The following come from press reports in English and
Spanish:
Guerrero Students:
Dismissed state attorney general says Human Rights Commission report is
"biased"
Former Guerrero state attorney general Alberto López Rosas
called the report released yesterday by the National Commission on Human Rights
(CNDH)--regarding the violent event that killed two Ayotzinapa normal school
students-- "biased".
"It is not certain that the shots that took the lives
of two students (Gabriel Echeverria de Jesus and Jorge Alexis Herrera Pino, on Dec. 12) came
from west to east (where state police were), but more likely they were from
north to south (where the Federal Police
were). "The report is cut off from reality, biased: it has no consistency,"
he said.
Guerrero Students:
Congress members meet with students
The legislative committee investigating the murder of two
students from the Rural Normal School of Ayotzinapa and of a gas station worker
met with a group of normal school students who demanded a prompt response to
their request for the impeachment of the governor of Guerrero, Angel Heladio
Aguirre Rivero.
Francisco Moreno Merino (PRI), chairman of the Working
Group, informed the students that their petition is being analyzed by the
apropriate authorities of the Chamber of Deputies, and the results of their
study will released in the coming days."
Guerrero Students:
Rights Commission criticizes both federal and state authorities for lack of
police cooperation in the Ayotzinapa case
"One of the main obstacles faced by the National
Commission on Human Rights (CNDH) in their inquiries into the murder of two
students from the Rural Normal School of
Ayotzinapa, which occurred on December 12, is the lack of cooperation from
police forces state and federal regulations.
This was stated by the first inspector-general, Luis Garcia
Lopez-Guerrero, who noted that, despite this, within one or two months the team
investigating the case will be able to send its definitive conclusions to the
Attorney General's Office (PGR) so that it can proceed against those
responsible for what happened.
"One of the irregularities that we saw is that the
federal Public Security Secretariat (SSP) have not responded to our requests
for information in a timely manner. In addition, the scene was not preserved as
the protocols require," the official said in an interview with La
Jornada."
Mexican Army says it
has arrested 1,908 aggressors since May 2007
Lots of statistics on drug war "success" are being
issued by the Mexican government this week. Let's see, in over four years,
that's less than 500 "aggressors" per year or less than 40 per month.
The Ministry of National Defense (SEDENA) has arrested 1,908
people in armed clashes with drug traffickers
between May 2007 and September18,
2011, the latest available date for federal statistics. The arrests, the agency
said, were in response to acts of aggression against the Mexican Army."
The number of poor in
Mexico increased to 52 million between 2008 and 2010
The lack of adequate food and the difficulty of 28 million
Mexicans to purchase the basic food basket was the factor that most influenced
the increase in poverty, which increased to 52 million people between 2008 and
2010. This is despite the fact that one out of two pesos that the government
spends in this area is allocated to food support programs."
Mexico Secretary of
Interior says, "The country is not at war, nor can one speak of an armed
conflict"
Hum? How does this line up with statistics released today by
the Attorney Generals Office that there were 12, 903 deaths between January and
the end of September, 2011,which could put the total for the year at 17,294.
The official total for 2010 was 15,273. That would mean a 13.3% increase in
deaths.
We are reminded, once again, of the advice to "take out
the 'not'" when politicians speak of supposed realities.
"Mexico is not at war and it does not meet the criteria
of international law for an armed conflict. derived from the national strategy
for public safety and combating organized crime groups,” the Interior Minister,
Alejandro Poire, said while inaugurating the Forum on Security with Legality,
in Xalapa, Veracruz.
He said that the federal government has developed a
comprehensive and repsonsible strategy to strengthen the rule of law throughout the country, to
ensure that all citizens can fully exercise their rights and freedoms and also,
of course, to bring all offenders to justice.
He rejected criticism about individual rights being violated
by the armed forces in fighting organized crime, and noted that the abuses
documented by the National Commission on Human Rights (CNDH) are minimal and
are the exception, not the rule. Poiré
reported that, according to the CNDH report, from 2007 to 2011 5,814 complaints
were received against elements of the Secretariat of National Defense. He said
that in only 90 cases was sufficient evidence found to make a recommendation,
which represents 1.5 percent of total complaints. In the case of the Navy
Department recommendations have only issued in 1.8 percent of cases.
