Situation in Oaxaca

Why is it that this is the first I've heard of this?

It is hard to describe briefly what is happening in Oaxaca. There have been a very good series of articles on www.narconews.com, if you are interested in depth and detail.

I am going to post here a letter I sent out his morning. It is a synopsis, and simplified, but will communicate basic information.

*For those of you who don't know ( and no surprise..it has been hardly covered in the American press),

what is happening in Oaxaca, I will give a brief rundown..

In a long series of corrupt Governors, the current appointed ( not legally elected) Governor of Oaxaca, Ulises Ruiz Ortiz, has been the worst. I won't even try to detail all the abuses committed under his regime, but there have been many.

One of the most public was the bulldozing of the old Zocalo of Oaxaca ( designated Patrimonio de

Humanidad, by UNESCO), without the consent of the people ( the bulldozers showed up in the night).

This was, to my mind, the most perfect, beautiful, constantly used zocalo in Mexico.

The Gov. said he was "renovating"; his brother got the expensive contract for the "renovation".

Oaxacans protested in the hundreds, but there was nothing they could do.

There has been an annual teacher's strike in Oaxaca, and with good reason. Underpaid, and under funded, the teachers of Oaxaca are highly dedicated, and of course absolutely essential. Without the strikes, they would not have been able to teach. ( As it is, most teachers have another job, or two..what is it with cultures that DO NOT value teachers???!!!).

This summer, during the strike, U.R. ( the Gov.), sent troops against the teachers who were occupying the Zocalo...one person was killed, many injured. Fortunately, many people filmed it...

At that point - it turned into a popular uprising. to get rid of the Governor. It is very long and complicated to describe ( for those who want excellent reportage, and are interested in the details, I refer you to www.narconews.com)

It has been going on for some month now. Oaxaca is pretty shut down...virtually no tourists . The American press, when it DOES report, would have us believe that it is an anti-American movement. ( The State

Department has issued a Travelers Advisory for Oaxaca) .But it is not about us...it is about the people of Oaxaca DEMANDING the resignation of the corrupt Governor of Oaxaca. They have seized state-owned radio stations to try and get the truth out. There is a big delegation walking to Mexico City right now, to let all of Mexico know what is really going on.

The Fox government is standing behind U.R., the Gov., of course. The president-elect ( I am not going to get into THAT right now), Calderon', is demanding that Fox do something, because he doesn't want this hot potato.

Which brings us to now...helicopter over Oaxaca, and troops sighted in many locations outside the City.

It is a very dangerous situation. What has been happening to Oaxaca is bad...removal of U.R. is very justified.

Fox offered to U.R. to kick him upstairs..U.R. refused.

What we are all afraid of now, is Federal government violence against the strikers of Oaxaca.

It is important that this not be hidden from view. Please TALK to people about it, if you have any Mexico

contacts, or political contacts, or news contacts , CALL or EMAIL them PLEASE.

We hope for a resolution "ni una gota de sangre", without one drop of blood.

Gracias....

y un abrazo fuerte.

by la urracca on Sun Oct 01, 2006 at 11:03:22 AM PDT

Why is the United States media so incredibly crappy? This is an important story no matter how they spin it, and I haven't seen anything about this before.