VIEQUES:

IN STRUGGLE AGAINST

Interim Committee for a New Puerto Rican Solidarity Movement

BULLETIN1979

Solidarity with ViequesThe struggle to oust the US Na-

vy from the Puerto R.ican island ofVieques and from all of Puerto Rico':national territory is at the centerof the independence movement today.This issue of the BULLETIN focuseson that struggle in order to buildsolidarity with the militant move-ment of the people of Vieques, andof the Puerto Rican people, to endall US naval maneuvers and bombingand to drive the Navy from the landand wa ter s .

The case of Vieques exposes thesham of US claims to recognizingPuerto Rico's right to self-deter-mination — beneath the cover of theFree Associated State is colonialviolence and genocide. The growingstruggle in Vieques demonstratesthe heightening level of the in-dependence movement today.

The documents translated in thisissue from the National Co mm i 11 e efor the Defense of Vieques detailhow the US Navy has driven most ofthe population from Vieques, howit carries out bombardment and o-ther operations which destroy ttiepeople's livelihood, and how theNavy's presence is devastating theisland's ecology. This same fatei s in s_t QXJ& f o r ? u er t o ~Trrc~cr a s ~"arwho I e i f .U S p 1 an s are c a r r i e d out.

From Sea Power magazine, we areexcerpting an article which lays outtne Nav_y \ view of why jitln& s o_ felt, ter 1 y t o retainof Vieques, and which

is_J;igjLcontrol

also makes

clear why the struggle over Viequesis so central to Puerto Rico's ef-fort to regainreignty.

its national sove

The s t r u g g 1e in V i e qu e s providesa clear example of the nTecessarys. nd growing r eTat i o n sji i p bet we enarined^ s truggl e _aa,d antd-,inper ial is tma.„§,§_-£-££Ji&gJ~£- and consciousness inPuerto Rice. Thus, Vieques is de-veloping as a front in the begin-ning stages of the Puerto Ricanpeople's war against US colonialism,and for independence and socialism.

We must understand this dynamicif we are to be able to build ef -fective and responsive solidarityin this country with the struggleof the people of Vieques and PuertoRico against the Navy and all ma-nifestations of imperialism intheir country.

The justice of this struggle a-gainst the aggressive armed mightof the US Navy and Marines is clear,and it is a struggle which is mov-ing on many levels in a revolution-ary direction. In the face of thisthe US and the colonial administra-tion are carrying out a two-prongedstrategy. They are ^stepping up re-p r e s jLoj j Jtjhr; p u. g _h_j£the^erjr i t ojr i a 1 courts, andal_so trying to get the Puerto Ricanpeople to jicjiept a few hand-outs ora band-aid solution.

For instance, the colonial go-vernor of Puerto Rico, who advo-cates the annexation of Puerto Rico

SOLIDARITY WITH VIEQUES,editorialVIEQUES HAS A HISTORYVIEQUES IS PUERTO RICO IN STRUGGLE AGAINST COLONIALISMHE WAS THERE AS A PUERTO RICAN, AN INDEPENDENTIST ANDSOCIALISTOPPOSED LANDINGSTHERE WAS EXPROPRIATION IN VIEQUESVIEQUES NEWSLETTER, excerpts

page 2

page 5page 8

into the US, tried' to confine thestruggle, against the Navy to a le-gal battle, through a civil suit inFederal court in Puerto Rico. Atthe same time, electoral indepen-dence parties like the PSP and thePIP wanted to run the struggle in away that would fit into their stra-tegy of working within the systemof colonial elections, and so theyput forward a similar strategy, ta-king the struggle out of the streetsand into the territorial courts.

In this situation, it was theclandestine organizations who sup-ported the actual life or death le-vel of struggle of the Vieques fish-ing people, who had been physicallyconfronting and impeding the Navy.These clandestine organizationshave been developing a revolution-ary capacity away from the repress-ive eyes of the FBI, CIA, and co-lonial police, and have been carry-ing out armed attacks against U.S.imperialist targets as part of astrategy of people's war.

In the case of Vieques, thepeople had set an example of mili-tant mass struggle. The ViequesFishermen's Association had taken

out their small boats and small armsto prevent US destroyers from car-rying out their maneuvers with o-ther naval forces from NATO, Chileand Argentina.

Clandestine groups such as theComandos Revolucionarios del Puebloand the Fuerzas Armadas de Resist-encia Popular attacked Navy andCoast Guard installations, callingon the whole Puerto Rican people tosupport the Viequense struggle. Do-cuments were liberated from the USmilitary base at Ft. Buchanan, whichexposed the Navy's plans to use a

carrot-and-stick approach to keepcontrol of Vieques. The papersdetailed efforts to placate theisland's inhabitants through suchpublic relations gimmicks as spon-soring a Little League, while atthe same time trying to apply eco-nomic and political pressure onleaders of the struggle, such ascalling in mortgages on their fish-ing boats. The documents were dis-tributed widely from clandestinityon Vieques and throughout PuertoRico .

Sign in shop win-dow in IsabelSegunda, Vieques,indicates feel-ings of the Vie-uenses towards.S. Navy.

Subsequently, the Fishermen'sAssociation withdrew from thecourt suit, seeing they could getno justice in the colonial US courts,They resumed direct confrontationswith the Navy. Hundreds of Viequen-ses and their supporters marchedthrough the night through the islandmangrove swamps to occupy the navalbase at Camp Garcia at dawn. Thisis an example of the way that thecJLa_njjes t ine men taJLLLy .JSLnd sejQ£>e_of the v u 1 n e r a b i 1 it y o f. U S im p e r i a 1 -ism which the clandestine armedgroups have been developing is ta-king root in a mass way in PuertoRico .

iOn May 19, hundreds more re-

sisted a US Navy practice landing,standing on the beaches where troopships were coming ashore. Twenty-one were arrested by Navy MP's andare now being tried in territorialcour ts .

Angel Rodriguez Cristobal, afarmer, member of the Central Com-mittee of La Liga Socialista Puer-torriquena, and one of the 21, hastaken a definitive stance to thesetrials. Ris brief to the court,included in this issue, puts forward that those arrested are prison-ers of war, justified in their strug-gle against the Navy and the geno-

cide to which it is subjecting Puer-to Rico and Vieques. He rejectedthe court's jurisdiction, and wasimmediately sentenced to six monthsin exile in federal prison in Tal-lahassee, FL. This is the firsttime someone has been removed fromPuerto Rico to serve a sentence ofunder a year, and shows how muchthe government wants to break andisolate Angel for taking this pri-soner of war stance. But since histrial, other defendants have takena similar position.

Meanwhile, the clandestine or-ganizations have also been inten-sifying the struggle. On Oct. 18-19, a series of bombings were car-ried out in coordination in PuertoRico, Chicago, and New York (wherenon-explosive devices were planted)The Great Lakes Naval Training Cen-ter outside Chicago was one suchtarget. The bombings in Puerto Ricowere claimed jointly by the FuerzasArmadas de Liberacion Nacional, theFARP, the Voluntaries, and the Ejer-cito Popular Boricua (Macheteros).This represents an important stepin unifying revolutionary forces inPuerto Rico and in the rear-guardof the independence struggle withinthe US itself.

This development is connectedwith the growing mass struggle aswell. For example, on July 4, theNational Committee for the Defenseof Vieques joined with the Comm.for Justice for Soto-Rosado (twoindependentistas assassinated bycolonial police) and the LSP tolink their struggle to the demandto free all Puerto Rican POW's.Many thousands marched behind theirbanners despite a boycott by thePSP and the PIP.

