Original source URL: http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/411749/815788 Mexican riot police seal Congress Aug 16, 2006 Hundreds of riot police in black body armour sealed Congress with roadblocks and a metal wall on Tuesday to keep leftist protesters away after a violent clash over Mexico's disputed presidential election. Federal police took control of all the streets around Congress in a show of force to prevent protesters from blockading the building ahead of President Vicente Fox's state of the nation speech there in two weeks time. About 15 legislators from the left-wing party whose presidential candidate, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, narrowly lost the July 2 election were among those hurt on Monday when police tore down tents in their partially built camp, tear gassed protesters and drove them back with clubs. Protesters responded by tossing rocks and bottles at the police. It was the first violence since the election protests began weeks ago. The leftists stayed away on Tuesday but warned their legislators would disrupt Fox's state of the nation speech. "They are going to play a strong role on September 1, and it's not going to be any kind of walk in the park for the president," said Gerardo Fernandez, spokesman for Lopez Obrador's Party of the Democratic Revolution, or PRD. The leftist was narrowly beaten by Felipe Calderon of Fox's conservative National Action Party, or PAN, but claims he was the victim of massive fraud and is challenging the results on the streets and before Mexico's top electoral court. The crisis has divided Mexico largely along class lines, and raised fears of violence. A partial recount of votes last week is unlikely to change the election result. Lopez Obrador wants all 41 million votes counted again and has vowed to prevent Calderon from taking power. "Repression" After Monday's clash, he accused Fox's government of repression. "They are revealing their authoritarianism, as in the worst moments of the country's history," he told cheering supporters in Mexico City's vast Zocalo square on Monday night. Eduardo Medina Mora, Mexico's public security minister, defended the use of force on Tuesday. "We regret the friction, but when it is inevitable, what can we do?" he said. "I do not see repression, I see an application of procedures." PAN spokesman Carlos Nava also justified the police action, describing the Congress protest as a "violent assault". The next flashpoint could be Fox's speech to Congress. In 1988, Fox himself interrupted a state of the nation speech, considered one of the most solemn events in the Mexican political calendar, by wearing a large pair of ears made from ballot papers to poke fun at then-President Carlos Salinas. Salinas is widely accused of stealing the 1988 election from PRD founder Cuauhtemoc Cardenas. Other opposition politicians joined the PRD on Tuesday in criticizing the police violence against lawmakers in a full-page newspaper ad. Lopez Obrador's protests continued with a short blockade at the Spanish Embassy in Mexico City. Spain's left-leaning government was one of the first to congratulate Calderon on his disputed election victory. Lopez Obrador says hundreds of thousands of ballots were miscounted or lost and his supporters have turned central Mexico City into a sea of tents, causing traffic chaos. They have also blocked access to the stock exchange and foreign-owned banks. Mexico's electoral court must name a new president by September 6. Despite weeks of demonstrations and legal battles, most observers expect magistrates to rule in favour of Calderon. -- -------------------------------------------------------- Escaping the Matrix website http://escapingthematrix.org/ cyberjournal website http://cyberjournal.org subscribe cyberjournal list mailto:•••@••.••• Posting archives http://cyberjournal.org/show_archives/ Blogs: cyberjournal forum http://cyberjournal-rkm.blogspot.com/ Achieving real democracy http://harmonization.blogspot.com/ for readers of ETM http://matrixreaders.blogspot.com/ Community Empowerment http://empowermentinitiatives.blogspot.com/ Blogger made easy http://quaylargo.com/help/ezblogger.html
