It is also important to note the presence of female Seguridad Publica members. The State of Chiapas has been broadcasting television ads since the second week of January encouraging women to join up with the Seguridad Publica. This is a direct response to the effective defenses of the women of various communities to repel entering sliders and defend the men.
The authorities have said they will release all but 8 of the detainee from Aguatinta at 4pm, today, Sunday. The 8 remaining are: Roberto Lopez, Aureliano Lopez, Artemio Calvo, Ruben Salazar, Juan Alfaro, Ernesto Lopez, Antonio Lopez, Joselino Hernandez. The man most seriously hurt was Jesus Aguilar.
Amparo Aguatinta
Chiapas, Mexico
15 Mexican Nationals and 5 Internationals, including some members of Pastors for Peace formed the Civil Commission of Observation.
The Commission, after passing the checkpoint at the crossroads to Las Flores, arrived at the community of Aguatinta at 12:00pm. We went to the installations of the Autonomous Municipality and observed that they are currently occupied by Seguridad Publica. Seguridad Publica did not let us pass, saying that they had orders that no one was to be allowed through until the Commander arrived. It is worth mentioning that this entrance to the community is where most of the houses of the attacked families are.
After a long wait, we went to the other part of the town where there were 56 women and children, who amidst tears told us about their current situation and the manner in which they were treated. The women told us that they became aware of the incursion at approximately 5 am, when the men were leaving to go to their milpas (fields). At that time, members of Seguridad Publica and the Mexican Army began to arrive. They detained the men who they found in the road and those who had not yet left were taken out of their homes. Some Priista members of the community pointed out the houses of the Zapatista sympathizers. Among those who were pointing out houses there were: Elias Mendez, Abendamar Gomez, Agenor Aguilar, Victor Velasco, and Neftali Mendez. The aforementioned were uniformed and some of them had hats and sunglasses on. It was also mentioned that houses of Priista families were painted blue and green, four days earlier. When the women went out to the defend the men, they were beaten. The detained men were rounded-up into the offices of the Autonomous Council where they were beaten. It is known that two of them were beaten. Members of Seguridad Publica and the Army sacked the communities cooperative store, stole 20,000 pesos, and the typewriters. When the women went to get close to the offices of the Council, they saw two microbuses arrive with women members of Seguridad Publica with tear gas grenades, so they retreated to the other end of the community. The women said that finally they carried off the detained men at approximately 11:00 am and that during the entire operation there were approximately 1,000 soldiers participating.
They told us that on May 1st, at around noon, there were military fly-overs and in the night there had been shots fired into the air. The electric had also been cut. We, the observers, saw the marks on the faces, arms and legs on some of the women.
Now the women cannot go out to their milpas or cut firewood since the Army and Seguridad Publica are inside the community and the women are afraid of them. In addition is the fact that the Priistas are threatening and taunting the women. For these reasons, they are asking for the creation of a civilian peace camp and frequent caravan visits with food.
At approximately at 3pm on May 2nd, a commission of three representatives of ACNUR (UN High Commission on Refugees) arrived in the community. The representatives declared before a meeting of the women, that it is not up to their organization to tell the Mexican Government what to do. They denied the story that they had asked for the intervention by Seguridad Publica and the Army. They made it clear that this had been a media version and was not the official version. They also mentioned that the six Guatemalan refugees who had been detained were freed yesterday.
Finally, the women asked that their testimonies are made known and they made the following demands:
Immediate liberation of the detainees
Immediate withdrawal of the Army and Seguridad Publica Implementation of the San Andres Accords Support for Human Rights Organizations
Rubi:
The Seguridad Publica stuck a weapon in her stomach and she thought they were going to kill her.
Jose Eli, 9 years-old:
The commander, the one who was directing the operation smacked him twice. Jose Eli said his sisters were making tortillas and he told the Commander that they weren't going to come out and so he was hit.
Martha Luz:
She was in her house with her brothers and sisters when they (Army/Seguridad Publica) surrounded the house and entered, throwing things on the floor. One of the police arrived and came in and said he was going to interrogate her. Martha said "no" and so they beat her. They pulled her by her hair and threw her around. They searched the house for about half and hour and asked where her father hid his weapon. Seguridad Publica entered into the house of the comisariado Mario Leon.
They entered into four houses but not into all of them.
Women who were beaten:
Rebeca Leon,
21 years-old, was hit in the leg by a weapon; they beat her when she
went to defend her uncle.
Enriqueta Lopez,
48 year-old, was beaten.
They ask for:
******** The A-Infos News Service