Protests in Ecuador intensify with military repression


Riot police throw tear gas at indigenous protesters in Quito, Monday, Jan. 29, 2001.

By Kintto Lucas

Latacunga, Ecuador, Jan. 26 (IPS)-- Protests escalated throughout the Ecuadorian sierra Friday, with demonstrators blocking roads and paralyzing the agricultural markets, following the military’s use of force against an indigenous march on Wednesday that left several people with gunshot wounds.

Some 5,000 indigenous protesters gathered Friday in Latacunga, south of the capital, for a march that included the support of civil society groups. Protests also took place in the sierra towns of Cuenca, Ambato, Guaranda, Riobamba, Otavalo, and Cayambe; the towns of Puyo, Lago Agrio, and Tena in the Amazon; and in Esmeraldas, on the Pacific coast.

Wednesday’s protest was just one of the mobilizations organized by the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE) and social organizations against the fuel price hikes the government decreed at the end of December.

The marches were also intended to mark the first anniversary of the indigenous uprising of Jan. 21, 2000, which had the backing of the armed forces and precipitated the fall of president Jamil Mahuad.

More than 1,500 Indians blockaded the Pan-American highway on Wednesday at Latacunga, capital of Cotopaxi province, and clashed with the army and police forces. The police and military, in addition to using tear gas, fired their weapons on the crowd and injured four protesters, one of them seriously.

Numerous news photographers were beaten by the military troops, who confiscated their film and videos and broke several cameras.

Radio Latacunga, one of the leading rural radio stations and the only one to broadcast news of the tumult, reported that its transmitter had suddenly been cut off.

More than 50 people were arrested, leading indigenous protesters to take one of the members of the repressive forces prisoner. They moved him to a town on a mountain nearby and intend to exchange him for all of the Indians being held in various provinces of the country.

In Quito, also on Wednesday, indigenous protesters symbolically occupied the local headquarters of the US-based Cable News Network (CNN), for one hour.

They stated that they wanted “to internationally denounce the servile attitude of the President of the Republic (Gustavo Noboa) before the International Monetary Fund, Plan Colombia, and the national financial sector, an attitude that has imposed great sacrifices on the Ecuadorian people.’’

The roadblocks began Monday on different roads through the sierra, but the security forces’ actions against them triggered a chain reaction, which led to further blockades and greater indigenous participation in the protests occurring in the Amazonian and mountain provinces.

The roadblocks are being maintained by thousands of peasant farmers and Indians, stopping inter-provincial transport throughout the Sierra and shutting down the agricultural markets because their supplies have been cut off.

“They are peaceful but forceful actions that the Indian people will maintain throughout the coming days, until the government overturns its economic measures and reverses the increase in the value added tax,’’ stated Abelardo Tucumbí, head of CONAIE in Cotopaxi.

Demonstrators told IPS they are planning to initiate a march to Quito, maintain the roadblocks and prevent farm products from reaching the markets.

“We hope the government will not use violence against us and will let us freely move toward the capital, where we want to be heard by the President of the Republic,’’ said one protester.

CONAIE vice-president Ricardo Ulcuango asked the government to ensure that “the acts of military repression are not left unpunished” and affirmed that the mobilizations will continue until the government takes tangible action in response to the indigenous group’s demands.

“The demonstrations will continue growing and take on different forms in order to prevent repressive acts,’’ Ulcuango said, “and we hope the government will sit down for dialogue, but with concrete responses, because we are tired of talking for the sake of talking when it does not produce results.’’

He affirmed that the Indians are not seeking to overthrow the Noboa government, as occurred in 1997 with the removal of Abdal Bucaram, and in 2000 with Mahuad.

“We do not want the president to leave because one goes, and another comes in and it is the same thing,’’ said the indigenous leader. “We want to be heard and to reach concrete agreements.’’

Antonio Vargas, CONAIE president, said that the protest actions would spread gradually from the countryside to all of Ecuador’s major cities.

The indigenous protests came on the heels of university student demonstrations that occurred in various cities over recent weeks.

Since Monday, more than 100 indigenous protestors have been arrested throughout the country.

“The Indians of the central sierra have instructions to maintain the roadblocks and to progressively deprive the markets in major cities of supplies until the government repeals its economic measures,’’ stated Blanca Chancoso, an indigenous leader.

Ecuador’s Interior minister and representatives of other governmental sectors have played down the protests, assuring they will soon end.

The protests continue despite a warning from the armed forces joint chief, Miguel Saona, that the military would not take responsibility for what could happen to the demonstrators.

Saona threatened to put down quash any mobilization that obstructed “the normal activity of the Ecuadorians.’’

