VIDEO: Rally for Political Prisoner Juan Manuel Martinez Moreno, Oaxaca City
Oaxaca City, January 14th, 2009: Members of Section 22 and APPO came to demand Juan Manuel Martinez Moreno’s release from prison. In the clip, his sister Lybia reads the families statement at the offices of the 5th District Judge. Background info: On October 16th 2008, Juan Manuel Martinez Moreno was imprisoned for the 2006 murder of American Journalist Brad Will, unjustly, as eye-witness and forensic evidence has proved his innocence. He was scapegoated by the Mexican government in order to appease U.S. demands that the case be prosecuted, as a prerequisite for funding to Mexico under the Merida Initiative. He remains
incarcerated at Santa Maria Ixcotel prison, in the City of Oaxaca, to this day.
03.11.2009 Caravan to D.C.
Join us March 11, 2009 for the Friends of Brad Will Caravan to D.C. Or setup a meeting with your local representatives.
Below is a list of our demands and an information packet you can take to your congress person. (check periodically for updates)
You can join our efforts: http://friendsofbradwill.org/contact-us/
OUR MISSION:
To inform our representatives of the Human Rights Violations and impunity U.S. tax money supports in Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean; and to verbalize our opposition to it as well as encourage theirs.
OUR GOALS:
1. Free Juan Manuel Martinez Moreno! (unjustly imprisoned for Brad Will’s murder)
2. Prosecute the paramilitaries responsible for killing Brad Will and investigate the 27 other political murders in Oaxaca.
3. Stop the Merida Initiative! (aka Plan Mexico) End The Drug War!
DOCUMENTS PACKAGE to give to your congress person:
Regarding Juan Manuel’s Martinez Moreno’s Case:
-Amnesty International Action Alert
-Reporter Without Borders Article
-A picture of para-militaries shooting in Brad’s direction
-Physicians for Human Rights Article
-Mexican National Comission on Human Rights (CNDH): Report on Brad’s Case (Spanish)
-Narco News Article
-NY Times Article
Opposition to The Merida Initiative (aka Plan Mexico)
-AFL-CIO
-United Steelworkers
HELPFUL TIPS
Meeting with Your Congress People
BACKGROUND INFO:
On October 16th 2008, Juan Manuel Martinez Moreno was imprisoned for the murder of Brad Will, unjustly, as eye-witness and forensic evidence has proved his innocence. He was scepegoated by the Mexican government in order to appease U.S. demands that the case be prosecuted, as a prerequisite for funding to Mexico under the Merida Initiative. He remains incarcerated at Santa Maria Ixcotel prison, in the City of Oaxaca, to this day.
When Brad was killed, photographs were taken of police, police commanders, operatives and PRI party bodyguards, firing guns at the protesters. These included Pedro Carmona, Abel Santiago Zarate aka “El Chino,” Juan Carlo Soriano aka “El Chapulin,” Commander Manuel Aguilar Coello, and Juan Sumano. These paramilitaries are directly linked to the corrupt Governor Ulises Ruiz, and we demand their arrest.
The Merida Initiative. Under the guise of the ‘war on drugs’, aid package threatens Mexico, Latin America and the Caribbean with a return to 80s style counter- insurgency targeted at activists like us throughout the hemisphere, namely those that dissent, challenge domination and oppression and offer more fair alternatives to live together – e.g. labor, anti-neoliberal trade, indigenous rights activists. More on Plan Mexico.
DONATE/CONTACT
We can arrange rides for people and are accepting resources (donated vans, cars, and $) for expenses.
For more information please contact: h.bubbins (at) gmail.com
Obama urged to speak up for murdered journalist in meeting with Calderon
January 12, 2009
Obama urged to speak up for murdered journalist in meeting with Mexican President Calderon
and to reject as an “impractical continuation of a failed policy” Bush’s Merida Initiative
(Washington, D.C.) Friends of Brad Will urged their members to contact President Elect Obama’s Transition Team today to urge the President Elect to bring up the case of murdered U.S. journalist Brad Will in his meeting with Mexican President Calderon in D.C. Monday afternoon.
The organization, which was established two and a half years ago when the journalist was killed by Mexican paramilitaries while covering a teachers’ strike, has called on Congress and the Bush State Department to aid in obtaining justice for their murdered friend. They described the Obama-Calderon meeting as “an important opportunity to move forward not only on Brad’s case but also on many Mexican political prisoners’ cases.”
They asked callers to Obama’s transition team to urge Obama to ask explicitly about Brad’s case and those of other innocent people arrested, raped or killed (in Atenco, Juarez, Chiapas, Oaxaca and elsewhere).
Manuel Red Pebble Perez, Coordinator of Binational Indigenous Peoples’ Outreach for Friends of Brad Will, declared “(t)he United States should not be supplying lethal aid to unaccountable ’security’ forces in Mexico or Latin America that have shown themselves incapable even to bring to justice the Mexican government paramilitaries witnessed in broad daylight killing our colleague, Brad Will”. He pointed reporters to the report by Reporters without Borders (see: http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=19485) and to the International Physicians for Human Rights forensic team’s findings which sited culpability of Mexican government paramilitaries for Mr. Will’s and others’ murders as ignored by Mexican State and Federal prosecutors.
Under pressure from the U.S. government for resolution of the case, the Mexican authorities have arrested and put out arrest warrants for 11 innocent people, at least 4 of whom courageously stepped forward with Brad’s parents to provide their eyewitness testimony to the Mexican govt. The Mexican government is now scapegoating these innocent people in a travesty of justice labeled by Kathy Will, Brad’s mother, as ‘absurd.’
Joy Ophelia, a spokeswoman for Friends of Brad Will said that “(t)he notorious corruption and lack of accountability of Mexican security forces and their widespread human rights abuses makes Bush’s Merida Initiative (aka Plan Mexico) a terrible, impractical idea, which Obama should discontinue.”
Background information:
Plan Mexico Backgrounder: http://americas.irc-online.org/am/5118
Witness to Brad Will’s Murder Denounces Recent Arrests
http://elenemigocomun.net/1704
“. . .Juan Manuel has been falsely charged with the homicide of U.S. journalist Bradley Roland Will. (H)e is . . .an active individual, committed to his community through his parish and municipality.”
Video: A Call to Action from the Family of Juan Manuel (one of the wrongly accused)
http://elenemigocomun.net/1928
President-elect Obama to Meet with President Calderón
WASHINGTON, D.C. – President-elect Barack Obama will meet with
Mexico’s President Felipe Calderón on Monday, January 12. The meeting
will be in Washington, DC at the Mexican Cultural Institute. There is
a long-standing tradition, since 1980, of U.S. presidents meeting with
the Mexican president prior to being sworn in to underscore the
important relationship between the United States and Mexico. This
meeting is in keeping with that tradition.
###
SUPPORT JUAN MANUEL BY SIGNING THIS LETTER
Everyone can help!
After the hearing last Monday was awaiting the decision, these days are important to take actions and exert pressure before the trial judge. Juan Manuel wants to return to his family.
Please add your name to this letter and send it to the judge in the case. The english version is first and spanish follows.
Just sending a fax we can make a difference.
——————————————————–
ENGLISH
SUPPORT JUAN MANUEL BY SIGNING THIS LETTER AND SENDING IT TO THE JUDGE PRESIDING OVER THE CASE Lic. Rosa Iliana Noriega Pérez
Juez Quinto de Distrito
Calle de Amapolas núm. 1202 Colonia Reforma
Oaxaca, Oaxaca, México CP 68000
Teléfono:(+52) 951 5 13 56 40
FAX: (+52) 951 5 13 23 51
DATE, PLACE
Honorable Judge:
I/We ________________ (name and/or organization), citizen(s) of ____________ (nationality) would like to take this opportunity to send my/our regards and additionally to refer to the case of Juan Manuel Martínez Moreno.
To my/our knowledge, despite the fact that he is an active individual, committed to his community through his parish and municipality, Juan Manuel has been falsely charged with the homicide of U.S. journalist Bradley Roland Will.
This past October 29th the detainee was represented by his defense counsel in the Federal Court to seek an injunction against the formal writ of imprisonment placed against him by the judge of the Fourth Division of the Central Judicial District in Oaxaca on October 22nd for the crime of homicide supposedly committed against the abovementioned journalist. Said injunction was circulated with docket number 1311/2008 in the court that your honor now presides over.
