Human Rights in Nicaragua - Vicente Padilla Case

A Padilla Update!

2008-02-25T11:24:00.000-08:00

Vicente Padilla and his wife Carmen traveled to Managua in early February. He updated the community on the status of his fight to maintain ownership of his farm.

Now, a brief update on the Vicente Padilla case:

This year Vicente was able to harvest his coffee and use money to pay off farm debts.
He has become very active in local groups including: CPC representative, Representative of La Comissíón de Derrechos Humanos en Matagalpa, Community Council for Yasica Sur and San Ramón. Probably because of this work, he has gained respect in the community and holds a better relationship with the police force. When the police stopped by recently, they actually asked for permission to enter his property--a favor they have not bothered to pay him in the past.

However, he has been unable to sell coffee at organic prices due to an error committed by Bio Latina certification company.

The error has been described by Vicente as follows: 1)State St. filed a complaint against Vicente claiming his coffee was not organic, and thus that they did not interfere with the production of "organic" coffee as claimed by Vicente. 2)Without even visiting to investigate, Bio Latina issued a ruling against Vicente, revoking his organic certification for 2006-2007.

An official with Bio Latina has personally and verbally recognized his error and committed to reinstating Vicente's certification this year. No paperwork has come through yet, and we will continue to follow developments in this issue to hold Bio Latina accountable to their commitment. We will also make sure that once the organic license is reinstated, State Street Coffee makes note of that on their website where they currently have posted a notice of Padilla's (incorrect) non-organic status.

In solidarity,
The Political Action Group

If you would like to help Vicente and his family in their struggle, please send a message to the blog operator at presente87@gmail.com

organizing in Matagalpa

2006-10-10T11:05:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday Vicente Padilla (the campesino, not the baseball player) came in to Managua and gave me an update on what he's been up to lately.

As you may have read in some of the updates sent out (or, if you haven't, you can catch up at vicentepadilla.blogspot.com), the last three months of relative quiet at Vicente's farm were broken two weeks ago when McEwan sent fifty workers, accompanied by armed private guards, on to Vicente's land. The workers were all carrying machetes in their picking baskets, which they wouldn't normally need for the work they were ostensibly there to do, thus making it likely they were sent there to start a conflict. Vicente talked with the workers and eventually convinced them to leave his farm.

Meanwhile, Vicente has been very busy working in communities around San Ramon to organize other campesinos with land tenure problems to work together defend their land and human rights. With the help of members of the Managua Movimiento Comunal Nicaraguense and the Procuraduria de Derechos Humanos, they started a Human Rights Commission of the Department of Matagalpa. Last August, they organized a demonstration at the Matagalpa courthouse to protest police and judicial partiality for wealthy landowners in land cases, which was attended by over 100 campesinos and members of the Matagalpa indigenous community. The turnout is particularly impressive given that some attendees walked for over two hours to get there and participate.

The Commission is composed of people affected by land tenure issues and includes ex-Contras as well as Sandinista army veterans like Vicente. So far they've identified 22 problematic land cases in their communities. Members of the commission have accompanied Vicente in his trips to the San Ramon police station and to the Matagalpa courthouse. Likewise, Vicente has been sharing his own experiences with them and giving advice on avoiding violence in land disputes by non-violent methods such as using cameras to document land incursions.

Recently, they have begun to work with the communities of Santa Ana and San Antonio de Upa, both in Yasica Sur. These communities are made up of ex-Contra families living in extreme poverty and facing land disputes with neighboring landowners. Working together, they have already had one success in their activities. When the local landowner put up a fence blocking the road (and therefore bus access) to San Antonio de Upa, Vicente and other commission members came to photograph and document the fence with the intention of denoucing it to local authorities and human rights NGOs. The fence was taken down the next day, before they even got the chance to do so.

While very distressed at the possibility of new violence at his family farm, Vicente is feeling energized by cooperating with other people afflicted by the same problems he has faced for the last five years. He also expressed a couple of needs, for which he is hoping for assistance from international community. First, he would like advice on fundraising for the organizing other activities of the human rights commission. He would also like accompaniment at his farm in Yasica Sur, either from individuals or delegations. If you would be willing to help with either, you can contact us at casabenlinder@gmail.com.

