And now:Ish <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: Activist Mailing List - http://get.to/activist /** headlines: 151.0 **/ ** Topic: CHIAPAS: Aid Blockade ** /* Written 11:29 AM May 6, 1999 by [EMAIL PROTECTED] in indig.info */ /* ---------- "Mexican Government Blocks Aid To Chiapas ---------- */ Una nota: This is the kind of incident that would warrant particularly irate phone calls, faxes and email to one's congresspersons, senators, et al., irl ******************************** Press Release ______________ Mexican Government Blocks Aid Shipment to Hurricane Victims in Chiapas Wednesday, May 5, 1999. For 23 consecutive days, Mexican Customs at Reynosa, Tamaulipas (McAllen, TX) has refused to allow 14,000 lbs. of emergency relief aid to enter Mexico. The aid is destined for the war torn state of Chiapas, an area still recovering from the effects of Hurricane George. The aid consists of 6000 pounds of food, 501,000 vitamins, 21 wheelchairs, 30 pairs of crutches, 150 shovels, 100 hoes, 35 heavy picks, 35 wheelbarrows, a diesel electric generator, thousands of syringes, school supplies and dozens of boxes of simple medical supplies, such as gauze, tape, disinfectants, etc. The aid, held up since April 13, cannot pass into Chiapas because, according to Mexican border authorities, Chiapas is a "sensitive area," and Mr. Young is trying to bring embargoed items: the items consist of pencils, over the counter medications such as aspirin, Tylenol and alcohol, and several boxes of used children's clothing. Young refuses to accept the government's explanation that they are powerless, bound by law to refuse his shipment due to these items. According to Young, pencils and simple medical supplies have always been included in every shipment, including his previous two trips to Chiapas in November 1997 and April 1998. Two weeks of intense negotiations between Senator Barbara Boxer's and Representative Calvin Dooley's offices and the Mexican Embassy in Washington D.C. have proved fruitless. The agreement hammered out on Tuesday, April 27, fell apart within 24 hours, as customs officials reneged before it could be implemented. When the embassy agreed to allow the aid to go to "Caritas," a church based organization in Chiapas, customs simply refused. The official stance of Customs now is that all aid must be given to either the Governor of Chiapas or to the Mexican Red Cross, which has been embroiled in a number of controversies over the last few years. Wheelchair Project Director Patrick Young, a 42 year old teacher, has vowed to fight for as long as is necessary. He estimates that he has already spent $1500 in this struggle, money that was destined for a rural health clinic in the mountains of Chiapas. His previous two trips to Chiapas convinced him of the need for help in this region. During his trip in April 1998, Young visited the massacre site of Acteal, where paramilitaries murdered 15 children, 21 women and 9 men during a church service. Contact: Patrick Young, Director, Wheelchair Project (956) 702-3330 Room #121 (Ramada Inn, Pharr, TX) (Mr. Young is available 24 hours daily) ** End of text from cdp:headlines ** Reprinted under the fair use http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html doctrine of international copyright law. &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& Tsonkwadiyonrat (We are ONE Spirit) Unenh onhwa' Awayaton http://www.tdi.net/ishgooda/ &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
