Global Voices » Latin America

Bolivia's Evo Morales Approved for Re-Election Bid

Silvia Viñas — Sat, 18 May 2013 06:31:13 +0000

Amid a strike by workers seeking better pensions, Bolivian lawmakers approved legislation that allows President Evo Morales and his Vice-President Álvaro García Linera to seek another term in the December 2014 elections.

The country's Constitutional Tribunal (TCP for its initials in Spanish) had cleared the way for Morales’ re-election at the end of April 2013, when it declared [es] that four of the six articles in the law -including the article that allows for Morales’ and Linera's re-election- are constitutional. As Emily Achtenberg explained in the NACLA blog Rebel Currents,

The court ruled that Morales could seek a third consecutive term, even though the 2009 Constitution allows only two, on the grounds that his first election (in 2004) took place under a previous constitution. The ruling dismissed a clause in the new Constitution stating that any prior mandate must be taken into account in computing the allowable term. This transitional provision, the court reasoned, does not apply to Morales because his original mandate did not carry over into the new Constitution (instead, Morales cut his first term short by one year and was re-elected in 2009 under the new Constitutional regime).

Emily also pointed out that critics say the President “should have sought a Constitutional amendment before running for a third term.”

President Evo Morales taking office in La Paz on January 22, 2010. Photo shared on Flickr by Presidencia de la República del Ecuador (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

While Morales’ supporters celebrated the court's decision, others, like Bolivian bloggers Andrés Gómez Vela [es] and Eduardo Bowles [es], criticized it. Andrés said that the court's judges have failed the test in this key issue, while Eduardo wrote that from a legal point of view the decision to accept a third presidential bid is one of the biggest setbacks in the process of the country's democratic constitution. Furthermore, Eduardo warned that the decision could trigger a new period of instability.

Emily in Rebel Currents added,

Based on current polls, which give Morales 60% support in the departmental capitals and 76% in rural areas, a referendum in favor of a constitutional amendment would likely have prevailed. In avoiding the constitutional route, critics argue, Morales deceived not only the then-political opposition, but the Bolivian people, who voted to support the consensus Constitution, including its term limits compromises, by a margin of 61%.

For the upcoming election, Morales has publicly announced that he hopes to achieve an ambitious mandate of 74%, topping his previous votes of 54% in 2005 and 64% in 2009.

However, Bloggings by boz argued that despite his popularity Morales shouldn't run:

Should he run? Probably not. Mistakes or simply bad economic luck in his third term will tarnish his legacy and harm the changes he has already made. Additionally, in running for this third term, Morales is making the same mistakes as Hugo Chavez. He is relying on his personal leadership instead of building up institutions and other ideologically-similar leaders to carry on his work. Any movement or country dependent on a single individual lacks resiliency.

Bolivians will go to the polls to elect a new president in December 2014. In the meantime, netizens are worried about the escalating tension caused by the current strikes and protests, a conflict that could affect President Morales’ chances of winning his third presidential election.

Latin American Congress of Living Cultures

Pablo Andres Rivero — Fri, 17 May 2013 21:45:59 +0000

Rituals, reflections, poetic “assaults”… From May 17 to 23, 2013, the first Latin American Congress of Community Living Cultures [es] will invade the streets of La Paz, Bolivia. The city will host government representatives from Brazil and Colombia, along with more than one thousand activists.
(more…)

Jorge Videla, Argentina's Ex-Military Leader, Dies in Jail

Elizabeth — Fri, 17 May 2013 19:08:36 +0000

Jorge Rafael Videla, Argentina's former president, died on May 17, 2013, at the age of 87 in a jail cell where he was imprisoned.

Videla ruled between 1976 and 1981, during Argentina's military dictatorship, a period marked by death that left thousands of people missing [es].

In 1983 the former dictator was judged and condemned to life-prison for crimes against humanity. In 2010 Videla was sentenced [es] to life in prison for the torture and shooting of 31 political prisoners, and in 2012 he was sentenced to another 50 years in jail for the kidnapping [es] of newborns during the dictatorship.

An obituary [es] by BBC World says: “He was one of the most controversial and hated men in Argentina, under his regime close to 30,000 people died or disappeared according to human rights organizations.”

Jose Alejandro Godoy of website Desde el Tercer Piso (From the Third Floor) wrote [es] about the events that took place during the years Videla ruled Argentina:

Secuestro sistemático de menores de edad, torturas, uso del mundial de fútbol para fines de propaganda (a pocas cuadras de los estadios donde se jugaba, había centros de tortura), un ajuste económico mal aplicado, exilio de cientos de argentinos, cierre de sindicatos. El penoso legado de una dictadura que se inició con él y que se liquidó el día que algún alucinado militar argentino pretendió que hacer una guerra en las Malvinas sería la mejor forma de prolongar la estancia castrense en el poder.

