Testimony: Letters from Suchitoto Communities – July 2 to 4, 2007

Story of our demonstration in the Plaza in Suchitoto: Community of El Barío

Monday, July 2, 2007,

 We gathered in the plaza in Suchitoto at 8:00 in the morning where all of the communities were present: men, women and children.  These communities were protesting against the privatization of water and education.  We have to stuggle and protest for our rights, as in this country President Tony Saca says that we are a democracy but we see in practice that this isn’t true, because in reality we could observe that we weren’t granted freedom of expression because we were surrounded by the police and the riot police and they were very repressive and did not let us express ourselves.

On the way from San Salvador on the road to Suchitoto there was also a demonstration and it was militarized.  Along the entire road to Suchitoto there were machine guns and tanks as if they were assassins along the road.  With these actions the President of our country is demonstrating that it isn’t a democracy like he says.  In this moment they captured the people who are now arrested.  We tried to negotiate with the authorities that were present in Suchitoto with those who were detained but within 15 minutes the police had called for back-up.  When it arrived the police acted against the defenceless population.  People did not have weapons, they weren’t carrying rocks or sticks or anything.  The police were aggressive with everyone who was in the street, and they began to fire tear gas bombs, rubber bullets and pepper spray.

Many people were burned and injured and arrested, among them Lorena Martinez, Rosa Centeno, Haydee Chicas and Manuel Rodriguez, all of them members of CRIPDES.  We are in solidarity with those detained and we ask for your help through political pressure and advocacy in your embassy here in El Salvador.  We want freedom as soon as possible for all of them.

Sincerely,
Community of El Barío

 

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Letter from the Community of La Bermuda
 

 

Tuesday, July 3, 2007

 Dear brothers and sisters in our sister city of Wichita, Kansas.  

In the name of the Community Association Marianella Garcia Villas (La Bermuda), receive warm and friendly greetings, hoping that you find yourselves well in your daily activities and that God All Powerful accompanies you always.

The motive for writing you is to inform you of the following:

On July 2, 2007, the President of El Salvador Elias Antonio Saca came to the city of Suchitoto in the CuscatlánProvince.  He came to present a plan for the privatization of our vital liquid (water), which belongs to the communities through our own efforts along with NGOs and our sister cities, as well as to privatize health services.  Also our government wants to quiet the voice of the people.

Before these injustices, the communities of the Municipality of Suchitoto wanted to come together in the plaza in the town center to demand our rights, which are in danger.  The government had already stationed riot police and armed forces there, blocking us from taking part in the demonstration in the plaza of Suchtoto.  With this situation, the communities searched for other routes, but they also held us back there and did not let us pass.  Then we had to resist and demand our rights and reject the injustices of the government.  The situation wasn’t very easy because they came in an authoritarian way to repress the people. 

The people from our communities that could pass through, despite the difficulty, to the plaza in Suchitoto demonstrated there, and the riot police attacked them with tear gas and rubber bullets.  They started to beat us and captured 15 compañeros, and 7 more are still in the hospital.  Among those arrested are 5 people from CRIPDES: Lorena Martinez, Rosa María Centeno, Manuel Rodriguez, Maria Haydee Chicas and Facundo Dolores García.

Against this situation the community of La Bermuda are waiting and watching and ready to participate in any activity to support our compañeros who have been arrested and demand their immediate liberation.

 We ask you to carry out political advocacy and put pressure on your embassies here in El Salvador.

 With these words the Community Directive Council says goodbye.

 Sincerely:

Natividad de Jesus Alas, President
Norma Yaneth Ramirez, Secretary.

 

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Letter from the Community of El Papaturro to its Sister Cities: Manhattan and Lawrence, Kansas
 

 

 Wednesday, July 4th, 2007

 Dear Compañer@s from our SisterCities, Lawrence and the Manhattan Alliance for Peace and Justice: receive cordial greetings from the Directive Council of El Papaturro and the community in general.

This letter is to inform you of the problems and situation in our Municipality and in the whole country.  It started in Suchitoto, in our municipality on July 2nd of this year.  President Elias Antonio Saca came into our municipality with a policy called “Decentralization of Water” which is the same thing as the privatization of water.  All of the communities went to reject this government policy of privatizing public goods (health, education and water.) 

We want to denounce violations of our rights, as the National Civilian Police, (PNC) and the national army responded to our protests with bullets and smoke bombs and they captured 14 people from our communities, as well as Lorena Martinez and Rosa Valle from CRIPDES, and Manuel, the driver.  Moreover there were 112 people injured and the human rights of the Salvadoran people have been violated.  We need support to make our voices heard, and for solidarity and international organizations to denounce these events.

Thank you, and goodbye from the Directive Council and the Community of El Papaturro in general.

 

 

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