I/we also understand that sufficient proof does not exist to justify the charges placed against Juan Manuel Martínez Moreno. According to the judicial proceedings, the only proof presented consists of two testimonies, neither of which refers directly to Juan Manuel at any point. There is a clear lack of precision in these two testimonies that detract from their value as evidence. It is important to note that in the course of the criminal investigation by the PGR there have been around 70 testimonies, none of which point to Juan Manuel; it is alarming that persuasive evidence cannot be found to support the accusation against Juan Manuel after so many people testified before judicial authorities. Similarly, I/we understand that the expert rulings are lacking in scientific rigor and consequently arrive at conclusions lacking in methodological substance in addition to the lack of suitable expert evidence.
It is greatly concerning that the judge of the Fourth Division of the Central Judicial District in Oaxaca has conceded probative value in two vague testimonies in spite of their imprecision and incongruence, and that based on this evidence paired with deficient and insufficient expert opinions, he intends on stripping an innocent person of his liberty, processing him for a crime without sufficient proof his guilt. Even more disturbing is the fact that this judge threw out the opinions of a group of independent experts from the International Forensic Program of Physicians for Human Rights, which clearly point to the inconsistencies in the investigation. Similarly, the judge in the case also managed to reject the recommendations 050/2008 of the National Commission for Human Rights, which determined that the shots that impacted Brad Will´s body were fired from 32 meters away, not 2 meters as the PGR is claiming.
Last Monday, December 15th, the constitutional hearing of the legal injunction was held in your honor´s court with Juan Manuel present. Now that the case is proceeding to sentencing, I respectfully ask your honor to take into account the arguments that have been put forth in his defense, subject to the rights of due process established in the Magna Carta and in the international human rights agreements that Mexico has signed and ratified which, as your honor is aware, are binding under the Constitution. It is important to note that this case has received international attention, and a number of national and international organizations are aware of the case and its defendant. I am confident that your honor will closely analyze this case and will resolve it in a fully autonomous manner, without political interjection, based on the truth and in accordance with international standards for human rights. I don´t doubt that it is in that and no other way that your honor continuously carries out your duties as a judge.
Sincerely
________________
(name/signature)
ESPAÑOL
APOYE A JUAN MANUEL ENVIANDO ESTA CARTA A LA JUEZA DEL CASO
Lic. Rosa Iliana Noriega Pérez
Juez Quinto de Distrito
Calle de Amapolas núm. 1202 Colonia Reforma
Oaxaca, Oaxaca, México CP 68000
Teléfono:(+52) 951 5 13 56 40
FAX: (+52) 951 5 13 23 51
Fecha, lugar
Respetable Señora Juez:
El que suscribe y firma (poner nombre de la persona y/o organización), ciudadano (poner nacionalidad) aprovecho la oportunidad para saludarle, y además referirme al caso de Juan Manuel Martínez Moreno
Según tengo conocimiento, pese a que se trata de una persona activa, comprometida con su comunidad a través de su parroquia y una regiduría municipal, a Juan Manuel se le ha imputado falsamente el homicidio del periodista norteamericano Bradley Roland Will.
El 29 de octubre pasado, el detenido a través de su defensa acudió ante la Justicia Federal, presentando una demanda de amparo para reclamar el auto de formal prisión dictado en su contra por el Juez Cuarto Penal del Distrito Judicial de Centro, con residencia en Oaxaca, mismo que fue dictado el 22 de octubre por el delito de homicidio calificado cometido supuestamente en agravio del mencionado periodista. Dicho juicio de amparo fue radicado con el número 1311/2008 por el Juzgado que está a su digno cargo.
Tengo entendido que no existen los elementos de prueba con los que se acredite la probable responsabilidad de Juan Manuel Martínez Moreno. Según el expediente penal, los únicos medios probatorios son dos testimonios que en ningún momento señalan directamente a Juan Manuel. Hay una obvia falta de precisión en esos dos testimonios que le restan todo valor probatorio. Es importante tomar en cuenta que dentro de la averiguación previa integrada por la PGR se cuenta con alrededor de 70 testimonios sin que en ellos se señala a Juan Manuel; resulta alarmante que no se puedan obtener elementos de convicción para sustentar la acusación contra Juan Manuel Martínez Moreno después de que tantas personas declararan ante la autoridad ministerial.
Asimismo, es de mi conocimiento que los dictámenes periciales carecen de técnica científica y por ende, arriban a conclusiones carentes de sustento metodológico, agregándose a tal circunstancia la carencia de más pruebas idóneas realizadas por especialistas.
Me parece sumamente preocupante que el Juez Cuarto Penal del Distrito Judicial del Centro ubicado en Oaxaca haya concedido fuerza probatoria a dos testimonios vagos a pesar de sus imprecisiones e incongruencias, y que en base a estas probanzas, así como a pruebas periciales insuficientes y deficientes se pretenda privar de su libertad y procesar a una persona inocente por un delito respecto del cual su probable responsabilidad no se demuestra. Más aun porque, en contrapartida, ese juzgador desechó la opinión de un grupo de peritos independientes del Programa Internacional Forense de Médicos por los Derechos Humanos, en los cuales se señala claramente las inconsistencias dentro de la indagatoria. En este mismo sentido, el juez de la causa también llegó a desestimar lo establecido por la Comisión Nacional de Derechos Humanos en su recomendación 050/2008, donde determinó que los disparos que impactaran el cuerpo de Brad Will se realizaran a 32 metros de distancia y no a 2 metros como sostiene la PGR.
El pasado lunes 15 de diciembre, se desahogó ante usted la audiencia constitucional dentro del juicio de amparo al que ha acudido Juan Manuel. Ahora que procede el dictado de sentencia, respetuosamente me permito pedirle que tome en cuenta los argumentos esgrimidos por su defensa sujetándose a los derechos procesales consagrados en nuestra Carta Magna y en los instrumentos internacionales sobre derechos humanos que nuestro país ha firmado y ratificado, mismos que, como usted sabe, forman parte del derecho interno por disposición constitucional. Es importante hacer hincapié en que el presente caso ha cobrado relevancia internacional, por lo que diversas organizaciones tanto nacionales como internacionales se encuentran al tanto de lo ocurrido sobre el particular.
Confío en que analizará minuciosamente ese caso y que resolverá con plena autonomía, sin injerencias políticas, con base a la verdad y conforme a los estándares internacionales de protección a los derechos humanos. No dudo que es esa y no otra la manera en que habitualmente realiza su importante labor como juzgadora.
Atentamente,
Nombre, Firma
VIDEO: Three Men and a Baby vs. Senator Dodd and WOLA
Description: A look at how, and why Friends of Brad Will took a stand for Human Rights and against Senator Dodd and the Washington Office on Latin America on September 17, 2008.
International Human Rights Day
DECEMBER 10th, 2008 is International Human Rights Day
Take a Stand Against Human Rights Violations in México!
Stop the Merida Initiative aka Plan Mexico!
Join us in actions at each of the 100 Congressional District offices (or
in DC).
For more information about how to take action read below.
For inspiration WATCH THIS VIDEO:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9KboUuzwd0
Now is the time to get creative. How will you take a stand?
——————
Here is how to find your representative:
https://writerep.house.gov/writerep/welcome.shtml
But don’t just write to them here, call and set up an in person appointment!
If you never did that before, it’s easy: say this…..
“Hello, I want to thank the rep for their work on human rights and would like on Dec 10th International Human Rights Day, to discuss Plan Mexico, Latin America, and the Caribbean etc”
And then contact us for more info if needed (and to let us know what district you’ve called – whether or not a meeting w/Reps is scheduled).
Call and set up a December 10th appointment with your Representative’s D.C. and/or District Offices this week.
Under the guise of the ‘war on drugs’, the Merida Initiative threatens Mexico, Latin America and the Caribbean with a return to 80s style counter- insurgency targeted at activists like us throughout the hemisphere, namely those that dissent, challenge domination and oppression and offer more fair alternatives to live together – e.g. labor, anti-neoliberal trade, indigenous rights activists.
Volunteer to lobby rally, meet, forum or create an event in your local community. Add your issue to the agenda!
We need local volunteers across the country!
Email h.bubbins((AT))gmail(DOT))com
Sponsored by:
Friends of Brad Will
North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA),
WESPAC Foundation
Grannies for Peace
NYC Chapter of the
National Congress for Puerto Rican Rights
Committee in Solidarity People El Salvador CISPES
UCTP United Confederation of Taino People
HustleMode
DeepDance Promotions
and a growing coalition, add your name and energy!
