Yearly Archives: 2009

President Obama’s Credibility on the line in Honduras

Source: The Guardian and Upside Down World Last Friday an agreement was reached between the de facto regime in Honduras, which took power in a military coup on 28 June, and the elected president Manuel Zelaya, for the restoration of democracy there. US secretary of state Hillary Clinton, in announcing what she called an historic […]

October Anti-Mining Tour

La Mesa Nacional Frente a la Minería en El Salvador Speaks Out in the U.S. and Canada USESSC is very proud to be present in Washington, D.C., collaborating to host events in Philadelphia, and helping to facilitate a tour in Eastern Canada following the presentation of the Letelier-Moffitt Human Rights Award to the La Mesa […]

October Midwest Speaking Tour

El Salvador: Hope, Change and Human Rights A Speaking tour of Salvadoran Community Leader Rosa Centeno   USESSC is excited to announce our 2009 Midwest speaking tour featuring Rosa Centeno, president of the Association of the Communities for the Development of El Salvador (CRIPDES).   El Salvador is changing. For the first time in history, a […]

Come to the Sister Cities 2009 National Gathering: Oct 10 and 11 in Chicago

We in Sister Cities, hope you will come to Chicago for the annual National Gathering on Columbus Day weekend next month, October 10th and 11th. With our network scattered across the country, this is the one time each year that we all have the chance to gather together in person. We look forward with great […]

September 2009 El Salvador News Update

CRIPDES Participates in First Economic and Social Council Representatives from El Salvador’s social movement, business sector and officials from Mauricio Funes’s government participated in the inauguration of El Salvador’s first Economic and Social Council (CES) on September 4th. The idea of the Economic and Social Council was a part of the 1992 Peace Accords that […]

Over 100 International Organizations Demand Investigation : July 24, 2009

San Salvador, El Salvador. One hundred and eight international organizations sent a letter to the Interim Attorney General, Ástor Escalante Savaria, this Friday (July 24, 2009), demanding an exhaustive investigation into the kidnapping and brutal assassination of activist Gustavo Marcelo Rivera Moreno. In the letter the organizations categorically rejected the declarations that the district attorney […]

Journalists and Priest recieve threats due to their advocacy: July 29, 2009

The situation for political and social leaders in the Department of Cabanas has worsened since Marcelo Rivera’s disappearance and murder in early July. The week of July 27th, 2009, three to four journalists from Radio Victoria, a local radio station that was reporting on Rivera’s disappearance, received intensifying death threats. On July 28th, Father Luis […]

Anti-Mining Activist Marcelo Rivera Tortured and Murdered: July 15, 2009

Last week, the body of Anti-mining activist Marcelo Rivera, who had been missing since June 18th, was found at the bottom of a well in the town of San Isidro. The body showed visible signs of torture. While the local Police and Attorney General’s office have called this a case of common delinquency, community members […]

“My Introduction to the World”: Delegate Describes Her Experience

Written by Cassie Alley Member of the Bangor-Carasque Sister Cities Committee   When I was 17 years old, I went through an experience that changed me profoundly.  On October 28th, 2006, I became a citizen of the world, and began to assume the responsibilities that come with being a member of a world community.  For […]

Anti-Mining Activist Marcelo Rivera Disappears: July 2009

Marcelo Rivera, Community leader and Anti-Mining activist, Disappeared since June 18th Update, July 2:  Gustavo Marcelo Rivera disappeared the afternoon of June 18, 2009, in San Isidro, Cabanas.  A body has been found that is suspected to be Marcelo’s body.  DNA tests are currently underway to determine if the body is, indeed, Marcelo’s. Below is […]