MailBucket home // mexicosolidarity
8 May 2008 18:41:01 -0000
MEXICO SOLIDARITY NETWORK
WEEKLY NEWS AND ANALYSIS
APRIL 21 – MAY 4, 2008
1. LOW INTENSITY WAR AGAINST ZAPATISTAS INCLUDES MEDICINE
2. SECOND ANNIVERSARY OF ATENCO POLICE ACTIONS
3. ARMY INVADES CIUDAD JUAREZ
4. REMITTANCES DECREASING
5. EPR OFFERS TALKS WITH GOVERNMENT
6. PRD SINKS FURTHER INTO DISARRAY
7. PEMEX DEBATE
8. MAY DAY MARCHES SMALL BUT SPIRITED
9. MSN PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS (Contact MSN@MexicoSolidarity.org)
1. LOW INTENSITY WAR AGAINST ZAPATISTAS INCLUDES MEDICINE
Low intensity war waged against the Zapatista movement is spreading to the
medical sector. While medical authorities in Chiapas have never provided first
class treatment for indigenous patients, there appears to be a coordinated
campaign recently to deny medical care for Zapatista support bases. In an April
27 article published in La Jornada, journalist Hermann Bellinghausen documents a
series of recent cases in which Zapatistas were denied adequate medical
treatment at State hospitals, resulting in the death of at least one patient.
“In recent days, indigenous patients sent by Zapatista [health promoters] from
El Bosque, San Andres, Simojovel and Teopisca have been mistreated or abandoned
at the regional hospital in San Cristobal,” according to Bellinghausen. For
example, “on April 25, Miguel Diaz Perez arrived with acute appendicitis which
requires immediate surgery. Inexplicably, [hospital officials] made him wait
twelve hours.” While medical attention has always been less than stellar for
indigenous patients, who often don’t even receive clear explanations for their
illnesses – “why, they don’t understand in any case,” according to one
hospital official – the new attitude appears to be a concerted attack on
Zapatista support bases sent to State hospitals when the cases cannot be treated
in the autonomous clinics.
2. SECOND ANNIVERSARY OF ATENCO POLICE ACTIONS
May 3 marked the second anniversary of coordinated police actions by local,
state and federal authorities in San Salvador Atenco, in which at least 26 women
suffered rape or sexual abuse. Authorities arrested more than 200 people,
subjecting the majority to severe beatings and torture. At least two people died
at the hands of police, yet to date not a single police officer is in prison.
Instead, three leaders of the Popular Front in Defense of the Land (FPDT) remain
in federal prison, sentenced to 67 years, while at least 15 members of the FPDT
will complete two years in a State prison while their cases work their way
through the tortuously slow judicial process. Amnesty International accused
authorities of enjoying “impunity” after participating in “acts of
torture,” and characterized the Atenco case as “paradigmatic” of
state-sponsored violence.
3. ARMY INVADES CIUDAD JUAREZ
Federal forces led by the Army and the Federal Preventative Police invaded
Ciudad Juarez on March 27. Chihuahua Governor Jose Reyes requested the operation
after narco-traffickers murdered 93 people in February, including 10 local
police, two state police, one member of the Investigative Police and one Army
troop. The dramatic increase in violence appears to be the result of a battle
between the Carrillo Fuentes family, traditional leaders of the Juarez Cartel,
and Chapo Guzman, leader of the Sinaloa Cartel also known locally as “La
Linea,” for control of the lucrative Juarez market. The Juarez Cartel
currently exercises effective control over local police forces through a
combination of bribes and violence. To date, “Operation Chihuahua” has
resulted in the arrest of 167 people, including at least 29 local police. None
of those arrested are reportedly cartel leaders. The most important actions
appear to be directed against local police, calling into question the logic of
the operation. Is it possible that the Calderon administration is taking sides
in the war on drugs? In the case of Juarez, are federal officials dismantling a
network of police support for the Juarez Cartel so the Sinaloa Cartel can easily
take over? If not, why aren’t cartel leaders among those arrested, and why has
the Army seized only modest, some might say symbolic, catches of marijuana and
cocaine?
4. REMITTANCES DECREASING
Immigrant remittances from the US decreased during the first three months of
2008, the first decrease registered since officials began tracking remittances.
A recent poll conducted by Inter-American Bank (IAB) found that only half of
Latin American immigrants sent remittances to families in home countries during
2008, compared to 73% in a poll conducted in 2006. The IAB attributed the
decrease to the US recession, which disproportionately affects immigrants,
particularly undocumented workers. There are about 19 million immigrants born in
Latin America currently living in the US, while Latinos, who number 45.5
million, account for 15% of the total population. Forty percent of immigrants
reported incomes lower in 2008 than 2007, and more than two-thi
Long message truncated by MailBucket.