But following the events at Latacunga, Oswaldo Domínguez, commander in chief of the air force, exhorted the government to engage in dialogue with the indigenous groups and other social sectors, an act that is seen to represent the attitude of the military’s top brass.

“They assassinate the peoples of Ecuador not only with institutional violence - economic measures that favor only the financial sector and big companies - but now they intend to eliminate us with the bullet and prison,’’ declared CONAIE leader Vargas.

Amid the climate of protests, during Friday’s early hours, the trans-Ecuadorian oil pipeline suffered its third attack in less than 40 days.

Sources from indigenous and human rights groups say that it could be a provocation to be pinned on the social movements.

In Brazil and Switzerland, activists envision a new world

Thousands of protesters from around the world march against economic globalization in Porto Alegre, Brazil.

Compiled by Brendan Conley

Jan. 30— Though separated by thousands of miles, activists in two locations struggled to bring to light their vision of global economic justice this weekend.

In the ski resort of Davos, Switzerland, activists organized a public forum – and street protests – intended to counter the meetings of the World Economic Forum (WEF), an association of capitalist leaders.

In the leftist city of Porto Alegre, Brazil, more than ten thousand people participated in a series of public meetings discussing alternatives to corporate globalization.

The events were marked by a focus on solutions. The past year has seen a resurgence of protests against corporate globalization, a wave of dissent that began in November of 1999, when rowdy street protests shut down meetings of the World Trade Organization (WTO). Movement leaders say that more than protest is needed now – activists must demonstrate what they are for, not merely what they are against. The events in Davos and Porto Alegre thus focused on positive economic alternatives. But activists also invoked the “spirit of Seattle,” fighting street battles with police and uprooting biotech crops in a civil disobedience action.

Switzerland

The authorities in the Swiss resort town of Davos took a lesson from last year’s WEF protests there, and the world-wide wave of anti-globalization protests. This year, the government banned all political protest and stopped train and automobile traffic into the city, turning away protesters at police checkpoints. Human rights organizations deplored the tactic.

“Intimidation cannot be tolerated,” said Pierre Sane, representing Amnesty International. “People must be allowed to express their opinions, no matter what those opinions are. The credibility of the Davos meeting is threatened if debate is stifled.”

Adam Ma’anit was stopped by police on the morning of Friday, Jan. 26 while on his way to a forum, organized by nongovernmental organizations, taking place in Davos parallel to the World Economic Forum. According to the organizers of the parallel forum, he was stopped at a train station in Landquart by security forces where he was searched, questioned and photographed before being taken back to the border at Basel.

The Public Eye on Davos was organized as an independent public conference intended to “provide analysis and information on critical aspects of the globalization process.”

Participants in the alternative forum also took part in protests. Vandana Shiva, an ecofeminist author and anti-globalization leader, was manhandled by police as she attempted to cross a barricade.

Three hundred police and 600 troops were on alert to protect the businessmen and politicians attending the WEF event. The demonstrators, who had vowed to bring the talks to a halt, say the international political and business leaders attending the annual World Economic Forum are simply furthering the interests of multi-national companies at the expense of poor countries.

More than a thousand protesters evaded the government ban to enter Davos and register their dissent. When demonstrators marched toward the heavily-fortified compound where the forum meets, they were confronted by a huge force of riot police, who sealed off the street with barricades, vehicles and a water cannon truck. Police surrounded about 200 protesters — some carrying signs saying “Justice, Not Profits’’ — and ordered them to disperse before blasting a few with water. Heavy snow fell in Davos as the mostly youthful activists, some with faces hidden by bandannas, chanted “Wipe out the WEF.’’

“We have to fight for the right to freedom of expression,” said Kees Hudig, who came from Amsterdam. Hudig — as well as many Swiss newspapers and local people — said the police response was heavy handed. “They will have a big backlash,” he said.

The police tactics drew strong criticism from some of the 36 grassroots groups invited to take part in this year’s forum.

“Davos has become a ‘fortress’ with ominous consequences for the future of global dialogue,’’ several of the groups said in a statement. They said their participation in future forums would depend on the organizers’ willingness to support peaceful gatherings on the streets.

Claude Smadja, managing director of the World Economic Forum, defended the authorities’ tough response. “They decided to break the law. They have to assume the consequences,’’ he said of the protesters.

Authorities cracked down on freedom of the press as well as freedom of speech: independent journalists were officially banned from the WEF conference and from Davos itself. After public outcry, the Davos police chief agreed to let one van carrying independent journalists into the country, but the journalists complained that they endured surveillance and harassment by police. The police warned local hotels to watch for “suspicious people” including “non-accredited journalists.”

Shop windows were smashed and four cars were set on fire during protests in Zurich by up to 1,000 demonstrators after many were prevented by police from traveling to Davos. Police responded by firing tear gas and rubber bullets.

