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Salvadoran Union Leaders and Protestors Still Detained, Attorney General Accuses STISSS Union of "Terrorism"Information in this alert comes from the Committee
in Solidarity with El Salvador (CISPES) On the morning of April 28 at 9:00, more than 20 members of the STISSS health care workers union, led by Secretary General Ricardo Monge, entered El Salvador's National Cathedral in a peaceful occupation. The action was to protest the Salvadoran Institute of Social Security's (ISSS) ongoing firing and repression of workers. Just hours into the peaceful protest, as negotiations to resolve the workers' demands were already underway, armed riot police arrived and invaded the Cathedral. The police violently arrested Ricardo Monge, Javier Ayala, and one other member of the executive board of the union, hitting them as they forced them out of the Cathedral The STISSS's occupation of the Cathedral came after months of organizing to get fired workers reinstalled, all with no response from the Flores government and the ISSS administration. The STISSS's demands are for the rehiring of the fired workers and for the creation a committee of dialogue, made up of union and government officials. The STISSS has led the battle to stop the privatization of health care, and has been mobilizing for months to demand that the ISSS respect the accords that brought to an end the 10-month strike in 2003. The only response from the ISSS administration has been to ignore the workers' demands while continuing the repression against union activists. Instead of resolving the problems, in the recent months the rates of firings have increased: 20 union activists have been fired since the March 21 elections, bringing the total number of STISSS workers fired during and since the strike to 156 On Friday, Ricardo Monge, Javier Ayala, and 35 other unionists and supporters remained jailed for their involvement in Wednesday's protest against government firings, the privatization of public health care, and the presence of Salvadoran troops in Iraq. Attorney General Belisario Artiga, is charging Ricardo Monge with being the intellectual author of acts of terrorism, illicit associations, public disorder, damages, injuries, and resistance. Artiga has said that he plans to "set a precedent" with Monge's case. This is the first time anyone has ever been charged with intellectual authorship of public disorder in El Salvador, so the Attorney General has appealed to the judges for "accompaniment" in the case. In custody, Monge and Ayala have now been separated from the other detainees, and remain handcuffed to each other. Monge and Ayala remain in the Delegación Centro, while the other adults arrested have been transferred to the Monserrat police station. Among the arrested are 7 minors who have been transferred to a juvenile detention center. In order to further isolate Monge and Ayala, the police are keeping a tight ring of security around the Delegación Centro. The right-wing ARENA government continues to use the protest and the ensuing violence to attack the opposition FMLN and accuse the party of terrorism. The FMLN is fully supporting the STISSS and the protestors, pointing out that every union has the right to peaceful forms of protest and struggle. The FMLN maintains that the government is responsible for forcing the union to occupy the cathedral, since the union had tried every avenue to dialogue with the Social Security administration to no avail. Furthermore, the FMLN denounces the police violence that injured many protestors and caused one 19-year old to lose an eye. The FMLN says that the Chief of the National Civil Police, Ricardo Meneses, is responsible for causing the violence, and they have called on Meneses to testify before the National Assembly to explain the police's actions during the protest. The Attorney General continues to expand the care against Monge and is even looking to add charges from past strikes and actions. The STISSS is calling on solidarity activists to pressure the Attorney General and the Salvadoran government for the immediate release of all the arrested protestors. TAKE ACTION!1. Fax Attorney General Belisario Artiga at 011-503-249-8605 and demand the immediate release of Monge, Ayala, and the rest of the arrested protestors. (see below for sample letter) 2. Call Rene Leon, the Salvadoran Ambassador in the U.S., at (202) 265-9671, 265-9672 or 265-9675 and demand that he tell President Francisco Flores: 1) to ensure the safety of all the arrested protestors and demand their immediate release 2) rehire all ISSS workers fired during and since the health care strike and 3) stop the privatization of the health care sector in El Salvador ------------------------------------------------------------------ Sample Fax: FAX: 011-503-249-8605 30 de abril, 2004 Estimado Sr. Belisario Artiga, Fiscal General: Estoy altamente preocupado/a por la detención de 37 manifestantes, incluyendo a Ricardo Monge, Secretario General, y Javier Ayala del STISSS. Es urgente que Ud. asegure la liberación inmediata de todos estos manifestantes, ya que fueron detenidos por el simple acto de ejercer su libertad de expresión. Supe que se le acusa a Ricardo Monge de ser el autor intelectual de terrorismo y desorden público, entre otras cosas. Estos cargos representan una violación espantosa de los derechos civiles y humanos, ya que el único "crimen" del Sr. Monge es ser líder de un sindicato que utilizó una toma pacífica como forma de protesta contra la privatización de la salud pública y los despidos injustos de trabajadores. El STISSS ha estado buscando el diálogo con la administración
del Seguro Social por varios meses, y se vio forzado a recurrir a la
protesta pública para ser escuchado. Le solicito exonerar de
los cargos imputados al Sr. Monge y los demás manifestantes y
liberarlos de manera inmediata. Con ello demostrarían mostrar
que en El Salvador si existe la libertad de expresión y la Atentamente,
(Translation into English - do not send; send the Spanish version!) Dear Belisario Artiga, Attorney General: I am extremely concerned about the detainment of 37 protestors, including
Ricardo Monge, Secretary General, and Javier Ayala of the STISSS. It
is urgent that you assure the immediate release of all of these protestors,
since they were detained for the simple act of exercising their freedom
of expression. I have heard that Ricardo Monge is accused of being the
intellectual author of terrorism and public disorder, among other things.
These charges represent a frightening violation of civil rights and
human rights, since Monge's only "crime" is being the leader
of a union that used a peaceful occupation as a means of protest against
privatization of public health and unjust firings of workers. Sincerely, |
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