Humanitarian Supplies to Mexico Blocked Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit Sun May 16 22:22:34 1999 source - tedlewis@globalexchange.org This message contains 1.) A New York Times story about the blocking of humanitarian aid destined for indigenous communities in Chiapas. 2.) A statement by Patrick Young who is waiting at the border to deliver humanitarian aid to Chiapas. 3.) Information about where to register complaints. May 6, 1999 Supplies for Mexico's Needy Sit as American Donor and Officials Argue By JULIA PRESTON New York Times MEXICO CITY -- A yellow school bus loaded with wheelchairs, aspirin and pencils for rebel Indian villages in the southern state of Chiapas has been blocked for three weeks from crossing from Texas into Mexico, tangled in fierce suspicions between the government and foreign aid donors who want to help anti-government groups in the troubled state. The bus, which has been stranded since April 13 at the border at McAllen, Texas, belongs to a decade-old group from Fresno, Calif., called The Wheelchair Project. The charity gathers contributions of medical and school goods and delivers them, and the rattling school buses that carry them, to communities in Mexico and Central America. Patrick Young, 42, a public school teacher who founded and runs the project, drove two similar shipments to Chiapas in the last 18 months, gliding past Mexican customs officials after routine inspections in a day or two each time. So he was taken aback when customs officials in Reynosa, Mexico, told him this time that he needed a sheaf of permits from at least three federal agencies, which could take as long as a month to secure. Mexican officials insisted that Young simply failed to obtain papers that are required of all groups making charitable donations in Mexico. "There were no political considerations, and the destination of the shipment had nothing to do with it," said Jose Antonio Zabalgoitia, the spokesman for the Mexican Embassy in Washington. But Young said he believes that his troubles began when he made it clear that the aid was intended for Indian communities in the Chiapas highlands that are strongholds of the Zapatista rebels. The government's first move, both Young and Mexican customs officials said, was to try to persuade him to channel the donation through the governor of Chiapas. The Zapatistas are bitter enemies of the governor, Roberto Albores Guillen. Young agreed to turn the goods over to Caritas, the aid group of the Roman Catholic Church. Mexican officials refused to accept the church agency as a sponsor. The government and the Zapatistas have accused each other of using aid for political purposes. Zapatista communities refuse to accept assistance from government agencies, saying that officials use it to sway their loyalties. As a result, the communities are sorely in need of private help for food and medicines. The government has stepped up all its social programs in Chiapas, hoping to pull support among the Indians away from the rebel movement. It has expelled a number of foreign aid workers based in Chiapas, accusing them of meddling in Mexico's politics. Young collected the wheelchairs from corporate sponsors in California and buys over-the-counter medicines with money donated to his group by Americans. Ruben Tellez Huerta, a Reynosa customs official, said Young needs a special waiver from the Health Ministry to guarantee that his medicines and syringes are safe. "I have to enforce the laws for the good of all Mexicans, not just those in one place or another," Tellez said. On Tuesday, Mexican officials said that Young could send the shipment through the Mexican Red Cross. This time he balked, reluctant to allow the government to decide where the aid should go. "This government should be ashamed of what it's doing," a frustrated Young said. * Statement by Patrick Young: Mexican Government Blocks Aid Shipment to Hurricane Victims in Chiapas Wednesday, May 5, 1999. For 23 consecutive days, Mexican Customs at Reynosa, Tamaulipas (McAllen, TX) has refused to allow 14,000 lbs. of emergency relief aid to enter Mexico. The aid is destined for the war torn state of Chiapas, an area still recovering from the effects of Hurricane George. The aid consists of 6000 pounds of food, 501,000 vitamins, 21 wheelchairs, 30 pairs of crutches, 150 shovels, 100 hoes, 35 heavy picks, 35 wheelbarrows, a diesel electric generator, thousands of syringes, school supplies and dozens of boxes of simple medical supplies, such as gauze, tape, disinfectants, etc. The aid, held up since April 13, cannot pass into Chiapas because, according to Mexican border authorities, Chiapas is a "sensitive area," and Mr. Young is trying to bring embargoed items: the items consist of pencils, over the counter medications such as aspirin, Tylenol and alcohol, and several boxes of used children's clothing. Young refuses to accept the government's explanation that they are powerless, bound by law to refuse his shipment due to these items. According to Young, pencils and simple medical supplies have always been included in every shipment, including his previous two trips to Chiapas in November 1997 and April 1998. Two weeks of intense negotiations between Senator Barbara Boxer's and Representative Calvin Dooley's offices and the Mexican Embassy in Washington D.C. have proved fruitless. The agreement hammered out on Tuesday, April 27, fell apart within 24 hours, as customs officials reneged before it could be implemented. When the embassy agreed to allow the aid to go to "Caritas," a church based organization in Chiapas, customs simply refused. The official stance of Customs now is that all aid must be given to either the Governor of Chiapas or to the Mexican Red Cross, which has been embroiled in a number of controversies over the last few years. Wheelchair Project Director Patrick Young, a 42 year old teacher, has vowed to fight for as long as is necessary. He estimates that he has already spent $1500 in this struggle, money that was destined for a rural health clinic in the mountains of Chiapas. His previous two trips to Chiapas convinced him of the need for help in this region. During his trip in April 1998, Young visited the massacre site of Acteal, where paramilitaries murdered 15 children, 21 women and 9 men during a church service. 3.) Please register your opinion with: Ambassador Jesus Reyes Heroles Tel. (202) 728-1696 Fax (202) 728-1698 ****************************************************** Project Contact: Patrick Young, Director, Wheelchair Project (956) 702-3330 Room #121 (Ramada Inn, Pharr, TX) (Mr. Young is available 24 hours daily) Global Exchange 2017 Mission St., Rm. 303 San Francisco, CA 94110 Phone: 415.255.7296 Fax: 415.255.7498 1-800-497.1994 http://www.globalexchange.org ================================================================= NY Transfer News Collective * A Service of Blythe Systems Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us 339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012 http://www.blythe.org e-mail: nyt@blythe.org ================================================================= nytcamer-05.17.99-00:02:55-26853