­por Orsetta Bellani­­
Exclusive for El Reportero

Rural relatives show the photos of their loved ones murdered or disappeared in their struggle for land in Honduras.

Every day, twenty people are killed in Honduras. It’s the most violent country in the world and the causes for this can be found in its history.

In the 70s, while in the neighboring countries (Guatemala, El Salvador and Nicaragua) left-wing guerrillas were consolidating, Honduras was a US fiefdom. The country was used as the basis for the operations of the Contra, the guerrilla force used by the U.S. to combat the Sandinista government of Nicaragua.

Honduras has been the “Republic of Bananas” par excellence. Here for 10 years banana companies like Chiquita and Dole, whose trucks are forming endless processions in the streets, have replaced the state. In the city of Tela, who hosted the eponymous banana company in the last century, the corporation brought electricity, school and work. Today, more than a Banana Republic, Honduras has the appearance of a Republic of the African Palm.

As a result, as revealed by the Honduran Foreign Minister, the country currently imports half its supply of maize and rice, with an obvious loss of food autonomy.

According to Rel-Uita, Honduras today produces over 300 thousand metric tons of palm oil and 70 percent is sold in foreign markets.

The estates of palm oil, whose oil is destined for the food industry and the production of agrofuels, are grown by farmers who – according to the data provided by organizations member of the campaign “Vamos al Grano” – around 75 percent live on a dollar per day.

They work with chemicals that contaminate soil and poison the aquifers layers of the third poorest country in Latin America. This creates intolerance among the peasants and generates income for the Facusses, one of the most powerful in the country and throughout Central America.

“In Honduras there are ten families who make the decisions. They control industries, banks, media, police, the Supreme Court, the Public Ministry, the National Assembly and the Government,” says Miriam Miranda, Chair of OFRANEH (Honduran Black Fraternal Organization). The Honduran oligarchy began to be structured in the midtwentieth century, when a handful of Jewish and Palestinian families migrated to Central America, attracted by the foreign capital investment of the multinational mining and banana companies. These families have been able to put aside the historical tensions between the two peoples and now control 40 percent of national production. The State is its largest customer in a context in which, as emphasized by the president of COPINH (Civic Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras) Berta Caceres, “the State does not exist, but rather strengthens the institutions who hold effective control.” Almost all Honduran oligarchs contribute financially to the two parties, and several members of these families have been ministers of the government in power.

In 2009, former President Zelaya blocked the same oligarchy he belonged to. He announced minimum wage increase of 66 percent, accession to ALBA (Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas, an alliance between progressive Latin American countries promoted by Chavez) and promised agrarian reform.

It was never approved: on June 28th, 2009, the day that Zelaya had called the people to vote for a consultation to decide whether to convene a constituent assembly, the country’s oligarchs staged a coup. Zelaya was overthrown and a government in line with the interests of the oligarchy put in place, so intertwined with drug-trafficking that according to Wikileaks, it uses Facusse’s properties as a landing strip for aircraft. An example of the arrogance of the Honduran oligarchy is the Lower Aguan issue. In the 90’s the government privatized the land, following the advice of the International Monetary Fund.

“Because of the threats, here in Lower Aguan everybody started to sell, especially to Facusse. Those who refused were killed,” denounces Vitalino Alvarez, from the organization MUCA (Aguan Unified Peasant Movement). Then, when the peasants rebelled, the government promised the restitution of much of the land. Not only the terms of the agreement have not been met, but also by early June Miguel Facusse threatened to evict seven farms – about 4,000 hectares – negotiated with the government, where they settled thousands of peasant families affiliated to MUCA.

However, by late June the peasant organization MARK (Authentic Vindicator Movement from Aguan) won an important victory: Tegucigalpa court of first instance ruled the restitution of 1,800 hectares of land to the families of the same organization who were dispossessed of their land in 1994, acknowledging the illegality of its ­acquisition by Facusse and Rene Morales Carazo. However, according to the MARK, the corrupt Honduran judges admitted protection measures filed by the two landowners, thereby reversing the ruling.