Systematic kidnapping of underage kids, tortures, use of the football world cup for propaganda (a few blocks away from the stadiums, there were torture centers), a badly executed economic adjustment, hundreds of Argentineans in exile, closing of unions. The shameful legacy of a dictatorship that started with him and ended the day that some hallucinated Argentinean officer thought that starting a war in the Falklands was the best way to extend military rule.

And regarding Videla's death, he concluded:

Hoy Videla murió en una cárcel común sin privilegios. Condenado a cadena perpetua. Será enterrado en una tumba, a diferencia de muchas de sus víctimas, arrojadas al mar desde un avión. Repudiado por la sociedad argentina. Con un juicio histórico que lo remite a las páginas más infames de América Latina.

Today, Videla died in a common jail without benefits. Convicted to life-sentece. He will be buried in a tomb unlike many of his victims who were thrown to the sea from an airplane. Disowned by the Argentinean society. He was judged in a historic trial that puts him in the darkest pages of Latin America.

On the other hand, LSO wrote a small entry in his blog [es] where he refers to Videla as a “dignified official and soldier who [...] fulfilled a mission that granted him honor.”

Military torture center, today turned into the Memory Museum – City of Rosario. Picture by: Laura Schneider

Under the hashtag #MurioVidela [Videla Died] thousands of Argentineans have reacted to the news, like user @Cami-cotarelo [es]:

@Cami_Cotarelo: No se festeja que #MurioVidela, pero hoy despues de casi 40 años descansan en paz mas de 30.000 personas

@Cami_Cotarelo: There's no celebration for #MurioVidela, but today after almost 40 years more than 30,000 people rest in peace

Cecilia Saia (@Cecisaia) [es] also expressed the feelings shared by many Argentineans:

@Cecisaia: Hoy hay un monstruo menos en el mundo. Si hay algo después de la muerte, que le vuelva por mil todo lo que hizo #muriovidela

@Cecisaia:: Today there's one less monster in the world. If there's something after death, may it give him back all he did a thousand times #muriovidela

Nobel Peace laureate Adolfo Perez Esquivel (@PrensaPEsquivel) [es] wrote on his Twitter account:

@PrensaPEsquivel: #MurióVidela, un hombre que ha hecho mucho daño al país y a la humanidad. No se ha cerrado un ciclo, hay [que] buscar más #verdad y #justicia.

@PrensaPEsquivel: #MurióVidela, a man that has hurt the country and humanity deeply. A cycle hasn't closed; we need to find more #verdad (truth) and #justicia (justicia).

Infobae published a Storify post [es] with more reaction on Twitter.

Bolivian Workers Protest Seeking Better Pensions

Pablo Andres Rivero — Thu, 16 May 2013 15:39:01 +0000

Tension is growing in Bolivia as miners, teachers, health service workers and public university staff -all affiliated to the Central Workers Union (Central Obrera Boliviana, COB, in Spanish)- are on strike demanding an increase in their retirement pension scheme.

A number of strategic streets remain blockaded in La Paz and neighbouring El Alto, with limited public transport circulating their usual routes. Road blockades also impede the normal transit to other regions.

As protests escalate, on May 14 teachers and miners detonated dynamite in the streets of La Paz during demonstrations.

Photo by @tIrA_pIEDRAs via Twitter

COB representatives demand an increase in their retirement pensions from the current 70 percent to 100 percent of the their salary. They are asking that the increase of 30 to 50 percent in their compensation come from public funds saved in the Solidarity Fund (Fondo Solidario in Spanish). Government officials rejected this demand as they consider that it compromises the sustainability of the “Fondo Solidario”.

Negotiations are intermittent as the Government requests COB representatives to suspend demonstrations and blockades. Moreover, low-rank Police Unionists and their wives have threatened to join the general strike [es] demanding better pension schemes, arguing the same conditions that Army officers enjoy: retirement with 100 percent of their contributions.

Clashes between police and demonstrators were reported via Twitter under the hashtag #ConflictosBo. In spite of the conflictive climate, and although blockades and demonstrations continue, dialogue between Unionist and Government representatives is expected to resume.

Police after using tear gas between Ingavi and Yanacocha streets (La Paz).
Photo by @jesus_alanoca via Twitter

Blogger and Analyst Raúl Prada comments on his blog Horizontes Nómadas [es] (Nomad Horizons):

La COB se encuentra movilizada por reivindicaciones salariales, en defensa de una jubilación digna, que no es otra cosa que salario diferido, en contra los métodos monetaristas de transferir la solidaridad a los trabajadores, desentendiéndose el Estado de apoyar con un fondo adecuado en la perspectiva de una jubilación digna para todos.

The COB is mobilized for wage demands in defence of a dignified retirement, which is nothing but deferred salary, they are against monetarist methods of transferring Solidarity Fund responsibility to workers, while the state avoids providing support with an appropriate fund to provide a dignified retirement for everyone.

On the other hand, Minister of Economy Luis Arce stated [es] that the government does contribute to the Solidarity Fund and “guarantees the payment of the 70 percent in regards to wages.” He added that the government's proposal ensures the sustainability of the Solidarity Fund for about 30 years and supports payments to current and future pensioners”.