Militant solidarity with theVieques struggle against the Navymust be built as an important frontof support for Puerto Rican indepen-dence by white people in this coun-try. We must oppose the colonialgenocide, and the strategy of repression and cooptation by the Na-vy and the courts. Support forAngel Rodriguez Cristobal and the

other defendants will help to over-turn the claims to legitimacy ofthe US territorial courts in PuertoRico. The escape and freedom ofWilliam Morales, and the uncondi-tional release of the Four Nationa-lists, Puerto Rican POW's, showsthat such victories can be won.

We can also begin to targetthe Navy, its recruiting, and itsattempts to reintroduce Naval ROTC.We can shox? it that just as thepeople of Vieques recognize thatthe US Navy is their enemy, we tooin this country can deal with theNavy as the enemy of freedom andjustice that it is. In the 60Tsand early 70fs, many GI*s and navalpersonnel refused to participate inUS Navy maneuvers in Puerto Ricoin Operation Springboard because ofthe militant opposition to them onthe Puerto Rican island of Culebra.Today we can and must take themessage of the struggle in Viequesto white people in the US to buildsimilar anti-imperialist solidarity.

The struggle over Vieques andthe whole. Roosevelt Roads naval com-plex in Puerto Rico (a nuclear wea-pons storehouse) touches on manyissues of pressing concern thestruggles of the Puerto Rican peoplewithin the US. against repression, k

the movements against nuclear powerand against the draft and registra-tion. For the anti-draft or anti-nuke movements to be able to effec-tively confront the arsenals andmanpower needs of US imperialist ,power and its military, it is . es-sential to take up the issue ofPuerto Rican independence and tosupport the Puerto Rican people intheir leading struggle against themilitary might of US aggression.

The Vieques struggle helps ex-pose the true nature of US: imper-ialism and of the the revolutiona-ry road to overthrowing it. Tofight in solidarity with that strug-gle is to support the national li-beration of Puerto Rico and tostrike a major blow for justiceand peace, and against the vici-ousism

and corrupt system of imperial-

translated and excerpted from a pamphlet by the National Committeefor the Defense of Vieques.

WHY SHOULD YOU STRUGGLE FOR VIEQUES?

It's important that you demon-strate your support for Vieques,because it's important to liberateour Viequense brothers from thesocial and economic ruin and envi-ronmental waste caused by the Navy.

Vieques is part of Puerto Ri-co, and so the whole Puerto Ricanpeople must realize how and towhat extent the Navy's abuses haveheld this island-municipality out-side the social and economic pro-cesses of the main island.

In the face of this unjustsituation suffered by the Viequen-ses, various movements have beenorganized, like the Crusade forthe Rescue of Vieques and the Na-tional Comm. for the Defense ofVieques, that are mounting a con-tinuing struggle to effect theouster of the Navy from Vieques.

As part of our struggle we havebegun an information program about what Vieques is, what are itspresent problems and its possibi-lities for development. What fol-lows is a brief review of its his-torical, social-economic and na-tural/physical aspects, so you canfamiliarize yourself with Viequesand join our struggle.

HISTORICAL SKETCH

The written history of Viequesstarts at the beginning of the 16thcentury when Governor Ponce de Leonextended the jurisdiction of Puer-to Rico to all the islands of Bar-lovento, from Puerto Rico including Vieques, to the island of Do-minica. However, Vieques wasn'tofficially explored until 1524.

At the start of the 17th Cen-tury and during the 18th, Viequesbecame an island coveted- by theEuropean powers for its natural

riches. England and France triedrepeatedly to take possession ofVieques by coming to set up tempo-rary colonies on the island. Theywere militarily repelled by Span-ish expeditions, conscious ofthe great economic and strategicpotential of Vieques.

In 1823, Teofilo Leguillouarrived at Vieques. He had justbeen expelled from Haiti duringthe revolution like other Frenchex-colonialists. Leguillou madea careful recommoitering of theisland and saw its economic advan-tages. Vieques had the objectiverequirements for the productionof sugar in abundance: fertileland easily exploited, situatednear the coast with easy accessto embarcation ports.

Vieques also had an abun-dance of forests with qualitywood for the construction ofsugar s, carts and imple-ments, arid to build the struc-tures that would be required.Moreover, great quantities offirewood were needed during theentire sugar operation. Viequeswas an important point for thesupply of wood to the smaller is-lands to the southwest from the18th Century.

There were plentiful cattleto move the mills and feed theslaves. The required manufacturedtools and equipment could be sa-tisfied by the new republic ofthe U.S., which had lost its tradewith the English Antilles follow-ing its revolution and was look-ing to replace it with tradewith the non-English colonies inthe Carribbean.

It can be determined thatthis was the period in which thetrue colonization of Vieques be-gan. The development of the sugarindustry in Vieques during the 19thCentury generated a great growth

on the island. On Feb. 29, 1844a special election was held tochoose the site for the publicbuildings for a city. It wasvoted to establish them in thePuerto de Mulas where there al-ready existed a sort of urbandevelopment, which is now thecity of Isabel Segunda.

The principal wealth ofVieques was based on sugar. Theeight steam-powered mill s ope-rating at the close of the 19thCentury embodied the most advan-ced technology of the day. Viequeswas then a commercial centerbased on sugar riches. This isdemonstrated by the presence onthe island of the consular corpsof France, Denmark, England SantoDomingo and the U.S.

After the U.S. invasion in1898, this cosmopolitan atmo-sphere disappeared from the island.The sugar industry passed intothe hands of the North Americans.It and cattle raising remainedthe economic base of the Munici-pality of Vieques until 1941.

At the beginning of the 1940 "sthe municipality suffered throughthe forced expropriation of 70%of its land by the U.S. Navy.From that moment to the presentthe crushing impact of the Navyhas negatively determined the socioeconomic development of Vieques.

The sugar industry and cattleraising -were ruined. The build-ing of the military installationson the island caused a brief surgeof construction while the agri-culture-based economy was beingdestroyed. However, it was verybrief. Only two years after theexpropriations by the Navy, un-employment in Vieques was at analarming level, unleashing aseries of important workers'demonstrations in the winterof 1943. This was the begin-ning of an unprecedented exodusof population from Vieques.

From the rich sugar market-place it was, Vieques has todaybecome a municipality with oneof the lowest economic levels inall of Puerto Rico.

SOCIO-ECONOMIC SITUATION

The economic and socialconditions that prevail inVieques are the reflection ofthe almost total control imposedby the presence of the U.S. Navyon the island. Since 1941 theNavy has occupied 26,000 cuerdas(cuerda = approx. one acre) ofthe 33,000 cuerdas of land onthe island. It controls boththe best land and the waters ofVieques.

The precarious economicsituation of Vieques is evi-denced in the lack of employ-ment opportunities and thehigh level of unemployment.The actual percentage of un-employment in Vieques is cal-culated at 60% according toan estimate of the municipalgovernment. In 1977, totalemployment in Vieques was 1,971persons: 24% in manufacturing,50% in services and construc-tion, the remaining 26% infishing and casual labor.

Various factors limitthe development of the diffe-rent sectors of the island'seconomy. The main obstacleto the fishing industry isthe restriction of access tofishing waters imposed by theNavy. Also the nets used by thefishermen are destroyed by themilitary practice. The constantartillery bombardment destroyesthe natural environment for marinelife and cuts off the productivecapacity of the areas which havebeen the most productive.

The presence of the Navy con-tributes additional problemswhich affect the economy. Oneof the services most affected isthe system of maritime transpor-tation of cargo and passengers.Since the Navy controls theshortest access route fromVieques to the main island, theViequesenses are obliged to usethe longest. This situationcontributes to raising the ope-rating costs of the transporta-tion system and also translatesto a rise in the cost of livingon the island.

