[Cispes-update] Vendors Movement Protests CAFTA Reforms; Communities Win Battle over Water

[CISPES National Office]

Vendors Movement Protests CAFTA Reforms, Government Violation of Agreements;
Communities Win Battle over Water

CISPES El Salvador update

September 13, 2006

 

The Salvadoran Market Vendors Movement (Movimiento de Vendedores de CD-DVD y
Otros Productos de Marcas) held peaceful protests yesterday morning to
denounce police confiscation and repression.  In the last three weeks, the
National Civilian Police (PNC) has increased the seizing of vendors’
products and the capture of vendors, despite agreements to suspend these
actions until a viable solution to the crisis in that sector was reached.
The PNC has tried to justify its escalation of intimidation against the
informal sector by claiming that vendors are involved in child pornography
and extortion, an allegation that the Movement categorically denies.

 

The work of market vendors were criminalized last December when the right
wing in the Legislative Assembly – pressured by the US Trade Representative
– pushed through dozens of reforms to bring El Salvador into compliance with
the US-Central America Free Trade Agreement  (CAFTA.)  “We defend the work
and food of 60,000 people that are able to live from this activity.  The
Government defends the interests of a couple of transnational corporations,”
said Martin Montoya, leader of the Movement, at yesterday’s downtown street
protest.  “The government’s negotiation table is a farce; they don’t want to
talk about real solutions,” he added.  The government has attempted to
divide the movement by sponsoring a parallel Association of Vendors.  This
Association also took to the streets yesterday afternoon, and their protest
ended in the burning of a bus, which the Movement denounced in a press
conference today as a tactic to de-legitimize their recent action.
Meanwhile in Washington DC, CISPES Executive Director Burke Stansbury
praised the Salvadoran vendors’ struggle during a press conference about
CAFTA implementation on Tuesday: “Thousands of poor people are being denied
their right to make a living in the informal sector because of the
implementation of CAFTA.  This is one of the reasons that we opposed the
ratification of the agreement and continue to challenge its implementation.”
(see www.stopcafta.org <http://www.stopcafta.org/>  for the press release,
and download the full monitoring report “DR-CAFTA in Year One” at
http://www.cispes.org/cafta/CAFTA_Monitoring_sept12.pdf)

 

Despite violent repression of riot police, community wins de-privatization
of water system

 

On September 8, the Salvadoran riot police violently dispersed a peaceful
protest in the Santa Eduviges community, which had taken over the Carretera
de Oro (one El Salvador’s main highways) in the city of Soyapango.  The
community was demanding that the state-run water company ANDA take over the
administration of the water system since the privately-run system was
failing and the community had not received water in more than two months.
The riot police attacked the community with teargas, despite the presence of
children and the elderly, and later riot police sprayed pepper gas at
community members who sat down in civil disobedience.  Five people were
beaten, captured and threatened with trials for public disorder.

 

The community occupied the space around the highway for 3 days, until
finally on Monday ANDA agreed to take over the administration of the system,
and all five community leaders were released from prison.  Said Efren Mejia,
one of the community leaders released on Monday, “Although the action was
successful, we fear repression from the businessman who owned the water
system, since not only have we cut off his profit but we also demanded
mitigation projects for the 11 communities that have been affected by his
unregulated construction projects.”  The battle in Santa Eduviges is one of
many over water in El Salvador, and the struggle against water privatization
promises to heat up this fall. 

 

 

CISPES - Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador

130 W. 29th Street, 9th floor

New York, NY 10001 

212-465-8115

www.cispes.org

 

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