According to Government radio station Patria Nueva [es], “the [same] authority explained that COB representatives are pursuing a ‘political decision’ rather than a technical one in order to increase pensions, which is not possible because it would jeopardize the income of all pensioners”.

In his blog [es] Boris Bernal shares the analysis made by the Centre for the Study of Labour and Agrarian Development (“Centro de Estudios para el Desarrollo Laboral y Agrario” in Spanish, or CEDLA [es]):

El actual sistema integral de pensiones no garantiza el pago de rentas de jubilación dignas que
alcance a los trabajadores para cubrir sus necesidades básicas cuando pasen a ser trabajadores pasivos y las fuerzas físicas y el mercado de trabajo no les permita continuar trabajando

The current Pension System does not ensure a decent retirement income for workers to satisfy their basic needs when they become passive workers, and when physical strength as well as the labour market does not allow them to continue working.

Further down, the same analysis predicts harder conditions for young workers in the future:

El panorama para los jóvenes trabajadores y para todos aquellos que vienen aportando al actual sistema así como al que estuvo vigente hasta el 2010 (sistema administrado por las AFP) es más crítico, porque a diferencia de los aportantes antiguos [...] dispondrán de una sola fuente, sus aportes, que hará aun más insuficiente el monto requerido para jubilarse.

The scenario for young workers and for those who are contributing to the current system, and the one that was in force until 2010 (administered by the AFP system) is more critical, because unlike older contributors [...] they will have a single source, their own contributions, that will make it even harder to reach the amount required to retire.

Mothers of Missing Mexicans Go On Hunger Strike

Silvia Viñas — Wed, 15 May 2013 18:53:14 +0000

A group of mothers on a hunger strike commemorated Mothers’ Day outside the attorney general’s office in Mexico City demanding [es] that the Mexican government keep its promise [es] to search for their missing sons and daughters.

According to official reports, more than 26,000 people went missing in Mexico between December 1, 2006, and November 30, 2012, during the administration of former President Felipe Calderón.

The women have maintained the strike since May 9, 2013.

Erwin C. in The Latin Americanist blog quoted one of the mothers participating in the hunger strike:

“We will not leave until our cases have been resolved, the president meets with us and he gathers a working group to tell us when and how they will start to find our missing loved ones,” declared hunger striker Margarita López. López said her “disappeared” daughter, Yahaira Guadalupe Bahena, was kidnapped two years ago by “armed men” and then tortured until she died. López has urged authorities to uncover a mass grave where her daughter was allegedly buried in but her pleas have thus far been ignored.

López was one of the participants in a seven-day hunger strike that took place last November and that ended after Mexico City authorities met with the protesters.

Paris Martínez from the digital publication Animal Político has covered the hunger strike from the start [es]. In one post [es], he introduced readers to some of the mothers participating in the strike, like Nancy Rosete, whose son Elvis Axell Torres Rosete has been missing since December 29, 2010:

Yo decidí participar en la huelga de hambre porque, como víctimas, no contamos con certeza sobre las acciones que realizan las autoridades. Han pasado ya más de dos años y, aun cuando hay supuestos avances en las investigaciones, nosotros no podemos verificarlos.

I decided to participate in the hunger strike because, as victims, we have no certainty about the authorities’ actions. It has been more than two years, and even though allegedly there are advances in the investigation, we cannot verify [these advances].

On May 13, Martínez reported [es] for Animal Político that, “aside from a brief exchange of comments by deputy attorney general Ricardo Garcia Cervantes -on the day the protest began- no authority has come to ask about [the protesters'] demands or to start a formal dialogue.“

Mothers and family members of the disappeared held demonstrations on May 10, Mothers’ Day in Mexico. Martínez shared a video [es] that shows the mothers on hunger strike commemorting Mothers’ Day while chanting “They took them alive, we want them back alive!” and “Where are they? Where are they? Our children, where are they?”:

In another video [es], Martínez interviewed mothers and other family members of the missing on the fourth day of the hunger strike. Erica, one of the mothers on hunger strike, holds a sign which reads: “Four days on hunger strike and there are no answers. We want our sons and daughters to appear. Justice!”

She says that they are feeling the effects form the lack of food, that temperature decreases at night, and that they don't feel safe. Erica adds that citizens have been helping them.

Another protester affirms that they are not going anywhere: “We are not here for just one person, we are here for one common goal, which is the search of the missing”:

On Wednesday, May 15, Martínez reported [es] that a group representing the protesters will visit Los Pinos — the official residence and office of the President of Mexico — to present their written demands to President Enrique Peña Nieto, “so that he explains the lack of concrete actions in the search for their sons and daughters.”

Uprooted by Brazilian Power Plant, River Residents Try to Rebuild

David Bond — Wed, 15 May 2013 11:40:09 +0000

This story by Ana Aranha was originally titled Vidas em Trânsito (Lives in Transit) [pt] and is part of Brazilian investigative journalism agency Pública's special coverage #AmazôniaPública (Public Amazon) [pt], which reports on the impact of mega-construction projects in the Amazon along the Madeira river in the state of Rondônia, Brazil. The story will be published in a series of five posts on Global Voices Online.

