Argentina: Violent Eviction of Indigenous Community Deemed Illegal
By Sabrina Hummel | The Argentina Independent | May 27, 2013
More than 20 indigenous Tonocoté families were violently evicted from their community in Santiago del Estero on Friday, it has emerged. The eviction has caused an outcry among human rights and environmental organisations from around the country.
The eviction of the area, known as Boca del Tigre, was authorised by Judge Tarchini Saavedra, and began at the crack of dawn as police mounted on horses and armed with tear gas, rubber bullets, and dogs bore down on the site, catching the families by surprise as they slept. Bulldozers meanwhile razed the settlement where the Tonocoté have lived for the last 200 years to the ground.
Despite the court order, the farmers were not shown any papers, adding to the confusion and chaos that reigned supreme during the raid.
Head of the community Reyna Sosa described the event: “They came in the dark, they fired pellets and rubber bullets at us, my three grandchildren have head injuries… my daughter, who is pregnant, suffered a leg injury.”
So far no explanation has been given as to why the police used such excessive force, or as to why they began the operation without saying a word.
Greenpeace has released a statement denouncing the events saying, “we condemn the use of repression against the historic inhabitants of the area” and affirming the illegality of the eviction given the area’s protected status under the ‘Ley de Bosques’.
Arrests were also made, and, as one neighbour put it, “they hit them everywhere… they didn’t even resist… they took them straight to the police station”.
The local newspaper, Ultima Hora, believes that the sudden expropriation of the land was initiated in response to a large upcoming real estate development.
According to the paper, they are interested in “20 hectares of land which belong to the community but which are destined for the construction of a private neighbourhood”.
Sosa expressed her desolation at the turn of events, “I feel so sad and impotent in the face of the situation – that they can come and take away what has always been yours” and pleaded that the governor of the province “have a heart… if he had one he would never have allowed them [the police] to fire at children”.
A mass is planned for next Sunday and human rights organisations and those who are sympathetic to the cause are expected to be in attendance.
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Argentina: Son of Indigenous Leader Attacked in Formosa
By Avery Kelly | The Argentina Independent | May 6, 2013
Félix Diaz, leader of the Qom community, speaks to the crowd in January 2011. (Photo Patricio Guillamón.)
Late Saturday night, 4th May, a street gang brutally attacked two youths of indigenous descent in the northern province of Formosa. One of the victims is 21-year-old Abelardo Díaz, the son of Qom leader Félix Díaz.
The boys were surrounded by a mob of about 30 people that abruptly began beating them, allegedly using clubs and other objects to attack Abelardo and his peer Carlos Sosa. Both had to be hospitalised, first taken to a local clinic but later transferred to the Juan Domingo Perón hospital in the provincial capital.
Although most details about the attack are still unknown, the Qom community assumes that it is related to their fight to reclaim ancestral lands, in which Félix Díaz has played a key role. On 18th April, Félix received a court order for his prosecution regarding the ‘theft’ of territory he claims for the Qom people.
Abelardo reported a similar instance in which he was beaten in June of last year, when another group armed with knives attacked him, threatening to slit his throat.
Attacks of indigenous people in the Formosa area are not uncommon. Just four months ago a young man from the Qom community was found unconscious after suffering a beating and later died in the hospital.
After his son’s hospitalisation, Félix stated: “My family continues being victim to this violence generated by the province again and again.” He added, “They criminalise me for ‘usurping’ our historic territories. However they will never break me — I will continue asking for respect for our rights and for true justice.”
Two weeks ago a group of congress members part of the Population and Human Development Commission headed by Antonio Riestra began a series of meetings with representatives from local indigenous groups to discuss the humanitarian situation of these communities in Formosa. During the talks, indigenous leaders called for a return of historic lands, access to healthcare, and bilingual education.
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- In Search of Their Roots: The Mapuche and Modern Society (alethonews.wordpress.com)
- Panama: Indigenous Leader Murdered After Anti-Dam Protest (alethonews.wordpress.com)
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The lies about the 1967 war are still more powerful than the truth
By Alan Hart | June 4, 2012
In retrospect it can be seen that the 1967 war, the Six Days War, was the turning point in the relationship between the Zionist state of Israel and the Jews of the world (the majority of Jews who prefer to live not in Israel but as citizens of many other nations). Until the 1967 war, and with the exception of a minority of who were politically active, most non-Israeli Jews did not have – how can I put it? – a great empathy with Zionism’s child. Israel was there and, in the sub-consciousness, a refuge of last resort; but the Jewish nationalism it represented had not generated the overtly enthusiastic support of the Jews of the world. The Jews of Israel were in their chosen place and the Jews of the world were in their chosen places. There was not, so to speak, a great feeling of togetherness. At a point David Ben-Gurion, Israel’s founding father and first prime minister, was so disillusioned by the indifference of world Jewry that he went public with his criticism – not enough Jews were coming to live in Israel.
So how and why did the 1967 war transform the relationship between the Jews of the world and Israel? … continue
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