More on Plan Mexico:
http://americas.irc-online.org/am/5118
Please forward far and wide! (And contact local Congresspersons
office to ask for meeting).
****RECUERDEN LA FECHA
10 de Diciembre de 2008-12-04 es Día Internacional de los Derechos Humanos
As algo parar detener las violaciones de derechos humanos en México!
Hay que detener la Iniciativa Mérida (también conocido como el Plan México)
Nuestra meta es que ocurran eventos en cada una de los cien distritos congresionales (o en sus oficinas en D.C.)
Aquí ay un VIDEO para inspirarte:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9KboUuzwd0
Ahora es tiempo de ser creativo. Como vas a apoyar a nuestros vecinos?
——————-
Si nunca has hecho esto anteriormente, te decimos que es fácil: Dices esto:
“Hola, me gustaría agradecer a mi representante por su trabajo en los derechos humanos y me gustaría que el 10 de diciembre, el día internacional de derechos humanos, se discuta el Plan México, Latino América, y el Caribe etc.”
Nos puedes contactar si necesitas mas información, o cuando lo necesites (también para avisarnos a que distrito llamaste- y si se pudo agendar una reunión con el Representante).
Llama y agenda una reunión el 10 de diciembre con tu representante de D.C. y/o en las oficinas de distrito esta semana.
Bajo la mascara de la “guerra en contra el crimen organizado y drogas”, la iniciativa Mérida amenaza a México, latino América, y el caribe con un retorno de la contrainsurgencia también vista en los años ochenta, los cuales también atacaban a los activistas como nosotros a través del hemisferio; específicamente aquellos quienes
disiden, enfrentan a la dominación y la opresión y aquellos quienes ofrecen alternativas justas en respecto a como vivir juntos, por ejemplo en el labor, en el intercambio anti-neoliberal, y quienes defienden la autodeterminación y los derechos de los pueblos indígenas.
Apoya en los mitins, los encuentros, en los forums y en crear eventos en sus respectivas comunidades.
Necesitamos voluntarios locales a través del país!
Escriba al correo electrónico: h.bubbins(at)gmail(dot)com
Patrocinado por:
Friends of Brad Will
North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
WESPAC Foundation
Grannies for Peace
NYC Chapter of the National Congress for Puerto Rican Rights
CISPES
May 1 Coalition for Worker and Immigrant Rights.
Y una coalicion creciente! Agrega tu nombre y energia a la lista!
Mas sobre el Plan Mexico: http://americas.irc-online.org/am/5118
Por favor re-envía y difunde!
Recent alternative to neoliberal globalization event with Friends of Brad Will
Friends of Brad WIll attended the NYU Conference: Many Yeses, One No: Confronting Corporate Globalization
As the anniversary of the Seattle protests against the WTO approaches,
the world economic system- a system whose logic and shape has been
defined by neoliberal economic theory- is in ruins, and the United
States has elected a new president that many people hope and expect
will bring about “real Change.”
Many in attendance turned their eyes to the “Third” and “Second” worlds which initiated (in the 1970s) opposition to neoliberal trade and security policies and which have continued to oppose them to this day. While some lamented the possibility that the alternative globalization movement may have ended post 9/11, others pointed out the turn away from such policies throughout the world especially in the Western Hemisphere/Latin America.
We are working in solidarity with the peoples of the western hemisphere who have organized and taken the streets in record numbers to oppose neoliberal economic policies who are now facing U.S. military, police and covert interventions in the Hemisphere.
President Bush has been propping up extreme right-wing governments in Colombia and Mexico with Plans Colombia and Mexico (i.e. the Merida Initiative), subverting democratically elected ones in Bolivia and Venezuela, and is continuing to negotiate the undemocratic Security and Prosperity Partnership in secret. Plan Mexico was declared by Assistant Secretary of State Shannon as “NAFTA armored”. It is also the armed program within the SPP.
The conference discussed new priorities, including standing in solidarity with Latin America, Mexico and the Caribbean by opposing Plan Mexico (the Merida Initiative) in the name of Brad Will, the anti-globalization activist and journalist murdered by paramilitaries trying to destroy a peoples movement against privatization, corruption and militarization.
Coverage of Brad Will Memorial Actions 10/27/08
On Monday October 27th 2008, the 2nd anniversary of Brad’s murder, Friends of Brad Will in Mexico, New York, Houston, San Francisco, and Portland held press conferences and rallies to publicize our cause and our new demands.
In New York, Free Speech Radio News covered the hunger strike and protest. Photos are online at nyc.indymedia.org.
In Houston, activists met with press and representatives from the Consulate. Read: Houston Indymedia coverage, hear: KPFT radio news coverage.
In San Francisco, Friends of Brad Will gathered at the Mexican Consulate to remember Brad and the people of Oaxaca and issued a statement of demands to the Mexican Consulate. Coverage on indybay.
In Portland, The Friends of Brad Will, along with supporters of Oaxaca, gathered in front of the Mexican Consulate to call for justice in the case of Brad Will’s murder by Mexican paramilitaries, and justice for the people of Oaxaca. Coverage on Portland Indymedia.
In Mexico, actions were covered in El Universal (in Spanish), and the LA Times blog.
In Uruguay, activists issued a solidarity statement (in Spanish).
photos
Houston: 
San Francisco: 
New York: 
Portland: 
Monday 10/27: Press Conferences in SF, Houston, Portland and New York on the 2nd Anniversary of Brad's Murder
New York City
Gathering in remembrance: noon, Press conference: 12:30 pm
Mexican Consulate
27 East 39th Street in Manhattan, between Madison and Park .
call in support and voice our demands: Phone: (212) 217-6400 Fax: (212) 217-6493
——————–
Houston
10:30 am: Mexican Consulate 4506 Caroline, Houston TX 77004
call in support and voice our demands: phone: (713) 271 – 6800 Fax: (713) 271 – 3201
Nick Cooper and members of the Community speak: Brad Will’s Killers Remain At Large and Innocent Activists Are Being Charged in His Death
——————-
Portland
10:00 – 11:30am: Mexican Consulate, 1234 SW Morrison St.,
Demand justice for his companeros charged with his murder!
—————
San Francisco
3pm: Mexican Consulate, 532 Folsom St
Call 917-991-2415 for more information
Friends of Brad Will will be gathering to remember Brad and the people of Oaxaca and to issue a statement of demands.
A Hunger Strike at Clinton’s Office
By David Gonzalez for NY Times
Harry Bubbins likes to plant things. When his friend Bradley Will was shot dead covering antigovernment protests in Mexico nearly two years ago, he planted a tree in the South Bronx to honor the slain journalist. This week, days after the Mexican government arrested two leftist protesters in connection with Mr. Will’s murder, Mr. Bubbins is again planting things.
Himself, on a Midtown sidewalk.
In an admittedly extreme move to draw attention to what he — and numerous human rights groups — say is a cover-up by Mexican authorities, Mr. Bubbins is on a four-day hunger strike outside the Third Avenue office of Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton.
More
Friends of Brad Will in Hunger Strike at Clinton Office
CALL U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton at her office:
(212) 688-6262 (see talking points/demands, below)
Harry Bubbins (hunger-striker) reports that she was in the office this a.m.
You don’t have to live in NY to make this crucial phone call!
Stop by the vigil at 780 Third Ave (between 48th & 49th St.) Manhattan
Friends of Brad Will are in their 2nd day of a 4-day round-the-clock vigil and Hunger Strike at Sen. Hillary Clinton’s office (no food, no drink, no water)
Remembering Brad Will (1970-2006)
New York journalist assassinated in Oaxaca, Mexico
by right-wing paramilitary death squads
Friends of Brad Will, including human rights advocates Robert Jereski and Harry Bubbins, will be engaging in a 4-day vigil and fast as part of an international “Week of Action and Remembrance” of our friend Brad Will, to call attention to the Mexican government’s cover-up of the U.S. journalist’s murder and in opposition to Senator Hillary Clinton’s support for U.S. funding for Mexico’s military operations under Plan Mexico (the “Merida Initiative”).
The vigil will last for 4 days and nights outside Senator Clinton’s office. It is calling on Sen. Clinton to order protection for witnesses who saw Mexican government paramilitaries shooting at demonstrators, including Brad Will, in Oaxaca, and who are currently being threatened by Mexican Authorities.