The head of domestic government affairs also refuted the
arguments that rates of insecurity and violence have soared when federal forces
are present in regions where state and local governments have asked for
support. He said, to the contrary, "thanks to the intervention of federal
forces in joint operations, there has been a significant and specific reduction
in violence and insecurity in those regions where our actions have achieved
greater operational maturity."
He said that between 2010 and 2011 in Tijuana, Baja
California, and Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua, there have been decreases of 87 percent and 70 percent, respectively, in
the incidence of homicide, and the regions of Veracruz and Laguna region,
similar declines have been registered in
the commission of crimes.
47,512 drug war
deaths during during Calderon's presidency
The statistics for 2011, as noted by El Universal, only
include through September. If the average rate of 4,301 deaths per quarter
continued, the total for all twelve months of 2011 would be 17,294. This would
put the five year total at 51,816. The official total for 2010 was 15,273. That
would mean a 13.3% increase in deaths in 2011 over 2010.
The Mexico Attorney General Office released statistics today
on the number of deaths related to "presumed criminal rivalries" from
December 2006 to September 2011. The total given is 47,512. The breakdown is as
follows: in
• December
2006 - 62
• 2007 -
2,826
• 2008 -
6,858
• 2009 -
9,614
• 2010 -
15,273
• 2011 -
12,903 (through September)
While the Attorney Generals Office states that there has
been an 11% decline in deaths from 2010 to 2011, the 2011 data only includes up
until September.
For the nine months of 2011, the states with the highest
number of deaths were Chihuahua (2,276), Guerrero (1,533), Tamaulipas (1,153),
Sinaloa (1,100), Veracruz (538), Baja California (250).
The municipalities with the highest number of deaths were
Ciudad Juarez (1,206), Acapulco (795), Monterrey (399), Culiacan (365), San
Fernando (292), Tijuana (183) and Veracruz city (155)
Two human heads and
burned stationwagon found in Mexico City
Mexico City police this morning found two human heads a few
meters from a burned station wagon outside the Santa Fe Mall (an upscale area
in western Mexico City.) Inside the vehicle, a Honda CRV, two bodies were
found. Also, a message, written on fluorescent pink construction paper was
left.
Judge halts South
Carolina immigration lawsuit pending outcome of challenge to similar Arizona
law
"A federal judge in South Carolina has halted a lawsuit
over the state's tough new immigration law pending the outcome of a U.S.
Supreme Court decision on a similar challenge in Arizona.
U.S. District Judge Richard Gergel issued the order Monday
after receiving requests to do so from both federal prosecutors and attorneys
representing South Carolina. The federal government and the American Civil
Liberties Union last year sued South Carolina, challenging the
constitutionality of the new law." read more
Missouri schools
would be required to verify immigration status of students under new proposal -
KansasCity.com
Missouri could be the next battleground in a nationwide
fight over tougher immigration laws.
State Sen. Will Kraus, a Lee’s Summit Republican, is
sponsoring a bill that would mandate that all public schools verify the
immigration status of enrollees. It also would require law enforcement officers
to check immigration status on all stops when they have reasonable cause, and
create a state misdemeanor for not carrying proper citizenship
documentation."
Anti-Immigration
Group Makes South Carolina Ad Buy
"Anti-immigration group NumbersUSA announced on Tuesday
that it will spend at least $100,000 on advertising before the South Carolina
Republican primary on Jan. 21 in an effort to tie high unemployment levels to
legal immigration."
Feds to Unseal Some
of Case in Arizona Agent Killing
ABC News: "Prosecutors have agreed in principle to
unseal some of the case against people accused of killing U.S. Border Patrol
Agent Brian Terry more than a year ago near the Arizona-Mexico border. The
Arizona Daily Star reports that six news organizations argued in a Dec. 19
court filing that the docket and all records in the case should be unsealed.
