UA September 4, 2009

URGENT ACTION APPEAL
- From Amnesty International USA

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For a print-friendly version of this Urgent Action (PDF):
http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/uaa23509.pdf

3 September 2009

UA 235/09 Forcible eviction

MEXICO Inhabitants of the village of San Antonio Ebula

The inhabitants of San Antonio Ebula, outside the state capital of Campeche, were forcibly evicted and some were beaten on 13 August by private security guards aided by police. The village was razed to the ground, but the inhabitants are planning to return peacefully. Violence may be used by police and private security guards to prevent their return.

On 13 August, about a hundred private security guards hired by a private developer forcibly evicted the inhabitants of the village of San Antonio Ebula. The operation was observed by a hundred state police officers who surrounded the area. Eye witnesses and human rights observers have stated that several villagers were beaten by the security guards and two were temporarily detained by police but were released later without charge. Over sixty houses were destroyed and all the trees and crops were cut down and farm animals were stolen or escaped.

The village was established in 1968 on land that was apparently owned by the state. Until recently, the village was acknowledged by the authorities who provided the community with development grants. The inhabitants of the village were also recognized on the electoral register. For decades, its inhabitants have attempted to legalize their right to the land. The case is now with the Federal Agrarian Tribunal, which has yet to rule on the legal ownership of the land. The conflict over the land started in 2002 when a private developer claimed that the land belonged to him, and the situation got worse when he used private security guards and state police, in March 2007 and on 26 May 2009, to evict the villagers. In May 2009 six community members were detained and then released, three of whom are on bail pending prosecution for serious criminal charges, which the community believe have been fabricated to deter efforts to resist eviction.

Neither the government or the developer have offered compensation to the community or alternative housing in order to ensure that community members, if their claim to land fails, are not forcibly evicted. All three eviction operations have violated international human rights standards and have made members of community, including women and children, homeless and left them without livelihoods. Villagers have now announced that on 8 September they intend to return to the site where their houses once stood and to continue their legal battle. There are fears that their return may be met with violence by police and security guards.

RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible:
- expressing concern that the inhabitants of San Antonio Ebula have been forcibly and violently evicted without warning or a legal warrant and were not provided with an adequate alternative;
- calling on the authorities to investigate the allegations of beatings and damages against private property and dwellings;
- calling on the authorities to provide the inhabitants of San Antonio Ebula with protection from further forced eviction or abuses by private security guards or police, should they wish to return to their village pending the outcome of legal proceedings in relationship to the ownership and use of the land;
- Calling on the authorities to promptly resolve the ownership of the land and engage in genuine consultation with the community, including provision of adequate alternative housing with security of tenure and compensation, should this be necessary.

APPEALS TO:

Governor of Campeche
Jorge Carlos Hurtado Valdez
Gobernador del Estado de Campeche
Palacio de Gobierno
Calle 8 entre 61 y Circuito Baluartes S/N
San Fco. de Campeche 24009
MEXICO
Fax: 011 2 98 1811 4004
Salutation: Dear Governor/ Senor Gobernador

Minister of Public Security of Campeche
Lic. Carlos Miguel Aysa Gonzalez
Secretario de Seguridad Publica
Av. López Portillo por Av. Lazaro Cardenas S/N
Col. Laureles, San Fco. de Campeche, C. P. 24085
MEXICO
Fax: 011 52 98 1811 4004
Salutation: Dear Governor/ Senor Gobernador

COPIES TO:

Equipo Indignacion
Email: informativo@indignacion.org.mx

Ambassador Arturo Sarukhan Casamitjana
Embassy of Mexico
1911 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington DC 20006
Fax: 1 202 728 1698
Email: mexembusa@sre.gob.mx

PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY.
Check with the AIUSA Urgent Action office if sending appeals after 15 October, 2009.

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This Urgent Action may be reposted if kept intact, including contact information and stop action date (if applicable). Thank you for your help with this appeal.

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END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL
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