In Landquart, in the flatlands below Davos, police used teargas to break up about 300 demonstrators who had been prevented from heading for Davos. They briefly blocked the tracks before boarding a train for Zurich. Others staged a sit-down protest on a local highway.

At border checkpoints in Italy, France, and Germany, protesters who were prevented by police from entering the country, held civil disobedience actions blocking major highways.

In Geneva, about 200 demonstrators tried to get into the World Trade Organization’s headquarters. When prevented, they spray-painted anti-WTO slogans on the walls of the building, a WTO spokesman said.

Though police repression succeeded in protecting the conference delegates from dissent, a year of active resistance has brought the protesters’ concerns to the conference agenda.

Mexican President Vicente Fox called for efforts to narrow the widening gap between rich and poor, pointing out that just putting a human face to globalization is not enough.

Tanzanian President Benjamin Mkapa led calls on Thursday evening for developing countries to be allowed a greater voice in global markets.

Brazil

In the city of Porto Alegre, long controlled by the leftist Workers Party, close to ten thousand activists representing more than 100 countries held a dialogue on economic justice, intended to demonstrate to the world their commitment to positive alternatives to globalization.

The slogan of the World Social Forum was “um outro mundo e posivel” – “another world is possible.” It is an echo of the chant that began in the streets of Seattle and has been repeated around the world: “this is what democracy looks like.” Kenny Bruno of the organization Corporate Watch gave this account:

“In Porto Alegre, this is what democracy looks like: During a march of thousands against neo-liberalism I counted 10 police officers. When 200 Brazilian anarchists broke off from the march to throw white paint on a McDonald’s, about six police stood by. “In Porto Alegre, this is what democracy looks like: Hundreds of young people are camping nearby — apparently without ever sleeping — virtually without police presence.

“This is what democracy looks like: Participatory budgeting. For 12 years, Porto Alegre’s budget has been decided by hundreds of well-organized community and worker groups.

“This is what democracy looks like: There is no corporate sponsorship of the World Social Forum. No ads telling us how sustainable Shell is, or how clean Dow is, or how concerned for the poor Philip Morris is. No Nike swooshes. Just a few banners for the national bank of Brazil, saying “It’s better because it’s ours.” The most ubiquitous logo around is that of the Workers’ Party, on flags everywhere.

“In Porto Alegre, this is what democracy looks like: Lots of meetings and lots of talking. The humid rooms, over-packed with people, listening for the umpteenth hour to plans to stop new free trade agreements and models for local economic democracy.

“This is what democracy looks like: There are lots of unionized workers present. The state of Rio Grande do Sul has twice as many union members as the national average.

“This is what democracy looks like: The entire state of Rio Grande do Sul has been declared GMO-free, although some Roundup Ready soy has been smuggled in from Argentina, according to one knowledgeable government official from Brasilia. Two days ago activists traveled with French farmer/activist Jose Bove four hours out of Porto Alegre to tear up a few illegal acres of Monsanto’s Roundup Ready Franken-soy.”

“This is a forum for society, not for money and multinationals,” Bernard Cassen, editor-in-chief of France’s left-wing weekly Le Monde Diplomatique and one of the founders of the meeting, said at a news conference prior to the “Anti-Davos” march.

The forum was a broad dialogue that revealed a wide spectrum of views within the movement. For example, some groups stated their intention to work for stronger labor and environmental protections within the WTO, while others insisted they would struggle to dismantle the WTO.

Conference organizers said that there was no intention of drafting a manifesto for the movement. Rather, the event was an attempt to begin a dialogue on alternatives.

The US-backed Plan Colombia, aimed at eradicating drug trafficking in the Latin American nation, was condemned in a debate in which the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) took part.

Some 500 members of parliaments from 100 countries also criticized the plan, calling it US interference in another country under the pretext of drug eradication.

Even the so-called “anti-Davos” forum was not immune to protest, as demonstrators stormed a press conference to demand greater participation for blacks. “We are more than 50 percent of the population in Brazil, but at the World Social Forum we only get one hour of a five-day meeting to express our views,” said Vanda Gomes Pinedo, of the Unified Black Movement. The protesters, many wearing African dress, demanded more space for blacks in the workshops and panels.

The experimental forum hosted a number of eclectic visitors including French farmer Jose Bove, famous for trashing his local McDonald’s, Nobel prize winning Portuguese writer Jose Saramago, leader of Brazil’s Landless Workers Movement (MST) Joao Pedro Stedile and East Timor freedom fighter Taur Matan Ruak.

“One year after Seattle, the movement is very strong,” said Bove. “But we are coming here, not to do demonstrations or anything, but to discuss.”

