And now:Ish <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Date: Mon, 21 Dec 1998 09:20:40 EST From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Return-path: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: Mexico Massacre Blamed on History Date: Sun, 20 Dec 1998 20:11:05 EST Mexico Massacre Blamed on History .c The Associated Press By PAIGE BIERMA MEXICO CITY (AP) -- A year after gunmen massacred 45 Indian villagers in southern Mexico, the federal attorney general's office issued a report Sunday that blamed the slayings on local conflicts and said they were not politically motivated. Attorney General Jorge Madrazo released a 153-page report detailing investigations into the Dec. 22, 1997, massacre in Acteal of 21 women, 15 children and nine men who sympathized with Chiapas state's Zapatista National Liberation Army. ``We found no political roots of the massacre,'' Deputy Attorney General Jose Luis Ramos Rivera said at a news conference. Most of the suspects in the killings identified themselves as supporters of the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, while the victims belonged to a group that sympathizes with leftist Zapatista rebels. The Zapatistas staged a brief armed uprising in Chiapas in January 1994, demanding greater democracy and Indian rights. Peace talks between the government and rebels have been stalled since 1996, and clashes between the two sides have been frequent since then. The deputy attorney general said there was no evidence the ruling party was aware of the massacre plans. The report also found no evidence of charges Mexico's army aided the armed group that committed the slaying. Madrazo outlined three major causes of the massacre: a long history of religious and economic conflicts among Indian communities in the region; the creation of a rebel-run town near Acteal where the Zapatista presence ``radicalized'' existing conflicts; and the absence of law and order in the area, which caused villagers to resort to vigilante justice. Of 135 people arrested in the case, only one has been sentenced -- a former state policeman sentenced to three years for his role in transporting arms used in the massacre. The National Human Rights Commission charged last week that the government has failed to adequately punish those responsible and has not reformed the state police force or provided economic aid to the area. Officials have said state police failed to control the violence leading up to the massacre and have claimed that many sided with the anti-Zapatista faction in organizing it. A total of 18 Chiapas state police and government officials were removed from office. Eleven were banned from public service for periods ranging from six to 10 years for having failed to stop the massacre. AP-NY-12-20-98 2010EST Copyright 1998 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without prior written authority of The Associated Press. <<<<=-=-=FREE LEONARD PELTIER=-=-=>>>> If you think you are too small to make a difference; try sleeping in a closed room with a mosquito.... African Proverb <<<<=-=http://www.tdi.net/ishgooda/ =-=>>>> IF it says: "PASS THIS TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW...." Please Check it before you send it at: http://urbanlegends.miningco.com/library/blhoax.htm
