[lit-ideas] Re: Oaxaca takeover
- From: Carol Kirschenbaum <carolkir@xxxxxxxx>
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 03 Aug 2006 17:45:16 -0700
Aha! Found it at Newsday. com. Aristophanes lives. So teachers went on
strike in June, too. Seems to me that Mexicans' efforts at getting higher
wages would be newsworthy coverage in the US, in terms of the immigration
debacle. But how is the Mexican government handling all this? Sounds like
its policy is Mr. Bush's. Ignore protesters and they go away, eventually.
>ck
http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/world/wire/sns-ap-mexico-oaxaca-unrest,0,5081323.story
Women Seize TV Station in Oaxaca, Mexico
By REBECA ROMERO
Associated Press Writer
August 2, 2006, 2:59 PM EDT
OAXACA, Mexico -- About 500 women banging spoons against pots and pans
seized a state-run television station and broadcast a homemade video
Wednesday that showed police kicking protesters out of Oaxaca's main square
last month.
The women took control of Oaxaca's Channel 9 station Tuesday and held
employees for about six hours before releasing them. It was unclear how long
the siege would last and police were nowhere to be seen near the station
Wednesday.
The standoff is the latest by demonstrators who accuse Gov. Ulises Ruiz of
rigging his 2004 election victory and violently repressing opposition
groups.
Station director Mercedes Rojas said the state has filed a criminal
complaint with the federal attorney general's office, noting that the
station has about $54.5 million worth of equipment inside and that the
protesters had threatened the 60 employees with violence while holding them
captive.
Federal officials have not commented on the standoff.
Tensions have been on the rise since June, when state police attacked a
demonstration of striking teachers occupying the historic central plaza and
demanding a wage increase.
Since then, thousands of teachers, unionists and leftists have camped out in
the plaza, spray-painting buildings with revolutionary slogans, smashing
hotel windows and erecting makeshift barricades. Most businesses remain
closed.
The unrest has paralyzed one of Mexico's top cultural attractions, where
visitors to the southern city normally browse traditional markets for Indian
handicrafts, hike ancient pyramids and stroll cobblestone streets to sample
mole dishes. Officials recently canceled a prominent cultural festival
because of fears that violence could injure tourists and residents.
Tourism is down 75 percent, costing the city more than $45 million,
according to the Mexican Employers Federation. Business leaders have asked
the federal government to intervene, but aides to President Vicente Fox have
said the problem must be resolved at the state level.
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