Jill Freidberg has written an excellent denunciation of Ceci Connoly’s Washington Post article ‘describing’ the events in Oaxaca over the last year and a half.

The Washington Post piece mentions Brad but seriously distorts the context for his murder.

Freidberg ends her piece with the following observation:

‘As long as American travel writers continue to wring their hands over Oaxaca, implying that a non-violent social movement is to blame for the city’s lost charm, beauty and “authenticity,” while neglecting to educate readers about the true situation in this poorest of Mexican states, the discontent will continue to stir just below the surface, as it has done for 500 years.’

The entire piece can be found at Jill’s blog and here below.

Ironically, Ceci Connolly’s article “Oaxaca: One Year Later,” is published on Nov. 25th, 2007, exactly one year after thousands of federal police carried out some of the worst human rights abuses in recent Mexican history; detaining, torturing, and raping men, women, and children who had taken to the streets demanding social and economic justice.

But according to Ms. Connolly, what happened in Oaxaca, in 2006, was nothing more than “riots.”
(more…)

REP. LANTOS: The committee will come to order.

At a time when over 90 percent of te cocaine arriving in the United States
is coming through the Mexico-Central America corridor, it is essential that
we ratchet up our cooeration with our neighbors to the south to put an end
to this deadly flow

The appalling violence associated with the drug trade and with the vicius
criminal gangs that run it cries out for vigorous joint action by the
governments of the region. The administration’s announcement of a new one
and a half billion dollar initative to enhance our security cooperation
with Mexico and Central America is long overdue. The question we will have
to answer is whether this is th right initiative.
(more…)

November 19, 2007
Editorial
Remember the War on Drugs?

It is good to see Mexico and the United States working together to battle the drug cartels that deliver hundreds of tons of illegal drugs to American consumers every year, killing more than 2,000 Mexicans annually along the way. Still, the Bush administration’s proposed $1.4 billion counternarcotics aid package falls far short of what is needed to confront the problem.
(more…)

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Rights Concerns Cloud Regional Anti-Drug Plan

Charles Davis

WASHINGTON, Nov 15 (IPS) - A 1.4-billion-dollar U.S. aid package to Mexico and Central American states aimed at combating drug trafficking and organised crime could backfire, the chairman of the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee said in a hearing Wednesday.
(more…)

Go to: http://clinton.senate.gov/contact/

Please write to Senator Clinton to urge her to speak out against the
expansion of the ‘drug war’ into Mexico. Tell her about the widespread
and serious human rights abuses committed by Mexican security
officials. Tell her lethal aid should not be extended on U.S.
taxpayers’ dime to a brutal security apparatus which give abusers of
human rights in the Mexican government with impunity.

Again, we need YOU to invest 1.5 minutes to email Hilary Clinton to demand:
(more…)

Check these radio interviews out!

Report written by member of Friends of Brad Will who attended the
recent hearing in D.C. on Plan Mexico. I believe the portion of the
transcript provided below here includes the correction - mentioned in
the report - of Assistant Secretary of State Shannon, at a moment in
his testimony where he tried to confute the issue/s/ of
narco-trafficking, organized crime and the murder of Brad.

(more…)

with Supporters of Friends of Brad Will Participating and Mentioned

http://www.univision.com/contentroot/wirefeeds/noticias/7331500.html

Bush pide financiar plan Merida; congresistas preocupados

http://actualidad.terra.es/nacional/articulo/lideres_congreso_eeuu_iniciativ
a_merida_2015803.htm

Lederes del Congreso de EE.UU. muestran su escepticismo sobre la Iniciativa
Merida

Rafael Landerreche*
De la masacre de Acteal a la Iniciativa Mérida

http://www.jornada.unam.mx/2007/11/10/index.php?section=opinion&article=018a1pol

Las Abejas de Chenalhó es una organización que hace profesión de principios no violentos. Una y otra vez han declarado que no quieren venganza por la masacre de Acteal, pero que no cejarán en la exigencia de justicia, para que sucesos como ese no vuelvan a repetirse.

No podía ser más oportuno el momento para revisar algunas enseñanzas trágicas del caso Acteal, exactamente ahora que se cocina el acuerdo con el gobierno de Estados Unidos conocido oficialmente como Iniciativa Mérida.

(more…)

USW Opposes $500 Million ‘Plan Mexico’

Human and Labor Rights Must Be Protected before Mexican Government
Given Blank Check to Allegedly Fight Drug War

PITTSBURGH–(BUSINESS WIRE)– The United Steelworkers union announced today that it opposes handing Mexico what amounts to a blank check for $500 million for border enforcement of drug trafficking because it’s likely the American tax dollars will instead end up further undermining human and labor rights in Mexico.

USW International President Leo W. Gerard notified the chairmen of
Congressional committees and subcommittees handling the Bush
Administration’s request for the money that, at the very least,
hearings should be conducted before votes are taken so human rights
activists and trade unionists may testify to the violations that have
occurred under the administration of Mexican President Felipe Calderon
and his predecessor.

“Without fundamental institutional reforms in Mexico, and concrete
commitments on the part of the Mexican government to cease its
violations of labor and human rights, we believe that the money
requested by the Administration will serve to reinforce a pattern of
impunity,” Mr. Gerard wrote in his letter to the Congressional
leaders.
(more…)