Previous post: Displaced Residents Accuse Brazilian Power Plant of False Promises

After spending almost two years in the village of New Mutum, a city constructed by company Energia Sustentável [en] to house the engineers and foremen of its Jirau power plant [en] as well as the river dwellers, known as ribeirinhos [en], who were displaced when the area was flooded for the plant, the Batista family decided to return closer to the river. Alongside the same neighbors from the old Mutum, they constructed a wooden house next to a bayou called Jirau.

But now there’s a suspicion that this area will also be flooded.

This news flows among the inhabitants and workers of the power plant and is being investigated by public attorney Renata Ribeiro Baptista from the federal public prosecutor’s office in the federal state of Rondônia [en]. “Jirau denies it, but we are following this closely,” she declares:

Essa situação mostra o dilema dos ribeirinhos. Eles correram de volta para os seus hábitos de vida, que estão ligados à proximidade ao rio. Mas a vida como eles conheciam foi tomada pela usina.

This situation shows the dilemma faced by the river dwellers. They went back to their way of life, tied to the proximity of the river. But life as they knew it was taken away by the power plant.

“I no longer consider myself a Brazilian citizen. I feel like a dog on a leash that can’t choose where to go,” says Jonas Romani, a 55-year-old fisherman. He lived in the district of Jaci Paraná that was flooded by the Santo Antônio power plant [en]. Like Batista, he moved to the Jirau river and now loses sleep over the possibility of having to move again. “If they aren’t sure if this area will be flooded, why not close this area off? They let us come here, build our things, plant our manioc, only to flood everything all over again?”

Esmeralda Marinho Gomes used to lived in the village of Mutum Paraná, which was relocated because the area was to be flooded by the Jirau power plant. She states she has never been compensated. Esmeralda explains how the riverside dwellers never adapted to the village constructed by the power plant, New Mutum, and went to live in another location close to the river. She worries about what will happen to the community when the construction project is finished and the jobs are gone.

The process of wrenching people from where they have built their lives is always subject to injustices. There are small injustices and there are big ones. The story of Esmeralda Marinho Gomes, 63, is one of the larger ones.

She had rented a house in old Mutum since 2006. Even those who rented had the right to choose between a compensation of 55,000 Brazilian reais (about 28,000 US dollars) or a small house in New Mutum. But the week that the power plant employees came through to create a registry of inhabitants, she was away working at the mine. When she returned, she began her saga of attempts to contact the power plant. As the community was one of squatters, the houses didn't have official documentation and therefore, there was no contract, only an agreement with the owner:

Primeiro disseram que era estudo de caso. Depois, que não tinha prova suficiente.

They initially said her case was under study. Later, they stated there was insufficient proof.

She never received compensation.

While her neighbors were in New Mutum, Esmeralda rented a room in the village. When the first few began moving to the Jirau bayou, she moved with them.

With the breakup of the river dwellers and cuts at the power plant, the future of the 1,600 homes in New Mutum becomes worrisome. The Jirau plant is progressively reducing the number of workers. The work is scheduled to finish in 2016, when the number of employees near the infrastructure created to house them will be reduced to a minimum. Until now, no industry or activity generating an income independent from the construction of the power plant has been created in the area.

“I've already got my little house in Jaru [another river different than the Madeira river]” says Sônia, a former inhabitant of the old Mutum who has a clothing shop in New Mutum:

Quando acabar a obra, acabou o emprego, acabou tudo. Isso aqui vai virar uma cidade-fantasma.

When the construction is finished, the work is finished, everything is finished. This here will become a ghost town.

The project Amazônia Pública [pt] (Public Amazon) took three teams of reporters from the Reporting and Investigative Journalism Agência Pública to travel through three Amazonian regions between July and October 2012, among them the hydroelectric plants of the Madeira River in Rondônia. All of the reports search to explore the complexities of the current investments in the Amazon, including the negotiations and political maneuvering as well as listening to all the actors involved — governments, companies, and civil society — to trace the context in which these projects have been developed. The principal viewpoint of these reports, as with all reports from Agência Pública, is always the public interest: how actions, political negotiations, and economics have had an impact, in practice, on the lives of the population.

Dominican Catholic Church Sues NGO for Sexual Education Campaign

Nina Shield — Tue, 14 May 2013 19:10:49 +0000

The Catholic Church filed an appeal against the Dominican Association for Family Welfare (Profamilia) [es] to withdraw their advertising campaign, “Your sexual and reproductive rights are human rights,” which uses the slogan “Know, Act, Demand” and aims to raise awareness about sex education, condom use, abortion, incest, harassment, and high-risk pregnancies.

The pastoral vicars for Family & Life and Health of the Archdiocese of Santo argue that this campaign encourages abortion and early sexual relationships; violates the right to life, the right of parents to exercise authority over their children, and the right to non-interference in the home; and uses images of children, which is prohibited by the Constitution.

