Repression in Tampico

RESIDENTS OF the Mano con Mano colony of Tampico, Mexico, have been violently forced off of their land and their houses have been destroyed to make way for a profitable construction project (a golf-course and an expensive, elite sports complex) led by the state government of Tamaulipas.

There was no legal eviction order, and more than half of the colony's families were opposed to the relocation. However, the government and its police force did not let that stop them from entering the neighborhood and bulldozing every house in sight. They were not expecting too much trouble because the families whose homes they were destroying are poor and marginalized.

Many families courageously tried to save their homes, only to watch them be bulldozed right before their eyes. The families who decided to resist the eviction began to organize in assemblies to try to find a way to stop the destruction of their neighborhood, where many of them had lived for 15 years.

On the morning of September 24, they decided to block the entrance of the colony as the only way to stop the bulldozers from entering. Over 200 police officers were immediately called to the scene and ordered to violently put an end to the residents' resistance. They confronted the protesters with tear gas and rubber bullets.

The police then entered the colony and began to beat the protestors, which included women, children and elderly people. The confrontation ended with 15 people hospitalized and 89 people detained (among them 47 men, 25 women and 17 minors). Video footage of the police brutality is available online. All the houses were burned or destroyed, and residents reported that police murdered their pets in front of them to instill fear.

The detainees were then taken to a detention center where they were held for over a week with no food, water, medical or legal attention. Help from their family members, human rights organizations and community supporters was the only thing that guaranteed their health and survival. Most of the detainees have already been released on bail, but not without receiving threats from the authorities.

When released, detainees were forced to agree that they wound not speak out against the repression or the government, and that they would never return to Mano con Mano. Many of them were also forced by authorities to sign blank documents as a condition for their release. It is unknown what the documents will later be used for.

The Mano con Mano residents are now dispersed throughout the city of Tampico, and some are trying to regroup to find away to respond to the repression. Community organizers and activists in the city are starting a support network for the displaced families.

This is an entirely grassroots organizing effort that is not linked to any government agency, political party or commercial interest. We have been collecting donations of food and clothes and have been meeting with the families in the form of a support group so that they know they are not alone in their struggle and that there is no reason to fall prey to the intimidation tactics of the authorities.

We're also asking everyone we know to spread the word and donate any amount of money that they can. The money will be used to provide the families with legal representation. These are poor families who are not given any legal support from the state.

Right now, the most urgent need that must be addressed is that of the prisoners who have not yet been released. They are political prisoners who have been imprisoned for getting in the way of the profit-making of those in power.

Last week, they were transferred from the detention center to the county prison where they are being mistreated--literally having the will beat out of them. One of the detainees, who has been marked as the leader and "instigator" of the protest, has been receiving especially rough treatment and is being brutally and constantly beaten.

This must be stopped! We are doing everything we can to provide him with legal representation. The charges against him can be dropped, but because he doesn't have the financial means to defend himself, he continues to suffer.

We are asking for donations and any other kind of support that you may be able to offer. Please e-mail thoughtepidemic@hotmail.com for more information about how you can help.
Anonymous, Tampico, Mexico