|
|
 |
|
 |
 |
| ISLAND SHOWDOWN | |
 May 3, 2000 
|
||
|
|
Activists on Vieques are protesting the Navy's use of the island off the coast of Puerto Rico for bombing exercises. Following a background report, Ray Saurez leads a discussion with two members of Congress.
|
|
RAY SUAREZ: What appears at first glance to be an island paradise is
actually one of the US Navy's most
RAY SUAREZ: The island was first taken over by the US Navy in 1941. Since then, the 9,000 residents of Vieques have been sandwiched between a western zone of stored weapons and the eastern staging grounds for bombing, shelling and mock invasions.
RAY SUAREZ: The eastern tip of Vieques is littered with bombs, destroyed
targets and unexploded munitions. The long-simmering debate was reignited
last year, when two Marine F-18s on a night mission accidentally bombed
a
RAY SUAREZ: But to date, protesters are still occupying the island, blocking the president's directive to allow the Navy to resume limited training pending the referendum. And a showdown between federal agents and demonstrators seems inevitable.
|
 |
|||||||||||||||
| The fate of the protesters | |||||||||||||||||
|
RAY SUAREZ: We're joined now by two members of Congress: Jose Serrano, Democrat from New York; and Carlos Romero-Barcelo, the nonvoting delegate to the US House from Puerto Rico, and a former two-term governor of the island. Gentlemen, welcome to you both. Governor Romero-Barcelo, what would you like to see happen to the protesters on the beach? Should they be moved or left where they are? DEL. CARLOS ROMERO-BARCELO, (D) Puerto RAY SUAREZ: Have you been given any indication whether federal agents plan to make arrests, clear the beach? DEL. CARLOS ROMERO-BARCELO: Yes, we understand that they are preparing to make arrests, to evict the people from the beach. Whether they will make arrests and make any charges, file any charges, that we do not know. That's a decision that the Department of Justice will have to make. And my feeling is that, if they do make any arrests and people are charged with anything, they should be let free on their own recognizance and they should not be... people should not be put on bail. They should be allowed to go free on their own recognizance. RAY SUAREZ: Congressman Serrano, what would you like to see happen? REP. JOSE SERRANO, (D) New York: Well, we would And secondly, we asked the President, and we collected today over 50 signatures of members of Congress asking the President, again, to reverse the process, not to confront the people at this point, to understand the emotions involved, to hold a referendum first. And then whatever the referendum tells us, then act accordingly to that. But we oppose the bombing, we oppose all actions on Vieques, and we feel that Vieques has been used in this improper way for much too long and that the Navy has not been a good neighbor. The Navy made agreements in 1983 with then Governor Romero-Barcelo and it didn't live up to them, and now a lot of people are just concerned that the Navy won't live up to any commitments again. |
 |
||||||||||||||||
| The people of Vieques | |||||||||||||||||
|
RAY SUAREZ: Well, now, he's your colleague in the House. You just heard him endorse the plan that was announced in February, and...
RAY SUAREZ: Congressman Serrano, do you agree that it's the protesters on the beach now that are unraveling a deal worked out with great pains earlier this year? REP. JOSE SERRANO: No, I don't think so. The protest, I think it's
unfair to characterize them as people who don't want to go along with
any program. They are a representation of a people who have suffered
a long time. The fact of life is that the status issue in Puerto Rico
is the one at the center of this. If Puerto Rico was an DEL. CARLOS ROMERO-BARCELO: The only thing that I have to add to that is precisely that, even if the referendum were held now, Barrios would still want to stay over there, and there still be protesting and so it wouldn't gain anything. As I said, referendum would be the best thing because what we do want
to know is what the people of Vieques want, and I'm convinced that the
people of Vieques feel that the agreement is a good agreement and that
in less than... in three years, everything will be over and at the same
time the bombing with bombs that do not explode We've had 60 years with exploding bombs, so three years with not exploding bombs is easy and for much less time than it was before. And the island will not be rented out for shooting practice to foreign nations, as it had been before. That's one of the things that really made people very, very angry when they found out. |
 |
||||||||||||||||
| Politics and national security interests | |||||||||||||||||
|
RAY SUAREZ: Well, both of you, as members of the US House, are in effect part of your job is to be stewards of the national security. When you hear the Navy say they really need this place, that they can do kinds of operations there that they can't do anywhere else, Congressman Serrano, how do you respond? REP. JOSE SERRANO: I don't believe it. I've been in public office 26 years in our country, I've been in Congress ten years, and I understand and respect the position that the military takes on every issue. The military's job is always to say that what they do, they can't do anywhere else. I mean they are trained to say, "we can't do this any other way. This is the way we do it." And even when they have to change, their role is always to say, "it's difficult to change because we've been doing this it this way for a long time."