On Saturday, May 11, Cardinal Nicolás de Jesús López Rodríguez accused Profamilia of promoting promiscuity in the country by encouraging underage sex. López Rodríguez said that the campaign promotes promiscuity, lawlessness, and vagrancy [es]:

A medida que usted reparte preservativos fomenta el derecho al sexo; es un invento de los individuos de hoy día que no tienen ninguna vergüenza, ningún principio; yo no creo en ONG’s, creo en los principios morales.

Handing out condoms promotes a right to sex; this is an invention of contemporary individuals who don't have any shame or principles; I don't believe in NGOs, I believe in moral principles.

As usual, social networks were the site of a lively debate on the subject. Tweeters quickly coalesced under the hashtag #SometemeAMi (I answer to me) in solidarity with the NGO Profamilia. Among the most notable tweets:

Mariana Barrenese, a public policy specialist:

@MaruBarrenese: #SometemeAMi por apoyar abierta y públicamente a @profamiliaRD y su campaña

@MaruBarrenese: #SometemeAMi by openly and publicly supporting @profamiliaRD and their campaign

Jenny Torres, a poverty expert:

@JennyTorres67: Esta visión tan adultocéntrica no nos deja vivir #SometemeAMi que #YoApoyoaProfamilia

@JennyTorres67: This adult-centric vision won't leave us alone #SometemeAMi because #YoApoyoaProfamilia (I support NGO Profamilia)

Gloria Amézquita, a journalist and social activist:

@GloriaAmézquita: #SometemeAMi por luchar por el derecho a decidir. Porque en el cuerpo manda la persona, no la Iglesia.

@GloriaAmézquita: #SometemeAMi for fighting for the right to choose. Because people are in charge of their bodies, not the Church.

Even the prosecutor for the National District, Yeni Berenice, voiced her support for Profamilia's work:

@YeniBerenice: La campaña de @profamiliaRD educativa, oportuna, necesaria!

@YeniBerenice: @profamiliaRD‘s campaign is educational, timely, necessary!

In her masterful article The Case of Profamilia: A Sign of Weakness in the Catholic Church [es], Denisse Paiewonsky, a representative from the Mujer y Salud [es] (Woman and Health) collective, said:

La Iglesia no acaba de entender que las actitudes de la sociedad dominicana hacia el aborto terapeutico, el acoso sexual, la educación sexual científica en las escuelas, la anticoncepción, el embarazo adolescente, etc. se alejan cada vez más de la ortodoxia eclesial.

The Church does not understand that attitudes in Dominican society toward therapeutic abortion, sexual harassment, scientific sex education in schools, contraception, teen pregnancy, etc. are moving farther and farther away from Church orthodoxy.

Profamilia's official statement [es] on the Church's suit makes it clear that they will not retreat in their campaign and reaffirms their commitment to scientific, evidence-based, comprehensive sex education and the defense of sexual and reproductive rights as part of human rights.

Both parties were due in court on Monday, May 13, in the Fifth Chamber of the Civil and Commercial Court of First Instance in the National District. However, the hearing was postponed to next Monday, May 20, because the Church and its lawyers have not submitted their evidence to the court.

Brazilian Boy Band Tour Continues Despite Rape Indictments

Mark O'Thomas — Tue, 14 May 2013 11:20:07 +0000

[All links lead to Portuguese language pages, except when otherwise noted.]

Despite nine members of the ‘pagode’ [en] boy band New Hit being indicted for the gang rape of two sixteen-year-old girls, the group has continued with its national tour regardless. Meanwhile, the victims have become virtual prisoners under the protection of the Program to Protect Children and Adolescents Under Threat of Death (PPCAAM) following threats made by the band's family and fans.

The Public Ministry [en] of the federal state of Bahia has prosecuted the group's crime along with the complicity of a police officer for his part in covering up the episode. The case took place on August 26, 2012, in the Brazilian Northern town of Ruy Barbosa [en]. In October last year, the band were released from jail after 38 days following the court granting them habeas corpus rights.

The trial began in February this year and was postponed until September due to the non-attendance of two defence witnesses. The defendants pleaded a case of consensual sex at the first hearing, while the victims focused on describing the manner in which the violence was committed. The girls’ testimony was corroborated by medical evidence authenticating that rape had taken place as well as the testimony of the police who first assisted them straight after the event. Brazil is now a country torn in two as protests are mounted both for and against the group.

