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State Repression

New Anti-Protest Laws Cast A Long Shadow On First Amendment Rights

December 23, 2021 Carrie Levine, Center for Public Integrity. , , ,
Tiffany Crutcher was worried. Oklahoma lawmakers had passed a new measure stiffening penalties for protesters who block roadways and granting immunity to drivers who unintentionally hit them. The state NAACP, saying the law was passed in response to racial justice demonstrations and could chill the exercising of First Amendment rights, filed a federal lawsuit challenging portions of it. But the new law was only weeks from taking effect. Crutcher, an advocate for police reform and racial justice, was moderating a virtual town hall about it, featuring panelists who brought the lawsuit. At the end, she asked a question that went directly to the stakes. Under the new law, “is it safe for the citizens of Oklahoma to go and do a protest?” The three men on the panel were silent.

Black Alliance For Peace Condemns Trial Of Black Activist Dedan Waciuri

December 6, 2021 Black Alliance for Peace. , , , ,
North Carolina - After a number of delays and questionable prosecutorial behavior in their attempts to force a plea-deal because of the weakness of their case, Dedan Waciuri, a resident of Greenville, North Carolina is scheduled to be tried December 7th in the city of Greenville on two charges: “damage to government property” and “inciting a riot.” These charges stem from a protest organized in Greenville on May 31, 2020, in relation to the police killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor and police violence directed at members of the Black community in general. The Black Alliance for Peace (BAP), a national anti-war and human rights organization believes that the charges against Dedan, a member of BAP’s Coordinating Committee, are a blatant attempt to send a message to the Black communities in Eastern North Carolina that resistance to oppression and the fight for human rights will result in confronting the full weight of the power of the state.

‘Terror’ Designation Should Not Deter US-Based Activism

November 25, 2021 Omar Zahzah And Nadya Tannous, The Electronic Intifada. , , ,
It was a move quite aptly characterized as “authoritarian and repressive” by Palestinian poet and writer Mohammed El-Kurd in The Nation. On 19 October, the Israeli settler-colonial state designated six Palestinian human rights groups as “terror organizations.” At the time, Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz claimed that Addameer, Al-Haq, Defense for Children International - Palestine, the Bisan Center for Research and Development, the Union of Palestinian Women’s Committees, and the Union of Agricultural Work Committees are tied to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP.)

Ecuador’s Government Announces State Emergency To Impose Austerity

November 3, 2021 Vijay Prashad And Taroa Zuniga Silva, People's Dispatch. , , ,
On October 18, 2021, Ecuador’s President Guillermo Lasso declared a state of emergency for 60 days. This declaration led to the constitutional rights of Ecuadorian nationals being suspended and heavily armed troops flooding the streets in Ecuador. The immediate reason for the declaration was the murder of an 11-year-old boy named Sebastián Obando, who was killed in a crossfire between “an armed robber and a police officer” on October 17 at a cafeteria and ice cream parlor in the Centenario neighborhood in Guayaquil. The boy, who was shot three times, was shot in the heart, right arm and his back, said his father Tomás Obando. Lasso’s declaration of emergency built on the public outcry relating to this murder.

288 Organizations Demand Biden Administration Condemn Israel’s Crackdown On Human Rights Groups

October 30, 2021 Center For Constitutional Rights. , , ,
Washington, D.C.  ‒ A broad coalition of more than 288 U.S.-based social justice, civil rights, and human rights organizations is calling on the Biden administration to condemn the Israeli government’s decision last week to designate six Palestinian human rights groups as “terrorist organizations.” In a letter issued today, the organizations say the Biden administration has no choice but to condemn and push back against this move if it is to fulfill its avowed commitment to human rights. “These actions by the Israeli government are a clear attack on human rights,” the letter reads. “As such, we expect nothing less than issuing a swift rejection of this unprecedented attack on Palestinian human rights organizations and the attempt by the Israeli government to shut down, delegitimize, isolate, and chill a growing human rights movement.”

Solidarity With Longtime Anti-War Activist Joe Lombardo!

October 3, 2021 Committee to Stop FBI Repression. , , ,
On the heels of its defeat in Afghanistan, the United States government has made it clear it is now once again setting its sights on anti-war activists in the United States. Their latest target is Joe Lombardo, a leader of the country's largest anti-imperialist coalition. Joe Lombardo is 73 years old and has been an organizer in the anti-war movement for decades. He is a cofounder and lead organizer for Bethlehem Neighbors for Peace, a local anti-war group based near Albany, New York.

Repression Of National Protests In Colombia Is Backed By The United States

May 17, 2021 Margaret Flowers, Clearing the FOG. , , ,
Colombians have been on a national strike since April 28 with protests in 500 cities and blockades that have shut down the major highway. The protests were sparked by a proposed bill that would place the burden of financing the country's debt on the people while cutting taxes for the wealthy, but economic conditions for most people have been in decline for a long time. The government has responded to the protests with violent repression by its militarized police that are funded and trained by the United States. Clearing the FOG speaks with Charo Mina-Rojas, a human rights defender in Colombia who was a leader in the 2016 peace agreement, about the protests, the conditions and the political environment in Colombia.

How Biden Funded Colombia’s Deadly Police Regime

May 8, 2021 Sam Carliner, Left Voice. , , ,
In the last week, Colombia has exploded in nationwide protests and work stoppages against the government of President Ivan Duque. With over 19 people killed by state forces in the last week, and with image after image of brutal police repression going viral across the world, the protests have sparked international outrage and concerns about human rights abuses. Joining this chorus of voices is a growing number of organizations and politicians urging Joe Biden’s government to take direct action to curb police violence in Colombia and stop its continued funding of the country’s brutal riot cops, commonly referred to as ESMAD. For its part, the U.S. Department of State issued a mealy-mouthed statement condemning the violence and upholding the people’s “unquestionable right to protest peacefully” while also supporting “the Colombian government’s efforts to address the current situation through political dialogue.” 

