ALERT - MEXICO
31 August 2006
Oaxacan community radio station
forced to close by armed PRI sympathisers; another harassed by municipal
authorities
SOURCE: The World Association of Community Radio
Broadcasters, (AMARC)
(AMARC/IFEX) - AMARC roundly condemns the acts of
aggression which have forced the closure of Nandía community radio station,
committed by Institutional Revolutionary Party (Partido Revolucionario
Institucional, PRI) sympathisers closely tied to the municipal high school in
the community of Mazatlán de Villa de Flores, located in Oaxaca state. It also
condemns the harassment of Radio Calenda community radio station, located in San
Antonino, near Oaxaca city, by the president of the community council.
On
24 August 2006, local residents allied with powerful groups operating inside the
Mazatlán high school, where Radio Nandía is located, violently assaulted and
insulted the members of the station.
Later the same day, the electricity
supply to the school was cut by the same people. When Radio Nandía personnel
tried to verify what had happened, they were threatened and forced to leave. On
25 August, stations technicians went the facility, but could not go in because
the door keyhole had been damaged.
Two days later, on 26 August, radio
station staff again tried to enter the facilities, but the same assailants, this
time armed, threatened to shoot them, thereby preventing them from
entering.
Given these developments, Nandía had to suspend its
broadcasts.
Radio station members attempted to file a complaint with the
Mazatán de Villa de Flores branch of the Attorney General's Office (Ministerio
Público), but found it closed, and therefore went to the city of Tuxtepec,
Oaxaca, on 27 August to do so.
Meanwhile, AMARC has been informed that
members of the Calenda community radio station, located in San Antonino, near
Oaxaca city, have been harassed by the president of the town council, who has
stated on a radio station located in the community of Ocotlan that several
members of Radio Calenda radio station are being investigated. Radio
Calenda members have asked the San Antonino branch of the Attorney General's
Office for information regarding this, but have received no
response.
Given the ineffectiveness of Oaxaca state institutions, which
are currently incapable of impeding the harassment of these community radio
stations, AMARC has asked the national interior governance secretary (Secretaría
de Gobernación) to do the following:
1) Take whatever actions necessary
to put an end to the harassment of Radio Nandía so that it can immediately
resume broadcasting;
2) Express to the Attorney General's Office
(Procuraduría General de la República) its support for the complaint filed by
Radio Nandía members
3) Guarantee, in accordance with its powers, Radio
Calenda's unimpeded exercise of its function of informing the public, without
its personnel or facilities being the target of any kind of pressure by
municipal or any other level of government's authorities.
The above
requests are motivated by the fact that these incidents violate rights
guaranteed by both the Constitution and international treaties, as well as the
right to freedom of expression set out in Article 6 of the Mexican
Constitution, Article 13 of the American Convention on Human Rights and
Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which
Mexico is a signatory.
Their respective communities invested a great deal
of time setting both radio stations up and negotiating to obtain their licenses
in order to exercise their right to freedom of expression and information, and
the stations are respected for the public service they provide. Therefore, it is
extremely important that attacks by intransigent groups, with negative
consequences for the communities involved, be prevented and that there be an end
to the lack of action on the part of the authorities, so that new violations do
not occur.
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Send appeals to authorities:
-
supporting AMARC-Mexico's requests
APPEALS TO:
Carlos Abascal
Carranza
Secretario de Gobernación
[National interior governance
secretary]
Tel: +55 5093 3400
E-mail:
[log in to unmask]Pedro Cerisola y Weber
Secretario de
Comunicaciones y Transportes
[Communications and transport
secretary]
E-mail:
[log in to unmask]Fax: +55 19 06
92
Lic. Enrique Adolfo Aranda
Subsecretario de Normatividad de
Medios
[Media regulations sub-secretary]
Secretaría de Gobernación
Tel:
+55 55 35 69 15
E-mail:
[log in to unmask]Actuaria
Eugenia del Carmen Diez Hidalgo
Jefa de la Unidad de Promoción y Defensa de
los Derechos Humanos de la Secretaría de Gobernación
[National interior
governance secretary's human rights promotion and defence unit chief]
Fax:
51280223
E-mail:
[log in to unmask]Daniel Francisco
Cabeza de Vaca
[Attorney General]
Procurador General de la
República
Tel: 56 55 25 95, Ext. 202 / 56 55 25 95 Ext. 210
http://www.pgr.gob.mx/index.aspMario Álvarez
Ledesma
Subprocurador de Derechos Humanos
[Deputy attorney general for
human rights]
Fax: +53464382
E-mail:
[log in to unmask]Please copy appeals to the source if
possible.
For further information, contact Gustavo Gómez, Director,
Communication Rights and Legislation Programme, AMARC Latin America and the
Caribbean (AMARC-LAC), Carlos María Ramírez 894, 11900 Montevideo, Uruguay, tel:
+598 2 309 2824, +598 99 660373, e-mail:
[log in to unmask], Internet:
http://alc.amarc.org/legislacionesThe information contained
in this alert is the sole responsibility of AMARC. In citing this material for
broadcast or publication, please credit
AMARC.
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