Vieques Libre - http://www.viequeslibre.org
Alert! Media has confirmed that two Navy Warships just left Virginia, will stop in North Carolina to pick up 1000 Marines and equipment, and will participate, along the FBI and Federal Marshals, in a military operation to remove by force protesters from the resistance camps on Vieques. The navy says it takes 2-3 days to sail to Vieques.
Now is the moment for all of us to take action and call IMMEDIATLY Janet Reno (202-514-2001) to let her know that the people of Puerto Rico reject any military raid on Vieques. Let her know that the best interest of the U.S. will be served by suspending said plan, since arrests will only bring shame to the U.S. in the eyes of the international community and that massive protests will take place both in Puerto Rico and the U.S.
Now, more than ever;
PEACE FOR VIEQUES!
Not one more bomb!
Navy Ships Head To Puerto Rico
.c The Associated Press
By ROBERT BURNS
WASHINGTON (AP) - Two Navy warships steamed south today to pick up a contingent of about 1,000 Marines in anticipation of an FBI-led operation to remove Puerto Rican protesters from a bombing range on the island of Vieques, government officials said.
No military forces are to be used in the removal operation, which is being planned by the Justice Department in collaboration with the Coast Guard. The Marines are expected to secure the perimeter of the bombing range after the protesters are removed, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Federal marshals and FBI agents are expected to launch the removal operation next week, possibly as early as Monday, the officials said. Puerto Rican police are to provide crowd control in the vicinity of the range, which is used by the Navy.
While most of the several dozen protesters who are camped out on the bombing range say they won't resist arrest, they do say other demonstrators will replace them. Some promise to scatter into the hills.
They've occupied the range since April 19, 1999, when errant bombs from a Marine Corps jet killed civilian guard David Sanes Rodriguez.
The amphibious warships USS Bataan and the USS Nashville left their home port at Norfolk, Va., Thursday evening, the officials said. They planned to receive the 1,000 Marines en route to the Caribbean, with the Marines arriving by helicopter from Morehead City, N.C.
The ships could be in the vicinity of Vieques by Monday.
On Thursday, shortly before the two ships got under way, Pentagon spokesman Rear Adm. Craig Quigley said U.S. officials were consulting with Puerto Rican authorities on the Vieques issue but he would not comment further.
The Vieques protesters are blocking a Jan. 31 agreement between President Clinton and Puerto Rican Gov. Pedro Rossello to resume exercises for at least three years using ``dummy'' bombs in exchange for a referendum in Vieques on whether to close the range. The deal includes $40 million for economic development on Vieques and the return of one-third of the island used as a munitions dump. The Navy has said, however, that the $40 million will not be made available until the protesters have been removed.