In Viequesthe shrapnel,the outrage,the coconut palmstorn downby militarybarbarism,the arrogantrestrictions,the landmonopolized,dignityviolateddayandnight,the abuse ofof a peoplesoldin the marketplaceof powerand fear.

But also in Viequesthe men and womensail outto seato rescuelife,and rise upwith a long and terribleroar,the roar Efren Rivera 5of drowning March, 1979the tyrants.

The lack of adequate eco-nomic development is reflectedin the social situation ofVieques. Presently, nearlya third of the families are be-neath the poverty level. Of the2,394 families in Vieques, 79%,1898 families, are eligible forthe food stamp program. Thisfigure constitutes the potentialclientele for the program, butonly 62% of those eligibleare getting benefits. This si-tuation manifests the dependenceand the economic distress towhich the people of Vieques aresubjected.

The Navy constitutes anelement of dissension amongthe population. The problems ofmental health, the incidence ofalcoholism and drug addiction,growing criminality and disordersprovoked by the military per-

sonnel in the civilian area areserious issues for the communityof Vieques. Before the arrivalof the Navy these things were un-known .

For a people besieged byunemployment, poverty, lack ofeducational opportunities, destruc-tive idleness, and other socialinjuries, it is inconceivable thatits best productive land, itswaters, and other natural resourcesshould be controlled by the Navyand utilized for warlike activi-ties that neither benefit norresolve the basic problems ofVieques, but rather impede thesocial and economic developmentof that people. Control of theirlands and waters by the Viequensesis a prerequisite for tha-'r. processof development. This zc-jqv.iresthe immediate expulsion or theNavy.

continued on p. 19

Statement by theiMovimiento de Liberacion Nacional

On one occasion, an independen-tista comrade said to us: "Viequesis a particular matter which has no-thing to do with the struggle forPuerto Rico's independence. Unfor-tunately, many comrades think thisway. Nevrtheless, the reality iscompletely the opposite: Vieques isPuerto Rico, in struggle againstcolonialism.

Vieques was occupied by the U.S.Navy during the Second World War aspart of a strategic triangle com-prising the islands of Vieques,andCulebr_a^. and the naval _jibasei_at_Roos-evelt Roads in the

From thistriangle, the U.S. military estab-lished naval and air control over theGulf of Mexico, the Carribean Sea,and the South Atlantic Ocean water-way between Africa and South America.The bulk of the oil carrier ships,merchant fleets carrying raw mater-ials, and military vessels, travelthis route from and to the Mediter-ranean, the Southern part of Africathe Indian Ocean and the Near East.

From this triangle, the U.S. Na-vy controls passage from and intothe Carribean Sea and Central Ameri-ca. At Camp Garcia in Vieques, theU.S. tests all the major weaponryand troop movements and deploymentsit would use against Carribean na-tions, Central America and LatinAmerica. From here, the U.S. cansupport South Africa, intervene inthe Middle East, or dispatch a fleetagainst any nation of the region.

To maintain its war readiness,the U.S. Navy has used Vieques as atarget range, testing most of theweapons used against Vietnam. In theprocess, thousands of Puerto Ricanresidents of Vieques have been dis-placed; driven from their island, orterrorized night and day by the con-stant bombardments.

Vieques children and adults havebeen maimed by bombs, land mines andaircraft strafing. The fisheries,upon which the population has his-torically depended for its livelihoohave been wiped out by underwatermines, chemical poisoning, radiationand continuous use by the military.

From the very beginning, Viequesresidents have fought to oust the USNavy from their island, often engag-ing in demonstrations and confronta-tions with the military. The exist-ence of Camp Garcia in Vieques,justifies the continued growth anddevelopment of Roosevelt Roads inthe Puerto Rican mainland, and serveas a major leverage for U.S. mili-tary interference in Puerto Rico'spolitical life. Vieques, therefore,is intimately tied to the questionof Puerto Rico's national liberationand to the struggle against U.S. im-perialism in Europe, Africa, Asia,Latin America and the Carribean.

On May 19, 1979, in the courseof a new people's offensive to stopthe U.S. Navy from continuing itsbombardment of the island, PuertoRicans occupied the Camp Garciafiring range. They were assaultedby the U.S. military and 21 arrest-ed. In the course of September, aseries of trials began in the U.S.Federal Court in Puerto Rico. Thefirst Puerto Rican to receive thefull weight of the government's re-pression was Angel Rodriguez Cris-tobal, a farmer from the town ofCiales who is also a member of theCentral Committee of the Liga So-cialista Puertorriquena (LSP). Com-lade Rodriguez Cristobal voiced thefeelings of all of the Vieques 21when he told the court; "In Viequesthe U.S. attempt to destroy theterritorial integrity of Puerto Ri-co has reached the extreme of geno-cide.... The government of the U.S.in the use of naked armed force bythe Navy, has destroyed the econo-mic basis of Vieques and expropri-8

PUERTO RICO

CARIBBEAN SEA

ated the legal private owners ofthe landed property, forcing morethen half of its population to leaveits island home? herded those thatcling to their natural heritage in-to a large corral; destroyed theirfishing possibilities; has begunthe destruction of its ecology. Bythe terrific harrassment of the bom-berdments they maintain the popula-tion on the verge of a collectivenervous'breakdown. The tyrants en-gaged in a gigantic exercise of so-cial dislocation. That is genocide....The imperialist aggression a-gainst our nation in Vieques is arehearsal for what they intend todo to Puerto Rico as a whole."

More recently, the colonialpro-statehood administration hascome out in open support of theU.S. Navy in Vieques and in PuertoRico. The Federal Courts have vow-ed to prosecute without mercy allthose who challenge its right to doas it wishes in Vieques. The questiorof Vieques has now become a strugglebetween the Puerto Rican people, itsallies and all concerned anti-im-perialists; and the U.S. military,

its government and colonial admin-istration.

Accompanying the U.S. intransi-gence in Vieques, is a drive to ad-vance the process of annexationismin Puerto Rico through the presiden-tial primaries of the Republican andDemocratic Parties. Both partieshave now been transformed into colo-nialist weapons by the statehood NewProgressive Party, the Carter admin-istration, and its allies in theright wing of business and bankinginstitutions in the U.S. A people'svictory in Vieques and the dismant-ling of the military triangle inPuerto Rico would have a profoundeffect on the annexatic-nist plans.Because of this, LSP Secretary-Gene-ral Juan Antonio Corretjer has poin-ted out that Vieques has become the"center for the struggle for PuertoRico's independence."

The Movimiento de Liberacion Na-cional in the U.S. calls on all pa-triotic forces to join hands in aprolonged struggle to oust the U.S.Navy from Vieques.

F R E E A N G E L R O D R I G U E Z C R I S T O B A L THE V I E Q U E S 2 1

DEFEAT POLITICAL REPRESSION!1 STOP U. S. MILITARY TERRORISM!!

He Was there as a Puerto Rican , an Independendentistand a Socialist

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

v.

ANGEL RODRIGUEZ CRISTOBAL

TO THE HONORABLE COURT:

Come now defendant and herebymove for the dismissal of the char-ges against him and the case dis-missed on the grounds that thiscourt lacks jurisdiction over thedefendant for the following reasons:

Puerto Rico is a Spanish-Ameri-can nation under United States mi-litary intervention since 1898.This military intervention is prac-ticed in violation of the naturalright of all nations to independence,In its struggle for independence,our nation is in its natural rightto face the United States militarywith force. Puerto Rico's right torevolution stems from this source.