That decision sets the stage for further violence in the Lower Aguan where from the beginning of 2010 until today, Facusse’s guards have killed 51 people involved with farmers’ organizations and one journalist and his partner.

“The decrees of the government legitimate impunity since the coup: when it is so widely it is applicable to a plan,” said former President Zelaya during the inauguration of the International Meeting for Human Rights in Solidarity with Honduras, which took place in February in Lower Aguan.

by Victoria Moore
Natural News

Often in the wake of a big massacre such as what happened recently in Aurora, people are scared, sad and looking for answers.

Unfortunately, the media ALWAYS distorts the problem; placing blame on the need for stricter gun laws, or gun bans altogether. The truth is the gun is hardly the problem as everyone knows; guns don’t kill people, people kill people. When incidents like this occur, shouldn’t people be focusing on what caused this senseless act to happen in the first place, rather than the weapons that were used to carry out these horrific acts? But don’t expect the media to let you know that one of the biggest causes is the products of the pharmaceutical companies that just happen to bankroll the corporate gatekeepers.

When it comes to guns, the majority of gun owners are responsible, law abiding citizens. They go through a proper background check, licensing, and use the firearms appropriately. Parents play a crucial role in teaching their children about gun safety and making sure that guns are stored appropriately.

Firearm safety for children removes the mystique around guns and teaches them that guns can be a useful tool and should not be treated as a toy.

The pharmaceutical drug pandemic

Most recent carnages have a common theme; the use of psychiatric drugs by the killer. With one in five adults taking psychiatric drugs and the push of these medications on children, shouldn’t there be a cause for concern that we are paving the way for potential future incidents? These prescription drugs are altering the brain chemistry, which causes the person to feel distanced from reality. Ironically the antidepressants often cause side effects of depression, suicidal thoughts, and homicidal behavior, which as we have seen, can result in vicious tirades.

As these events become more widespread, the only way to try to prevent them from happening in the first place is to get to the root of the problem – The Drugs!

Should the pharmaceutical drugs and doctors who write the prescriptions be held partially responsible for these acts of violence?

After all, they are making profit on patented chemicals while destroying human lives in the process. It is estimated that over 500,000 school-age children are currently taking antidepressants. This leads to higher number of suicides and attempted suicides in the teenage and young adult years.

With very little research done on the long-term effects of these antidepresesants on children why are ­so many receiving prescriptions?

The pharmaceutical companies are making huge profits off the young now, and these children are set to be in the pharmaceutical cycle for life. The lack of information we have on how these medications influence adolescents demonstrates the true criminality of Big Pharma. They have absolutely no regard for their customers; or humanity in general, by continuing to allow these drugs to be given without having an idea of what it is doing to the person taking them. Better alternatives to putting kids on antidepressants include keeping them away from violent TV shows and video games.

Parents should also look at changing the diet to eliminate processed foods and getting them involved in mind-body exercises such as martial arts and yoga.

Homeopathic options are also available that work with the body rather than suppress the symptoms. It is much safer and benefits everyone involved if these options are explored before putting young children on pharmaceutical drugs.

Sources for this article include The Omega Diet: The Lifesaving Nutritional Program Based on the Diet of the Island of Crete by Artemis P. Simopoulos, M.D., and JoRobinson http://www.naturalnews.com/020787.html.

­by the El Reportero’s news services

General Omar Torrijos

The 31 anniversary of the death of General Omar Torrijos in a supposed plane crash whose causes have not yet been fully clarified, was commemorated by the Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD) which he founded.

Torrijismo is not something that is said, you acts as Torrijista or not, said his son and president of the Republic Martin Torrijos Espino in the acts of remembrance made the day before.

Torrijos Espino regretted that a country like Panama, which walked along a path of progress, is taking today through an unnecessary confrontation.

Adolfo Ahumada, keynote speaker at events organized by the Omar Foundation and implemented in the mausoleum of Calzada de Amador, said that given the complicated political situation in the country it is in Torrijismo where lies the lifeline for Panama.

At the events were representatives of all the trends and the Torrijismo presidential candidates, as well as the candidates to lead the National Executive Council of the PRD.