Brad Will was assassinated while reporting and filming the 2006 uprising in Oaxaca. Multiple witnesses say he was shot by right-wing paramilitaries who are seen in photos shooting towards Will. The paramilitaries are: Juan Carlo Soriano, municipal police officer; Manuel Aguilar, council personnel chief; Able Santiago Zarate; and Pedro Carmona, mayor of Felipe Carrillo Puerto de Santa Lucia del Camino. (See photo at http://nyc.indymedia.org/en/2008/10/100875.html and also at http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=19485 )
The Mexican government’s own National Commission for Human Rights issued a report a few weeks ago which declared that the federal and state attorneys general have violated human rights, legality, and judicial security and prevented access to justice in their investigation of Brad Will’s murder. (See this document at http://www.cndh.org.mx/recomen/recomen.asp )
According to Robert Jereski, who is a human rights advocate, former director of the New York City-based International Forum for Aceh and the author of several essays and key articles on the subject, “Plan Mexico is a secret ’security pact’ supposedly intended to expand the ‘drug war’ in Mexico, but which would provide over a billion dollars of U.S. taxpayer money in the next two years to train and arm the notoriously brutal and corrupt Mexican security forces with deadly equipment, including helicopters and surveillance equipment, and lethal training.
“It is our duty to stand up for human rights in solidarity with the victims of those security forces, and not with the perpetrators of human rights violations,” Jereski continued, explaining that U.S. weaponry and training have been used by Mexican officials to violently repress dissent and leftist and indigenous movements – “the very actions that journalist Brad Will was exposing.
“Plan Mexico is also being opposed by the United Steelworkers union, Global Exchange, and Witness for Peace because it imposes horrendous conditions for workers in Mexico under the pressure of the U.S. government,” Jereski concluded.
And Harry Bubbins, an environmental expert living in the Bronx, adds that “the Jewish magazine Tikkun and Jews for Racial & Economic Justice also oppose Plan Mexico because under the guise of the ‘war on drugs’ it has enabled the unpopular right-wing Mexican President Calderon to appoint members of the anti-semitic El Yunque movement to his cabinet.”
Bubbins explained that the vigil was called for Sen. Hillary Clinton’s office in order to “demand that New York State’s Democratic Party leaders oppose the Bush militarization package bolstering right-wing paramilitaries in Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean, and declare a new era of cooperation with the peoples of this hemisphere and not with those who abuse human rights.
“We, friends of U.S. journalist Brad Will,” Bubbins said, “are calling on Senator Clinton to help us achieve justice and an end to impunity by Latin American and Caribbean security forces for the murders of Brad Will and many other journalists and labor and indigenous activists. We urge the Senator to oppose the failed neo-conservative security model promoted by President Bush and Mexican President Calderon by speaking out against the Merida Initiative.”
A statement released by the organization, “Friends of Brad Will,” asks “Why has Senator Clinton ignored the murder of a U.S. journalist by Mexican government-backed paramilitaries? Why has she said nothing about the cover-up and false arrests by Mexican State and Federal civilian authorities? And why has she agreed to fund additional lethal training and armaments to Latin American governments which routinely target their own civilians, especially labor and indigenous rights activists? Is this how she honors the life of a U.S. citizen who lived and worked in New York?”
A press conference was held in front of Sen. Hillary Clinton’s Manhattan office on Tuesday, October 21, to kick-off the vigil, fast, and week of action and remembrance. Special thanks to La Jornada and the Mexican Associated Press for showing up, as well as a number of U.S. media. Please send along any stories about this that you come across.
DEMANDS
1) That Hillary Clinton issue a public statement demanding the protection of the witnesses to Brad’s murder, the arrest of the government agents on film shooting at him, and a public statement opposing the Merida Initiative (Plan Mexico).
2) Arrest the REAL Killers. When Brad was killed, the people photographed firing guns at the protesters were police, police commanders, and operatives and bodyguards for the PRI party, including Pedro Carmona, Able Santiago Zarate aka “El Chino,” Juan Carlo Soriano aka “El Chapulin,” Commander Manuel Aguilar Coello, and Juan Sumano. They are directly linked to the corrupt Governor Ulises Ruiz. We demand their arrest.
3) Drop False Charges, Release Political Prisoners. Since Brad’s death, Ulises Ruiz’ government has been attempting to bring charges for Brad’s killing against Brad’s friends, APPO people, witnesses, and those who risked their lives trying to get Brad to a hospital. We join the National Commission on Human Rights, and Reporters Without Borders in finding these attempts to be an absurd attempt to divert attention from the real killers. We demand an end to this smokescreen and the punishment of innocent people including Juan Manuel Martínez Moreno and Octavio Perez Perez.
4) Justice for Brad, Freedom for Oaxaca. Brad is only one of dozens of activists, reporters, civilians, and unarmed people killed by the State response to the Oaxacan movement for justice and freedom. Friends of Brad Will not only demands justice for them, but demands what they demand: the end of corrupt brutal rule by Ulises Ruiz.
5) No to Neo-Liberalism. Marcella Sali Grace Eiler, an international solidarity activist working with CIPO, Colectivo Mujer Nueva and with the witnesses of Brad’s death, was found brutally raped and murdered September 26th 2008 in San Jose del Pacifico in the state of Oaxaca. Her death is part of an escalation of violence against women in an era of neo-liberal trade agreements and drug wars. We join in solidarity with the friends and family of Sali and demand an end to NAFTA, CAFTA, and Plan Puebla Panama.
6) No to Plan Mexico. A year almost to the day after Brad was murdered, the Bush Administration announced the Merida Initiative (aka Plan Mexico), providing at least $1.6 billion in US armament, training, and resources to the same police and military forces that killed Brad and many other activists and journalists in Mexico and Central America under the pretense of stopping narco-trafficking. Already the weapons have been used in massacres and repression of activists in Morelos and Chiapas. Along with the AFL-CIO, the United Steelworkers, Tikkun, Wespac, Witness for Peace, Cispes, and Jews for Racial and Economic Justice, The Friends of Brad Will demand an end to the Merida Initiative.
———————————————–
About the initiators:
Robert Jereski’s publications include The Conflict in Aceh, and U.S. Interests in Promoting A Free Market, Stability and Human Rights in South East Asia – An Examination of the Context and Impacts of ExxonMobil’s Security Arrangements with the Indonesian Armed Forces, viewable at http://preventconflict.org/portal/main/research/jereski.htm . He was also a 2004 Democratic Party candidate for Congress in New York City’s 14th Congressional District.
Harry Bubbins is a New York City based environmental and human rights advocate who was named the 2001 Bronx Activist of the Year. He has presented at numerous forums from DC to NYC, including Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs. He has directed a theater piece, “Bush Invades Mexico”, on the impact of United States Latin American policy on human rights in Mexico at the Martin Siegal Theatre of the City University of New York: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=79rFpfMYRdo. His most recent performance was featured on Democracy Now! at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_RItQbTvKcE
Hunger Strike in Remembrance of Brad Will
Members of the organization Friends of Brad Will are participating in a 4 day vigil and fast from October 21st until October 24th in front of Senator Hillary Clinton’s offices in New York, as part of an international “Week of Action in Remembrance” of their murdered friend Brad Will. The purpose of the action is to bring attention to the Mexican government’s cover-up of the U.S. journalist’s murder and to show opposition to Senator Clinton’s support for U.S. funding for Mexico’s military operations under Plan Mexico (the “Merida Initiative”) .
The action is taking place 24/7 in front of senator Clinton’s offices located at 780 Third Ave, Suite 2601(between 48th and 49th street & 3rd Avenue).
VIDEO INTERVIEW and B-ROLL Package:
Democracy Now Headline October 22, 2008.
Friends of Brad Will Edit:
The Rule of Impunity: Mexican Government Ignores Overwhelming Evidence, Charges Oaxacan Activists with Brad Will’s Murder
By John Gibler
On October 27, 2006, Brad Will stood on Juarez Avenue in the municipality of Santa Lucia del Camino, Oaxaca, Mexico. He was filming a violent clash between armed, civilian-clad municipal police and officials and members of the Oaxaca Peoples’ Popular Assembly, or APPO
Brad, a longtime New York City activist and independent journalist, traveled to Oaxaca in early October 2006 to report on the protest movement led by the state teachers union that sought to oust governor Ulises Ruiz of the Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, which had ruled Oaxaca with an iron fist for almost 80 years.
