Carl Ratner, who just returned from a month's teaching at UNAM in Mexico
City, (he was giving a seminar for professors in the UNAM psychology
faculty), sent me this first hand account of the situation with the student
strikie in Mexico City that an acquaintance there sent him. I felt that
some people on xmca might be interested in this--another cultural tragedy
brewing a la Tlatelolco of 1968. Carl agreed to allow its use here.
> Dear Carl
> ĦAy Dios! Our university and our authorities are worst each day. I can not
> believe I'm living in this world. I feel very emotional, angry,
disapointed,
> impotent. I temporary left away some of my academic activities because I'm
> working actively with students' parents in jail. I'm accuding to some
> assambles to disscuse what we can do in front of the last happenings.
> Academics are so divided in ideollogical terms (as I told you before) that
> I'm not sure that things can be stopped, but I can not just sit down and
see
> such injustice so next to me and my students.
> As you surely know, authorities from the university left the negotiation
> table since december, they from they own side planned and executed the
> famous plebiscit in the time you were visiting us. They said that the
whole
> university community claimed the devolution of the university. They lied.
> And more, they did'nt ask if we think that this must be through a
> negotiation. Students continued asking for continuing the dialogue, they
> wanted the authorities to sit down again and negotiate the end of the
> conflict.
> Authorities, like perfect Makiavelos, prompted students and minnor
> authorities to irrupt into their schools and most of them obbeyed. Federal
> police just watched waiting for an excuse to intervene. But they did'nt
> expected that sudents from different ideologies in most of the schools
> started to talk and they by themselves were disscusing the best way to
> resolve the conflict. I think they were an example of tolerance.
> But that was not in the authorities agenda, so they sent some fighters to
a
> school who irrupted with violence into it when students were in a
> negotiation!. This fighters were university workers (some kind of internal
> police), and strangers who were contacted outside. They hit each other,
> police was waiting and finally only students and some teachers were sent
to
> jail. Next thursday I went to the Che Guevara audittory and I pressided an
> assamble whith almost 300 teachers from different schools. I felt very
> hopefull. We sent letters to the journal you saw in my car (La Jornada)
and
> it was published. Many people took me photograpies but I was not afraid, I
> only wanted our voice against violence to be listened. We get organized
and
> we had plans to assist to another assamble next wendsday. We coud'nt do it
> because the political militar police irrupted into the university campus
on
> Sunday, they first irrupted into the Che Guevara auditorium where students
> were into a discussion about the best way to stop the strike. All of them
> were sent to prision, almost 1000 people. I coud'nt stop crying this
sunday,
> I felt very affected.
> Let me tell you how this happened: The same thursday when we were
finishing
> our work in the Che Guevara, the rector convoqued students in strike, as
an
> ultimaum, to a meeting with him and some others authorities. He said that
he
> only wanted to disscuse the inmediat end of the srike. Students did'nt
> wanted to go, they only wanted their parterns out of jail, but they
decided
> to go.
> They flexibilize their petitions, both parts decided to start negotiations
> into the university campus that could get to the end in short time. They
> selected comissions to write down the accords, and the ones who
represented
> the athorities changed de accords and demanded to inmediatly stop the
strike
> without negotiations. Students coud'nt decide this so, on sunday they were
> captured.
Paul H. Dillon
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