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“HUMAN RIGHTS CRISIS IN PUERTO RICO: FIRST AMENDMENT UNDER SIEGE” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Justice was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H1458-H1460 on March 2, 2011.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
HUMAN RIGHTS CRISIS IN PUERTO RICO: FIRST AMENDMENT UNDER SIEGE
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Gutierrez) for 5 minutes.
Mr. GUTIERREZ. Mr. Speaker, 2 weeks ago, I spoke about a serious problem in Puerto Rico. The problem is the systematic effort by the ruling party to deny the right of the people to speak freely, to criticize their government openly, and to make their voices heard.
I talked about student protests that have been met with resistance by the Puerto Rico police. I talked about closed meetings of the legislature and about the efforts to silence and destroy the local bar association.
I was not the first to speak about it, and I could have said much more. This report, entitled ``Human Rights Crisis in Puerto Rico: First Amendment Under Siege'' is searing.
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It details the complaints of students, legislators, the press and the general public who were beaten, and pepper-sprayed by police; female students who were treated with gross disrespect; and the government's overreaction to demonstrations at the university and at the capitol over budget cuts and layoffs.
This next picture, this is the capitol in San Juan, Puerto Rico, surrounded by riot police as people attempted to gain entrance to the same assembly as this one here today, and this is how they were met by the police. This is how the police dealt with protesters.
The images of police tactics and behavior in these photos explain why our Department of Justice is investigating the Puerto Rican police for excessive force and unconstitutional searches as we speak today. How could you see these images and not speak out? I was hardly the first to speak out about these matters, and I probably won't be the last. Here it is, the Daily Sun in Puerto Rico, ``Sticks versus speech.''
As a Member of Congress, it is more than my right, it is my obligation to speak out when fundamental freedoms are attacked. And what was the response to my free speech defending the right of the Puerto Rican people to be heard? It was to challenge my right to be heard here in the halls of Congress. The Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico said in this very body that he is the only one authorized to speak about Puerto Rico at any time.
This week, the Puerto Rican Legislature debated a resolution of censure--yes, censure--condemning me for speaking out against these very abuses. A leading member of the ruling party even said, Gutierrez wasn't born in Puerto Rico, his kids weren't born in Puerto Rico. Gutierrez doesn't plan to die and be buried in Puerto Rico, so Gutierrez doesn't have the right to speak about Puerto Rico.
Well, let me tell you something, if you see injustice anywhere, it is not only your right but your duty to speak about it. We don't speak about injustice or apartheid or human rights abuses or the denial of rights of women in places around the world because we ourselves were born there. That would be silly. Where we see injustice we speak out because it is the right thing to do.
Ironically, by questioning my right to speak out on behalf of free speech, they have made my point crystal clear. By challenging my free speech, they have amplified the words of my 5-minute speech more than if I had spoken for 5 hours.
And it is their right, my critics have the right of free speech even as they deny the same right to others, but I want them to understand this: Your efforts to silence me--just as your efforts to silence so many in Puerto Rico who disagree with your government--will fail, just as every effort to blockade progress only makes the march toward justice more powerful and swift.
I may not be Puerto Rican enough for some people, but I know this: Nowhere on Earth will you find a people harder to silence than Puerto Ricans. You won't locate my love for Puerto Rico on my birth certificate or on my driver's license or on my children's birth certificate or any other piece of paper. My love for Puerto Rico is right here in my heart, a heart that beats with our history and our language and our heroes, a place where, when I moved there as a teenager, people talked and argued and debated because we care deeply about our island and its future. That is still true today. That freedom is still beating in the hearts of university students, working men and women, labor leaders, lawyers and environmentalists, and every person who believes in free speech. You will not silence them, and you will not silence me.
Abraham Lincoln, a leader who valued freedom above all else, said,
``Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for themselves.'' It's good advice, and I hope the leaders of Puerto Rico take it.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to enter the ACLU report titled ``Human Rights Crisis in Puerto Rico: First Amendment Under Siege'' into the Record, as well as a statement by the president of the Service Employees International Union and the essay, ``Exposing the Shadows of Civil Rights in Puerto Rico'' by the National Puerto Rican Coalition.
Human Rights Crisis in Puerto Rico; First Amendment Under Siege
(By the American Civil Liberties Union of Puerto Rico National Chapter)
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 Fortuno 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 were 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 Fortuno, 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 Fortuno 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 Fortuno 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 Ramon De la Torres' resignation was unanimously accepted by the Board of Trustees. However, the Board Chairperson, Ygri 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.
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 Judge Jose Antonio Fuste 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, 2011, 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 Jose 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 Ramirez, 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.
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SEIU Calls for Congressional Investigation of Puerto Rico Riot Police
Action
Washington, DC.--Mary Kay Henry, President of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), issued this statement today concerning the actions of the Puerto Rico Riot Squad in response to a non-violent protest led by university students at Puerto Rico's Capitol in San Juan on Wednesday, June 30.