Brad stood amid the APPO protesters and other journalists, filming down the length of Juarez Avenue where armed officials were firing at the protesters. Brad was shot and fell to the ground, his camera still running, having recorded the sound of the shot that hit him. Brad was shot from straight on, just below the chest, and yet his killer does not appear in the camera frame at the moment of the gunshot. Brad died on the way to the hospital. He had been shot twice.
Two years later, on October 16, 2008, the Mexican federal government arrested two members of the APPO, charging Juan Manuel Martinez as the gunman and Octavio Perez with helping to cover up Brad’s murder (Perez was later released on bail). Federal police were still looking for other suspected accomplices, all members of the APPO who had tried to carry Brad to safety and save his life.
The arrests came after a series of human rights reports criticized the government’s investigation for failing to follow leads pointing to local officials who were widely photographed by the press shooting at APPO protesters on October 27, 2006.
“It is such a coverup,” said Kathy Will, Brad’s mother, in a telephone interview on learning of the arrests. “It is an insult to us and to all of the groups that have tried to help with a meaningful investigation.”
Brad Will Memorial in NYC Art Show
An altar to Brad Will, created by artist Tanyth Berkeley, whose work has been featured at the Museum of Modern Art will be on display at the world renowned BELLWETHER gallery.
July 10th – August 8th, 2008 Opening Reception: Thursday, July 10th, 6-8PM
Vanessa Albury, Tanyth Berkeley & Todd Chandler, Tammy Rae Carland,
Patricia Cronin, Amrita Das, Leela Devi, Rob Hauschild, Paa Joe,
Joss paper effigies, Roy Kortick, Lisa Ross, Victorian hair
wreaths, Marc Swanson & Joe Mama-Nitzberg
Curated by Becky Smith
If Love Could Have Saved You, You Would Have Lived Forever is an
exhibition of art and objects that reference the aesthetics, material
culture, and traditional gestures surrounding death and remembrance.
On view is Vanessa Albury’s Funeral (Projection), in which a darkened
room is filled with a single-slide projection of a still image taken
by Albury at her grandmother’s funeral. Tanyth Berkeley and Todd
Chandler will present a video made in memory of their friend Brad
Will, an anarchist and documentary filmmaker who was shot and killed
during a teacher’s strike in Oaxaca, Mexico in 2006.
Tammy Rae Carland has photographed a range of idiosyncratic items
taken from her childhood home after the death of her mother, creating
a poignant portrait through quotidian objects. Patricia Cronin will
exhibit a bronze sculpture from her Memorial to a Marriage Series, in
which she created a grave marker for the Woodlawn Cemetery plot she
has reserved for herself and her partner Deborah Kass.
Ghanaian fantasy coffins are constructed in shapes that reflect the
lives, careers, and aspirations of their inhabitants – cocoa beans,
pineapples, airplanes, boats, and Bibles are common forms. We are
pleased to present a coffin replica of a slave castle by Paa Joe, the
foremost maker of figural coffins. The anonymous nature of mourning
will be addressed through disposable-camera snapshots of impromptu
roadside memorials, taken and collected by Rob Hauschild.
Joss paper effigies are burned at Chinese Taoist funerals as a way of
sending gifts and comforts to loved ones who have crossed over to the
spirit realm. This age-old tradition has become heavily influenced by
Western pop culture, creating a new market for paper replicas of
luxury objects like LV wallets, Rolex watches, credit cards, sneakers,
and beer. Rob Hauschild and Becky Smith accumulated this collection
for a forthcoming book, Funny to Burn.
Roy Kortick, an artist working in ceramic and mixed media, has made a
memorial for his beloved dogs K and Sammy, which also addresses the
communal trauma of living in New York during 9/11. Paintings by Leela
Devi and Amrita Das, from the Mithila region of Southern
Nepal/Northern India, will be exhibited in New York for the first
time. The paintings depict the devastating effects of the tsunami in
Sri Lanka, and a long-distance tribute to the victims of 9/11. Lisa
Ross photographs the adorned burial mounds of the Uyghur people from
the Xinjiang area of Western China, a tradition of ornamenting twigs
and branches in the desert to venerate local saints and mystics.
Victorian hair wreaths, a memento mori tradition that became popular
after the death of Queen Victoria’s husband Prince Albert, makes use
of the hair of a loved one to create intricately woven floral
tableaus. Marc Swanson and Joe Mama-Nitzberg have collaborated on a
series of photographs of floral arrangements designed in memory of gay
icons Darby Crash, Anna Nicole Smith, Sam Wagstaff, and Halston.
Finally, Becky Smith will exhibit her personal collection of
photographs of blank grave markers, which are used to sell headstones
– a macabre reminder of the inevitability of everyone’s future demise.
BELLWETHER is located at 134 Tenth Avenue, between 18th and 19th Street.
Summer hours are Monday – Friday, 11 AM – 6 PM.
Left and Right Unite to Oppose Mexico Foreign Policy Scheme
Immediate Release ********************** May 13th, 2008
Left and Right Unite to Oppose Mexico Foreign Policy Scheme
Amnesty International Joins Opposition to Bush’s Merida Initiative
Contact:
NYC: Robert Jereski, 212-973-1782
Washington, DC: Harry Bubbins, 646 641 5788
Opposition to the President’s ebbing “Merida Initiative” scheme to give $1.4 Billion in military aid to Mexico’s police and military implicated in widespread human rights violations grew with Amnesty International issuing a statement to Congress.
“Aid for Mexico must not be a blank check for Mexican security forces that have been implicated in crimes like rape and torture,” said Larry Cox, executive director of Amnesty International USA (AIUSA). Amnesty International said that any initiative to support Mexico’s fight against drug cartels and organized crime must focus on the rule of law and should also press for justice in the unresolved killing of U.S. journalist Bradley Roland Will, and other civilians, in Oaxaca in 2006.
“We are encouraged by Amnesty International’s recognition of human rights abuses by Mexican forces,” said Robert Jereski of Friends of Brad Will. “But we hope for more from human rights organizations, especially when top labor unions reject this dangerous scheme outright.”
“Authorizing assistance for the security forces without requiring human rights violators to be punished and ensuring that basic freedoms are protected would further undermine the rule of law in Mexico,” said Renata Rendón, advocacy director for the Americas at AIUSA. “American taxpayers should not foot the bill for military and police forces with histories of abuse …”
“We do not believe “human rights safeguards” are adequate.” said Harry Bubbins, of Friends of Brad Will “Given the outstanding crimes by Mexico, including the murder of U.S. reporter Brad Will, we need to see actual progress on these cases. Military aid now would only reward impunity,” added Mr. Bubbins.
Even Republicans oppose aid
Rep. John Culberson, R-Houston, said he opposed providing the assistance to Mexico. “These resources should go to our own law enforcement officers rather than Mexico’s,” Culberson said. Senator John Cornyn, R-Texas, opposes including the funds in the Iraq war supplemental. Senator Coryn believes additional funding requests should be reviewed on their merits through the normal appropriations process, a position advanced by Friends of Brad Will since 2007.
If Congress were to rubber stamp this scheme in the President’s waning days, U.S. foreign policy options would be severely curtailed for decades to come. The Merida Initiative would arm unaccountable, corrupt and brutal military and police; contribute to the erosion of civil liberties in one of our largest trading partners; increase violence and instability in Mexico; and waste U.S. taxpayer money to benefit a few connected military contractors, like Blackwater.
Friends of Brad Will is a nationwide network of activists, friends and family members of Brad Will, the U.S. journalist who was murdered by Mexican government paramilitaries in broad daylight in Oaxaca, Mexico in October 2006. Despite numerous eye witnesses and photographic/video evidence, no one has been held accountable. Friends of Brad Will has been educating, organizing, and pressuring the U.S. government to work on behalf of Brad Will and to reject the Merida Initiative. http://friendsofbradwill.org
More on the Merida Initiative here: http://americas.irc-online.org/am/5118
For more information, please visit: www.amnestyusa.org/mexico
Friends of Brad Will discuss Merida Initiative, Impunity and Brad's murder with Representative Nita Lowey, (D-NY)
On Monday, April 7, members of Friends of Brad Will Westchester attended a Town Hall meeting on health care and spoke with Congresswoman Nita Lowey, the Chair of the powerful Appropriations Committee Foreign Operations subcommittee which is considering Plan Mexico (or the Merida Initiative).
Concerns were shared about the message which a lethal aid package for the brutal and unaccountable Mexican security forces would send to those same forces.