General Omar Torrijos died 31 years ago when the aircraft he was traveling in crashed into the hill Marta, in Cocle. A youth contingent of the party went there this week to lay flowers at the bust erected in the scene.

Chávez fulfils ‘Bolívar’s dream’ with entry to Mercosur

Latin News reports: Venezuela has become the first full member to be admitted to the Southern Common Market (Mercosur) since its formation in 1991. “Mercosur is Bolívar’s machinery”, President Hugo Chávez proclaimed while celebrating the formal incorporation of Venezuela at a summit in Brasília (31 July) attended by the heads of state of the other full members, Brazil’s Dilma Rousseff, Argentina’s Cristina Fernández and Uruguay’s José Mujica, but not Paraguay’s Federico Franco.

The post-haste inclusion of Venezuela into Mercosur was only rendered possible by the suspension of Paraguay last June in the wake of the impeachment of Fernando Lugo (2008-2012).

Global network of infantile pornography splashes Mexico

National newspapers emphasize today here the report of American authorities on the identification of at least 140 victims of a network of infantile pornography in seven countries, between them Mexico.

According to the reports the victim of more age, located in Holland, was four years old and of less, only 19 days, whereas 43 subjects were stopped in the last two years associated with this crime, says the diary The Universal.

The band had between his members to a manager of hotel in Massachusetts, a technician of medical emergencies in Kansas and an assistant of day-care center in Holland.

The arrests began after it was detecting the exchange of explicit photographies of aggressions across Internet and even for conversations on line of the pederasts it brings over of “ kidnapping, children cook and to eat “.

It is investigated if the men who spoke about homicides and cannibalism incurred such violations or only they were exchanging perverse fantasies.

The inquiry, which continues being extended, it received Holitna’s codified name, for a river in Alaska that has many tributaries.

Another article of the newspaper about the same topic emphasized that the infantile pornography is an increasing problem in Central America, one of the centers of the industry of production, distribution and sale of this material, affirmed the Costa Rican Rocío Rodríguez, executive director of Alliance for Your Laws.

­Rodríguez explained to The Universal one that, after Mexico, Brazil and Holland, Central America is an emergent market in infantile pornography, with “ a black number of production.”

According to the specialists, the use of minors in pornographic material and the submission and affront that this implies, is one of the most alarming and serious forms that reduce the dignity of girls, children and teenagers. (Prensa Latina contributed to this report).

by Susanne Posel
Infowars.com

Informants and military personnel are coming forth anonymously to confirm that martial law “is right around the corner.” However, right now we are under a silent martial law and citizens are reporting strange and unexplainable activity from the U.S. armed forces and multiple federal agencies that point to a covert preparatory operation to completely lock down America in the very near future.

Sources from multiple locations across the nation have independently confirmed that the U.S. military are repositioning soldiers in conjunction with allied foreign troops in the initial stages of martial law.

The U.S. military are secretly moving massive amounts of “equipment” across the country consistently for more than a year. In Phoenix, Arizona, tractor-trailers transporting tanks on public highways have been spotted. One witness stated that he saw these flatbeds multiple times in the month of June. Eye witness reports are coming primarily from the northern and southern Border States.

Peter Santilli, an ex-marine informant who was a specialist in aviation deployed weapons, explains that a refrigerated truck, allocated by the administration department on base, was directed to the commissary, where the unsuspecting driver believed that he was transporting food.

The weapon was placed at the head of the trailer, and covered up with either food stores (like cans of soup) or body bags. In the event that the truck is stopped en route, the weapon would be well hidden and go undetected by inspectors on the public highways.

Santilli, who was assigned to ride in the cab of the truck with the driver, says that his orders were to make sure the truck arrived at its destination. If there were problems concerning potential civil unrest, he was to radio into his superiors for aid by either air or ground support. Should the situation warrant serious attention; crowd control methods would be implemented.

One possible scenario was the use of cluster bomb units (CBUs) that will emit upon detonation, a “sleep and kill” chemical weapon that will not disturb infrastructure, but is lethal to all living things within the effected zone. Santilli describes these particular 3 unit CBUs as shaped like water-heaters with a coned top and plunger-like device.

