Panama
was the original site of the SOA until Panamanian
President Jorge Illueca -who coined the term “School of
Assassins” - stood up for his nation’s dignity in the
early 1980’s, demanding the school’s removal. This
tradition of standing up to US efforts to use the tiny
nation to serve its aggressive purposes was also seen in
President Torrijos, who co-signed with President Carter
the treaty that returned theCanal
ZonetoPanama.
The delegation will visit sites relevant to these
struggles and also meet with Panamanians who today
continue to take a stand for their rights, such as
indigenous and campesino groups who have been protesting
the destruction of their lands by mining and hydro-electric
dam projects. Repression against them continues by
military and police trained at the SOA.
EL SALVADOR: March 18-27
Join
Fr. Roy Bourgeois and SOA WATCH coordinator Lisa
Sullivan in meeting with high government officials to
ask that they join six other Latin American countries in
withdrawing their troops from the SOA. The delegation
will participate in activities commemorating the 33rdanniversary
of the assassination of Monsenor Romero, one of 70,000
victims of the civil war, and one of thousands of which
were killed at the hands of SOA graduates. The group
will also meet with communities protesting the
destruction of mining projects, meet with groups working
with creative solutions to gangs, and overlap with the
colorful first days of Easter Week.
PARAGUAY: April 17-23
This delegation will
play the very important role of observing presidential
elections. Last June the right-wing congress used a
bloody confrontation between landless peasants and
police forces as a pretext for removing President
Fernando Lugo, an ex-bishop inspired by liberation
theology who ran on a platform of agrarian reform and
whose victory ended the 61-year rule of the Stroessner’s
Colorado Party. The “express coup” was condemned
throughout the region, andParaguaywas
removed from UNASUR and Mercosur by fellow Latin
American governments. The delegation will look at issues
of violations of human rights, criminalization of social
protest and the militarization of the north.
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC AND
HAITI: June 19-28
The Dominican
Republic is one of the the SOA/WHINSEC’s main clienteles,
sending large numbers of troops to the school, in spite
of the small size of the island. The results are seen in
the repression against citizen groups, including the
recent assassination of a student leader protesting
increased privatization of education. Join Fr. Roy
Bourgeois and SOAW Latin America coordinator Lisa
Sullivan in meeting with high government officials of
the new progressive leadership in the country in asking
that they consider withdrawing their troops from the SOA.
The group will also visit neighboring Haiti to connect
with groups struggling for the right to housing for
those displaced by Hurricane Sandy, and those who still
are homeless due to the 2010 earthquake. They will also
look at the issue of the occupation force of the UN’s
MINUSTAH, who are responsible for a deadly cholera
outbreak.
Panama
was the original site of the SOA until Panamanian
President Jorge Illueca -who coined the term “School of
Assassins” - stood up for his nation’s dignity in the
early 1980’s, demanding the school’s removal. This
tradition of standing up to US efforts to use the tiny
nation to serve its aggressive purposes was also seen in
President Torrijos, who co-signed with President Carter
the treaty that returned the
Join
Fr. Roy Bourgeois and SOA WATCH coordinator Lisa
Sullivan in meeting with high government officials to
ask that they join six other Latin American countries in
withdrawing their troops from the SOA. The delegation
will participate in activities commemorating the 33rd
The Dominican
Republic is one of the the SOA/WHINSEC’s main clienteles,
sending large numbers of troops to the school, in spite
of the small size of the island. The results are seen in
the repression against citizen groups, including the
recent assassination of a student leader protesting
increased privatization of education. Join Fr. Roy
Bourgeois and SOAW Latin America coordinator Lisa
Sullivan in meeting with high government officials of
the new progressive leadership in the country in asking
that they consider withdrawing their troops from the SOA.
The group will also visit neighboring Haiti to connect
with groups struggling for the right to housing for
those displaced by Hurricane Sandy, and those who still
are homeless due to the 2010 earthquake. They will also
look at the issue of the occupation force of the UN’s
MINUSTAH, who are responsible for a deadly cholera
outbreak. 