In 1898 Spain and the UnitedStates engaged in war. It was thefirst war of the new era of imperi-alism, and as a consequence, PuertoRico was illegally ceded by Spain tothe United States and the UnitedStates illegally accepted its re-quested cession. It was an illegalinternational transaction since atthe time of its development, PuertoRico was an autonomous nation, re-lated to Spain through the royalnexus only. This relationship be-tween the metropolis and the emerg-ing nation was similar to, yet moreadvanced in terms of autonomy than,the Statute of Westminster accordedbetween the United Kingdom and theDominion of Canada. As Puerto Rico

Court statement of Angel RodriguezCristobal, prisoner of war.

was not res in comercium, the Treatyof Paris, which reestablished peacebetween the contending powers, nego-tiated without the intervention ofdelegates of the Autonomous Govern-ment of Puerto Rico, is null andvoid as far as Puerto Rico is con-cerned.

Puerto Rico's political statusestablished through this illegitim-ate contract is a treaty status.Through its mandate our nation wasrobbed of its sovereignty and passedover as a fidecommisium to the Con-gress of the United States. This isof course, pharisaical language andimmoral maneuvering to give the mi-litary intervention a hypocriticalappearance of legitimacy.

In reality, Puerto Rico is as oftoday a base of maneuvers for the arm-ed forces of the U.S. In the org-anization of this base, the militaryhas expropriated in its behalf thedirect control of important parts ofour national territory. The most im-portant part of this complex is Roos-evelt Roads, on the eastern coast ofPuerto Rico, facing the sister islandof Vieques, of which Vieques itselfis a part.

THE ILLEGAL TAKING OF THE LAND INVIEQUES AND ITS USE FOR THE DESTRUC-TION OF PUERTO RICO'S TERRITORIAL

INTEGRITY

In Vieques the U.S. attempt todestroy the territorial integrityof Puerto Rico has reached the ex-treme of genocide. Genocide is notHiroshima and Nagasaki alone. Geno-cide is the deliberate destructionof a civil society by the means ofthe instruments of states. The go-vernment of the U.S. in the use ofthe naked armed force of the Navy,has destroyed the economic basis ofVieques and expropriated the legalprivate owners of the landed proper-ty, forcing more than half of itspopulation to leave its island home;

10

Angel Rodriguez Cristobal (center, dark shirt) and 20 others were ar-rested by Navy HP's for opposing the landing at Bahia de la Chiva.

herded those that cling desperatelyto their natural heritage into alarge corral? destroyed their fish-ing possibilities? has begun thesystematic destruction of its eco-logy. By the terrific harrassment oftheir bombardments, they maintain thepopulation on the verge of a collec-tive nervous breakdown. The tyrantsengaged in a gigantic exercise ofsocial dislocation. That is genocide.

The imperialist aggression ag-ainst our nation in Vieques is a re-hearsal for what they intend to doto Puerto Rico as a whole. The Ame-rican dream for Puerto Rico is aPuerto Rican nightmare of chaos anddestruction. The politicians'prattleabout statehood and commonwealth isthe cover-up for the annexation ofPuerto Rico, the transfer of the ex-ternal colony as an internal colonywithin the federal state, with ourcountry transformed in a terreplein,an industrial-military complex, itsecological balance destroyed throughthe exploitation of our undergroundand submarine mineral and oil wealth,forcing the population to leave ashas happened already in Vieques,while the remaining population beused as peons and servants of allkinds. Plans are already made andknown to convert Puerto Rico into acomplex of 12 'commercial parks' bythe year 2020 and little known state-ments have been published insinuat-

ing the relocation of the PuertoRican masses in the empty spaces ofthe American Southwest and Midwest.

To justify this attempt at thedisintegration of our national ter-ritory, the Pentagon claims the mi-litary defense of the U.S. will berendered useless if they relinquishVieques. But the non-defensive,aggressive character of the naval es-tablishment in Vieques is reflectedin their own vocabulary, as Viequesis presented as the maritime Carrib-ean frontier of the U.S.? the cri-minal frivolity of their inter-national adventurism is self-denoun-ced. It is a term of normal mili-tary arrogance which ignores allreality? geographical, social, his-torical, cultural, political, allo-cating us to the U.S. as an integralpart of its own geography, transfer-ing their domain to the shores ofPuerto Rico. Puerto Rico in gene-ral, Roosevelt Roads in particularand Vieques within the RooseveltRoads complex, is a platform fo raggression: it is blackmail againstour sister nations, Spanish-,English-and French-speaking, from Venezuelaand Colombia to Cuba.

DEFENDANT'S ACTIONS ARE NOT SUBJECTTO ANY ILLEGAL AUTHORITY OF THE U.S.

On May 19, 1979 defendant enter-ed Camp Garcia in Vieques to protest

11

against the Navy establishment,their landing exercises and theirtarget practice. He was there asa Puerto Rican, as an independent-ista and a socialist. He backed theprotest of all the other Puerto Ri-^cans in and out of Camp Garcia, onthe island of Vieques.

He went to Camp Garcia to doall could to deteriorate the posi-tion of the Navy. The uniformed cri-minals of the Navy immobilized andarrested him. Every time a memberof the armed forces of the U.S. showshimself in Puerto Rico he must bemade aware he is in occupied terri-tory and will be treated as an ene-my. In Vieques, May 19, 1979, he didhis duty and reminded some of themthat they are in o*ccupied territory.His deeds were legal in the eyes ofPuerto Rican le«j*lity. Our countryis ours and nobody else's. No poweron earth can legitimately prohibita Puerto Rican to 'trespass1 on aland that is ours. He was capturedby force.

He maintains that this court hasno jurisdiction to try him because:

The government of the U.S. is anintruder, an illegal trespasser ofour land, and has no right over our

people; as a part of the U.S. judi-ciary this court has no right totry him, because the US has viola-ted the natural right of Puerto Ricoto independence;

The treaty of Paris is null andvoid in respect to Puerto Rico;

As a defender of the independ-ence of Puerto Rico he was capturedby the U.S. military within the ter-rain of one of its camps, in thiscase Camp Garcia, in the occupied

territory of Vieques, and for suchreason he should be tried as a pri-soner of war not in this court but ina military court.

He refuses to defend himself be-fore this court, and because thiscourt lacks jurisdiction prays fordismissal of the case.

RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED,In San Juan, Puerto Rico, Sept. 1979CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE on the U.S.Attorney this same day.

Luis F. CamachoPedro J. VarelaPedro J. SaadeDefense counsel

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VIEQUES: U.S. NAVY COMES UNDER"CONSTANT BOMBARDMENT"

Excerpted from an article in Sea Power by Ed.-in-Chief J. D. Hessman

Without a shot ever having beenfired in anger, the U.S. Navy maysoon be in danger of suffering itsgreatest loss of combat capabilitysince the bloody defeats inflictedby the Japanese in the early daysof World War II.

The current battle jLs not mi-Oitary in, Jjajture^, Jio wever.. , J: f it -

_ .lenu Instead the conflict - which

already developed strong emo-and political. over tones - is

over a relatively., little-knovm pieceof real estate in jthe Carribean,Vieques Island, 8 miles southeastof the US Naval Station at Roose-velt Roads on the eastern tip ofPuerto Rico.

Roosevelt Roads is_ the largestUS naval station in tHe world (in "

RENO5 DE LA MARINAy LAND*

TOTAL AREA = 52 » m,l«» - 133C I V I L AREA : 10 mile* - 26

physical size) . But it is more than"")that. As a training site for the /US Navy - as well as for the navies Iof America's NATO and So&th Ameri-can allies - it is absolutely irre-'placeable. There is no other placein the world where all elements ofthe fleet - aircraft, submarines,and surface ships of all types, aMarine amphibious forces, even \s and divers attached to V

'special warfare1 units - can train]together-as a team. In fiscal year*""'"1978 the Roosevelt Roads complexprovided fleet support and trainingservices for 282 ships and over1200 transient aircraft.

