[News] ACLU - Human Rights Crisis in Puerto Rico

[Anti-Imperialist News]

Human Rights Crisis in Puerto Rico;

FIRST AMENDMENT UNDER SEIGE

While the world celebrates the democratic 
revolution in Egypt, major violations of basic 
human rights are occurring in our own backyard. 
Since Governor of Puerto Rico Luis Fortuño came 
into power two years ago, free speech has been 
under all out assault. The following events have taken place recently:

*Thousands of public workers have been laid off 
and had their union contracts terminated, leading 
to tens of thousands of people peacefully 
protesting over the past year. One event turned 
out over 100,000 peaceful protestors and while in 
NYC hundreds marched on May Day, in Puerto Rico 
May Day turned out an estimated 30,000 citizens.

*At a protest at the steps of the Capital 
Building over the closing of access to 
legislative sessions, access that is 
constitutionally mandated, protesters were beaten 
mercilessly, pepper sprayed and shot at by Puerto 
Rico Police.  The same has occurred at other locations.

At most events young women are the first to be 
targeted for police violence. At the University 
of Puerto Rico, female students, many of whom 
where beaten, were also sexually harassed, groped 
and assaulted (touched) by police. Students have 
been mercilessly beaten, maced and shot at with 
rubber bullets. Citizens have accused, which 
images captured confirm, police of applying 
torture techniques on immobilized student 
protesters.  In the past two years, there have 
been several riots at protests in and around the 
University of Puerto Rico. Many protesters have 
accused the police of causing the riots, which 
some videos also seem to confirm.

Since taking the oath of office, the current 
administration, which owns all three branches of 
government, has set out to quash Freedom of 
Expression.  In Puerto Rico, Expression has been 
in the form of protests against government 
policies, such as the firing of approximately 
26,000 workers in total, privatizing government, 
closing off access to public information and 
legislative sessions, attempting to close down 
the university FM radio station during periods of 
civil unrest and going after the Puerto Rico Bar 
Association, which was a mandatory integrated Bar 
and is Puerto Rico’s oldest institution. The 171 
year old Puerto Rico Bar Association (Colegio de 
Abogados de Puerto Rico) has historically been a 
known focal point for liberal dissent against government policies.

Puerto Rico Governor Fortuño, who is considered a 
rising star in the Republic Party, has publicly 
committed to not allowing what he calls “extreme 
left” protests and expression.  On Friday, 
February 11, 2011, Governor Fortuño spoke about 
his administration’s policies while speaking at a 
Conservative Political Action Conference of the 
American Conservative Union (ACU) in Washington, 
DC, an activity attended by members of the 
National Rifle Association, the Tea Party and the John Birch Society.

*At the University of Puerto Rico all forms of 
expression have been prohibited, through a 
Resolution issued by UPR Chancellor Ana 
Guadalupe; a resolution which Governor Luis 
Fortuño ordered armed police officers to enforce. 
On Wednesday, February 9, 2011, a group of 
students participated in civil disobedience on 
campus, consisting of a paint-in. During the 
paint-in, students peacefully and without 
interrupting the educational process painted 
messages of protest in a limited area of the 
street at the front of the main library, in 
defiance of the Chancellor’s absolute prohibition 
on any form of protest.  Students immediately 
came under extreme physical and violent attack by 
members of the police force’s elite and heavily 
armed SWAT and Riot Squad teams.

While the ACLU is looking to file charges on 
Human Rights violations and evaluating other 
legal options, the Puerto Rico Daily Sun, a 
conservative English language newspaper, 
published a damming editorial in which it called 
for the resignation of the university’s 
president, chancellors and the Board of Trustees.

On Friday, February 11, 2011, President Ramón De 
la Torres’ resignation was unanimously accepted 
by the Board of Trustees.  However, the Board 
Chairperson, Ygrí Rivera, immediately stated that 
she will not be removing armed Puerto Rico Police 
officers from the University of Puerto Rico campus.

In its editorial, the Puerto Rico Daily Sun, 
stated that “[t]he indiscriminate aggression of 
police riot squads against students, who are 
exercising their constitutional rights in public 
areas without interfering with any academic or 
administrative activity, is a gross violation of 
their rights and an act comparable only to the 
acts of  the dictatorships we all denounce and 
reject”.  The Daily Sun added that “[w]e do not 
want this new order, neither for our university, 
the Capitol, La Fortaleza or our 
neighborhoods.  We reject it with all our might, 
Exercising our freedom of speech, or freedom of 
association, is not a crime”.

As we say in Puerto Rico, “mas claro no canta un 
gallo” (it could not have been more clearly stated).