Bush announced the Merida Initiative almost exactly a year after U.S. journalist Brad Will was killed in Oaxaca, Mexico, while covering the teachers’ strike and popular movement against a corrupt governor there.
Contact Representative Nita Lowey and let her know you want Plan Mexico/the Merida initiative scrapped.
Here is a link which you can download as a PDF to the flier with her contact number on it, 100s of which were distributed to the attendees.
Friends of Brad Will meet with Representative Engel
Friends of Brad Will shared our concerns with Congressman Engel on Friday April 11th at the Americas Society/Council of the Americas.
We spoke with him about the 18 months elapsed since Brad Will’s murder without any justice despite his murderers being photographed at the scene, in broad daylight, with many witnesses who stepped forward.
We also told the Congressman that we were hearing from many people opposed to the Merida Initiative (Plan Mexico) – a part of the secretly negotiated Security and Prosperity Partnership currently being considered for funding by Congress – because the Bush security initiative would strengthen the unpopular Calderon Administration which has appointed members of El Yunque to top positions of his administration.
Congressman Engel said he would thoroughly review our flier (which you can download as a PDF here and bring to your Congressperson).
The Americas Society/Council of the Americas held this “conversation” on hemispheric affairs with U.S. Congressman and Chairman of the House Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere Eliot Engel. The event was part of their Congressional Discussion Series sponsored by the American International Group.
Friends of Brad Will networking with Public Intellectuals
Harry Bubbins, Communications Director of FoBW meets with Naomi Klein, author of Shock Doctrine, at the private gathering to raise money for The Indypendent newspaper.
Harry Bubbins, Jeremy Scahill – author of Blackwater, the Rise of the World’s Most Powerful Mercenary Army, and Joel Kupferman of the National Lawyers Guild.
We shared information about Plan Mexico and the potential use of Blackwater mercenaries in Mexico as part of efforts to entrench unpopular neoliberal policies. Over the last few years such policies have come under increasing pressure by the multitude not benefiting from it. Plan Mexico anticipates more activists opposed to NAFTA + and the SPP and provides the Mexican Calderon Administration with the ability to crush them.
D.C. Strategy Session: FoBW partners with tri-national challenge to Plan Mexico & SPP
On March 7, 2008, FoBW attended a strategy meeting in D.C. with some of our allies.
[See more pics here.]
The purpose of the “Strategy Meeting on NAFTA and the SPP” was to “establish a coordinated plan of action to Strengthen and broaden the trinational network of organizations working for fair and democratic trade policies and against NAFTA (and like-minded policies) and its expansion through mechanisms like the SPP.”
Here is a description of the SPP (Security and Prosperity Partnership) and here its connection to Plan Mexico.
Our discussions were attended by faith and environmental representatives from Mexico and Canada, workers’ and human rights organizations’ representatives from all three countries. Two Senators from the Mexican Parliament attended as did a Canadian MP who was furiously typing away at his blackberry as the NAFTA-gate scandal was rightly continuing to gain attention of his New Democratic Party of Canada that morning.
Though elected representatives from Mexico and Canada had traveled hundreds of miles to attend, not a single-U.S. Representative (or even a staffer) deigned to make it cross-town from the Capitol to contribute to our efforts to defend human rights and fair trade.
Concerns were raised from many participants that Plan Mexico was perfectly timed to ‘absorb’ the fall-out from NAFTA, which has seen HUGE mobilizations in Mexico and which is frightening US business interests eager for access – untrammeled by strong unions and environmental regulations – to the mines, energy resources, forests, water, and cheap, cheap labor of Mexico. Recognition was given to the fact that the U.S. right-wing is more mobilized to oppose NAFTA + and Plan Mexico than the left with some D.C.-based groups ok with tweaking instead of defeating the initiative.
Proposals (some already being implemented) were offered for action to defeat Plan Mexico.
Proposals for action to defeat Plan Mexico and the SPP
These can be discussed at your next Friends of Brad Will meetings across the country and/or just carried out as your local groups see fit (feel free to contact FoBW folks in NYS and California to coordinate/strengthen efforts):
1. Organize to participate in an SPP (Plan Mexico) Counter-summit in New Orleans for the time around April 21-22nd.
2. Sign-on statements for organizations to express opposition to Plan Mexico and SPP and then provide to press/representatives.
3. Resolutions by municipal – city or state – governments.
4. Initiate a referendum/vote on Plan Mexico/SPP.
5. A call-in day to Congress/Parliament(s).
6. Set up individual meetings with Congress/Parliamentary representatives or their staffers.
7. Candidates questionnaires: circulate/request answers to questions by McCain, Obama, Clinton campaigns re. trade/security/human rights and publicize results.
8. Your ideas here.
Discussion of Plan Mexico on Building Bridges tonight – Monday, March 3, 2008
Building Bridges:Plan Mexico; Puerto Rico Teachers’ Strike; Ruby Dee on The
Emmy By Ken Nash and Mimi Rosenberg
Bush’s Plan Mexico Is Planned Repression
with Laura Carlsen, Director, the Americas Program,
Center for International Policy
LISTEN TO (and download) AUDIO here
WBAI Radio’s Building Bridges: Your Community & Labor Report
Produced & Hosted by Mimi Rosenberg & Ken Nash
Monday, March 3, 2008, 7 – 8 p.m. EST, over 99.5 FM
or streaming live at http://www.wbai.org
***********************************************
Bush’s Plan Mexico Is Planned Repression
with Laura Carlsen, Director, the Americas Program,
Center for International Policy
President Bush announced a $500 million per year security cooperation
plan with Mexico, the Merida Initiative or Plan Mexico. It proclaimed its
targets to be narcotics trafficking, counter-terrorism, border security, and
the administration of justice. But, it is increasingly being used to
militarize the Mexican state to counter grassroots organizing and protest from
Oaxaca to Chiapas and throughout Mexico.
http://nyc.indymedia.org/en/2008/03/95182.html
****************************************
Union Busting, It’s Disgusting:
Teachers in Puerto Rico Forced To Strike
with
Raphael Feliciano Hernandez, President,
Teachers’ Federation of Puerto Rico (FMPR)
and
Manuel Boigues, Administrator, FMPR
The FMPR strike, that defies the prohibition on strikes by public employees,
has paralyzed the islands’ public schools. The union, representing more
than 42,000 teachers throughout Puerto Rico, struck after years of bad faith
bargaining by Gov. Anibal Acevedo Vila and a contested attempt by him to
decertify the union just for threatening a strike. In response to the
strike, the Governor has had the FMPR decertified and excluded them from elections
he is calling for a new union. Now, the Governor appears to be in collusion
with the Service Employees International Union to bust the FMPR and
install an SEIU affiliate.
*************************************
Bidding Farewell to the 80 Anniversary of the Oscars
with Ruby Dee
In 2008, as always, the overwhelming majority of the academy awards went
to white men, and the overwhelming majority of recognized films were about
white men. Actress, activist for more than six decades Ruby Dee reads her
clever essay on being nominated for an Emmy. While about an Emmy the
essay certainly speaks to her angst and insight as she was first nominated
for best supporting actress, but was ultimately passed over for the Oscar.
******************************************
Listen to Mimi Rosenberg Hosting Wednesday
Wakeup Call from 6 – 9 am
****************************************************************************
***********
Building Bridges and most WBAI Programs are now being archived
for 90 Days. They are also being PodCast. These links will be live
ca. 15 minutes after the program ends. To listen, download or PodCast
archived shows go to http://archive.wbai.org/index.php?sort=nameaz
To contact Building Bridges send e-mail to knash@igc.org
Series of Plan Mexico events organized by FoBW (February 21-23)
An excellent week of events about Brad, impunity in Mexico and the Bush Administration’s push for sending $1.4 billion in taxpayer money into the rat hole of ‘drug war’ funding. As most of the members of Friends of Brad Will are well aware, this would be a colossal mistake, promising to destabilize Mexico with violence and an entrenched brutal security apparatus, just at a moment when indigenous communities, fair trade activists, and good government associations are mobilizing to demand an end to corruption, fraud, and abuses of power.
That’s why the United Steelworkers, the Drug Policy Alliance, Global Exchange, Witness for Peace and many others oppose Plan Mexico. Bush & Calderon’s Plan Mexico ignores the real need for fair economic development, promising instead NAFTA with a stick.
