CPTnet
19 December 2006

OAXACA CHRISTMAS ACTION: Send cards of encouragement and support to
families of political prisoners

by Chris Schweitzer (with help from Matthew Wiens)

On 13 December, two members of Cactus (Centro de Apoyo Communitario
Trabajando Unidos) and I arrived in the neighborhood of Campimiento in
Huahuapan, Oaxaca. We met with family members of those who were arrested
waiting for a bus two and a half weeks earlier after attending a protest in
the city of Oaxaca City. ( See 13 December CPTnet release, OAXACA URGENT
ACTION: Ask Mexican authorities to release political Prisoners." We were
in this impoverished community to document their stories and to collect
documents that may help earn the release of their loved ones. We spent the
day going from house to house to hear from mothers, children, fathers,
sisters and brothers of those in prison. Below are some of their stories:

Bernadita Ortiz Bautista, a 40 year old Mixteca Indigenous woman, was
arrested along with her son Alejandro (19) and two of her daughters, Rosalva
(12)* and Beatriz (14)*. Rosalva and Beatriz saw the police beat their
mother. The Mexican authorities held children for three days (separately
from their mother) before releasing them. They are now at home helping to
care for five younger brothers and sisters. Their father, Pablo Ortiz, says
he is unable to work, because he needs to be home with the children now
that the mother is away. Typical of homes in Campimiento, their one room
house is only sixteen feet long and thirteen feet wide.

Faustino Vasquez Mendez (77)* is living alone now as her son, Miguel Perez
Mendez (50) is in the Nayarit jail. She says she suffers from high blood
pressure and that the arrest of her son has made her very nervous. She has
little income as Miguel earned most of the money for their food and rent.
She said they had never been involved in anything like this before - the
most they normally do is vote. "In comes one, in comes another, the
presidents are all the same. And here we are on the same small piece of
land......I