled at us and we were told we would be raped'. She tells that after spending 48 hours without food and only a bit of water in Miahuatlan prison, on the morning of November 21st the PFP (Federal Police) came for them, put them in a helicopter and tortured them psychologically, telling them they were being taken to Veracruz to be thrown into the sea. On 28th, without explanation, she had all her hair cut off: 'it had taken me 12 years to grow it - it was down to my knees and it was all cut off. On 29th we were taken to court and told that we were being kept in the medium security prison of San Jose del Rincon'.
In subsequent testimonies she said that she hadn´t been allowed to talk to her lawyer despite all the tine that had elapsed and that she wasn´t allowed to change her clothes until December 15th when 43 of those arrested were released.
Mercedes Cumplido Pantoja, a 47 year old farmer, stated : 'I was told I was going to be killed brutally, was beaten and sworn at, told that I was a bitch and an idiot and asked 'who paid you to go?' and 'how many thousands of pesos were you paid?'
Ruth Cabrera Vasquez, a 48 year old trader from Chiapas, tells how she was put in a truck with 11 other women and taken to the Llano park where they were thrown to the ground and had their photos taken while 'they continued to insult and mock us. We were taken to the police HQ in Santa Maria Coyotepec and from there to Cereso de Miahuatlan...we were kept standing in a cubicle for many hours in the cold and were terrified.'
Julio Hernandez, in his column, mentions that previously 'in Tlacolula prison, the police, knowing that the women were already suffering with the pain of the beatings, put sticks between their legs, implying they were going to rape them, even with the oldest'.
In the book 'Voices of Courage in Oaxaca' there are more testimonies by women who were the victims of human rights violations last year. In Nayarit various prisoners cite threats of castration. Relatives of the detained created the Commission of Relatives and Friends of the Disappeared, Detained and Political Prisoners of APPO (COFADAPPO) which set up a camp near the prison in Nayarit. To support them with their legal cases, on the initiative of the painter Francisco Toledo, various lawyers offices formed the 'November 25th Committee'.
According to statements by these professionals there is a 'mountain of judicial inconsistencies right from the moment of the arrests. Many of them have been shown to be passers-by on November 25th. Lawyers weren´t granted access to the files until long after the arrrests. There is proof that the persons concerned are innocent of any crime'.
Even the president of the Nayarit State Human Rights Commission stated that it was 'inconsistent that the judge dealing with the cases was 1200 km away from where the detained were being held and that they must be transferred to Oaxaca so they can be guaranteed a fair trial'. The relatives even turned to the UN offices in Mexico. There they applied to the UN High Commisisoner for Human Rights, Louis Arbour, to send envoys to Oaxaca. They testified that during the conflict between APPO and the governor Ulises Ruiz, '500 people had been imprisoned, of which 200 were still being held under various charges. 122 suffered serious injuries, 64 of them from firearms and 52 required urgent hospitalization. Furthermore 15 were killed and hundreds tortured.'
Note - actually at least 26 were killed and some are still disappeared but their families daren´t speak out for fear of reprisals. There is still a lot of fear in Oaxaca.
Saturday 3 November 2007
Repression in Oaxaca on anniversary of 'Battle of the University'
On November 2nd 2006 students and supporters of APPO repelled federal police forces backed by the military police, who attempted to take barricades surrounding the university in order to invade and capture the university radio station. During the 7-hour long 'Battle of the University' dozens of APPO supporters were arrested and injured.
To commemorate the event barricades were to be errected and tapetes (coloured sand memorials) laid at the 5 Senores crossroads near the university. At around 7.30 am, after the sand had been laid and the crossroads partially blocked, truckloads of armed police arrived and started arresting and beating those present. Dozens were arrested and a few required hospital treatment after being beaten in the head. Around half were subsequently released with the rest being held overnight. Reporters were also attacked.
Throughout the day truckloads of armed police patrolled the area and there was a heavy police presence in the nearby main cemetery where families were marking the Day of the Dead at the family graves. It is joked here that this was to prevent the dead rising up to tell the truth about the murders and repression stalking Oaxaca.
A march was called by APPO for around 3pm as a response to the earlier police repression. Around 500 marched along the ring road towards the 5 Senores crossroads but stopped on reports of truckloads of armed police occupying the crossroads. The march resumed after the police withdrew to surrounding streets. On reaching the crossroads a tapete, with floral display and candles was laid to commemorate the 26 murdered by federal, state and paramilitary forces last year.
This week has seen an escalation in police brutality in Oaxaca. On Monday a student was beaten by the police and several others followed and threatened after a commemoration.
The Federal Attorney's office chose this week to leak the 'nearly complete' findings of an investigation into the murder of Indymedia NY activist Brad Will on October 27th last year. According to these findings Brad was shot twice, the first time from 50 cms and then again whilst being transferred to hospital. This Federal investigation merely repeats the lies of the Oaxaca 'justice' department. These lies contradict all the testimonies of eyewitnesses near him at his death, none of whom saw anyone shoot him. Photos also prove that Brad was shot during the defence of the barricade and not whilst being transported to hospital. Conveniently the vehicle Bard was transported in and his clothes went missing from the Oaxaca 'justice' department.
According to 'Reporters without Borders' Mexico was the second most dangerous place for journalists in 2006, after Iraq, with 9 murdered. Since 2000 32 journalists have been murdered and 7 disappeared. Half of these have been attributed to drug-related investigations.
For more visit:
http://www.elenemigocomun.net/
http://www.friendsofbradwill.org/
To commemorate the event barricades were to be errected and tapetes (coloured sand memorials) laid at the 5 Senores crossroads near the university. At around 7.30 am, after the sand had been laid and the crossroads partially blocked, truckloads of armed police arrived and started arresting and beating those present. Dozens were arrested and a few required hospital treatment after being beaten in the head. Around half were subsequently released with the rest being held overnight. Reporters were also attacked.
Throughout the day truckloads of armed police patrolled the area and there was a heavy police presence in the nearby main cemetery where families were marking the Day of the Dead at the family graves. It is joked here that this was to prevent the dead rising up to tell the truth about the murders and repression stalking Oaxaca.
A march was called by APPO for around 3pm as a response to the earlier police repression. Around 500 marched along the ring road towards the 5 Senores crossroads but stopped on reports of truckloads of armed police occupying the crossroads. The march resumed after the police withdrew to surrounding streets. On reaching the crossroads a tapete, with floral display and candles was laid to commemorate the 26 murdered by federal, state and paramilitary forces last year.
This week has seen an escalation in police brutality in Oaxaca. On Monday a student was beaten by the police and several others followed and threatened after a commemoration.
The Federal Attorney's office chose this week to leak the 'nearly complete' findings of an investigation into the murder of Indymedia NY activist Brad Will on October 27th last year. According to these findings Brad was shot twice, the first time from 50 cms and then again whilst being transferred to hospital. This Federal investigation merely repeats the lies of the Oaxaca 'justice' department. These lies contradict all the testimonies of eyewitnesses near him at his death, none of whom saw anyone shoot him. Photos also prove that Brad was shot during the defence of the barricade and not whilst being transported to hospital. Conveniently the vehicle Bard was transported in and his clothes went missing from the Oaxaca 'justice' department.
According to 'Reporters without Borders' Mexico was the second most dangerous place for journalists in 2006, after Iraq, with 9 murdered. Since 2000 32 journalists have been murdered and 7 disappeared. Half of these have been attributed to drug-related investigations.
For more visit:
http://www.elenemigocomun.net/
http://www.friendsofbradwill.org/
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