UNIVERSITY OF THE SEA

Without the integrated trainingfacilities available at RooseveltRoads and in the waters adjacent -more than 200000 sq. mi. of oceanstretching from north of Puerto Ri-co south to the Antilles Islands -Navy/USMC combat forces would be inthe position of an orchestra themembers of which must each practiceseparately, and never in concert.

Therein lies the unique signi-ficance of Roosevelt Roads, commandcenter for Atlantic Fleet WeaponsTraining Facility, often justifi-ably called the 'University of theSea.1 It is much more than that,however. It is in many respects aNATO and Latin American trainingcenter where the Navies and marineunits of US allies can conduct teamand multination exercises of a scopedepth and complexity unmatched any-where else in the world.

There are, within the greaterAFWTF 'campus1 four specially-con-

13

trolled ranges, as follows

An und e rwa t er_J^ac k ng: s t a t io noff the' coast of St. Croix - 21heavily instrumented sq. mi. -of deepwater used for subma ain .and-anti---submarine training; of all types.

An electronic warfare rangewhich uses~~a~Vax: Te ty' of radar andother electronic systems on Roose-velt Roads and surrounding islandsto provide realistic jEW_..jtraining, f orsjhj.gsm_ajid. aircraft .

An outer range in the largeareas of open ocean north- and south-east of Puerto Rico, used by airand surf ace units £DJC_ the f iring__p_£missiles and other ordinance andTor The oTiduct of other open sea _operations.

An inner range - Vieques andadjacent waters - used for jconductof amphibious-- landings and of navalgunf ire support exer c i ses ,*

which has a populationof about 8000, is_Jbhe key to theRoosevel t Roads complex . f Only there"can the Navy conduct bomrr Hropg andgjon and mis si 1 e fir ing exercises,and the Marines can exercise theirfull spectrum of combat weapons du-ring opposed landings against realand simulated targets .~~"17 ""

ii_nm_e_ ____ „ , ,.,.. . ........mi.. ' ..... „ , ____ _j|

The US Atlantic Fleet and itsMarine units have been using Viequesfor training purposes for 38 years.A very small group of Vieques fisher-men acting in defiance of court or-ders has disrupted recent trainingexercises, however, by entering off-limits firing areas during regular-ly scheduled operations being con-ducted by US and allied naval andmarine units .

OUTRAGEOUS CHARGES

By charging that the Navy isviolating "their human rights" invarious unspecified ways, however,the fishermen have managed to at-tract increasingly sympathetic at-tention from politicians and media.

Examples of opposition the Navy

faces, and the emotional plane onwhich the battle is being fought:

* Vieques mayor Radames Tirado sentPres. Carter a "communication" that"Your being a paladin of human rights,I'm sure you won't permit that Vi-eques continue being bombarded with-out pity by those who should be ourfriends ... Vieques is the onlynorthamerican land that has neverknown the end of the war."

* The National Committee for the De-fense of Vieques requested 8 US al-lies (Argentina, Brazil, Canada, theDominican Republic, Jamaica, Nether-land, West Germany and Venezuela)"to withdraw their naval forces" fromjoint amphibious exercises with theUS in order not to become "accom-plices of this outrageous atrocityagainst the Puerto Ricans."

* Carlos Zenon, pres. of the Fisher-men's Association said they wouldexercise their right to earn a li-ving inspite of the Navy. "The rightsof the people of Vieques," he said,"are above any Federal laws theNavy can use to justify these ope-rations. "

NO EXPROPRIATION - NO BOMBARDMENT

The Navy has been finding it ex-tremely difficult to interject a fewrelevant facts which completely ex-onerate the Navy of the sometimesviolent accusations against it....

First, the Navy did not expro-priate any property on Vieques. Act-ing under authority of Title VI ofthe Naval Appropriations Act of 1941* the same act which authorizedconstruction of the Roosevelt RoadsNaval Base - the Navy purchased itsholdings at Vieques over a nine-yearperiod (from 1941-50) at a cost of$1,432,315. Most of the purchaseswere of property owned by Juan Tio,Eastern Sugar Associates, and 8 o-ther individuals. Another 350 acreswere bought from the Insular Govt.1600 acres (came) from 201 otherproperty owners....

Two tracts of land were set a-side for resettlement of - and the

14

U.S. Navy helicopters overVieques during maneuvers.

Navy provided and transported alllumber and materials to make homesfor - those displaced by the Navy'spurchases.

Second, the Navy doesn't keepVieques or any part of it under"constant bombardment." Very lit-tle of the island's 33,000 acres -even the Federally-owned 76% underNavy control - and/or adjacent wa-ters is ever completely off-limitsto the citizens of Vieques. A 700acre section (about 25% of the is-land's land surface) at the easternend of Vieques, miles from any pop-ulated zone, is designated as adanger zone and is regularly (butnot constantly) used by Navy shipsand Navy/USMC aircraft in operations

involving the use of live ordinance.A slightly larger area just west ofthe live ordinance a:tea is setaside for air-to-ground practiceusing inert ordinance (which doesnot explode).

A Marine Corps maneuver area,with headquarters at Camp Garcia,is located just west of the two tar-get zones and acts as an additionalbuffer between the danger zone andthe island's populated areas....

Third, the Navy has not onlybeen conscientiously mindful of its'good neighbor' obligations to thecitizens of Vieques, it has alsomade every effort possible not onlyto permit use of federally-ownedland (and the federally-restrictedwaters adjacent there-to) for pro-ductive purpose, but also to main-tain and enhance the natural envi-ronment.

A few specifics:

* Aircraft are required to maketheir approach to target over wa-ter; they don't fly over populatedareas.

* Approximately 70% of the Navy-controlled land is used to benefitthe island's citizens. A 76-maga-zine, 7200-acre ammunition facili-ty is leased in its entirety to theCooperativa de Ganaderos de Viequesfor grazing purposes. The cattle-men pay the US an annual rental of$6 per year total...They also arerequired to keep about 150 acresnear the magazine and roads clearof grass, brush, and leaves. Anammunition-loading pier is madeavailable to the Port Authority ofPuerto Rico to ease transportationof people and cargo...

* Most of the island's off-shorewaters are available throughoutthe year for fishing. But the waterseaward from the ordinance impactzone is listed as a danger zone,and there are two 'restricted zones'* one extending 1500 yards off-shore from the ammunition facility;the other, also extending 1500 ydsoff-shore, running for 4 miles a-

15

long the island's south-centralcoast near Camp Garcia. . . .Even thedanger zoae is open for fishingand navigation except during the de-livery of ordinance and certain o-ther naval training exercises.

Except for recreational purposesthe Vieques fishermen use traps andnets to catch fish. The traps andnets do the fishing, not the fish-ermen, and they do it 24 hours aday, whether actual operations arebeing conducted or not. . . .For thevery limited time periods noted andin the very limited areas of off-shore waters which fall under fede-ral jurisdiction, it is sometimesless convenient for the fishermento do their work than it is at othertimes.

...The Navy has also been con-scious of its environmental respon-sibilities (although it was criti-cized for not filing, as required,an environmental impact statementcovering its Vieques operations. Theommission is currently being reme-died. In any case, all Navy shipsoperating in the waters off Viequeshave been outfitted with oil spillcontrol devices and holding tanks....In addition the noise level onVieques is constantly monitored du-ring firing; if the noise level be-comes excessive, operations arecurtailed or even cancelled.