Still, Bove found time for a demonstration radical enough to get him deported from Brazil. Bove led 1,300 Brazilian farmers, members of the Landless Workers Movement, to a thousand-acre plantation run by US biotechnology firm Monsanto. The farmers proceeded to occupy the land, setting up camp and uprooting Monsanto’s crops, which the group claimed were genetically engineered. Biotech crops are banned in Brazil.

Authorities gave Bove 24 hours to leave Brazil. “What we did at the Monsanto farm should have been the job of the police,” Bove told a news conference.

French Broad Food Co-op signs Teamsters union contract

By DeeDee Halbrook

On Monday, January 29, a new era at the French Broad Food Co-op began. After a year and a half of conflict over the vision and mission of the 26-year-old member-owned food cooperative, employees signed a written employment contract with co-op management, negotiated by a group of workers and the local Teamsters union 61.

The new contract offers all employees at French Broad co-op comprehensive health insurance coverage and a 401k retirement fund and pension plan. Additionally, workers will have access to an alternative health care reimbursement fund, a long standing co-op benefit that was under dispute. Wage increases will now be made according to a schedule, “so raises are no longer subject to the whims of management,” said union organizer Beth Trigg. The contract will also clearly express procedures for addressing grievances and dealing with issues ranging from sexual harassment and violence to hiring and firing.

Union membership comes with monthly dues of 2 work hours per month. Those employees who choose not to be part of the union will also receive benefits of the contract, under North Carolina’s “Right to Work” law. Trigg believes this law financially undermines unions by allowing union benefits without membership, which goes to support administrative and organizing efforts, both locally and internationally. “If you choose not to join you’re basically freeloading,” she says.

Trigg sees the union drive as a symbol of the co-op moving toward a new paradigm, creating more solidarity among workers. “In the past there was nothing written to deal with these issues. A year ago people were fired for speaking their mind. Now workers have a voice in how the co-op is governed.”

Why a union contract at a cooperative? Though this unconventional structure is not completely unique, it was tailored in response to a crisis in management that has taken over a year to resolve. “A co-op can be run anywhere in between a total hierarchy and a total collective. French Broad is somewhere in between,” said Trigg.

Board member Rusty Sivils welcomes the new union and contract. “Generally speaking, the labor movement in this country is a wonderful thing,” he says. He sees a union and cooperative as compatible. “In a co-op one would think the workers would always have a voice, but it varies depending on the management. A union guarantees the workers a voice.”

Sivils observes that many of the most active residents he’s known have been self-employed, citing the Jeffersonian idea of the yeoman farmer (self-employed, independent) as the promise of democracy. “People with jobs are often afraid to speak out on controversial issues…the guarantee of job security could make it easier for co-op employees to be active in their workplace.”

“This is one of the first fights I’ve been involved with as an activist where there’s been a clear victory -- a move from a model that’s oppressive to one that’s liberating,” says Trigg.

The current board is accepting of the union. But as dozens of board members, worker-members and staff members have seen over the past year, this was not always the case.

Although the original situation that inspired the organizing effort has been resolved, workers and board members alike have seen the importance of job security, benefits and access to decision making, that affiliation with the Teamsters has offered workers. According to Trigg, one can already see the difference in the direction the co-op was headed in a year ago, and the changes occurring there today. “The union was a catalyst for those changes,” she said.

Jim DeLuca was hired as General Manager of French Broad Food Co- operative by the board in 1999. His vision of a profitable business was obvious from the beginning, and despite the objections of two board members (who still sit on the board), he used his management position to move the co-op toward a corporate structure. In some members’ minds, the unique elements that make up the cooperative vision were being compromised.

The co-op workers had no experience organizing labor unions before they formed the organizing committee at the co-op, which eventually turned into the union contract negotiating team. In December of 1999, the organizing committee started seriously talking with the local Teamsters union about carving out a space for co-op employees to be heard by management. “We looked into organizing as an IWW (Industrial Workers of the World) union, but it was the Teamsters who had the resources and experience to make it happen,” recalls Trigg. In January 2000, the organizing committee went public with their intentions, and in February they wrote a letter to management, announcing their campaign to hold the power brokers accountable.

During the union drive in May of 2000, 70% of staff signed union cards, endorsing Local 61 as their representative to management. The organizing committee began bringing charges against co-op management for labor violations, including the firing of a union organizer and staff member. A fierce legal battle ensued, ending in a settlement that included management’s acknow- ledgement of the union’s legitimacy -- a major goal of the organizing committee. Recently, DeLuca resigned as general manager, at the behest of a newly elected board. Co-op members say that the process since then has been a long one of healing and rebuilding relationships within the co-op.