So we have to understand how bad the relationship is. And since you can't solve question one right now, which is the status question, to give Puerto Rico some dignity in its dealings with the United States, then let's solve question two, which is: Get the Navy to practice somewhere else. RAY SUAREZ: Now, Governor you, and Jose Serrano differ on the status question. But I think you agree with him, don't you, that it is... DEL. CARLOS ROMERO-BARCELO: I don't think we differ on the status question. REP. JOSE SERRANO: We differ. I'm the leader of a new movement in Puerto Rico and in New York, which is anything but the status quo. In other words, independence is fine with me. Statehood is fine. The colony is unacceptable. DEL. CARLOS ROMERO-BARCELO: And that we agree. RAY SUAREZ: But do you agree with the analysis that it's Puerto Rico's sort of in between status that makes this possible? DEL. CARLOS ROMERO-BARCELO: Oh, definitely. There's no doubt that this situation... if we had two Senators, this wouldn't happening. As Jose said, if I were a... Senator I would stop the Senate every single day until this thing were solved; I'd be filibustering every single day. REP. JOSE SERRANO: And if he was president of the republic, he would have never signed that agreement. DEL. CARLOS ROMERO-BARCELO: The Navy has RAY SUAREZ: But why doesn't Congressman Serrano's time line get you to that end that you both agree has to come a little sooner? DEL. CARLOS ROMERO-BARCELO: Well, I think that the Navy has asked once... The three years they convinced the president for three years under the conditions that this... no live bombings were going to be used, so we feel that it's a very, very reasonable conclusion. And the only thing that keeps us apart right now is the fact that he would like the referendum right now. I would like it, too, but I feel that a solution has been reached, an agreement has been reached -- to try to turn that thing back will just create additional problems. We're having enough problems with the ones that don't want this agreement to be put in place because they want the Navy to keep on shooting and bombing with real ammunition, with live ammunition. REP. JOSE SERRANO: I think the main difference here is that Carlos believes, and I respect him, that there was an agreement. I believe that when a place is a colony, a territory is a colony, there's never an agreement. There's a mandate. And what we had was President Clinton, basically my friend President Clinton basically say, "here's what it is. Take it." And so the governor took the so-called agreement. But it was a mandate, and a true agreement should be 60 years is enough. Why don't we try this on Martha's Vineyard or somewhere else and see how long this will last. RAY SUAREZ: Jose Serrano, Carlos Romero-Barcelo, thank you, gentlemen. |
 |
||||||||||||||||
| |||||
 | |||||
| |||||
|
|
| |||
| |||||
| |||||
| Support the kind of journalism done by the NewsHour...Become a member of your local PBS station. | |||||
controversial
training grounds. Vieques is a 20-mile-long island just off the American
commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Vieques is home to a naval station that
serves Navy and Marine battle groups. They train on the island and in
the open waters around it. The navy says this is the only place near
the eastern US where it can hold live-fire exercises. 
ADM.
BOB FALLON, US Navy: We've been very successful to date with the training
programs centered on Vieques. We think it's essential that we keep these
in place. 
RUTH
ROSA, Vieques Resident: They destroy our fish. They destroy the land.
They destroy everything with the shooting and bombing. 
range
observation post on the island, killing a Puerto Rican civilian security
guard and wounding four other civilian workers. It was the first civilian
loss in the Navy's 58 years on Vieques. Since the accident, dozens of
civilian protesters have occupied the base. They are no longer demanding
changes in the relationship between the armed forces and the island:
They want the US Navy to leave. In January, in an attempt to resolve
the situation in Vieques, the Clinton administration, after intense
discussions with the governor of Puerto Rico, fostered an agreement.
The proposal calls for a referendum to take place between now and 2002.
It would give islanders a choice: Let the Navy resume use of the range
on the Navy's terms, including the use of live bombs; or require the
Navy to cease all training by May 1, 2003. If the islanders vote to
terminate, the Defense 
Department
must relinquish rights to the island within one year of the referendum.
