Friday, February 23, 2007

Oaxaca, Mexico: downtown small businessmen sue state and federal governments


Downtown businessmen, that is to say, the small businessmen, have sued Governor Ulises Ruiz Ortiz, President Calderón, the federal tax collectors (Hacienda), the state tax collectors (Finanzas), the federal police (Seguridad Pública), the federal small business loan commission (Crédito Público) and the state police (Protección Ciudadana de Oaxaca) for 200 million pesos in damages suffered during the 7 month teachers strike and APPO uprising. Note that no big business was involved. That's for two reasons. There ain't no big business here, and anyone who considers himself a "big businessman" is in too tight with the political powers-that-be to sue any of them.

The small businessmen are threatening to present evidence that the state government supported the most radical of the insurgents, like Rueda Pacheco of Sección 22 and the Sosas of APPO, and then lost control of them. Hell, we already all knew that. Those of us capable of independent thought knew that. The long-haired-Birkenstock-wearers, of course, continue to maintain purity of thought and action.

Former Governor José Murat Casab used to rent luxury tour buses, at the state's expense, to help the striking teachers leave his zócalo in Oaxaca for the beeeeg one in Mexico City. Both Murat Casab and Ruiz Ortiz bought off the Sosa's with taxi concessions. Both governors bought off the various odd and sundry (and numerous) "campesino" movements with cash, food and other goods and services. This has been going on for years.

It wasn't until current governor Ruiz Ortiz and ex-governor Murat Casab got into a poo slinging contest over just who got theirs the firstest and who got the mostest that all hell broke loose. Social movemment? Nah. A fight over pie slice proportions was all it ever was.


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