Once deployed in the air, a parachute assists these CBUs to the targeted area. And when detonated, a deadly chemical gas will kill every human and animal in the specified cordoned area.

The acquisition of armory by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and contracts for bullet-proof glass for check-point booths to be positioned strategically throughout the nation on public highways have heightened awareness that the U.S. government is preparing for a well-planned domestic military action. DHS armored vehicles have been sighted on highways in Kentucky.

When citizens attempt to capture the activity on film, some have their cameras confiscated; sometimes after a physical altercation.

On Google Maps, where known military bases were once visible, some strategic areas are now blurred out.

John (a pseudonym) was contracted by DHS to “fill in caves, mines and block trails”. Now these measures are being stepped up, as independent contractors are being brought to mountainous regions and told to block all entrances into the mountains, by way of caves and other areas where people could possibly “hide out in the hills” during a riot situation under declaration of martial law.

Residents in Pine Mountain, Georgia and Spruce Mountain, Nevada have had confrontations with U.S. armed forces. When travelling in public national forested areas, military police with “automatic weapons” say that locals cannot gather wood in surrounding forested spaces (as they have traditionally done for decades). One man in particular had his rifle forcibly confiscated by unidentified armed men.

On dirt roads leading to the Lassen National Forest reserve, paving is being laid over the gravel roads. The locals know that secret underground drilling or tunneling is being conducted. Whenever they enter the park, they are quickly escorted out by heavily armed and quite menacing persons. Even once abandoned logging roads are beginning to see activity again.

Information coming out of reserve units in Arizona is that they are being put on official alert. Military personnel are being told by superiors not to schedule vacations and prepare to be on-call and on-duty indefinitely. According to one informant, these new assignments are not providing for deployment overseas, but rather for domestic service with the intimation that these deployments may have relation to civil unrest expectations.

In Lake Havasu, Arizona, and Colorado Springs as well as Fort Collins, Colorado, locals are coming forth to report that local fires may have been lit by foreign troops; specifically Russian forces that have been spotted in the area. These Russian troops are believed to be stationed at Fort Carson, Colorado.

Military drills, a.k.a. urban warfare, have been played out in many states by the Pentagon and other branches of the U.S. armed forces.

Just this month, foreign troops were caught at a Wal-Mart . They were travelling in what were described as “large government vans”.

Law-enforcement battalions have been created out of Camp Pendleton, California, consisting of specialized military police (SMPs) that would be deployed to assist in any event of civil disturbance, handling of detainees, use biometrics to identify suspects and conduct forensic work. Their assistance is not limited to conducting DUIs and writing speeding tickets in an effort to re-brand the Marine Corps as being more involved with average work now allocated to local law enforcement.

Moving around in white, unmarked vans, strange troops have been seen purchasing food and water at another Wal-Mart in Franklin, Indiana. Parading in military personnel fatigues where drone activity has been reported in Oklahoma City and black helicopters were spotted hovering over a construction site.

According to documents from the RAND Corporation, a planned event concerning a Police Stabilization Force within the U.S. will be “a mix of military and police forces to deal with a range of threats.” ­The study explains:

• What the response should be

• The creation of a high-end police force

• Costs for this military/police collaborative force

Estimates are $637.3 million annually and including many federal agencies including: the U.S. Marshals Service, the U.S. Secret Service, the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) in the Department of State, and the U.S. Army’s Military Police.

There is a media blackout concerning the “state of emergency” (code for martial law) that Anaheim, California residents have been under since the murder of a man by local police.

While protests have been conducted, residents say that “outsiders” are infiltrating peaceful demonstrations to stir up violence and ensure local and military police action against them.

While city officials are gearing up for “another large incident” and “another riot” protesters are coming forth to voice their distain at the “infiltrators” that attended a protest that ended with the fatal shooting of two Latino men.

During protest marches in Anaheim, the white, unmarked vans have resurfaced. This time unidentified “police” detained protesters and placed them into these vans.

The increased activity across the nation in conjunction with the mounting citizen reports of seeing military on their streets, conducting urban warfare drills, and spotting foreign troops have prompted public interest in the U.S. government’s plans to enact a full-scale martial law in America – expected by the end of this year.