Oh yeah, and it would also do zero to stop narco-trafficking (see Plan Colombia and our Plan Mexico section for more info, including this excellent article).
Check out the amazing events, which our network helped put together. Thanks to the prestigious School of International Public Affairs at Columbia University for inviting us to make a presentation about Plan Mexico and the new security paradigm (Feb 21); thanks to Caridad Svich and Jason Grote who invited us to provide a panel discussion and dance performance piece at the elegant and delightful Conference on Latin American Theater entitled, No Passport DREAMING THE AMERICAS (Pics here);
And thanks to Bluestockings independent highbrow bookstore for inviting Friends of Brad Will and continuing to inform your clients about Brad Will’s murder and Plan Mexico!
Here below are pictures of the events!
Tell Schumer: Stop Plan Mexico: Bush's 'drug war' threatens civil society in Mexico!
Great news! Friends of Brad Will met with Senator Schumer yesterday
at his book-signing event in Brooklyn.
We leafleted using a flyer with his picture on it and urged him to show his leadership by calling for accountability for the murder of U.S. journalist Brad Will and others murdered in Mexico by Mexican government paramilitaries.
We also brought the Merida Initiative to his attention and urged he speak out against it.
The Merida Initiative known as Plan Mexico is a $1.4 billion military package proposed by President Bush for Mexico. It is being debated in Congress now (even though they haven’t even seen the full ’security’ initiative.
Please read through the brief note below and give Senator Schumer a call or email urging an end to impunity for Brad Will’s murder and the murder of innocent Mexicans in Atenco, Oaxaca and elsewhere in Mexico by Mexican security forces and that he oppose Plan Mexico.
Thanks,
Robert
CONTACT!:
* Senator Schumer (D-NY), Senator for New York State where Brad Will lived and did much environmental volunteer work:
easy click link here, and you can cut and paste the info from below…
http://schumer.senate.gov/SchumerWebsite/contact/webform.cfm
if you have time, call, it matters a lot more!:
212-486-4430
Talking Points for Opposing the Merida Initiative
Justice for the murder of Brad Will and an end to impunity in Mexico!
A. The initiative would not effectively combat drug-trafficking
The Merida Initiative would fail to have a lasting impact on drug trafficking for three key reasons:
1. Military interdiction efforts have a “balloon” effect. As stated by the Centro Pro, a national human rights organization in Mexico City, “History has proven time and time again that such law enforcement efforts merely divert trafficking routes, creating a geographic shuffle of social and criminal problems.”
2. The Merida Initiative ignores a root cause of the problem: U.S. demand. Even the right-wing RAND Corporation has concluded that far-flung attempts to stop drugs at their source is 23 times less cost effective than domestic drug treatment at home.
3. The Merida Initiative model also fails to recognize poverty as another root cause of drug trafficking. So long as such poverty persists in Mexico, some Mexicans will continue to choose drug-running as a lucrative alternative to migration or unemployment. So long as the U.S. implements policies that perpetuate Mexico’s poverty, it will be working at odds with its own counter-narcotics initiatives.
B. The initiative further threatens human rights
Numerous Mexican and international human rights organizations have expressed concern that counter-narcotics aid for Mexico’s military and police constitutes a recipe for unchecked human rights violations. Espacio Civil, a civil society coalition comprised of 52 Oaxacan organizations, adds that in 2007 “the army committed severe human rights violations in their supposed counter-drug operations. We are concerned that the funding from the U.S. government will ultimately make this situation worse.
C. The initiative could likely be used to suppress legitimate political expression
Many Mexican groups fear, with good reason, that the US military hardware and training in the Merida Initiative would be used directly against citizens participating in acts of legitimate political expression. Mexican military and public security forces have consistently been deployed to stop and often brutally repress popular protest. Perhaps the most alarming example of late is the crackdown of the Oaxacan social movement that began with a teacher’s strike in 2006. Both federal and state security forces brought an iron fist down on the demonstrations, leaving a wake of human rights violations that include over 20 assassinations (including U.S. journalist Brad Will), hundreds of arbitrary detentions, and torture. The cases against the security forces, which have been well documented by Amnesty International and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, remain unresolved in Mexico. A sizeable portion of the money from the Merida Initiative would support the very security forces responsible for these violations. Many in Oaxaca fear that with this support, legitimate protest in Mexico will continue to be answered with repression.
Friends Successfully Meets with Senator Schumer For Accountability- Take Action to Help!
Great news! Friends of Brad Will met with Senator Schumer yesterday in Brooklyn to urge his support of accountability for the murder of U.S. journalist Brad Will and others murdered in Mexico by Mexican government paramilitaries and bring the Merida Initiative to his attention and urge he speak out against it.
The Merida Initiative known as Plan Mexico is a $1.4 billion military package proposed by President Bush for Mexico. It is being debated in Congress now (even though they haven’t even seen the full ’security’ initiative.
Please read through the brief note (w/talking points on Plan Mexico) below and give Senator Schumer a call or email urging an end to impunity for Brad Will’s murder and the murder of innocent Mexicans in Atenco, Oaxaca and elsewhere in Mexico by Mexican security forces and that he oppose Plan Mexico.
Thanks,
Friends
CONTACT!:
* Senator Schumer (D-NY), Senator for New York State where Brad Will lived and did much environmental volunteer work:
easy click link here, and you can cut and paste the info from below…
http://schumer.senate.gov/SchumerWebsite/contact/webform.cfm
if you have time, call, it matters a lot more!:
212-486-4430
Talking Points for Opposing the Merida Initiative
Justice for the murder of Brad Will and an end to impunity in Mexico!
A. The initiative would not effectively combat drug-trafficking
The Merida Initiative would fail to have a lasting impact on drug
trafficking for three key reasons:
1. Military interdiction efforts have a “balloon” effect. As stated by the Centro Pro, a national human rights organization in
Mexico City, “History has proven time and time again that such law enforcement efforts merely divert trafficking routes, creating a
geographic shuffle of social and criminal problems.”
2. The Merida Initiative ignores a root cause of the problem: U.S. demand. Even the right-wing RAND Corporation has concluded that far-flung attempts to stop drugs at their source is 23 times less cost effective than domestic drug treatment at home.
3. The Merida Initiative model also fails to recognize poverty as another root cause of drug trafficking. So long as such poverty persists in Mexico, some Mexicans will continue to choose drug-running as a lucrative alternative to migration or unemployment. So long as the U.S. implements policies that perpetuate Mexico’s poverty, it will be working at odds with its own counter-narcotics initiatives.
B. The initiative further threatens human rights
Numerous Mexican and international human rights organizations have expressed concern that counter-narcotics aid for Mexico’s military and police constitutes a recipe for unchecked human rights violations. Espacio Civil, a civil society coalition comprised of 52 Oaxacan organizations, adds that in 2007 “the army committed severe human rights violations in their supposed counter-drug operations. We are concerned that the funding from the U.S. government will ultimately
make this situation worse.
C. The initiative could likely be used to suppress legitimate political expression
Many Mexican groups fear, with good reason, that the US military hardware and training in the Merida Initiative would be used directly against citizens participating in acts of legitimate political expression. Mexican military and public security forces have
consistently been deployed to stop and often brutally repress popular protest. Perhaps the most alarming example of late is the crackdown of the Oaxacan social movement that began with a teacher’s strike in 2006. Both federal and state security forces brought an iron fist down on the demonstrations, leaving a wake of human rights violations that include over 20 assassinations (including U.S. journalist Brad Will), hundreds of arbitrary detentions, and torture. The cases against the
security forces, which have been well documented by Amnesty International and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, remain unresolved in Mexico. A sizeable portion of the money from the Merida Initiative would support the very security forces responsible for these violations. Many in Oaxaca fear that with this support, legitimate protest in Mexico will continue to be answered with repression.
Dance Theater and Panel on Plan Mexico Tonight!!! NYC- FREE
Flier for Panel discussion and event
White House Invades Mexico Tonight- February 22, 2008 7PM
An original Theater/Dance piece commissioned for the DREAMING THE AMERICAS / THE BODY POLITIC IN PERFORMANCE
NoPassport presents a one-day conference with the support of The Alliance for Inclusion in the Arts, Translation Think Tank, and in collaboration with Frank Hentschker & the Martin E. Segal Theatre Center. by Caridad Svich
www.caridadsvich.com/NoPassport
Martin E. Segal Theatre Center
The CUNY Graduate Center, 365 Fifth Ave.
