Feds find 32 tons of marijuana in tunnel. Government and Drug Cartels Both Threaten Freedom of Expression in Mexico. Freedom of expression continues to come under attack in Mexico.
This week, Mexican President Felipe Calderon announced that his government is exploring "all options to proceed legally against those who have denounced the government in international forums and in the courts. " This announcement came in response to a complaint filed by Mexican activists and signed by over 23,000 Mexicans, in International Criminal Court last week, demanding that the court investigate alleged human rights violations by the army and the police as part of the state's war against the drug cartels. Reports indicate that the Calderon government is considering legal action not just against Netzei Sandaval, the human rights attorney who filed the complaint with the ICC in the Hague, but also against the 23,000 individuals who signed their names to the petition online.
This is deeply troubling, as it could result in a profoundly chilling effect on political speech in Mexico. 14 Tons of Marijuana Seized After Border Tunnel Is Found. An estimated 14 tons of marijuana was seized after the discovery of a tunnel that the authorities said on Wednesday was one of the most significant drug smuggling passages ever found on the United States-Mexico border.
Enlarge This Image The authorities in the United States seized 9 to 10 tons of marijuana on Tuesday inside a truck and at the warehouse in San Diego’s Otay Mesa area, said Derek Benner, Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s special agent in charge of investigations in San Diego. Mexican authorities recovered about five tons. Photos taken by the Mexican authorities show an entry blocked by bundles that were most likely stuffed with marijuana, said Paul Beeson, chief of the Border Patrol’s San Diego sector. Wooden supports lined the walls, and power cords led to the Mexican entrance, suggesting lighting and ventilation systems. Cocaine worth $300K seized at border. When you talk too much for Twitter. When you talk too much for Twitter. BP arrest 16, seize 1,087 lbs of pot. IRREFUTABLE EVIDENCE OF THE PINEAL GLAND & CONNECTION TO MARIJUANA. Unblocked, thanks youtube. SWAT Teams, Flash-Bang Grenades, Shooting the Family Pet: The Shocking Outcomes of Police Militarization in the War on Drugs.
November 11, 2011 | Like this article? Join our email list: Stay up to date with the latest headlines via email. In the forty years since Richard Nixon declared a “War on Drugs,” Americans’ perceptions of that war are finally beginning to shift. Receding support for Prohibition is happening in large part because of virally circulated news accounts and videos of law enforcement’s disturbingly harsh tactics in the drug war.
In one of the most widely viewed videos, a tiny single-family home is descended upon by a Columbia, Missouri Police Department SWAT team. After what sounds like multiple explosions or gunshots, we hear the sound of a dog yelping sharply, as if in pain. We then hear several more gunshots or explosions amid the general pandemonium. The camera follows the heavily armed and armored officers inside. As they are forced onto the floor, a young male is brought into the room. “What did I do? We then learn the source of the dog’s pained cries. “You shot my dog, you shot my DOG!” Mexico - Severed Heads Found in Capital.
War in Mexico Gets Little Media Attention. 2:1 – Coverage of the immigration debate compared to that of the Mexican drug war On September 24, Macias Castro, a local news editor for the Mexican daily paper Primera Hora, was found decapitated in the city of Nuevo Laredo near the Texas border.
A note near her body said she had been killed for writing about the drug cartels on social media websites and implicates the powerful cartel, Los Zetas. Castro is the 7th journalists killed in Mexico this year and, according to Committee to Protect Journalists, the 45th murdered since 2006— when Mexican President Calderon began the campaign to crack down on drug cartels.
Many Mexican news organizations have decided, even publically, to stop reporting on the cartels rather than put their journalists at risk. Dedicated journalists like Castro have, in turn, moved to twitter and other social network sites—using pseudonyms to stay anonymous—to report on the cartels’ actions. Schools shuttered in Acapulco show impact of Mexican drug gangs on civilians. The targeting of teachers in the port city of Acapulco is a symptom of the increasing victimization of civilians by Mexico's drug gangs, and could spark a backlash.
Skip to next paragraph Recent posts Subscribe Today to the Monitor Click Here for your FREE 30 DAYS ofThe Christian Science MonitorWeekly Digital Edition The extortion demands against the Acapulco teachers were first made known through a "narcomanta," or banner hung by drug gangs, found in late August. In response to the threat, and the government's perceived inability to protect them, thousands of teachers refused to show up for work, forcing hundreds of schools to close.
After weeks of pleas for help from local officials and growing media attention, the federal government has dispatched more than 100 federal troops to patrol the rougher areas of the city. This is not the first time teachers have been subject to threats from organized crime.