PROJECT OF OBSERVATION AND MONITORING OF THE POLITICAL AND CIVIL RIGHTS OF THE PEOPLES OF CHIAPAS 2006

AREA AFFECTED BY STAN: SOCIAL AND ELECTORAL TENSION

We, the Non-Governmental Organizations that jointly constitute the Project of Observation and Monitoring of the Political and Civil Rights of the Peoples of Chiapas 2006 (Proyecto de Observación y Vigilancia de los Derechos Políticos y Civiles de los Pueblos de Chiapas 2006), have been more and more concerned in observing the fragile political and social situation and the tense pre-electoral climate in the wide area affected by the hurricane Stan.

Eight months after this terrible natural phenomenon hit the Sierra and the Costa of Chiapas, leaving around 700 thousand victims in the 41 municipalities declared disaster zone, the manifestations of discontent are becoming more and more violent. The discontent is generated by the slow progress showed by the government in dealing with the reconstruction of the public infrastructure (rural roads, bridges, clinics, schools), fair and just distribution of official aid (housing, credit, rehabilitation of coffee fields). The main cause of dissatisfaction is the delay in finding a solution to the flooding of rivers which, coming down from the Sierra Madre, affect various villages, urban and poor suburban areas in cities such as Tapachula, Motozintla, Huixtla and Tonalá.

In this sense, a systematic monitoring of the state written press, realized in the framework of our project¹, shows that in the period between January and May 2006, in the regions of Costa and Sierra, there were 131 social clashes, amounting to 40% of all the social clashes that occurred in the area, with a 50% increase last May. Sixty-three percent of these clashes were caused by requests for support and programs by the victims of hurricane Stan (either for the total inexistence or delay in providing measures to face problems such as: the flooding of rivers; road maintenance and reconstruction of bridges; construction and delivery of houses and support to the farm sector). Another 27% were generated by problems linked to corruption, such as the favoritisms in assigning government support and programs to selected groups or in the diversion of public funding; the rest were basically generated by farm disputes or for the access to natural resources (see graphics above).

The situation of the victims today is desperate, due the early beginning of the rainy season (which began last April 15th) and the starting of a new hurricanes season, expected to hit the Mexican coasts with at least 7 hurricanes with a magnitude of 4-5 (winds between 210-249 km/h).

The presence of the first tropical storms in this area has already caused the temporary displacement of poor neighborhoods, the isolation of some rural areas and the destruction of 4 provisional bridges in the coastal road, which is the main and most strategic transit route at the regional level.

The federal and local authorities (of all political parties) have responded to this just discontent of neighborhoods and communities – whose life and integrity are clearly at risk – by repeatedly violating the civil and political rights of the numerous families affected, even to the point of using police repression and political persecution against the civilian population.

In this sense, the violation of people’s rights began at the federal level when the government allocated copious resources, both in terms of subsidies and easy credit, to private enterprises in the tourist area of Riviera Maya, in Quintana Roo, affected by the hurricane Wilma (which hit the Yucatan peninsula a week after Stan). The same resources were instead denied to the poor population of Chiapas.

The total and unrecovered loss of harvests, farming lands, houses, schools, health and employment centers and forty-one municipalities, has significantly accelerated the migratory process towards the United States. Common crime rate also soared leading to further, persistent violations of economical, social and cultural rights of the population affected (right to work, right to health, right to food, right to education, right to housing).

The federal and state governments’ delay in dealing with the rehabilitation of the infrastructures, including communication infrastructure, made it harder –and in some cases impossible– for hundreds of now isolated communities to vote. By doing so, the State has violated the right to vote of all these citizens.

At a municipal level, in the framework of our observation process, we began to receive reports of resources from public aid and reconstruction as well as from official programs being used for electoral purposes, by all ruling parties. Such behavior, documented in the local printed press, plays with the basic needs of the people affected by the hurricane violating the right of every citizen to vote freely, without being the object of coaction, conditioning or bribery. More specifically, for example, such a situation has already occurred with the resources of two projects called Plan de Reconstrucción and CONCAFE. Against the misuse of these plans, six public complaints were presented in the municipalities of Huixtla y Tapachula, in the period monitored.

Furthermore, we are seriously concerned about the constant social mobilization expressed with marches, sit-ins, occupations of municipality buildings and public offices that are taking place in the whole wide area (the number of which reached 28 in the first four months of the year, according to our monitoring) and the ever more violent response by the state government. Early examples are the repressive police operations of the days 8, 10 and 16 May, in the municipalities of Escuintla and Motozintla, Chiapas.

In a society that call itself democratic and respectful of the rule of law, which necessarily includes the full respect of human rights, civil and political, of the population, it is unacceptable to respond to the just social discontent of the victims of this tragedy with violence and persecution. This would only generate a major escalation of violence.

Furthermore, as national and international civil organizations, we are concerned about the situation of the human rights prevailing in the area. We are equally concern at the recent declaration of governor who stated that he “will not permit that the protests of the victims – as the one that occurred in Motozintla – violate the rule of law”. He also firmly stated that “the protests of the people affected by Stan are manipulated by political interests” (newspaper La Jornada, May 18, 2006)

We urge the three level of government to give a prompt and effective response to the just requests of hundreds of families affected by the hurricane, respecting their human rights, civil and political and putting dialogue and negotiation before the use of force. This would prevent that this area that we consider of extreme social tension, from becoming even more volatile.

San Cristóbal de las Casas, Chiapas, 10 July, 2006

Sincerely,

PROJECT OF OBSERVATION AND MONITORING OF THE POLITICAL AND CIVIL RIGHTS OF THE PEOPLES OF CHIAPAS 2006

Alianza Cívica Chiapas
Centro de Derecho Humanos Fray Bartolomé de Las Casas (CDHFC)
Peace Watch Suiza
Propaz Suiza 
Servicio Internacional para la Paz (SIPAZ)

NOTES:

The local newspapers Cuarto Poder and Expreso de Chiapas were monitored during the period 1 January – 31 May 2006 (top)

TABLE 2- NUMBER OF CLASHES IN THE AREA AFFECTED BY THE HURRICANE STAN

REGIONAL PERCENTAGE OF MONITORED CLASHES

Percentage calculated in relation to the 336 clashes monitored

PERCENTAGE OF CLASHES MONITORED IN THE AREA AFFECTED BY THE HURRICANE STAN (SIERRA Y COSTA), BY TYPE OF CONFLICT

Percentage calculated in relation to the 131 clashes monitored in the area affected by Stan

PERCENTAGE BY ACTORS AND AND THEIR IMPACT ON THE SOCIAL CLASHES IN THE AREA AFFECTED BY STAN

Percentage calculated in relation to 282 incidents involving social actors in the clashes monitored