(34th Street),
ph: 212-817-1860 mestc@gc.cuny.edu
Created by: Michael Schenker and Harry J. Bubbins
Choreography by: Sabine Heubusch, www.spinelight.com
Dancers: Anna Adler, Simone Coonrod, Sabine Heubusch, Anna Mc Hugh,
Shiwa Noh, Daniella Peltekova With: Marilyn Eire, Harry J. Bubbins, Firefly
Immediately followed by a Panel Discussion
7:05 PM Plan Mexico: Impunity, the ‘Drug War’ and Human Rights in Mexico-moderated by Jason Grote with Harry Bubbins, Laura Carlsen, Hector Sánchez *Harry J. Bubbins was a friend and colleague of Brad Will is involved in the movement to achieve accountability for his murder. www.friendsofbradwill.org *Laura Carlsen is director of the Americas Program of the Center for International Policy www.americaspolicy.org *Jason Grote is a playwright . jasongrote.com. *Hector Sánchez is the Policy
Education Coordinator for Global Exchange’s Mexico Program. http://www.globalexchange.org/
____Free. Reservations not required. Seats: First come, first served.____
Sample letter to José Serrano (in Spanish)
Representante José Serrano
788 Southern Blvd.
Bronx, New York 10455
(718) 620-0084
Estimado Representante José Serrano:
Mediante esta carta queremos llamar su atención cerca de la reciente Iniciativa de Merida de los presidentes Bush y Calderón, mas conocida como “Plan México.” Le escribo pidiéndole su mas enérgico rechazo a esta medida. Plan concebido sin previa consulta con el Congreso que además perpetuara las fallas y violencia del Plan Colombia que ha provocado un aumento tanto de las violaciones a los derechos humanos como de la producción de cocaína. El Center for Internacional Policy considera que poner un alto al Plan México constituye uno de los tres desafíos mas importantes para construir sociedades mas justas y pacificas en América Latina.
El Plan México contempla la entrega de $1.5 billones de dólares generados por nuestros impuestos así como de equipo para las fuerzas armadas, la policía y los servicios de inteligencia Mexicanos. Ninguna cantidad de la ayuda contemplada en el primer paquete de esta acuerdo de tres años contempla el apoyo a las áreas que mas lo requieres: prevención y tratamiento de la adicción en los Estados Unidos y financiamiento al desarrollo local en México. Enviar equipo a la policía y fuerzas armadas mexicanas en el contexto de abusos a los derechos humanos no llevados ante la ley promueve la impunidad. Los asesinos del periodista independiente y trabajador voluntario en el Bronx Brad Will, identificados en grabaciones videográficas, siguen en libertad como recientemente reportara la revista Rolling Stone. ¡Ningún tipo de ayuda mientras los asesinos caminen libres por las calles!
Un aumento de la vigilancia, y de acciones de la policía secreta y fuerzas paramilitares pone en peligro las libertades civiles de la población en general, y de los activistas sociales, lideres sindicales y pueblo indígenas en particular. Una invasión de compañías militares estadounidenses como Blackwater, y la intervención directa de los Estados Unidos conducirá inevitablemente a una relación clientelar que comprometerá seriamente la soberanía de Medico así como incrementara la politica intervencionista de los Estados Unidos. Según el analista de asuntos de seguridad Sam Logan, a pesar de su mala reputación ganada por sus ataques armados a civiles en Iraq, Blackwater resultaría como el mayor beneficiario de esta política. Esta iniciativa de “seguridad” se llevara a cabo en un contexto de mayor apertura de la economía mexicana a mayores privatizaciones y explotación por parte de empresas multinacionales. Como debera de estar enterado los Trabajadores del Acero (US Steelworkers) han manifestado su oposición a esta estrategia anti-laboral.
En una carta a los Representantes Tom Lantos y David Obey, el Presidente de USW Internacional Leo W. Gerard demanda la convocatoria de una audiencia que examine las violaciones a los derechos laborales en México como parte de la evaluación del pedido de financiamiento solicitado por la Presidencia; que esta establezca requisitos específicos en el ámbito laboral que deberá cumplir el gobierno mexicano como precondición a cualquier financiamiento; y que el paquete de financiamiento se destine en su integridad hacia el fortalecimiento de los derechos humanos y el cumplimiento de las leyes. Según escribo Gerard, “las flagrantes violaciones de los derechos fundamentales de los trabajadores por parte de la administración del Presidente Calderón y su continuo uso de las fuerzas de seguridad para asaltar a trabajadores desarmados levanta serias consideraciones.”
Al poner énfasis en la interdicción el Plan Mexico expande una guerra contra las drogas que ha fracasado miserablemente en Colombia. Asi, un estudio de la conservadora Rand Corporation para el Drug Policy Research Center del ejercito estadounidense concluyo que el tratamiento es 23 veces mas efectivo que la interdicción. México necesita y merece el apoyo de los Estados Unidos en forma de acuerdos comerciales justos, que prioricen derechos laborales e indígenas así como otros derechos humanos y la protección del medio ambiente. Como lo ha notado Global Exchange, “la masiva militarización de México no es una ayuda y conducirá mas bien a un aumento de la represión.” Finalmente, el contenido completo del plan de Bush debe ser hecho publico.
¡Trabajemos dentro y fuera del Congreso para detener al Plan Mexico!
Por favor responda por escrito tan pronto le sea posible
Atentamente
Nombre: ____________________________ Dirección: _______________________
One More Night at the Barricades ((airing)) on Manhattan Cable – Feb 13, 20- 2 parts
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Team Spider Television will be airing:
“BRAD: One More Night at the Barricades” in 2 parts….
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<< >>>…. WEDNESDAY- FEB 13th___ 10:30 -11pm PM____ CH 57.
<< >>>…. WEDNESDAY- FEB 20th___ 10:30 – 11pm Pm___ CH 57.
This a great opportunity to reach a different audience, email anyone you know, their parents, their rich uncle… who live in the borough of manhattan, and tell them to set their DVR’s ( if they have money for cable, they probably have DVR 
it is also viewable as a live stream/ same time, thru mnn.org
Monday 2/18- Forum on Repression against Zapatistas
Important event!
**Please Forward Widely**
Movement for Justice in El Barrio…
invites you to learn more about the escalating low intensity warfare being waged by the Mexican government against the Zapatista communities: the brutal displacement, death threats and incarceration.
Currently, there are 79 permanent military bases in Chiapas and paramilitary groups are threatening Zapatista families.
Our special guest Ernesto Ledesma Arronte from the Chiapas-based Center of
Political Analysis and Social and Economic Investigation (CAPISE) will share with us how the main three Mexican political parties (PAN, PRD and PRI) attempt to displace the Zapatistas from their land.
We will also present the New York Premiere of “One Big Train Called The Other Campaign”, a new documentary filmed by the Zapatista communities on the Zapatista initiated national Mexican movement.
Monday, February 18th @ 7 pm
New York University’s KJC Center
53 Washington Square South, Suite 201
Manhattan, NY
(Take subway A,B,C,D,E,F to West 4th St. Walk east on West 4th St. West
4th St. becomes Washington Square South)
The new book collection of Zapatista communiques “Speed of Dreams” will
also be available.
For more information, please contact Movement for Justice in El Barrio @
movimientoporjusticiadelbarrio@yahoo.com
Co-sponsored by the National Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
-MORE INFO ON Ernesto Ledesma Arronte and CAPISE-
Ernesto Ledesma Arronte is the Director and founder of the Center of Political Analysis and Social Investigations and Economic A.C. (CAPISE).
He was the General coordinator of the First Hemispheric Encounter against Militarization and is currently a lecturer on indigenous communities and the situation of these communities in Chiapas.
CHIAPAS: WAR and PILLAGING
Since 2002, CAPISE has focused its work on the defense of the collective rights of Indigenous Peoples, particularly relating to indigenous peoples defense of and right to territory, their right to justice and their
right to cultural identity. In the last two years, Ernesto Ledesma Arronte and CAPISE, to which he belongs, through a deep investigation, have identified the mechanisms of the pillaging of the Earth and of the evacuation of zapatista indigenous communities in Chiapas at the hands of the Mexican government, through various institutions, in a ferocious dispute for the
control of the territory.
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*Zapatista-inspired rebellion on Turtle Island and throughout the galaxy…http://zapagringo.com
*Slingshot Hip Hop, the first feature-length film from Palestine’s emerging hip hop scene…http://slingshothiphop.com