The website Portal Pagodão comments that the band's shows have attracted more than 10,000 over the past few days:

Apesar de toda a polêmica envolvendo a banda num caso de estupro, os meninos da New Hit, provaram que ainda tem grande reconhecimento do público por onde passa, como em shows nas cidades de Teresina (PI), Caxias (MA) e Timon(MA) no último final de semana. [13-14 de abril]

Despite all the controversy surrounding the band's involvement in a rape case, the boys of New Hit have shown they can still pull in the crowds wherever they go, with gigs in places like the city of Teresina [en] and the and the towns of Caxias [en] and Timon [en] last weekend. [April 13-14]

Meanwhile, the Facebook page New Hit-Acreditamos na INOCÊNCIA deles [New Hit - We believe in their innocence] has more than 900 followers. Its sister page Fc New Hit Fo Rever posted the following comment this month:

Eu choro! Choro de felicidade Ao saber que estar tudo voltando ao normal , Choro de felicidade , emoção , ao saber que a agenda dos meninos está linda e maravilhosa , com grandes show's pra fazer!… é incrivél como depois de todo esse acontecido eles continua com esses sorrisos lindos no rosto… Mais quando Deus quer é assim , e a justiça ta sendo feita …. Porque a justiça de Deus nunca falhará ♫♪

I'm crying! Sobbing with tears of joy – knowing that everything's getting back to normal , Sobbing with joy, excitement, safe in the knowledge that the boys are getting on with their lives in such a beautiful and wonderful way, with so many mega shows still to perform!… It's amazing that after all that's happened, they can still carry on with such beautiful smiles on their faces… But when God wills it so, so it is, and justice will be done…. Because God's justice can never fail ♫ ♪

On the flipside, the Facebook page Repúdio ao New Hit: Acusados de Estupro [pt] [Disown New Hit: Rapists On Trial] has almost 7,000 followers and constantly posts anti-band and pro-victim comments. The page encourages people to speak out and stick up posters in the cities where the band is touring.

Repúdio ao New Hit posters have been shared almost 500 times on Facebook

Culture of Rape

Following the band's gig in Recife, the capital of the federal state of Pernambuco [en] on April 21, a surge of comments erupted on the venue's Facebook page. Here's Talitha Aguiar‘s take:

Mulher paga meia e ainda ganha um estupro coletivo de graça! Que promoção hein, Espaço Aberto! Suas filhas, mulheres, amigas também vão participar dessa super promoção???

Women get in half price and can still get gang-raped for free! What a deal, eh, Espaço Aberto!(venue's name)? Your daughters, wives and girlfriends can still get this special offer!!!

Vívian Andrade Martins says:

Bonito, heim? Patrocinando banda de estupradores… bonito.
Até onde o dinheiro pode levar vocês? Qual é o próximo passo? Patrocinar banda de pedófilos?

Lovely, eh? Sponsoring a band of rapists… lovely. Where will money go to next? What's the next move? Sponsoring a band of paedophiles?

In March this year, the band gave shows in Fortaleza, the capital of the federal state of Ceará [en], that were marred by protests. The feminist blog Marchamulheres by Marcha Mundial das Mulheres [Women's Worldwide March] analysed the issues as follows:

Enquanto os acusados fazem shows pelo Brasil afora, as duas adolescentes, que, além de terem sofrido violência sexual, foram ameaçadas de morte, encontram-se afastadas do convívio social e com suas liberdades cerceadas. Isso é inadmissível, pois retira a condição de vítima das adolescentes culpabilizando-as pela violência sofrida, já que os acusados estão em liberdade.

O caso New Hit traz à tona um debate importante: a incorporação da “cultura do estupro”, ou seja, quando há um incentivo ao crime e à culpabilização da vítima através de músicas, peças publicitárias, novelas, piadas humorísticas etc. O show, que vai acontecer [ocorreu] no dia 31 de março, a barraca Master Beach, na Praia do Futuro, em Fortaleza, é um exemplo objetivo dessa cultura.

While the defendants continue to tour throughout Brazil, the two teenagers, who, besides having suffered sexual violence have been threatened with death, find themselves removed from society and their freedoms curtailed. This is unacceptable, because it takes away the teenagers’ victimhood and blames them instead for the violence they have suffered; meanwhile the accused roam free.

The New Hit case raises a critical issue: the incorporation of “rape culture” – when crime is incentivised and victims are blamed through songs, advertisements, soap operas, crass jokes etc. The show which is due to be performed [was performed] on 31 March at the Master Beach venue in Praia do Futuro in Fortaleza is a paradigm example of this culture.

Posters and graffitti mark out the protest in Fortaleza, Ceará Photograph: Laryssa Sampaio/Marcha Mundial das Mulheres

Letter of thanks

Due to public pressure, particularly from social networks, some shows have been cancelled. The band halted their shows in cities like Salvador [en] on 21 October last year, Aracaju [en], Maceió [en] and in the town of Serrinha [en] in January this year, the latter seeing protests led by the Women's Movement of Serrinha. Another concert on April 30 in the town of Nilo Peçanha, in the federal state of Bahia, would also be cancelled according to a representative of the federal state of Bahia, Luiza Maia and the Urban Planning Secretary of Nilo Peçanha, Carlos Azevedo. The band's management, however, has denied they were contracted to play this show.

