Oaxaca, Mexico: APPO steals 22 government vehicles, 20 buses, blames governor

City Transit Police car gets redecorated
The APPO, the umbrella group of revolutionaries which seems to be taking over for the striking teachers' union, made a sweep through the city yesterday with roving gangs that stole 22 city, state and federal vehicles. All of these vehicles were being driven on the streets by government employees at the time they were car-jacked. An APPO spokesman, a representative from "The New Left of Oaxaca", claimed that the car-jackings were carried out "peacefully, no one was kidnapped, as you can see the vehicles are in good shape, not beaten, nothing." Translation: Nothing = new paint job.

I found this photo at "Reforma" which is by far the most prestigious and independent newspaper in the country. The United States lacks a newspaper of the stature of Reforma. The caption read, curiously, "In the morning, people presumed to be members of APPO took vehicles and threatened to burn them." I found no other mention of this threat to burn the vehicles in any report from Reforma nor in any other news reports.

The vehicles are lined up on the side streets around the Zócalo while their return is being "analyzed". Also, yesterday, some 20 to 50 city buses were stolen and are being used as blockades around the state-owned radio and TV studios which were taken over by a group of some 500 female members of APPO. During that fracas, a female reporter from the TV station was beaten. Another APPO spokesperson, a representative of a group calling itself "Civil Organizations", denied that her group had anything to do with the beating, blaming it on "government infiltrators". Right.

Yet another APPO spokesman, while insisting on the total respect held for the press by his organization, said that any reporters who had "registered" with his group would be protected. When reminded that reporters had already done this, he said, "Uh, then they all need to re-register." Must have lost their paperwork or something. One thing of note is that photos of all these various actions around the city are very hard to come by. That's because the waving around of a camera may result in a good beating and loss of said camera.

At the same time that this APPO spokesman was bragging about the car-jackings, the other spokesperson denied that APPO had anything to do with the hijacking of city buses, also blaming that on "government infiltrators". Right, again.



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TAGS: Oaxaca, Mexico, Oaxaca teachers'strike, APPO