It can't be assumed, unfortu-nately, that just because the Navyseems to have all the facts on itsside it will win its battle with thesmall but loud minority of Viequencitizens who have been campaigningto have the Navy evicted .

If the Navy were to lo se theTt ou Id oe arf

extremely damaging blow to the USnayj.l__and_ Marine .combat capability,as jtfeJLJL a s LjfcCL . jthe ".mai. jor i ty of thecitizens of Vieques who want theNavy to stay, especially those whodepend on the Navy in whole or inpart for their livelihood.

PUERTO RICO1 S LOSS : CALMER VOICES

impact on the mainland is-land of Puerto Rico also could be

severe. Navy expenditures for fis-cal 1977 were $84,535,893...Roose-velt Roads has been closed beforebetween '43 and '57, and might wellbe closed again if Vieques were nolonger available.

In recognition of that fact,some calmer voices have also beenspeaking out. Alex Maldonado pointedout in El Mundo (Nov. 20, 1977): "Ifthe Navy loses Vieques, RooseveltRoads will become useless...It willlose its importance as a trainingcenter where aircraft, naval unitsand Marines train for war..."

And without Roosevelt Roads, itmight be added, -the Navy itselfloses much of its importance, be-cause it inevitably loses much ofits combat capability."

Clouding and confusing the issueis the recent precedent of Culebrawhich the Navy was directed to a-bandon in 1975 - partly as a resultof the Navy's own mishandling ofthe issues involved. Culebra, amuch smaller island, was important,but much less essential for overalltraining purposes than is Vieques.There is, nevertheless, a feelingthat 'if the Navy could get alongwithout Culebra, it can get alongwithout Vieques.'

That is not the case, however.When the Navy lost Culebra, it stillhad Vieques. BUT THERE IS NO SUBSTI-TUTE FOR VIEQUES.

There is also no substitute forwell trained sailors or for a strongUS combat capability in the Carrib-ean. US forces are already beingphased out of the Canal Zone, andthe US naval base at Guantanamo isnot as secure as it once was.

The diminished US presence inthe area, moreover, comes at a timewhen 50% of the oil used by the USis transported through the Carribean.The nation j defense planners aregrimly aware that in any future war,the US might have to rely almost en-tirely on ocean lines of communica-tion from Mexico, Venezuela andAlaska for its oil imports.... •

16

Now it appears, after 38 years, thatthe Navy did "not expropriate any prop-erty in Vieques, but rather that,"Act-ing under authority provided by TitleVI of the Naval Appropriations Act of1941—the same act authorized the con-struction of the Naval Base at RooseveltRoads^—the Navy purchased its holdingson Vieques over a nine-year period (from1941 to 1950) at a total cost of$1,432,315."

This is the new claim by the Navyconcerning the form in which 76% of theland of Vieques was appropriated, accord-ing to the lead article published by thenewspaper El Mundo last Sunday, May 20,1979. The article was originally pub-lished in English by the magazine SeaPower in its March, 1979 issue. It wassigned by the Editor-in-Chief, James D.Hessman, and it represents the viewpointof the U.S. Navy, according to a noteadded to the article by the newspaperEl Mundo.

The Navy's allegations amount tosustaining that in Vieques it did notexpropriate land and properties butrather purchased them. And in fact,what the Navy did in Vieques was buyland and other properties. But itbought them by force, entering intoimmediate possession of them once hav-ing deposited the price fixed by thecourt without offering the affectedowner the opportunity to recover hisland, only the opportunity to demandmore money for the parcel from the Navy.This, in any part of the world, is calledexpropriation.

The Navy, as stated in the article,bought its land from Don Angel Tio,among others. But it bought them for-cibly; that ist it expropriated them ,as It-L Mundo reported on page 4 of itsNovember 14, 1941 edition under the title"Navy Expropriates Tio Property inVieques."

Because what the Navy did with theirland and other properties was expropri-ation, the Tios appealed in FederalCourt the price which the Navy had

deposited with the court, according to

translation of an article fromthe National Comm. for the Defenseof Vieques by Arturo Melendez.

the testimony of historian Dr.Aurelio Tio in his prologue to the bookVieques in the History of Puerto Rico,by Dr. Juan Amedee Bonnet Benitez.Concerning this event Don AurelioTio tells us on Page XIII of the firstand only edition of the above-mentionedbook:

"In Vieques we dealt with the farm-ers (colonos) and cattlemen forthree years until the U.S. Navy,foreseeing the possible defeatof England in its war with Germany,as had already happened to France,expropriated all the lands which wehad put to the cultivation of sugarand to cattle raising.

The value assessed by the Federalgovernment was extremely low—fhe amount deposited in the FederalCourt of Expropriations—what weasked for was that it be increasedto its real market value."

The Navy also bought land from East-ern Sugar Associates, as the Navy indi-cates. But it did so under the threatof expropriation, which was the basis ofthe appeals by Eastern Suagr Associatesto the Federal Court and Circuit Courtof Boston until after Sept. 27, 1946.El Imparcial of that same day publishedthe news in the following manner:

"Before Judge Robert A. Cooperof the Federal Court yesterdaymorning began the second hearingin the case of forcible expropria-tion against the U.S. Governmentbrought by the Eastern Sugar Asso-ciates in regard to some 7,000cuerdas (a Puerto Rican measure ofland equal to 4,810 sq. yeards) ofland on the neighbor island ofVieques."

The Navy returned to expropriatingland and properties after January 1,1948. The Puerto Rican governor him-self, Don Jesus T. Pinero, had beenopposed to this expropriation, and had

17

declared it in Washington on June 4,1947. But Munoz took over Pinero'sauthority and accepted the new expropi-ations in Vieques in exchange, in all

probability, for the laws for an electedgovernor and for the constitution of theFree Associated State. These new expro-priations enabled the Navy to convertVieques into a base for the North Atlan-tice Treaty Organization (NATO). Lessthan four moths later, Governor Pineroaccepted the new expropriations and heldtalks in Washington with the Secretaryof the Navy, John L. Sullivan, includingthe moving of the affected Viequenses tothe island of Puerto Rico. Journal-ist Jean Van Vranken wrote to this effectin the El Mundo of Oct. 1, 1947:

"Governor Jesus T. Pinero met todaywith the Secretary of the Navy,John L. Sullivan, to discuss thetransport of the inhabitants ofthe island of Vieques who presentlylive on land that has been expropri-ated by the Navy."

Another seven of the large landownersexpropriated between 1948 and 1950 app-ealed the price fixed by the Navy andwon their case on April 16, 1953. Thenewspaper El Mundo the next day report-ed the decision in the folllowing way:

"Judge Clemente Ruiz Nazario of theFederal Court resolved yesterdaya case of expropriation of landin Vieques in which were involved4,000 cuerdas belonging to sevenlandowners, for whose expropria-tion the government of the U.S.had allotted the sum of $250,000."

These, then, were the cases of thebig landowners who had resources toappeal the price of the expropriations.The rest, almost 200 small landowners,had to content themselves with the pricethe Navy allotted them; and for allthere was no recognition of any of thecustomary rights to property on whichthey had lived for decades.

The character of the so-called "pur-chase" is revealed by the Case of DonRamon Rucce Soils. Journalist Jane B.Baird of the San. Juan Star made the fol-lowing report Mar, 7, 1979 of the decla-ration of Companero Rucce in an inter-view the day before in Vieques:

"One day in 1942, Don Rucce Soliswas eating breakfast in his homewhen an official of the U.S. Navyand an interpreter presented them-selves at the door of his home.The official told him to movewithin 24 hours and gave him acheck for $30.00 for his house.Rucce protested that his wife wasnine months pregnant and refusedto sign the transfer of his house,but when a Navy truck appeared infront of his house the next day,his wife convinced him to submit.Rucce, 22 years old then, was oneof the 4,000 persons from the west-ern part of Vieques who were relo-cated in a designated area in thecenter of the island-municipalityin order to make room for the Navyin the early 40s.