The group Marcha Mundial das Mulheres, who has held protests in different cities in Bahia, in front of the Fórum venue in Ruy Barbosa on the day of the trial last February. Photograph: Repúdio ao New Hit: Acusados de Estupro

Other forms of protest against New Hit organised by the Marcha Mundial da Mulheres group from their base in Bahia includes the ”escracho” (escrache) [en] outside the summer home of the band's vocalist, Eduardo Martins, in October last year. The group also went to the city of Ruy Barbosa during the hearing in February this year. The two teenage victims sent this letter in recognition of the support they have received from the feminist activists from the group Negra Zeferina (black woman Zeferina), the Repúdio ao New Hit: Acusados de Estupro group and a representative of the federal state of Bahia Luiza Maia:

Ei Meninas,

Como vocês sabem esses últimos seis meses não foram fáceis pra nós. Por causa da nossa coragem tivemos que abrir mão de muita coisa. Estamos longe da nossa família, de amigos e sem meios de comunicação.

Então aproveitei a oportunidade para agradecer a cada uma de vocês que saíram de suas cidades, de suas casas para vir até Ruy Barbosa nos dar força, mostrar que não estamos sozinhas e que temos que seguir esta batalha. Em vários momentos eu cheguei a mim (sic) culpar, a desisti de tudo. Mas sempre lembramos que não estamos sozinhas. Temos todas vocês nos apoiando e lutando junto com a gente.

Obrigado por cada palavra de conforto.

A todas vocês, Negras, Zeferinas, Repúdio, Deputada Luiza Maia e todos que estão a gente.

Beijo!

Vítimas da New Hit

Hey Girls,

As you know these last six months have not been easy for us. We have had to give up so much for being courageous. We are far from our family, friends and without means of communication.

So I've taken the opportunity to thank each and every one of you who have left their cities and their homes to come to the town of Ruy Barbosa to give us strength, to show us that we are not alone and that we have to go on with this battle. At times I've started to blame myself, to even think of giving it all up. But we always remember that we are not alone. We have all of you supporting us and fighting alongside us.

Thank you for every word of comfort.

To all of you, black women, Zeferinas, Repúdio, representative of the federal state of Bahia Luiza Maia and everyone else.

A kiss!

The Victims of New Hit

Chilean Michelle Bachelet's Bid for Presidency

Gabriela García Calderón — Mon, 13 May 2013 21:28:45 +0000

Center-left coalition leader and former Chilean President Michelle Bachelet looks for a second Presidential term, focusing on themes of inequality, universal education, and tax reform. But have lessons been learned from the previous coalition terms?

This is how Upside Down World's Matthew Owens starts an extensive analysis on Michelle Bachelet's bid for the Chilean presidency in the 2014 elections.

Domestic Violence Protection for Everyone

Firuzeh Shokooh Valle — Sat, 11 May 2013 19:46:15 +0000

Blogger and feminist lawyer Verónica Rivera Torres writes [es] about the piece of legislations that seeks to extend the Law Against Domestic Violence (Law 54) in Puerto Rico to same sex couples:

Since our Supreme Court ruled that the Law of the Prevention and Intervention in Domestic Violence, known as Law 54, did not apply to same-sex couples, individuals and human rights groups have been waiting for the historic moment we are witnessing today.

Finally, after ten long years, the legislator Luis Vega Ramos has filed a measure to clarify what for many people was clear since Law 54 was created: the protection of all victims of domestic violence, regardless of their sexual orientation, marital status and gender identity.

“I Am a Director”

Firuzeh Shokooh Valle — Sat, 11 May 2013 19:33:11 +0000

Alternative blog Puerto Rico Indie reviews [es] the recent Puerto Rican film “I Am a Director,” which was partially financed through Kickstarter:

The film, made in the ‘mockumentary’ style or fictitious documentary, follows the steps of Carlos (Carlos Marchand), first-time filmmaker who longs to make a Hollywood-style film, but in Puerto Rico. Besides being a genuinely funny comedy, ‘I Am a Director’ succeeds in satirizing the mental process of many who believe that making films is to meet the artificial standards based on the immense American productions.

“Mom, I Am in Love With a Woman”

Firuzeh Shokooh Valle — Sat, 11 May 2013 17:05:20 +0000

On occasion of the celebration of Mother's Day, tomorrow Sunday May 12, feminist activist Amárilis Pagán writes about the experience [es] of telling her mother she was in love with another woman:

The day I told my mom I was in love with a woman, she delivered a long and heartbreaking scream. It was as if someone had told her that her daughter had died… and to some extent I think that something like this happened. Something inside me died, and something inside her died too. She never accepted my relationship, and that love that filled my life for so many years is still unknown to her.

Mapping the Cuban Blogosphere

Firuzeh Shokooh Valle — Sat, 11 May 2013 16:02:53 +0000

Blogger Yasmín S. Portales comments on the challenges of mapping the Cuban blogosphere, including everything and anything written in blogs. This is her most recent project:

A directory is a map: you have the swamps of glorious battles swamps and the mountains of infamy. You include it all, or it's not a map. In other words, there is yet to be a map of the Cuban blogosphere.

