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Date: Mon, 3 May 1999 09:42:57 -0400
From: irlandesa <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: Lopez y Rivas Blasts Chiapas Militarization
Sender: irlandesa <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: chiapas-l <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, chiapas-i <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,
contacto <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, harry <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,
NAP <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Originally published in Spanish by El Universal
________________________
Translated by irlandesa
El Universal
Monday, May 3, 1999.
One Soldier For Every Twenty Residents in Chiapas:
Lopez y Rivas
Bertha Fernandez
The federal goverment is increasing its military budget, placing
more than 72,000 soldiers in Chiapas - one for every 20 residents at 184
checkpoints - encouraging the growth of paramilitary groups, failing to
carry out the San Andres Accords and putting off discussion of the
problems, which are becoming worse every day, stated Deputy Gilberto Lopez
y Rivas.
Fourteen thousand chiapanecos in the state have been turned into
militarized civilians, by the Army doctrine, who are attacking their own
brothers - under the pretext of the fight against drug trafficking - as
the human rights of the indigenous, the owners of the chiapaneco lands, are
being violated, he added.
The soldiers are becoming more and more professionalized, and some of them
are being trained at the School of the Americas, where soldiers of the
region are being taught the art of suppression .
While this is going on, the President of the Republic is increasingly
without a State policy for the resolution of the multiple problems that
exist in the country, and he is acting without direction, Lopez y Rivas
added.
Since 1994, when the Zapatista Army of National Liberation arose, there has
been a substantial growth in the budget related to the military and
modernization of equipment.
Despite the fact that the Constitution establishes equality of rights for
all Mexicans, the indigenous of Chiapas are suffering from a disadvantage,
because of the war that has been unleashed on their lands, because of the
multiple violations of their human rights that occur every day, and,
despite the fact that they live in one of the richest states in the
country, because they are unable to enjoy its benefits.
Deputy Lopez y Rivas stated that the citizenry should demand a peaceful
solution to the problems from the government and say where we want to go.
It is absurd that there are 184 checkpoints in that southeastern Mexican
state, manned by soldiers and public security, Migration, Judicial police
and Naval personnel.
This is another violation of rights, because, despite the fact that they
talk about freedom of movement, it does not exist, and the only thing that
militarization achieves is the intimidation those trying to move about the
state.
The war has not been stopped; it has, on the other hand, given rise to
150,000 displaced, many of whom have had their houses burned and who have
lost all their few belongings, he denounced.
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