Colombian Security Forces Are Massacring People On The Streets

May 8, 2021 Pablo Navarrete, The Canary. , , ,
In Colombia the right-wing government of Iván Duque is killing people taking part in an ongoing national strike protesting the government’s economic policies and widespread human rights abuses. Since the strike began at the end of April, Colombian human rights groups have estimated that 26 protestors have been killed by the government’s infamous security forces.   In addition to the killings, there has been a major militarisation of cities, with reports of disappearances, sexual assaults on women protestors, and other abuses committed by the security forces. Local human rights organisations have registered 1,181 cases of police violence so far. Many Colombians are pleading for an end to this horrifying state violence.

Colombia’s National Strike: An On-the-Ground Report

May 6, 2021 By Gearóid Ó Loingsigh, Left Voice. , , ,
Colombia’s national strike — or paro (stoppage) as it is called locally —  began on April 28 with enormous protests and on May 5 entered its eighth day, with another round of mass protests around the country. Truck drivers and rural communities have joined in, paralyzing entire swathes of the country. What provoked these protests was yet another tax reform from the extreme right-wing government of Iván Duque, the third of his government. As the Colombian economist Libardo Sarmiento Anzola wrote in Le Monde Diplomatique: The three tax reforms of the Duque administration (2018–2022) have one common denominator: benefits for the large companies and a greater tax burden for 80 percent of the population, which is poor and vulnerable, through a mechanism that squeezes from both sides: on one hand, higher taxes on their personal income, and on the other hand taxes on their consumption of basic foodstuff.1

Colombian Campesino Leader: This Is An Authoritarian Regime

May 5, 2021 Kawsachun News. , , ,
First of all, we, as a campesino association, the National Agrarian Coordinating Committee, have been involved in the mobilizations from the very beginning and from there we have helped to maintain the mobilizations which have taken place over the course of the last several days. There have already been some partial achievements. I say partial achievements because they are simply moves by the establishment to try to demobilize the protests. I am referring to what is already happening with the withdrawal of the tax reform as a bill, but also the resignation of the Minister of Finance and his Vice Minister. But that’s also to say that everything happening now is the rise of the struggle in Colombia, despite the difficulties and restrictions of the third peak of the pandemic that we are also facing in the country. Now, the human rights situation itself is unfortunately a reality that we have known for a long time.

Colombia: Violent Repression Of Anti-Government Protests

May 3, 2021 Adriaan Alsema, Colombia Reports. , , ,
Residents of Bogota and Medellin continued to report brutal police repression of anti-government protests while Colombia’s third largest city Cali retook the streets on Saturday. The massive turnout followed days of terror that left 10 people dead since Wednesday, the first day of a national strike against a tax reform proposed by the government of President Ivan Duque. The terrorizing of the local population diminished drastically after local human rights organizations accused Defense Minister Diego Molano of playing a key role in the alleged state terror campaign on Friday. Indigenous authorities from the nearby Cauca department sent indigenous to the city to provide protection against the Cali Police Department, the local mafia, and the security forces sent from Bogota.

Are Canadian Police Providing Training To The Colombian police?

May 3, 2021 Brent Patterson, PBI Canada. , , ,
On May 1, the British independent media outlet The Canary reported: “Over recent days, the Colombian national police have killed a number of civilians protesting a proposed tax hike on basic goods. Many more civilians have been injured, and Colombia’s riot police reportedly sexually assaulted a woman.” The article by independent journalist John McEvoy further notes: “Documents obtained by The Canary can reveal that the UK’s College of Policing has been training Colombian police over the past three years.” Is there a similar relationship between Canada and Colombia? On October 30, 2017, the Canadian Press reported on a “bilateral police initiative” between Canada and Colombia.

Mumia Abu-Jamal: State Running Scared, Trying To Make Sure He Dies In Prison

April 30, 2021 Ann Garrison, Black Agenda Report. , , ,
Ann Garrison: Mumia has finally had the open-heart surgery that his team and his wife had such a hard time getting any information about beforehand. Johanna Fernandez: That’s correct. But Mumia’s chosen doctor, Dr. Ricardo Alvarez, has not been given access to the surgeons. Mumia was finally able to call his wife Wadiya Abu-Jamal several days before the surgery, but at that point he was very weak and was only able to whisper to her that he would be undergoing surgery two days later. He was allowed to call her after the surgery, and she said he sounded strong. AG: Was there any response to the campaign to remove the shackles – the four-point restraints – ahead of Mumia’s surgery.

Statement On Behalf Of The Family And Committee To Free Chip Fitzgerald

April 4, 2021 Committee tp Free Chip Fitzgerald, Left Voice. , , ,
On Sunday, March 28, 2021, at 3:04 p.m., our brother, uncle, cousin, comrade and friend, Romaine “Chip” Fitzgerald, joined the ancestors. For a week, he lay barely conscious in a Los Angeles hospital as he struggled to extend his life after suffering a massive stroke in California’s gulag known as Lancaster. Chip’s strength and dedication to life remained intact as he defied those doctors who said he would not make it through the night in the hours after his initial arrival at the hospital. A stalwart soldier, he fought until his very last breath. Chip died as he had lived: fighting. A Service is being planned which may be in a month or so due to COVID, followed by a memorial. We want to also thank the many thousands who put their voices together to free Brother Chip.
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