Campaign for Liberty and Justice in Atenco

A call-out has been made for international action to demand freedom for the 13 political prisoners of Atenco, during the period 3-5^th May. Discussions are underway about what we could do in Britain – if you are interested please contact us urgently at Edinchiapas@yahoo.co.uk

 Following is a statement from the National and International Campaign for Liberty and Justice for Atenco:

 We call for national and international civil society to participate in the days of action, three years on from the events in Atenco. We invite you to carry out actions of civil and peaceful protest in your localities, neighborhoods and communities, in your schools and workplaces. And to mobilize on May 3-5 to conduct demonstrations for the freedom of the 13 political prisoners from Atenco.

 National and International Campaign

 We, people and organizations, nearly three years after the terrible events of repression in San Salvador Atenco, say:

 1. The movement to defend the land that emerged in 2001 against the government initiative to expropriate land to build a new airport for Mexico City, is a social movement whose causes and demands are fair, legitimate and reliable and that violence never should be the State's response to the movement of peasants and townspeople. The People's Front in Defense of the Land (FPDT) represents this movement. The state was wrong to polarize the conflict then and to choose an authoritarian way forward to deal with this social problem.

 2. The countless human rights violations in the operation led by the federal, state and municipal authorities in May 2006 is an unfortunate fact that has been documented by national and internationally recognized human rights organisations. Various levels of state and even federal officials have acknowledged the seriousness of the violations and abuses committed in San Salvador Atenco. There is no doubt such violations were committed.

 Unfortunately, the Supreme Court in its deliberations last week avoided pronouncing on the responsibilities of police officers and politicians who participated in these events.

 We believe that from the repeating patterns of arrests, police brutality, sexual abuse against women prisoners, torture and legal irregularities, it can be seen that those who carried out these violations received orders to do so. It is the Mexican state and senior officials who were in charge of operations, who are responsible for the human rights violations committed in San Salvador Atenco.

 These operations had two political intentions:  to treat as criminals those who are a legitimate social movement and seek to disrupt and behead the organizational structure of the same movement. The State erred in failing to deal with a small conflict of only eight flower vendors and in polarising this conflict. On the 3rd and 4th of May, 2006, the state launched an operation planned, deliberate and calculated to promote fear and inflict an exemplary punishment through authoritarian violence on the social movement of the People's Front in Defense of the Land and the solidarity organizations that accompanied them. The chapter to achieve justice for victims is incomplete. Justice has still to be achieved.

3. As a result of these unfortunate events, 13 people remain prisoners with sentences ranging from 31 years through 67 and even 112 years' imprisonment in a maximum-security prison. All were sentenced to terrible and unjust sentences for crimes they did not commit.  They are not criminals, some are more prominent leaders of the movement in defense of the land and others are more simple and humble people, including some who had never participated in any social movement. The way they were stopped, the abuses and violations of human rights that they were subject, the irregularities in their convictions, make us to see, newly that they are in prison without a legal basis.

These 13 people are political prisoners. And the ways of justice cannot continue while the human rights violations continue. These violations continue as long as they are prisoners. It is extremely urgent that nationally and internationally we raise the demand for FREEDOM for the 13 prisoners. Thus with this aim we have brought together many actors and actresses, musicians, journalists, writers, painters, scholars, religious figures, human rights defenders, civil organizations, supporters, the families of the detainees, lawyers and the Peoples Front in Defense of Land to make the following:

CALL TO NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL CIVIL SOCIETY

We call for national and international civil society, women and men of all ages, of all entities of the country, from all continents of the world, who are in the field or in the city, of all professions, the arts and offices, of all sexual orientations and preferences, all individuals, families, groups, organizations, networks and indigenous movements, unions, farmers, city folk, women's, environmental, human rights, students and religious fighting for freedom and justice, to participate in national and international campaign: FREEDOM and JUSTICE for ATENCO. Which starts this February 17 and whose first phase will end on May 3-5 this year, intending to join the voices that call for:

• FREEDOM for the 13 political prisoners.

• That the sentences be annulled.

• Cancellation of arrest warrants for the persecuted

• Respect for human rights of detained and persecuted

• Punishment for those materially and intellectually responsible for the repression and human rights violations.

• To condemn and stop the criminalization of social movements in Mexico.

This campaign is a civil and peaceful initiative that seeks to promote the participation of national and international individuals, families, groups, collectives, organizations, networks and movements around the demand of freedom for the 13 political prisoners of Atenco. It is an initiative of Mexican civil society, driven by a dozen organizations defending human rights, civil solidarity, defense lawyers, family members of the 13 political prisoners and persecuted, all convened by the People's Front in Defense of the Land.

The campaign will include a number of actions at national and international levels:

• A campaign that consists in sending messages to the 13 political prisoners of Atenco from across the country and around the world so that the citizens can express their support in writing to each of the prisoners.

• A national information campaign, which will distribute thousands of leaflets and posters informing the public about the status of the 13 prisoners. The national campaign will include radio production and video materials for distribution.

• An information campaign in both the commercial and the alternative media, where some of the personalities who have joined the campaign as well as the participating organizations will ask for space in the mass media to explain the situation of the 13 political prisoners and invite citizens to participate in this campaign.

All organizations, networks, groups, families and individuals can register for civil and peaceful protests diffusing and demanding the release of 13 political prisoners from Atenco. An example of this is that students and academics have already called on Wednesday 18 at 13 hrs. in the Faculty of Law at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), a legal forum to discuss the case Atenco. On Thursday 19 in UNAM there is also a forum for reflection on the social movement represented in the People's Front in Defense of the Land. Therefore, in this campaign, there will be multiple forums, cultural events, prayers, collects, information tables, letters, deployed and pronouncements.

• We will open collection centers to support the camp that still remains, for almost 3 years now thanks to various organizations, outside the prison Molino de las Flores. People can donate food and other materials to support this initiative.

• Several of the personalities that integrate this campaign will visit personally the prisons Altiplano and Molino de las Flores to meet with political prisoners.

• We will have a presence in various different situations, particularly the human rights defenders, to be interviewed and present our opinion on the release of prisoners.

• We will monitor and support the legal defense of the 13 prisoners.

• We will strengthen the process of documenting human rights violations. At the time, we are going to consider visiting international gatherings.

We call for national and international civil society to participate in the days of action, three years on from the events in Atenco. We invite you to carry out actions of civil and peaceful protest in your localities, neighborhoods and communities, in your schools and workplaces. And to mobilize on May 3-5 to conduct demonstrations for the freedom of the 13 political prisoners from Atenco.

We will publicly and punctually inform about the nature and dates of all activities, at the time,

Our site:

http://www.atencolibertadyjusticia.com

will receive subscriptions from all those who wish to pursue an action for freedom and justice. Through it, you can send a written message to each prisoner. Through the site, people may also register actions that, in Mexico and in other nations, civil society may decide to promote.

Finally, this initiative does not have any resources or funding. Activities will be developed with the resources that everybody donates to the various costs involved in such activities. We have opened an account number that will receive grants exclusively for these expenses. Do not confuse this account with any other type of support, this is purely for carrying out the activities that comprise the campaign. You can donate from 50 pesos at the BANORTE Account 0608878038 in the name of Maria Antonia Trinidad Ramírez Velázquez-exclusively to support the expenses of the national and international freedom and justice for Atenco campaign.

Yours faithfully

Liberty and Justice for Atenco Committee