The worst: The Cuban blogosphere is chaotic. Luckily I do not pretend to make sense of it, only reveal its current demographics.

VI Conference Against Homophobia in Cuba

Firuzeh Shokooh Valle — Sat, 11 May 2013 15:55:00 +0000

Detail of the official poster of the VI Conference against Homophobia in Cuba. “Family is love, respect, inclusion.”

Cuban blogger and LGBT activist Francisco Rodríguez announces the events [es] of the VI Cuban Conference Against Homophobia to be held during the month of May in the island.

Efraín Ríos Montt Found Guilty of Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity

Renata Avila — Sat, 11 May 2013 00:28:52 +0000

Guatemalan de facto dictator Efraín Ríos Montt was declared guilty of genocide and crimes against humanity. After organizing and fighting in courts for years, Guatemala's Ixil Maya indigenous achieved justice.

The verdict was live-tweeted and streamed [es].

While Ríos Montt was declared guilty and sentenced to 80 years in prison, former Intelligence Director José Mauricio Rodriguez Sanchez was declared innocent.

Rios Montt ruled Guatemala from March 1982 to August 1983 during the country's 36-year civil war. As Xeni Jardin explains in BoingBoing: “The 86-year-old former General and head of state was charged with the crimes over a counterinsurgency campaign in 1982-1983 that resulted in the deaths of 1,771 Maya Ixil.”

Rios Montt Genocide Trial Day 26. Photo by James Rodriguez of MiMundo.org, used with permission.

Guatemala's indigenous were severely impacted by the war; they lost land, houses, animals, crops, and had to live in hiding in the mountains. After the war the country offered little opportunities.

Today, the Ixil communities are among the poorest in the country, with up to 77% living in poverty [es]. In Guatemala, where up to 40% of the population is indigenous, eight out of 10 indigenous peoples are poor. Furthermore, racism impacts their education and employment opportunities.

In spite of their poverty, the survivors were not asking for reparations -they were asking for justice, as Mr. Benjamín Jerónimo, plaintiff of the genocide case, told the tribunal in the closing arguments of a very complex trial which Amnesty International summarized in ten facts:

Genocide was committed, crimes against humanity were committed and today, 100 witnesses came to tell the truth, to ask for justice for all that we suffered, publicly… We are not looking for vengeance, we are looking for a true peace with justice, with respect, with equality, with dignity, that is why we are here.

It takes more than ten hours to travel in public transport from the Ixil region to Guatemala City, where the trial took place. In spite of their modest income and the distance, members of the Ixil community were present in the courtroom every day, as photo records by James Rodriguez of MiMundo.org and the coverage by Xeni Jardin in Boing Boing show. Xeni live tweeted the final verdict from the courtroom.

Picture by James Rodríguez, Mimundo.org used with permission.

A video explaining all the evidence leading to the charges was aired this week by PBS in the United States, generating debate about president Reagan's involvement. The article “The Final Battle: Rios Montt's Counterinsurgency Campaign: U.S. and Guatemalan Documents Describe the Strategy Behind Scorched Earth” by The National Security Archive adds:

Ríos Montt's scorched earth tactics are documented in a collection of Guatemalan army records created in July and August 1982, connected to Operation Sofía — a series of counterinsurgency sweeps through the Ixil region to kill EGP combatants and destroy their “base of support” (the Maya Ixil population). The Operation Sofía documents were given to the National Security Archive in 2009 and the Archive in turn provided them as criminal evidence to the prosecutors in the genocide case.

The trial has been an example of open justice, with translation available for the Ixil peoples during the entire trial, unrestricted access to press and a strong interaction in social media.

Parallel to the debate in court, a conversation -a battle of ideas and facts- took place online.

Netizens used the hashtags #riosmontt, #genocidegt and #sihubogenocidio (“yes, it was genocide”), and there were livestreams here (audio), here (audio) and here.

There are also netizens who deny that there was a genocide, and they are using the hashtag #nohubogenocidio (“there was no genocide”) to share their views.

During the trial citizens all over the world took a pledge and shared a photo showing their support for justice.

International volunteers from NISGUA, Peace Brigades International, Collectif Guatemala and other NGOs worked and supported families of survivors during the trial. They also produced content in English and French to share with the world.

After thirty years, this landmark verdict materializing the spirit of the Genocide Convention and the enforcement of crimes against humanity is an insurance for each and every human being, as it sets a precedent for current conflicts around the world. It is a ray of hope for entire villages labelled as “the enemy” in Syria, for the suffering of the Rohingya in Myanmar, and for all the conflicts to come.

Furthermore, it also marks a new beginning for an inclusive Guatemala, embracing and learning from the values and differences of 24 nations, starting with the lessons of courage, patience and non-violent struggle for justice taught by the Ixil. As Salvadoran digital journal El Faro said, the Ixil peoples already achieved a victory [es].

Photo via @xeni: “Juana Sanchez Toma, Ixil rape victim whom we interviewed for @newshour. ‘I dreamed of justice. And now here it is.'”