Ma 23: Intern. Solidariteit met Vieques
Kees, XminY - 19.09.2002 17:36
De bevolking van het Puertoricaanse eiland Vieques verzet zich fel tegen bombardementsoefeningen door de Amerikaanse marine. Aanstaande maandag internationale solidariteit, ook in Amsterdam
Solidariteit met Vieques
Op maandag 23 september zal er om 16.00 uur een korte vredesmanifestatie gehouden worden voor het Amerikaanse consulaat op het Museumplein in Amsterdam. De reden is de hervatting van bombardementsoefeningen op het Puertoricaanse eiland Vieques door de Amerikaanse marine. De bevolking van Vieques en Puerto Rico i.h.a. verzet zich hier hevig tegen. De manifestatie maakt deel uit van de “internationale dag van solidariteit met de bevolking van Vieques”.
Hieronder de Engelstalige oproep voor de bijeenkomst.
(zie voor achtergrondinformatie over de militaire oefeningen op Vieques:  http://www.noticias.nl/prensa/ventana/num141.html#PUERTO en eerdere afleveringen van Ventana Emailbijlage)
PRESS RELEASE
On Monday, 23 September 2002 at 16:00, a peace demonstration will be held in front of the US Consulate in Amsterdam, to protest against the presence of the US Navy on the Caribbean Island of Vieques, Puerto Rico, the use of the territory for target bombing practices, Depleted Uranium testing and the upcoming US war against Iraq. The demonstration will be a part of an international day of action in solidarity with the people of Vieques, to be held at US embassies and consulates worldwide.
The Governor of Puerto Rico demands that the island be disposed of the US Navy by May 2003, as promised by US President George Bush but the people of Puerto Rico are demanding an immediate stop to the bombing practices that started again on Tuesday, 3 September 2002. As of last week, there have been over 1.200 people arrested in acts of civil disobedience.
During the last tri-annual meeting (August 3-9, 2002) of the War Resisters International, held in Dublin, Ireland, the organization agreed to support the cause for peace and justice in Vieques, Puerto Rico by demonstrating in front of the United States Embassies around the world. Several peace activist organisations including Vrede door Vieques Comite and XminY will sponsor the demonstrations in Amsterdam.
Puerto Ricans have been struggling against the US military presence since 1946, when the Navy expropriated thousands of homes and occupied two-thirds of the island of Vieques. But it was the murder of David Sanes that sparked the new movement against the US military and NATO. David Sanes was killed on 19 April 1999, when a Naval plane accidentally dropped a bomb on the compound where this civilian worked as a night watchman. Since then, fisher unions, environmentalists, physicians, archaeologists, pro-independence groups, local Church leaders and US Congressmen have joined forces to pressure the local government to become more vocal in protesting the US military presence. This movement also gained momentum after scientific research conducted by the US government revealed that the presence of uranium and depleted uranium (DU) shells were most likely the cause for high cancer rates in Vieques. DU was used in NATO strikes in Kosovo during the 1990s.
Vieques, with 10.000 inhabitants, has been used as a training camp for US Marines in rehearsals for military interventions since the Korean War. Napalm, used in the Vietnam War, was first tested on the island of Vieques during the 1960s. Currently, Vieques is used as a launching base for US military forces headed towards Colombia in the so-called War against Drugs and by NATO forces in the “war against terrorism.” 23 September marks the 134 anniversary of the Grito de Lares uprising against Puerto Rico’s colonial status under Spain; today Puerto Rico is a colony of the US and Puerto Ricans (3.8 million) are considered US citizens but are not allowed to participate in presidential elections and have no voice or vote in the US Congress.
For more information, please contact Antonio Carmona Báez at  carmonabaez@tni.org. Or (0) 20-7718108 or (0) 20-662 6608
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