war crimes
THE BATTLE FOR VIEQUES/ U.S. Navy Out of Vieques!
by Freddie Marrero and Carlos Rovira, Vieques Support Campaign
I. OVERVIEW
Vieques is a 52 square mile island just off the eastern coast of Puerto Rico. It is also one of Puerto Rico’s 78 municipal districts with a population of about 9,400. Since 1941--when the U.S. Navy took over the island--the civilian population of this island-municipality has been subjected to continuous U.S. military exercises with live ammunition.
One April 19th, 1999, during one of its many military target practices, a Marine F/A 18 fighter jet dropped two 500-pound bombs near a military guard post, killing instantly one civilian security guard, David Sanes Rodriguez, and injuring four others.
Regrettably, this so-called "accident" is not an isolated incident. It is part and parcel of a long history of abuses by the U.S. Navy dating back to 1938, when the Navy began using the island of Vieques for military practices. In 1941, the Navy began a campaign of expropriation of land; it took over two-thirds of the island and has used Vieques to practice with live ammunition for every military engagement ever since, including the most recent Kosovo bombings. As a result, the civilian population is sandwiched into a six-mile long strip in the middle of the island.
II. A LEGACY OF ECOLOGICAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGE
Since the occupation of Vieques as a target practice range for U.S. military exercise, the island has been bombarded so strongly that some parts of it look like the craters on the surface of the moon. According to Dr. Neftali Garcia, a chemist and expert on natural resources, the Navy’s use of shells loaded with depleted uranium during military exercises has had the effect of destroying the land and severely affecting valuable marine and animal resources. Furthermore, the radioactive contamination caused by the use of depleted uranium has contributed to a cancer rate among the 9,400 civilian population that is 26% higher than that of the main-island residents.
III. ECONOMIC STAGNATION
Vieques has an unemployment rate of approximately 50%. General Electric, which is one of the few large--if not the sole--company with current operations in Vieques, will close shop this summer. Fishing is the only remaining industry in Vieques with any truly viable economic significance. This is clearly due to the Navy’s expropriation of the most fertile lands in the island that formerly sustained a respectable agricultural output.
Referring to the island’s disproportionate incidence of cancer and the Navy’s noxious environmental impact, Ismael Guadalupe, member of the Committee for the Rescue and Development of Vieques, said: "We have no petrochemical plants or pharmaceuticals or any other such industry; the only culprit is the U.S. military." Guadalupe adds: "At the Atlantic Fleet Weapons Training Area, the U.S. Navy tests bombs. This area is the most devastated; if you walk through there, you’ll see bombs, craters, shrapnel and destruction everywhere. The area smells of chemicals."
It is for these and other reasons that the Committee for the Rescue and Development of Vieques has called for demilitarization of the island, the decontamination of its environment and the devolution of the expropriated lands to the civilian population as the only means of achieving the sustainable economic development of Vieques.
IV. A HISTORY OF STRUGGLE
The people of Vieques have courageously resisted for more than five decades the hardships and abuses imposed on them by the continuous presence of the U.S. Navy. Today, these brothers and sisters need our help more than ever. The successful removal of the Navy will mean a return to a normal life for them, free of fear and intimidation, and the ability to rebuild an island full of economic and human potential. So join the Vieques Support Campaign and help us spread the message and create public awareness. We owe it to ourselves, we owe it to the people of Vieques, and above all, we owe it to our Patria, Puerto Rico!
JOIN THE VIEQUES SUPPORT CAMPAIGN AND MAKE A DIFFERENCE
Vieques Support Campaign
c/o International Action Center
39 West 14 Street, #206
New York, NY 10011
Phone: (212) 633-6646
Fax: (212) 633-2889
http://www.viequeslibre.org
The Vieques Support Campaign is a broad-based organization dedicated to the demilitarization of the island-municipality of Vieques and to the creation of public awareness concerning the U.S. Navy’s dreadful impact on this tiny island off the eastern coast of Puerto Rico. For more information or to get involved with our efforts please visit our web page or call us.
Commission of Inquiry
c/o International Action Center
39 West 14th Street, Room 206
New York, NY 10011
email: iacenter@iacenter.org
http://www.iacenter.org
phone: 212 633-6646
fax: 212 633-2889