When Rucce and his wife arrived atthe assigned area, they found thatit was nothing more than a caneplantation. His brother helpedhim to raise a hut of cane leavesand there his wife bore a baby thatsame night."

Then why, after 38 years, does theNavy deny that it expropriated landand other property in Vieques between1941 and 1950, as is so dramataicallyevident in the case of companero RucceSolis and other Vieques workers? Itis because Title VI of the Naval Appro-priations Act of 1941 provides only forthe "purchase of land" and not its ex-.propriation. By expropriating the landof Vieques in this way the U.S. Navyand the U.S. Government violated theirown laws. Title VI of the Naval Appro-priations Act under which they seekshelter is ironically becoming one oftheir most terrible and implacable accu-sers.

If the claim of the Navy that "Viequesis absolutely irreplaceable" has thesame basis in truth as the claim that it"did not expropriate any land in Vieques"-the people of Puerto Rico have the rightto think that the Navy is lying to themnow just as when it alleged that"Culebra is absolutely irreplaceableand there is no other site like it inthe world for Navy maneuvers."

18

continued from p. 7Vieques Has a History

PHYSICAL-NATURAL ASPECTS

Vieques has extensive and varied natural resources that provideservices and raw materials of use to man. Among these ecological areasare at least 15 lakes, various bays, numerous excellent beaches, man-groves and reefs. The activities of the navy adversely affect thisecological system.

Lakes Yanuel and La Plata form an integrated system and betweenthem is a forest of ucar trees of considerable size. In EnsenadaHonda are the tallest mangrove trees in Vieques. Other areas of greatvalue are Mosquito Bay and Tapon Bay, which are bioluminescent. MosquitoBay also has a forest of mangroves.

To carry off its practice landings and other maneuvers, the Navy hasrazed the coconut groves in Tapon Bay, Bahia de la Chiva and elsewhere.Destruction of other areas such as Bahia Salinas del Sur has begun. Con-sequently, the vegetation has been altered and sources of income for manyViequenses have been eliminated.

The erosion of the land has been accelerated for three principalreasons: the direct impact of naval bombardment, the pattern of land usefor livestock, and the construction of roads and installations. Thedirect impact of the bombardment has ruined 5the vegetation in many areas.In places the plant cover has been totally removed. However, the basiccause of increased erosion is the lack of plant cover in the areas coveredby the Bayahonda tree. This tree is propagated by the cows that eat itsfruit. The Bayahonda tree does not permit grass to grow (what littleis able to develop is eaten by the cows). This reduces the capacity ofthe earth to retain water, increasing erosion. The Navy has been uncon-cerned about controlling the spread of this tree, and it covers the majorpart of the land under Navy control, especially between Camp Garcia andCerro Matias in the east. The Navy has given cattlemen the uncontrolleduse of this land for grazing, which increases the problem.

The eroded soil results in lowered fertility and productivity. Italso contributes to an insufficiency of subterranean water. Sediment fromthe erosion has accelerated the filling of the lakes of Vieques over thepast 25 years.

Another cause of the erosion is the construction of roads by theNavy. The construction of roads closed the canals that connected thelakes with the ocian, causing these to dry up. This affects the surround-ing vegetation and the land life that depends on aquatic life.

To this shoud be added the effect of the growing sedimentation whichis ocurring in the lakes due principally to the erosion of the soil. Thesedimentation reduces the depth of the lakes, which increases the dangerthat they will partially or totally dry up in dry periods. The reductionin depth, in turn, accelerates the evaporation, increasing the averagetemperature and the salinity of the water. This negatively affects thequality and quantity of plant and animal life. Among the organismsmost affected are fish, the mangroves, the birds and insects.

The mangroves have also been seriously affected directly and in-directly by the military activities. The mangroves constitute an environ-ment favorable to the growth of a great variety of living organisms. Theyserve especially as a nursery for fish in their early stages. There arethree causes that esplain the death of mangroves in Vieques: very highwater levels, hypersalinity, and sedimentation.

The closing of the canals impedes the exit of fresh water from the

19

lakes, which occasions a rise in the water level during rainy seasons.The water can rise to cover the roots of the mangroves and prevent themfrom breating adequately. The hypersalinity of surface water, and evenmore of water underground, seems to be the principal cause of the deathof mangroves in Vieques. Sedimentation covers the roots of the mangrovesand also causes death. On the other hand, the mangroves have receivedthe direct effect of bombardment.

The bioluminescence of Mosquito Bay and Tapon Bay is a unique phe-nominon. It is due to a combination of factors that do not frequentlyoccur. It has been proven that the presence of extensive mangroves isone of the essential factors for bioluminescence in a body of salt water.

The direct damages to the marine environment caused by the militarymaneuvers and particularly by the bombardment are evident in the coralreefs. These direct damages are manifested in the presence of metalobjects and shrapnel, in the craters left by bomb explosions, in para-chutes caught in the coral, and through the destruction and crumblingof pieces and regions of the coral reefs. These damages affect theentire eastern region of Vieques, but they are more concentrated in theareas near or adjacent to those land areas that are used as target areas.

The reefs are a valuable resource and perform many functions. Theyprotect the coasts from the wearing away produced by the effects of wavesand they promote the deposit of sand on the beaches. They sustain andprovide shelter for the majority of fish and shellfish that are fishedcommercially.

In the reefs located within the impact area of the Navy are seaturtles, principally the "hawksbill," which is a species in danger ofextinction. Cayo Conejo is one of the few areas in Puerto Rico for thereproduction of pelicans, which are another endangered species. Thisarea has also been affected by the bombing practice of the Navy.

The negative effects of the Navy have been drastically accelerated,accentuated in 1975 after the transfer of military practice from Culebrato Vieques.

The departure of the Navy fjrom Vieques is indispensable to stop thedestruction of the environment and to assure a better utilization ofnatural resources for the benefit of the Viequenses and of all PuertoRicans. •

The Four Are Free!!

20

Struggle Continues:

Vieques Update

BRIEF HISTORY OF THE NATIONALCOMMITTEE FOR THE DEFENSE OF

VIEQUES

The National Comm. in Defense ofVieques was constituted on May 21,1978 in Caguas. Its principal objec-tive is to contribute to the strug-gle of the Viequense people to ex-pel the US Navy from this island mu-nicipality. The committee is com-posed of local support committees(at the level of cities, workplaces,centers of study) and of three workareas - organization, propaganda,and finances. ; ;

There are now support commit-tees in Aguadilla, Aibotiito, Baya-mon, tlaguas, Carolina, Cayey, Ceiba,Humacoa, Maunabo, Mayaguez, andGuayama. >

The National Committee is an or-tganizatiori of broad character, tha:t;fv..seeks the collaboration of allpolitical and religious sectors,

translated and excerpted from theNewsletter of the National Comm.for the Defense of Vieques.

and of labor, cultural, social, andother organizations within thePuerto Rican community in supportof the Viequense people's struggle.

To achieve its objectives, thecommittee makes efforts to :

1) develop an educational campaignon a national level about the si-tuation and struggle in Vieques,and the effect on Puerto Rico of thepresence of the US Navy on our na-tional territory.

