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DAM-L Bolivia: Water Activists facing sedition charges (fwd)
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Date: Wed, 21 Nov 2001 19:08:12 -0600
Subject: Bolivia: Water Activists facing sedition charges
To: dianne@sandelman.ottawa.on.ca
Message-ID: <200111211910703.SM00238@mail.iatp.org>
Right to Water (right-to-water@iatp.org) Posted: 11/21/2001 By svarghese@iatp.org
============================================================
>>>>
Reply-To: "Oscar Olivera F."
From: "Oscar Olivera F."
To: recepients list suppressed
Subject: from Bolivia
Date: Wed, 21 Nov 2001 12:05:32 -0400
Dear friends,
The proposed Water Export Law is still being finalized. It appears that
the new proposal may address many of the demands put forth by the
Federation of Regantes of Cochabamba and supported by the Coalition in
Defense of Water and Life.
However, today, the Federation of Regantes of Cochabamba is initiating a
general blockade of roads, in solidarity with the coca farmers and other
demands (please, see below for the document). In a General Assembly held
on November 19, the Coalition in Defense of Water and Life, announced its
full support of this initiative and a call for all sectors to join in the
blockade.
We have another urgent concern right now. Yesterday, two of the four
spokespersons of the Coalition in Defense of Water and Life (Samuel Soria
and Omar Fernandez, president of the Federation of Regantes of Cochabamba)
were served papers by the government charging them with sedition . We
also know that similar papers were draw up for Oscar Olivera and Gabriel
Herbas.
Today the police have been looking for Oscar. They visited his home and
the home of his parents. We do not understand why the government, which on
the one hand, has been engaged in discussions with Oscar and others
regarding the proposed law on water, and on the other hand wants to charge
the spokespersons of the Coalition with sedition, a very serious charge
that carries lengthy jail terms. This is cause for great concern.
The Coalition leaders will meet this afternoon to discuss these charges.
We will keep you informed as things develop.
In Solidarity,
Coalition in Defense of Water & Life
<<<<
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>>>>
FEDERACION DEPARTAMENTAL DE REGANTES
FEDECOR
Teléfonos 4221783 4500489
Cochabamba Bolivia
Cochabamba, October 17, 2001
The organizations of Peasant Irrigationalists and Committees of Potable
Water have reunited in an emergency meeting on November 17, 2001 in face of
the Bolivian governments intent to privatize and allow the exportation of
subterranean water in Potosi, in doing so ignoring the anti water
privatization gains of the water wars of April 2000 and additionally
setting a precedent for the exportation of water throughout the country. In
the face of this new threat on our traditional uses and customs regarding
water we make the following resolutions:
1. We ask the Bolivian government to drop the Law of Exportation of Water
which aims to privatize water, create a market and Superintendent of water,
all of which actions were denied by Bolivian citizens in the water wars of
the previous year, as this legislation violates our traditional uses and
customs regarding water. This law is scheduled to pass this Tuesday or
Wednesday.
2. We protests the constant raising of tariffs by ELFEC and request that
residential neighborhoods not pay commercial and industrial prices for
potable and irrigation waters. Our efforts to negotiate this issue with
ELFEC have been ignored and we cannot tolerate this situation any longer.
3. We denounce the murder of our fellow citizens, coca farmers and members
of the Landless Movement in the departments of the Chaco, Chapare, Vinto,
and Yacuiba Parotani Bolivia. We demand the arrest and imprisonment of
those responsible for the recent massacres.
4. We demand the immediate passage of Law 2066 as proposed by the Peasant
Irrigationalists.
The Assembly instructs all irrigationalists, Committees of Potable Water
and Provincial Organizations to blockade the roads from 6am November 21,
until the government definitively resolves all of our demands.
By the Federation of Peasant Irrigationalists:
Omar Fernandez Quiroga
<<<<
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