The National Commission for Democracy in Mexico is calling upon
all people of conscience to join us in sending letters, telegrams
and faxes of protest against these violent abuses of the freedoms
of speech and assembly. We ask that the messages be sent to the
following people:
Secretary of State Warren Christopher
2210 C. St. NW
Washington, DC 20520
Phone (202) 647-4000 Fax (202) 647-6434
Ambassador Jesus Silva Herzog
Mexican Ambassador to the US
Mexican Embassy
1911 Pennsylvania Avenue
Washington, DC
Phone (202) 728-1690 Fax (202) 728-1698
Gregory Favre
President
American Society of Newspaper Editors
P.O. Box 4090
Reston, Virginia 22090
Phone (703) 648-1144
A copy of the letter we sent today follows.
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April 6, 1995
Mr. Gregory Favre,
Yesterday we attempted to communicate with you regarding your
organization's presentation of Mexican president Ernesto Zedillo.
We did so because of worsening conditions in Mexico. We believe
that in allowing Zedillo to appear before you, you have ignored
the voices of 40 million poor people in Mexico, and the besieged
voices in the state of Chiapas.
Zedillo is following the trajectory of Carlos Salinas, his
predecessor. His presentation of conditions in Mexico belies the
truth, especially in regards to the violation of all
international standards of humanitarian law. Yesterday in the
presence of the Dallas police department and the hotel's security
force, members of Zedillo's security force physically assaulted
two of our members. Their crime: raising their voices to tell
Zedillo to take Mexican federal troops out of the state of
Chiapas. This brutal behavior is a vivid example of the way in
which dissent in Mexico is received. If such is the behavior of
the president's security on foreign soil and against American
citizens, what are the people of Mexico subjected to? Does the
Association regard the forced migration and starvation of 20,000
men, women and children in the Lacandon jungle as irrelevant?
Does it deny the substantiated reports of Amnesty International,
Greenpeace and Human Rights Watch of torture and procedural
irregularities in the arrest and detention of accused members of
the EZLN?
Our efforts to ask for inclusivity were met with indifference.
Please be advised that we will take all legal forms of re-dress
against the assault, and we will denounce this occurrence
publicly as much as we are able. The nature of the crisis in
Mexico has not been covered by the U.S. media, much less the
viability of the national movement for democracy. There are
prominent analysts and leaders of the Mexican democracy movement
fully capable of presenting the side of the story which Zedillo
denies. We hope we will receive a quick response from the
Association in regards to its willingness to present a broader
perspective. A well-informed American public is the best means
by which to avoid a disastrous foreign conflict.
Sincerely,
Cecilia Rodriguez
Coordinator