The more attention that is brought to these sightings and the more people come forward with information, the safer the American public will be. The U.S. military have orders to shoot and kill all dissenters.

They are being trained to confiscate guns and detain people in “internment” or FEMA camps. For the sake of continuity of government, they are being told to turn on their own fellow Americans.

Susanne Posel’s blog is Occupy Corporatism

by the El Reportero’s staff

Jerry García

San Francisco’s Mclaren Park will once again host the annual Jerry Day event Sunday August 5. Celebrating its 10th year, the event will be held at the Jerry Garcia Amphitheater, named after the late Grateful Dead guitarist, who grew up in the Excelsior District.

As has become tradition in recent years, the daytime music festival will be headlined by Melvin Seals and JGB. Seals, longtime keyboardist for Garcia’s solo band will be joined by an eclectic group of musicians who always gives the event a Garcia ‘feel,’ covering the guitarist’s songs both with a little funk and flair thrown in.

Jerry Day was founded in 2002, holding its first event at the McLaren Park Amphitheater in 2003. Soon after renamed the ‘Jerry Garcia Amphitheater,’ the venue continues to host the annual free event, which raises awareness for neighborhood art and culture and honors the late leader of the Grateful Dead.

Jerry day 2012, Sunday, Aug. 5, 2012, at Jerry Garcia Amphitheater / McLaren Park

45 John F. Shelley Drive – Excelsior District – San Francisco. Info: http://www.jerryday.org/.

Puerto Rican music lecture series: The Museum of the African Diaspora www.moadsf.org and SF JAZZ www.sfjazz.org present: Criolla y Sabrosa: La Música Puertorriqueña. an 8-week lecture series by John Santos at MOAD, The Museum of the African Diaspora, Wednesdays 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., Aug. 1 through Sept. 19, 2012. 685 Mission St. at Third Street, San Francisco. To register and for more info: http://www.ybgf.org/programs/specialprojects.php.

Afro-Latin Percussion Clinic/Workshop with John Santos

For more information email: info@opcmusic.org. The first part (1:00 to 1:45) is family-oriented and will consist of the demonstration and historical perspective of several percussive instruments including tumbadoras, bongos, timbales, maracas, claves, chekere and bell, as well as some basic ensemble rhythms to be played by all.

In the second part (2:00 to 3:30 p.m.) which is directed to more advanced students, Mr. Santos will conduct ensemble rhythms from Cuba and Puerto Rico and dig deeper into the technical aspects of playing the respective instruments. Bandleader, composer, percussionist and educator, John Santos is a five-time Grammy nominee with a career that spans 40 years. www.johnsantos.com.

Saturday, July 28, 2012, 1:00 p.m., Oakland Public Conservatory. 1616 Franklin Street at 17th Street, Oakland.

Nicaraguan celebrate Santo Domingo de Guzmán

You’re invited to meet us with religiousness and joy to celebrate the Patron of Managua on Sunday, July 29, at St Finn Barr Church. The Campesino mass is unique and very Nicaraguan, it will take place at 11:30 am, after the end of the mass, followed by the traditional procession toward the church dance salon to celebrate to the Patron of  the Poor, and of Managua, Santo Domingo de Guzman!

With nostalgia but with faith, we will carry, dance and sing together.

Let’s go all Managuans, the nicoyas, to dance and to fight bull the cow and celebrate the traditional festival brought to San Francisco.

­Celebrating 20th anniversary of La Peña del Sur

Singer and songwriter Natalia Contesse is in the United States showcasing her outstanding CD Puñado de Tierra.

Natalia mixes Chilean traditions such as the Cueca, Tonada and the guitarra campesina (folk guitar). Her singing and composing is inspired in the South American folkloric tradition. Rafael Manríquez has been one of the leading exponents of Latin American music in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Both singers are inspired by Victor Jara, Atahualpa Yupanqui, VioletaParra–as well as the struggles for social justice, peace, and respect for La Pachamama/ Mother Earth.

Friday July 27, 8 p.m. A.N.S.W.E.R., 2969 Mission St., between 25th and 26th Street,,San Francisco.