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 News Around the Republic of Mexico | February 2007 
Thousands March Against Oaxaca Governor
 Jose Maria Alvarez - Associated Press
| | Thousands of supporters and members of the Popular Assembly of Oaxaca (APPO) march in Oaxaca City, Mexico. About 20,000 protesters marched to Oaxaca City's downtown on Saturday, showing that a seven-month-old movement demanding the resignation of Governor Ulises Ruiz is still alive despite hundreds of arrests. (AP/Luis Alberto Cruz) |
Thousands of protesters marched in this historic Mexican city Saturday to demand the resignation of the state governor, showing their eight-month-old movement is still alive despite hundreds of arrests.
The protesters, a mix of teachers, trade unions and leftist and Indian groups accuse Oaxaca state Gov. Ulises Ruiz of rigging his 2004 election and sending gangs of armed thugs to attack opponents. The governor denies the charges.
The protests first erupted in June when state police attacked a demonstration of striking teachers demanding higher wages. Demonstrators took over the center of colonial Oaxaca city for five months, chasing out police, building barricades and burning buses. At least nine people died between June and November as police and armed gangs clashed with protesters, and the vital tourist industry was shattered.
Federal police eventually pushed the demonstrators out of the city center, detaining hundreds of people. Dozens are still behind bars.
The marchers Saturday passed thousands of police in riot gear guarding the city's central plaza. They sprayed graffiti calling Ruiz a "murderer" and waved banners demanding "Freedom for Political Prisoners."
Official crowd size estimates were not available, but an Associated Press reporter saw thousands of people.
The city in southern Mexico has been relatively calm since December. Last month, the U.S. State Department downgraded its travel advisory for Oaxaca, saying Americans should use caution in the region instead of avoiding it altogether. |
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