On Sunday, February 12, 2011, just four days 
after students were mercilessly beaten by Puerto 
Rico Police agents, over 10,000 alumnus, parents, 
grandparents, family members and other citizens 
took to the streets and marched over to reclaim 
the UPR campus, demanding that the PRPD be immediately ordered off campus.

See news 
video: 
<http://www.primerahora.com/milesseunencontralacuotaylainvasionpoliciacaenlaupr-474118.html>http://www.primerahora.com/milesseunencontralacuotaylainvasionpoliciacaenlaupr-474118.html 


In addition to the debacle and related violence 
at the University of Puerto Rico, in the past two 
years legislation has been passed that would 
prohibit protests at construction sites and most 
recently at any government building that renders 
educational services and other locations 
rendering government  services, under penalty of criminal prosecution.

The Puerto Rico Bar Association was recently 
de-certified through legislation which the 
governor signed into law, which all but shut down 
operations. Several lawyers aligned with the 
views of the current administration pushed for 
de-certification and had previously sued the Bar 
Association in federal court alleging that the 
Bar was forcing them to purchase an unwanted 
insurance policy; its $78.00 per year cost was 
paid from Bar Association dues.  Bar members were 
never informed of the particulars of the lawsuit 
and Federal Fudge José Antonio Fusté issued a GAG 
order prohibiting the disclosure of important 
aspects of the case to Bar class members.

The Puerto Rico Bar Association is not being 
allowed to inform and counsel Bar members about 
their right to opt out of the lawsuit.  Thousands 
of lawyers are not even sure why they are a part 
of this lawsuit. It is believed that an English 
language notice on the right to opt out of the 
lawsuit may not be sufficient guarantee that Bar 
members will fully understand the ramifications 
of their actions.  Many members of the Bar have 
limited English skills, particularly lawyers in the smaller and rural towns.

The newly elected President of the now voluntary 
Puerto Rico Bar Association (Colegio de Abogados 
de Puerto Rico), Osvaldo Toledo, was jailed on 
Friday, February 11, 2010, at a federal detention 
center in Puerto Rico, where he remains on 
contempt of a court charges for refusing to pay a 
$10,000 fine imposed on him for having counseled 
Bar members who insist that they have a right to 
know the particulars of the suit and procedure for opting out.

Federal Judge José Antonio Fuste’s GAG order 
extends not only to the President of the Puerto 
Rico Bar Association, but also board members, 
administrators, agents and servants.  The 
Executive Director of the American Civil 
Liberties Union in Puerto Rico, William Ramírez, 
had previously been warned by the Bar that he may 
not be able to speak out against what is held to 
be an injustice and First Amendment infringement. 
Speaking out in defiance of the federal court 
order may result in the arrest of anyone covered 
by the court’s GAG order and further fines 
imposed against the Puerto Rico Bar Association.

After studying the court’s order, we at the ACLU 
do not, at this time, believe that the federal 
court order reaches class members or other 
members of the Bar, including the staff and 
cooperating attorneys of the ACLU in Puerto 
Rico.  However,   we do believe the order to be 
unjust and believe it should be set aside.

The ACLU will continue to fight for the right to 
free speech and peaceful assembly in Puerto Rico 
and fully intends to take on any challenges that it may face.

View WAPA America TV interview with ACLU Puerto 
Rico 
director: 
http://www.wapa.tv/noticias/locales/aclu--preocupante-el-incidente-en-la-upr/20110210141712 


Federal Judge José Antonio Fuste’s GAG order 
extends not only to the President of the Puerto 
Rico Bar Association, but also board members, 
administrators, agents and servants.  The 
Executive Director of the American Civil 
Liberties Union in Puerto Rico, William Ramírez, 
had previously been warned by the Bar that he may 
not be able to speak out against what is held to 
be an injustice and First Amendment infringement. 
Speaking out in defiance of the federal court 
order may result in the arrest of anyone covered 
by the court’s GAG order and further fines 
imposed against the Puerto Rico Bar Association. 
After studying the court’s order, we at the ACLU 
do not, at this time, believe that the federal 
court order reaches class members or other 
members of the Bar, including the staff and 
cooperating attorneys of the ACLU in Puerto 
Rico.  However,   we do believe the order to be 
unjust and believe it should be set aside.   The 
ACLU will continue to fight for the right to free 
speech and peaceful assembly in Puerto Rico and 
fully intends to take on any challenges that it may face.



View WAPA America TV interview with ACLU Puerto 
Rico 
director: 
http://www.wapa.tv/noticias/locales/aclu--preocupante-el-incidente-en-la-upr/20110210141712 





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