If they choose the option of continued training, the Clinton administration
will request congressional funding to provide an additional $50 million
for the enhancement of the area. In addition, during the period leading
up to the vote, the Navy will cut in half the time spent on exercises
and only use inert bombs. Yesterday, the Defense Department restated
its need for live ordinance-- live-fire training. 
ADM.
CRAIG QUIGLEY, US Navy: There is value in using live ordinance because
of the added tension that it gives to the military forces that are involved.
There's that feeling of authenticity and the realism that, "hey,
this is real." And there's an incredible stress that's put on military
forces when they are engaged in combat. And we try to train as realistically
as we can to replicate the actual conditions as well as we can that
are found in combat.
ROBERT
RABIN, Protest Organizer: There is absolutely no intention on the part
of anyone in any of the civil disobedience groups to resist violently
in any way. 
Rico:
Well, I think they should be moved because that's the only way that
the agreement can be implemented, and the agreement is the best thing
for Vieques, for Puerto Rico and for everyone concerned. I think it
allows for the bombing only with inert bombs for just three years, and
then only for maximum of 90 days per year. And then after, that the
Navy will be out and the people will get the land back in the West and
the land in the East will be distributed according to federal law. 
like the process to be reversed. We'd like the referendum to be held
first, put off any arrests for now, avoid any confrontation. This is
an issue that's been going on for over 60 years, and it's an issue that
has hurt Vieques and hurts most Puerto Ricans. In New York, where we
have the largest Puerto Rican community outside Puerto Rico, there was
a very important meeting yesterday of Puerto Rican elected officials.
We sent a delegation of three members, elected officials to Puerto Rico
to show our support for the people there. 
DEL.
CARLOS ROMERO-BARCELO: There's not much disagreement between what my
colleague says and I. The only thing is that I've been dealing with
this now for 25 years, since I was governor. And I think the decision
is a very good decision. And what happened is I suggested a referendum.
I was the first one to suggest a referendum. But you know who objected?
The people who are now protesting, the vast majority of those who are
protesting, particularly, Barrios, the president of the independence
party. And they only represent 4% of the population. And they don't
really want a solution. They want a confrontation. They want something...
They would hope that something would happen tomorrow. And I hope it
doesn't, and I think that if the people keep their word saying that
they are peaceful resistance only, then there should not be any problems.
And they refused... they didn't want any referendum. So even if the
referendum were held, as my colleague says-- and I think that would
be the best way-- but even if it's held now, the protesters will not
accept it. So there will still have to be... they will have to be evicted,
so you might as well do it now than delay this whole process. 
independent
nation, no president would assign a treaty which allows an inhabitant
island to be bombed. If Puerto Rico was the 51st state of the union,
two Senators already -- maybe one to my right here -- would have stopped
this from happening a long time ago. But in the meantime, what you do
have is people like Senator Barrios who gave up his senatorial seat
to be on that beach for over a year saying this is not right; this is
unfair fair. And, granted, some of the protesters are for independence,
but the fact that you support independence doesn't mean that the course
you take is not correct. We in New York-- there are people who are for
statehood, for independence, for the status quo-- and yet we are supportive
of ending this and we were joined yesterday by First Lady Hillary Clinton
who asked for the referendum to be held immediately so that we can get
to understand what it is that the people in Vieques want. And this way,
no one can debate what the outcome would be. 
will
not even be heard eight miles away from the point of impact. There will
be no vibrations from the explosion of bombs, there will be no heavy
contamination by the explosion of bombs. Fishermen will be paid for
the days that they do not fish. Their lands will be returned, the lands
in the West will be returned back. $40 million in programs will start
to be put into place. So it will be the best thing. Peace will come
to Vieques if the protesters leave, and I hope they will do it peacefully
when they are asked to leave. It will be the best thing for Vieques,
it will be the best thing for Puerto Rico. It will be the best thing
for everyone involved. And as I said, three years will pass by. 
been
a bad neighbor, and they have acknowledged that. They have done... They
have violated every agreement that we signed, and they have... Now they
want to continue, and they have no credibility in this... at this moment.
And the simulators that have been developed nowadays are just as good
as the realities. With the simulators, they can do everything that they're
doing right now. But even if they couldn't do it with the simulators,
I think 60 years, the bombing and tropical island paradise with people
living nearby, a few miles away, it's just got to end. It's not the
right thing to do, particularly in peacetime. I think people in Vieques
have suffered enough. 