``The right of individuals to openly and freely voice their dissent forms the foundation of a responsive, vibrant democracy. As working men and women throughout the island of Puerto Rico have shared their first-hand reports of the events that took place at the Capitol this week, we are deeply concerned that the actions of the police, and of the Puerto Rican government, were driven to stifle and repress the voices of these university students and citizens.
``What is even more troubling--the government's questionable use of force and the intimidation of citizens appear to be escalating on the island and no one is immune: journalists, gay men and women, our union brothers and sisters, and activists from every field who seek to make their voices heard and improve their lives and their communities.
``I am certain that many members of the U.S. media and many leaders in Washington are completely unaware of the disturbing events that took place Wednesday. I pledge that the more than 2.2 million members of SEIU, many of whom live in or were born in Puerto Rico, will change this by speaking out on behalf of the rights of the citizens of this island and calling upon their elected representative in Congress to fully investigate the events of June 30.
``When the lives and livelihoods of the people of Vieques were threatened by U.S. Naval bombing, SEIU members throughout Puerto Rico, the U.S. and Canada helped share their struggle to the international community. Today, we stand ready to do this once again and join our hearts and voices in service to the people of Puerto Rico.
``To the university students and their families, and to all who are fighting for democracy and equality for all the citizens of Puerto Rico, know that we stand with you, and you are not alone.''
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Op Ed: Exposing the Shadows of Civil Rights in Puerto Rico
(By Rafael A. Fantauzzi)
Washington, DC.--I find it peculiar how we Puerto Ricans continuously complain about our lack of voice and power in Congress, but when any Island issue is discussed on the floor someone always jumps at the opportunity to cry foul. As a collective, we all should praise the efforts by any Member of Congress to elevate our issues in the halls of democracy. Freedom of speech is paramount to our democracy, but the approach that if you are not one hundred percent with me then you are against me has destroyed our ability to collaborate and improve the economic and social stability of our people.
I assume that in a moment of frustration and courage on February 16th Congressman Luis Gutierrez (D-Illinois) answered the call to leadership by denouncing the most recent civil rights violations that occurred at the University of Puerto Rico and the abuse of power by federal Judge Fuste in helping dismantle the Puerto Rican Bar Association. I have not spoken with Congressman Gutierrez about his action or intentions, but anytime a Member of Congress brings to the floor the issues of my people, I see a glimmer of hope. Unfortunately, his delivery generated an overreaction by supporters of the local government which in response spun his decry by engaging in cultural divisiveness and the always dynamic political rhetoric. I believe that Congressman Gutierrez had the right to denounce the violations for the following three reasons: (a) anyone of Puerto Rican descent or with family alive or deceased on the Island should care about their people; (b) given the fact that around 46 percent of the population depends on federal assistance, any American that pays federal taxes is a shareholder for the well-being of the people of the territories; (c) lastly, any member of the human race has the right to denounce negligent human treatment, as we are doing for Libya.
It is disappointing when politically biased commentaries like the ones made by Mr. Rafael Rodriguez on his recent op-ed calling Congressman Gutierrez ``a paradoxical obstructionist'' are made. I believe Congressman Gutierrez was trying to shed some light on the dark shadows of social deterioration that our people are facing. This social deterioration is the result of desperation and fear that plagues our people. It is said that in Puerto Rico you cannot live, you can only survive (unless you are part of an elite that controls the political and economic channels). It is this elite that believe they have the right to dictate what the people want or need. It is this elite that hide behind the face of congressional processes to manipulate the political outlook of the Island. It is this elite that engage in manipulating the information instead of exposing the truth and generating trust. It is this elite that continues to enlarge the gap between Puerto Ricans on the mainland and those that remain on the Island. It is this elite that call those who are trying to defend the true elements of democracy and human respect obstructionist.
The issues of the Americans in Puerto Rico and the territories are continuously overlooked by the congressional collective. Even Presidents neglect to mention the people of the territories in their State of the Union speeches. So we are very hypersensitive about our place in the world, which in turn fuels the political philosophy frenzy that has become our white whale, the status of the Island. Although I have my own personal philosophy for the Island, I'm bound to protect the neutral integrity of the organization that represents the voice of the entire community inside the beltway. It is our mission to enhance the social and economic well-being of our 8 million plus constituents and nothing is more divisive than the status issues. We are in favor of a fair and executable process for self determination, and we also believe that for that process to be legitimate we have a principled responsibility to act civilized and respect all views. Change can only be accomplished when trust is at the core.
As the future of our Island we call on all students, educators, and administrators to hold each other to a higher standard. Respect those that want to express their frustrations and protect those that want to exercise their right to an education. To all local government institutions, we encourage dialogue, tolerance, professionalism, and personal restraint; for it is your duty to protect a functioning society. To our elected officials, engage in integrative processes for the benefit of your constituents and not for personal political gain. Only then will we be able to call ourselves both American citizens and responsible citizens of the world.
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