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Para ver esta página en español, oprima aquí. Army South To LeaveIbero-American Ombudsmen Call For End To BombingNPP Caravan Supports U.S., PDP Surpasses Fund-Raising RecordBush Could Delay Vieques PulloutP.R. & D.R. Sign AgreementsCivil Rights Panel Finds Arrest ViolationsDemocrats Pessimistic About Cease FirePIP Wants Navy Permits Denied
Army South To Move To Texas December 10th, 2001 SAN JUAN (AP) - The second-in-command of the U.S. Army, Gen. Eric Shinseki, notified officials at Fort Buchanan in Puerto Rico that the transferring of the Army South to Fort San Houston, in San Antonio, Texas, has been approved. The move will probably take place during summer, according to published reports. However, Fort Buchanan spokesman Tom Budzyma said on Sunday that Maj. Gen. Alfred Valenzuela, chief of the Army South, hasn't received "any official notification" and that the final decision would be in the hands of the secretaries of Defense and of the Army. The Army South has 480 military officers and 670 civilians in Buchanan.
Ibero-American Ombudsmen Ink San Juan Declaration By Pedro Bosque Perez. 12/09/2001 EFE News Service (c) 2001 Distributed via COMTEX News San Juan, Dec 09, 2001 (EFE via COMTEX) - Ombudsmen from 25 countries on Sunday called for an end to the U.S. bombing of Vieques upon signing the San Juan Declaration at the 6th Ibero-American Ombudsmen's Federation (FIO) convention. Puerto Rico Ombudsman Carlos Lopez, who was elected first vice president of the FIO over the weekend, acknowledged that the San Juan Declaration is important because all the countries signing it are U.S. allies. Additionally, the San Juan Declaration also condemned all terrorist attacks and expressed their solidarity with the victims and peoples who have suffered from that scourge.
NPP Celebrates Caravan To Show Support For The U.S. December 9th, 2001 SAN JUAN (AP) - The New Progressive Party (NPP) celebrated on Saturday a caravan starting from Bayamon and ending in Hato Rey to demonstrate its support and solidarity to the United States. The event that gathered many supporters carrying U.S. flags concluded in a political rally at the parking lot of the Hiram Bithorn Stadium. NPP President Carlos Pesquera, San Juan Mayor Jorge Santini, and former Resident Commissioner Carlos Romero Barcelo were some of the pro statehood leaders who addressed the audience. Like most of his speeches, Pesquera aimed his message at attacking the alleged separatist image that the current administration has been projecting to the federal government. "Never before had our close relationship [with the U.S.] been as endangered as it is now, after we had strengthen it during the past eight years," Pesquera said. "Now this government threatens to destroy what we Puerto Ricans have built for so many years," Pesquera added. The NPP president also noted that even pro commonwealth leaders such as Luis Muñoz Marin have fought to defend the "permanent union" with the U.S., a tie that Gov. Sila Calderon supposedly has now put in danger. After returning a few days ago from his trip to Washington D.C., Pesquera said he had noticed that congress members view the current administration as a separatist government.
Colberg Toro: PDP Surpasses Fund-Raising Record December 9th, 2001 SAN JUAN (AP) - To the rhythm of traditional Christmas music, the Popular Democratic Party (PDP) started Saturday afternoon what would be the last fund-raising telemarathon of a political party. PDP Secretary General Jorge Colberg Toro started the telemarathon's activities, called Popular Christmas, predicting that Gov. Sila Calderon will triumph again in the 2004 general elections. According to the last count performed at 6:45 p.m. on Saturday, the PDP had collected $905,321, which, according to Colberg Toro, is a record for a post-election year. The PDP had intended to surpass the amount raised by the New Progressive Party (NPP) in a similar event held in October. That time, the NPP collected $518,633. "The most we've been able to collect after an election year has been $750,000," Colberg Toro told the AP. The governor participated in the event and urged PDP supporters to continue working to strengthen the party. She also reiterated her intention to be the PDP gubernatorial candidate for the 2004 general elections.
Bush Could Delay Vieques Pullout Bill Gertz and Rowan Scarborough December 7th, 2001 The Bush administration, trying to get a deal with Congress on the future of the Vieques , Puerto Rico , bombing range, is promising lawmakers that it will, if necessary, extend its deadline for ending Navy and Marine Corps training by May 2003. Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz, responding for President Bush and Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, wrote a letter recently to Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl Levin, Michigan Democrat, reiterating the commitment. We obtained a copy of the note that, while restating policy, does emphasize the position that if no suitable replacement is found, then the Navy and Marine Corps can continue training on Vieques past the president's May 2003 deadline. Mr. Wolfowitz says a decision to extend training, which is now restricted to dummy ordnance only, will be left up to Navy Secretary Gordon England and Adm. Vern Clark, chief of naval operations. "Until a suitable alternative is established, Vieques remains an important element in the training of our forces deploying to fight the war," he said. The Navy is now searching for alternative East Coast sites for Atlantic Fleet carrier battle groups. In a letter first disclosed by The Washington Times, Adm. Clark and Gen. James Jones, the Marine commandant, have asked Mr. England to allow the next deployed battle group to practice with real ammo in January on Vieques . They cite the open-ended global war on terrorism.