The news organizations argued that the public has a right to inspect the
records of the case and attend any criminal trials that might come out of
it." read more
The Michoacán
Debacle: Fault Lines Ahead of the Mexican Presidential Election
A good, clear explication of the election turmoil in the
Mexican state of Michoacán and how it may foreshadow the coming presidential
election
Upsidedownworld: "On December 28, Mexico’s Federal
Electoral Tribunal (TEPJF) annulled the recent mayoral election in Morelia,
Michoacán, as the ugly fallout to the state’s gubernatorial and local elections
in November continues. Opposition parties have called for the rest of the
results to be thrown out as well – an unlikely prospect – amid a slew of
controversies that hint at turmoil to come in this year’s presidential race.
Ostensibly, the elections in Michoacán represented another
significant victory for the PRI, with the party’s Enrique Pena Nieto a strong
favorite to take the presidency on July 1. However, they also illustrated all
too well the difficulty of holding fair elections in a region of the country
plagued by corruption and organized crime."
Mexican Businesses
Pitch In to Counter Violence in Monterrey
I confess and make mea culpa that we woke up late,” said
José Antonio Fernández Carbajal, the chief executive of Femsa, one of the
world’s largest Coca-Cola bottlers and a big Mexican retailer.
Mr. Fernández and other business executives are now in the
thick of efforts to recover Monterrey's peace. Their companies helped design
the advertising image and campaign for the new state police force, and they are
staffing recruiting booths and a call center. They are also paying part of the
cost of government redevelopment plans, injecting money into community groups
and sponsoring school programs." read more
Guerrero Students:
Teachers group seeks impeachment of Guerrero governor; warns that criminal
groups may seek to repress students
The dissident teachers organization which is spearheading
the impeachment petition against the governor Angel Aguirre Rivero also warned,
at a press conference today, of the possibility that organized crime groups are
being used to suppress the Ayotzinapa normal school students.
The leadership of the State Coordinator of Education Workers
of Guerrero (CETEG) announced a mass march for February 2 in Mexico City, that
they are asking the student community of the Rural Normal School to head.
... The march will express rejection of
those who propose the closure of the Normal School.
"We are clear that the problem of repression is not
only a problem for them, but also for ourselves and everyone; because of this
we are making an appropriate demand for the impeachment of the governor,"
Minervino Moran, press secretary of the group, explained.
The press conference was also attended by the secretary
general of the national group, CETEG,
Gonzalo Ocampo Juarez, who said
"This will be a fight between two fires, in which our main demand
is the impeachment of the governor of Guerrero." He added that the
preliminary report of the National Human Rights Commission (CNDH) strengthens
the impeachment petition, which will also be presented to the Interior Ministry
in order to try to expedite the procedure.
Minervino Moran also said that Saturday there was an act of
pressure from a group of people linked to organized crime against the rural
normal school students, which needed to be reported promptly. "We presume
that in this situation crimal groups can be used to repress social movements;
that is something that worries us, because it is a way to exert repression
indirectly," he said. He said the march in support of the governor on
January 5 illustrates that groups with power can move to try to quell the
social movement, which represents a very negative signal for the state."
Guerrero Students:
Guerrero governor tells his followers, "If you want to help me, don't make
marches."
"Guerrero's governor, Angel Aguirre Rivero, denied that
his government was encouraging the community's rejection of the normal school students and he launched an
appeal to all sectors of Guerrero society to exercise prudence, common sense
and non-confrontation, considering that it doesn't benefit anyone to deepen the
differences.
"What I ask them (my followers) is much prudence, and
if they want to help me, it is not by marching, or demonstrations, which were
valued, but I think it's best to let the institutions that are doing their jobs
determine the outcome" he said. The governor added that the state and
federal prosecutors, are jointly analyzing the investigation related to the
death of the two normal school students on 12 December in the Highway of the
Sun. "This is in order to proceed accordingly against public servants
that may have to be punished," Governor Aguirre Rivero said." Spanish
original
Twitter: @TimothyEWilson
Email: lapoliticaeslapolitica [at] gmail [dot] com
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