September, 21 2010, 02:00pm EDT
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Sam Husseini, (202) 347-0020; or David Zupan, (541) 484-9167
WASHINGTON
ADRIENNE PINE
Recently back from Honduras, Pine is assistant professor of
anthropology at American University. She said today: "There has been an
escalation in government attacks on free speech following the resistance
movement's announcement of the collection of over 1,300,000 signatures
demanding a constituent assembly to rewrite the constitution. Last week,
on Honduran Independence Day, a peaceful concert attended by 40,000
women, men and children was violently broken up by the military and
police. Soldiers shot tear gas canisters and water cannons directly at
the stage and into the audience, killing at least one person. Over the
weekend, nurse union president and resistance movement leader Juana
Bustillo was assassinated." Pine is author of the book Working Hard, Drinking Hard: On Violence and Survival in Honduras and has been writing about recent events and linking to video at Quotha.net.
Also see story of repression in the Honduran press, translated from Spanish into English via Google Translate
DANA FRANK
Frank is a professor of history at the University of California at
Santa Cruz specializing in Honduras. She recently wrote for the Nation a
piece titled "Crisis of Legitimacy in Honduras?" Her books include Bananeras: Women Transforming the Banana Unions of Latin America.
Frank said today: "De facto President Porfirio Lobo has been
gradually escalating repression against peaceful demonstrations by the
opposition, with tear gas, beatings with batons, and beatings in
detention, as well as violence against opposition radio. Political
assassinations of resistance activists continue, opposition journalists
are still being killed, and death threats are rampant -- with complete
impunity, as levels of repression now match the immediate post-coup
period under Roberto Micheletti. Meanwhile, Secretary of State Clinton
praises Lobo, U.S. military and IMF aid flows freely, and Obama has
invited Lobo to dinner on Thursday. The U.S. is overtly supporting a
repressive, illegitimate regime." Lobo will be at an event with Clinton on Wednesday.
CARLOS ROMAN LAINEZ
Roman is a musician with the group CafA(c) Guancasco; the group's web page links to video of repression.
He was attacked by police and military on Honduran Independence Day, Sept. 15.
GERMAN ZEPEDA, [Spanish only]
Zepeda is president of the Coalition of Honduran Banana and
Agroindustrial Unions (COSIBAH, Coordinadora de Sindicatos Bananeros y
Agroindustriales de Honduras). He lives in San Pedro Sula, Honduras. He
was in the demonstration in San Pedro Sula on Sept. 15 that was
repressed by the police/military.
A nationwide consortium, the Institute for Public Accuracy (IPA) represents an unprecedented effort to bring other voices to the mass-media table often dominated by a few major think tanks. IPA works to broaden public discourse in mainstream media, while building communication with alternative media outlets and grassroots activists.
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