Puerto Rico And Dominican Republic Sign Agreements December 7th, 2001 SANTO DOMINGO (AP) - The Puerto Rico and Dominican Republic governments signed Thursday commercial, cultural, and social agreements for a greater exchange of services and products. The signing ceremony in the National Palace in the Dominican capital was conducted by Puerto Rico Secretary of State Ferdinand Mercado and Dominican Exterior Relations Minister Hugo Tolentino Dipp. Dominican President Hipolito Mejia and Gov. Sila Calderon were witnesses to the agreements, according to La Fortaleza. "We are creating a new form of mutual cooperation," Mejia said. The declaration contains 10 agreement points and creates a Dominican-Puerto Rican commission to coordinate the mutual economic integration. Another eight sub-commissions of development were also created. Calderon, who arrived on a commercial airplane, received military honors in a state ceremony. The governor asserted that the agreements represent advantages for both islands in the exterior commerce order because of their geographic closeness and cultural ties, though Puerto Rico is a U.S. territory. She said the Dominican Republic is an important commercial partner for Puerto Rico. On Thursday night, Calderon received the Orden de Duarte, Sanchez y Mella, a gold medal in honor of the patriot who fought for Dominican independence.
Civil Rights Panel: Violations In Navy Arrests In Vieques December 7th, 2001 SAN JUAN (AP) - The Civil Rights Commission presented Thursday their final report on the arrests the U.S. Navy made April 27 and May 1 on military land in Vieques. The report concluded that the members of the Navy violated the fundamental rights of those arrested. A copy of the report was sent to the local Justice Department so that it can take action. The document, consisting of more than 150 pages, was also sent to Gov. Sila Calderon, the judges of the Supreme Court, and organizations such as Coordinadora Todo Puerto Rico con Vieques and the Bar Association. "They were deprived of their fundamental rights in all the stages of the intervention, from when they were detained in Camp Garcia to when they were released on bail," said Antonio Benazar, commission president. Among the civil violations described in the report, nude and cavity searches, degrading punishment and treatment, and excessive use of force are mentioned. It was also indicated that Navy Rear Adm. Kevin Green did not attend nor sent representatives to the public hearings but sent a report where he said the military did not commit violations. Green's report contains many crossing outs, among them, the details of the arrest of Puerto Rican U.S. Rep. Luis Gutierrrez. Meanwhile, the commission's members admitted that it is difficult to process these cases in court since those affected cannot fully identify the persons who intervened with them when they protested the military practices that have been conducted on the island municipality for 62 years.
Democrats Pessimistic On Cease Order Of Vieques Practices December 7th, 2001 SAN JUAN (AP) - The Democrats are pessimistic that the U.S. Congress Armed Forces conference committee, in its final sessions, will order the cease of military practices in Vieques by May 2003, according to published reports. Rep. Solomon Ortiz, D-TX, the Hispanic with the most rank in the committee that attempts to harmonize the bill that authorizes the Pentagon budget for this fiscal year, said the situations is very confusing. Senate Armed Forces Committee Chairman Carl Levin, a Democrat, said the situation "looks bad, very bad." The Democrats' recent attempts to obtain a more firm support from the White House to a language that commits Congress to the cease of military practices in May 2003 has resulted unsuccessful.
PIP Asks That State Permit To Navy Be Denied December 7th, 2001 SAN JUAN (AP) - The Puerto Rican Independence Party (PIP) filed Friday a petition to the Planning Board to deny the permit that was requested by the U.S. Navy for the military practices that it will conduct until May 2003. PIP Vice President Maria de Lourdes Santiago said in a press conference that the document filed by the Navy is full of inaccuracies and the Planning Board will be taking a determination based on erroneous facts. "A study of the documents filed by the Navy before the Planning Board confirms what we already knew, that the Navy is not interested in keeping the forms, and that's why it submitted a request plagued with inaccuracies, falsehoods, and conclusions that only contrary evidence exists," Santiago said. She mentioned as an example that while the Navy alleges that the more than 13,000 bombs that are expected to be launched from airplanes do not affect the environment, scientists from the same military body say in the same petition that it is impossible to determine the damage that could be caused by the military practices.
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