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Puerto Rico Update,
December 2000 Heralds of a New Era The Puerto Rican Election's Impact on Peace in Vieques by Andrés Thomas Conteris In an unprecedented sweep clearly showing widespread dissatisfaction with the status quo, Puerto Ricans spoke vociferously via the ballot box on the continued bombing of Vieques. If the Clinton Administration wants a genuine referendum on the people's will, it need not look beyond the message conveyed on November 7. This election inaugurates a new governor and resident commissioner (non-voting delegate to the U.S. Congress) as well as a new mayor of Vieques, all of whom are from the pro-commonwealth Popular Democratic Party (PDP) and have declared their opposition to the Naval presence. The voters chose leaders who speak in unison saying "Marina Fuera!" (U.S. Navy Out). These changes in political leadership, along with the continued campaigns of the Puerto Rican and Viequense people and others in solidarity with their cause, will undoubtedly lead to the demise of a policy which has wreaked havoc on the Isla Nena for nearly 60 years. Sila María Calderón But even prior to taking office, Calderón is making good on her promise to take a tough stance. She was encouraged by the comment made by President Clinton on election day to Amy Goodman on the radio program Democracy Now: "If I can't find a way to give that island, the western part of the island back to the people of Puerto Rico, and to honor the agreement that the government of Puerto Rico itself made with the support of the local leaders, including the mayor of Vieques, then the people of Puerto Rico I think have a right to say the Federal Government broke its word, and the training has to stop right now." Shortly after this public comment, Calderón joined with the presidents of the island's three political parties and with a wide range of representatives of Puerto Rican society in signing a letter to the President urging him to issue a new executive order to immediately and permanently suspend the naval bombing. In a challenge to those who sought to buy the votes of Viequenses in the upcoming referendum dictated by the Clinton-Rosselló agreement, Calderón has pledged to spend $50 million in the coming four years to compensate Vieques residents for what they would receive from the federal government if they agree to unlimited Navy live-fire bombing. She also plans to hold her own referendum in Vieques that will include an option for voters to chose zero bombs -- not simply choosing between inert bombing until May 2003 or live-fire bombing with no end in sight. She has said she might remove the Puerto Rican Riot Police from the entrance to Camp Garcia and may not pursue prosecution of those who engage in civil disobedience protesting the naval presence. This could be interpreted as an invitation to a massive people's insurrection. To top it off, the Governor-elect promises to pursue a legal strategy of tightening and enforcing noise regulations which would put an end to the hyper-decibel ship-to-shore shelling. She is aided by a Washington DC-based lawyer, Richard Copaken, who helped stop the Navy bombing of neighboring Culebra in 1975. He argues that sonic booms caused by the shelling endanger the health of swimmers, especially children. Copaken has stated that with this strategy, the naval maneuvers could be stopped within 60 days. In the face of these challenges, members of the U.S. Congress have threatened Puerto Rico with making continued Federal assistance to the island dependent on Calderón's adherence to the established accord. The Navy too has flexed its muscle. Navy Secretary Richard Danzig sent a letter to Calderón, authorized by Clinton, conditioning the transfer of Western lands on full compliance by Puerto Rican authorities with the Presidential Directives of January 31, 2000, allowing military exercises to continue at least until May 2003. The feisty leader soon to be at the helm of the Puerto Rican government responded to the blackmail attempt in a December 13 letter. She pointed to the fact her position is shared by an overwhelming majority of the people of the commonwealth and she will remain firm. No doubt that the Bush Administration will not let up on the pressure, and may go so far as to destabilize Calderón's government by looking for her Achilles' Heel. The task before her will require perseverance, great courage and political acumen if she is serious about not one more bomb falling, a thorough cleanup of the impact area and the complete abandonment of Vieques by the Navy. The pressure on outgoing governor Rosselló - who declared "don't push it" before a Senate Committee in October 1999 - was enormous. A few short months after his famous comment, he was the one who ended up betraying the consensus of his people by agreeing to the directives. The burden on Calderón is even greater with her proactive search for the expulsion of the Navy from Vieques through legal and political means. She will have deal with an incoming Republican administration that has a record of heightened xenophobia and increased focus on National Security. Dámaso Serrano Mayor-elect Dámaso Serrano inspires a great deal of hope among his Vieques constituents. He has a long history of accompanying the most active forces for peace on the island. He was one of the more than 200 protestors detained by the FBI and U.S. Federal Marshals last May 4. During the campaign he repeated his primary message that the Navy presence on their island-home must be eradicated. A vote for Dámaso was clearly a repudiation for the naval occupation and a hopeful step toward lasting peace with justice. Serrano received 63.8% of the vote. When combined with the 10% who voted for the Independence Party's candidate, nearly three quarters of Viequenses voted for leaders who oppose the Navy's presence in Vieques. He lost no time in stating unequivocal support for an immediate and permanent cessation to the bombing of Vieques. In his letter to President Clinton, three days after becoming mayor-elect, he wrote: "The demand that the U.S. Navy must leave Vieques without dropping one more bomb, of any kind, has been the popular will of the people of Puerto Rico in general, and Vieques in particular, before you issued your Directives on Vieques, and after you issued those Directives. "President Clinton, now the will of the elected representatives of Puerto Rico, in the Mayoralty of Vieques, in the Governorship of Puerto Rico, in our Representative in the U.S. Congress, in the Puerto Rico Senate and House of Representatives, and in the majority of the mayoralties in Puerto Rico, concerning Vieques is the same as the will of the people of Puerto Rico in general and of Vieques in particular: That the U.S. Navy must be ordered out of Vieques now, without dropping one more bomb, of any kind. "We are calling on you to respect that demand and that, before you leave office ten weeks from now, that you issue and Executive Order implementing that demand... " The election of Aníbal Acevedo Vilá as the new Resident Commissioner, who serves as Puerto Rico's non-voting delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives, opens a new chapter for a strong voice in Washington for changing current U.S. policy toward Vieques. His predecessor, Carlos Romero-Barceló, feigned a commitment for a just resolution to the Vieques problem and became a strong advocate of the Presidential Directives. In contrast, Acevedo will play a key role in Congress as an authentic voice for the will of the majority of the people of Puerto Rico who oppose the Navy's ongoing desire to continue using the island paradise as a bombing range. Other Election Fallout The incoming Puerto Rican leadership is likely to select a new Commissioner dedicated to seeking the quickest possible ouster of the Navy from Vieques, as well as a just resolution to the need for environmental cleanup. Another impact of the election may be the expulsion of the Chief of Police Toledo. He has scorned the civil disobedience campaign and appeared to have a personal vendetta against Peace and Justice Camp leader Robert Rabin. The repercussions of the election on the movement to rid the island of the U.S. Navy cannot be underestimated since it resulted in a complete rout of all the key officials who have not challenged the Presidential Directives. No matter what happens in Puerto Rico, civil society must stay vigilant to ensure that the government lives up to its promises. No single official or group of officials will free the island of the Navy. The long-desired goal can only be met by elected authorities opposed to the status quo acting in consort with non-governmental movements who have long resisted the Navy's onslaught. As this happens, the challenge for the peace movement will involve forging alliances with the government on this particular issue without being coopted into partisan politics. Ironically enough, history has shown that two Republican U.S. Presidents were the ones to order Navy bombing to stop in Kalo'o'lawe, Hawaii and on Culebra. If Clinton does not issue an executive order, and with Bush on his way to the White House, it will be incumbent on the incoming Puerto Rican authorities to work with the popular movements to keep this record going. |
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Fellowship of Reconciliation ©2001 Fellowship of Reconciliation
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