2) to denounce at the national andinternational level the abuses com-mitted against us by the Navy inVieques and to generate expressionsof support at the level of organi-zations and national governments;

3) to incorporate into the activi-ties that are realized all peopleand organiza.tions that are in soli-darity;, with Vieques;

4) to collaborate actively with theCrusade to Rescue Vieques and theFishermen s Association in the work

of involving, mobilizing, and or-ganizing the Viequenses people

5) to raise funds to defray the costsof Committee activities.

The National Committee maintainsopen and continuous communicationwith the Crusade in order to knowthe necessities of support, toguarantee the effectiveness of thework that's undertaken, and to co-ordinate activities between Viequesand Isla Grande.

VIEQUES: NAVY DROPS 27,200 BOMBSIN,EIGHT MONTHS

In a report in El Nuevo Dia(July 26, 1979) entitled "Vieques -drop 27,200 bombs in 8 months"US Navy vice-admiral and chief of.operations in the Carribean, ArthurK. Knoisen, put forward with greateffrontery that the Navy had droppedthis quantity of bombs on Vieques,but that "only 4800 were high-power."

It's this same gentleman whosome time ago told us that our frogs('coquis') make more noise thanall his bombs. To this cynical com-ment, we can only say that the songof thousands of our frogs would dis-appear with only one of his bombsdesigned to kill human beings.

It's evident that Knoisen's de-clarations represent one of the bestproofs we could possess to demon-strate the aggression committed a-gainst our people, as well as bring-ing us another good season for wish-ing that the Navy would leave Vie-ques, our national territory.

But if Vice-Adm. Knoisen's ownwords were not enough, we must pointout that the interests of the US mi-litary are above all for the secu-rity of their own country, giventhat even in their own states theydevelop military tests without con-sidering the security of their ci-tizens.

We must point out that if theI US through its Navy unleashes theseatrocities and aggressions againstour people, it is because our poli-

tical consition so permits it. Justas they have power to carry out mi-litary tests in their own country,so too they have enough to do themin ours.

Once again we say that the USNavy can't continue exercising theirdomination over our lands -- theymust leave not only Vieques, butalso all other places in Puerto Rico.

TRIALS OF THE TWENTY-ONE

The US Navy brought charges a-gainst 21 out of hundreds of peoplewho on May 19, 1979 carried out anact of defiance, which included anecumenical service at Bahia de laChiva in Vieques. The people gather-ed there manifested their repudia-tion of the presence of the Navy inVieques, and reaffirmedtheir inten-tion of recovering the land and seafor the enjoyment of the Viequenses.

In a bestial act of abuse, theNavy used its military force to se-lectively arrest 21 of the partici-pants. The Navy chose a group of re-ligious people, workers, labor lea-ders, lawyers, leaders of thestruggle in Viequesand fishermen.They took a representative sampleof the movement with the intentionof discouraging and making an exam-ple of them. But they didn't counton the fact that just causes aren'tdetained by taking a few partici-pants captive. It is a whole peoplethat is being attacked, and if youjail a few, many others remain tocontinue the struggle.

Of the 21 arrested, they haveeffected the trials of two...Wecan't avoid mentioning the courtproceedings. We don't expect impar-tiality or justice, but at least de-corum. But the Navy's orders seemto have been to "take off the mask,since after all this tribunal re-sponds to us."

Judge Torruellas made a show ofhis accomplishments as a lawyer byindicating to the lawyers the pointsthat remained unproven, and by an-swering for the witnesses and de-nying all the defense motions, even

22

f ••

one on which a moment before he hadagreed. These trials were made toorder (of the Navy).

In the face of these abuses bythe federal legal and judicial in-stitutions, like the attacks towhich Vieques is submitted daily,all Puerto Ricans must close ranksand intensify the sta^iggle togetherwith the Viequenses. We must con-tinue the struggle and to activelysupport the remaining defendants.Remember that this is another bat-tle we must win against the Navy.

Sept. 18, Fed. Judge Juan R. Tor-ruellas released his decision in thecase brought by the Puerto Rican go-vernment and by the fishermen of Vi-?eques against the US Navy. In thiscase, the government sought as aremedy that the Navy prepare an en-vironmental impact statement. Fortheir part, the fishermen soughtthe only thing the people of Viequesare disposed to accept -- the imme-diate ceasing of maneuvers and thetotal withdrawal of the US Navy fromViequense soil.

Judge Torruellas, in a clear con-tradiction ruled that the Navy shouldput out an environmental impactstatement, even though he didn't re-cognize that the maneuvers in Vie-ques have been causing damage to theenvironment.

In his decision, Torruellas placed

the economic and political interestsof the US before the well-being ofthe people of Vieques. The judge saidthat the US needed to maintain con-trol over the seas for the trans-port of strategic materials, inclu-ding 90% of crude oil. Moreover,this control allows the US to complywith the military pacts it has with43 nations.

This is a decision to safeguardthe economic interests in tune withhis imperialist politics. On releas-ing this decision, the Judge haspublicly confirmed what interestshe and the court he presides overrespond to. He has also confij-medthat the people have nothing to seekin this tribunal; that here, thepeople's claims of justice won't beheard.

This demonstrates what the fish-ermen have already pointed out onnotifying the judge of their deci-sion to retire from the court suit.It is this same judge who now con-firms that it is only the actionsof the people, in the streets, inthe sea, on Viequense soil, and onthe Puerto Rican national soil,which will obtain what the peopledemand — the withdrawal of the USNavy from Vieques.

It has been demonstrated thatjustice for Vieques must be seizedby the people. It will be throughthe militant actions against theNavy and its representatives thatthe objective will be achieved. •

( ) I would like to make a contribution to support the work in so-lidarity with the struggle in Vieques and the Puerto Rican indepen-dence movement. Enclosed is $

( ) Please enter my subscription to the BULLETIN of the New Move-ment in Solidarity with Puerto Rican Independence. ($5.00 enclosed)

( ) Send me a copy of TOWARDS PEOPLES WAR: In defense of armedstruggle for Puerto Rican independence and socialism @ $2.50 ea.

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Return to: New Movement in Solidarity with Puerto Rican Independence2403 West North Avenue, Chicago Illinois 60647

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1. We give unconditional support to the Puerto Rican independence rao^e-ment in its struggle for independence and socialism. We stand in revo-lutionary anti-imperialist solidarity with the political/military frontof the Puerto Rican independence movement which is leading the strugglefor independence. We recognize and support the leading role of clandes-tine organizations in the waging of armed struggle and the developmentof. a National Liberation Front. These organizations provide politicaldirection for the entire Puerto Rican movement and also define thestrategy and tasks of the solidarity movement. We take our leadershipdirectly from the Puerto Rican revolutionary forces in the U.S.

2. National liberation struggles are leading in the destruction of U.S.imperialism around the world. Within the current borders of the U.S.,it is the struggle of Black, Puerto Rican, Native American and Chicano/Mexicano peoples that are leading in the struggle against imperialism.

3. U.S. imperialism is one system inside and outside the current bor-ders of the U.S. Within the U.S. oppressor nation, revolutionary prole-tarian internationalism must involve concrete support for the nationalliberation struggles and movements of oppressed nations against imperi-alism and the active fight against white supremacy which has historical-ly led the white working class to ally with imperialism.

4. Political support for national liberation requires concrete materialsupport, must mean concrete material support. We commit ourselves toconcrete material support for the Puerto Rican independence movementaccording to the needs and the timetable of that movement.

5. Freedom for and solidarity with all Puerto Rican political prison-ers and Prisoners of War. Free Nydia Esther Cuevas and Pablo Marcano,Angel Rodriguez Cristobal and the Vieques defendants.

Interim Committee for a New Puerto Rican Solidarity Movement

- BULLETIN -24-O3 W. North Av». Chica0o, IL.