Continuing the struggle

2006-10-05T15:52:00.000-07:00

The courage of the Padilla family has been inspiring. The past few months have been dramatic with both big disappointments and exciting developments:

* In May, McEwan's armed private guards visited the Padilla family home yet again and fired shots at the house. Fortunately, no one was harmed in the attack.
* In June, the Nicaraguan Human Rights Ombudsman issued a resolution condemning the actions of the Matagalpa police in the December 2005 raid on the Padilla farm in which Vicente and his two oldest sons were beaten and jailed and the Padilla family's entire coffee crop for the year was stolen.
* Supporters have contacted ethical investment fund Ceres with our concerns regarding their inclusion of State Street Coffee as a Ceres member company. Supporters living in the US continue to meet with Ceres representatives to share information about State Street Coffee actions in the Padilla case.
* In July, Vicente received notification that a Matagalpa district judge had ruled against him in his case, awarding his farm to McEwan and State Street Coffee and ordering him to vacate his land. Vicente and his lawyer immediately appealed the decision, which cancelled the eviction order until the case is decided in the higher courts. Vicente hopes to take his case, which he and many other campesinos see as a potential precedent-setter, as far as the Nicarguan Supreme Court. Though the ruling is distressing to Vicente and his supporters, it is probably better that the case is no longer in the hands of the Matagalpa judge assigned to the case, as she has been accused numerous times of partiality in land disputes involving campesinos and wealthy landowners.
* In August, over 100 campesinos from the Padillas' community of Yasica Sur marched on the Matagalpa courthouse to protest police partiality and judicial corruption in land disputes involving campesinos. Participants in the march, many of whom face property disputes of their own, walked up to two and a half hours each way to attend the march and show their support for the Padilla family.

Supporters of the Padilla family, both Nicaraguan and international, continue to accompany the Padilla family in their effort to hold onto their land and lead peaceful lives. We have been supporting them as they face the on-going harassment from Esteban McEwan, the large land-holder and coffee producer who is trying to claim ownership of their seven-acre property, and US-based State Street Coffee, which owns McEwan's coffee plantation. Across Nicaragua, many campesinos are losing their claims to the lands they have been living on and working since the eighties. We believe that the Padilla family's fight could serve as a precedent to slow down this trend.

What can you do?
• Contribute toward our $300 per month pledge to support the family. E-mail us at casabenlinder@gmail.com for further information or visit www.casabenlinder.org/donate
• Educate yourself and others about the Padilla family's situation so that if we decide to take action against State Street Coffee in the United States, you can participate.

El Nuevo Diario Article on Padilla situation

2006-08-04T08:49:00.000-07:00

The Nicaraguan newspaper El Nuevo Diario published a story on Vicente's case last Wednesday, August 2nd. You can read the article (in Spanish) here.

Nicaraguan Human Rights Ombudsman Resolution Finds Significant Human Rights Violations in Padilla Case

2006-06-29T12:28:00.000-07:00

In a resolution issued this June, the Nicaraguan Ombudsman for the Defense of Human Rights condemns the actions of the Matagalpa Police Department in their December 2005 raid on the Padilla family property, finding that the Matagalpa Police Department actions violated the Padilla family's human rights, specifically their rights to physical and psychological integrity, individual liberty, due process, and judicial security. The resolution calls for members of the Matagalpa police department to face criminal charges for their role in the raid, in which organic coffee farmer and human rights activist Vicente Padilla was beaten unconscious and suffered a broken rib at the hands of Matagalpa riot police driven to Padilla's property by wealthy landowner Jose Esteban McEwan Callejas.

Esteban McEwan and Vicente Padilla have been involved in a property dispute since 2001, when McEwan first tried to take over Padilla's small, organic coffee farm where he has lived with his family for the past thirteen years. The dispute has been characterized by intimidation, extra-judicial violence, and accusations of police and judicial corruption on the part of McEwan and his employer, State Street Coffee, against the Padilla family and their supporters.

On December 29, 2005, the Matagalpa department, acting at McEwan's behest, sent a group of Matagalpa police officers and riot police to the Padilla family property in McEwan's private vehicle. In the ensuing raid, Padilla and his two eldest sons were severely beaten by police officers and arrested, and Vicente was held for two days before being released without any charges against him.

The resolution finds that the police actions in the December 29 incident were illegal and violated the Padilla family's human rights. Though representatives of the National Police gave conflicting reasons as to why the raid took place, the action was unjustified, as neither a search warrant nor arrest warrant against Padilla had been issued. Furthermore, the police brutality against the Padilla family was unprovoked and excessive, for which the offending police officers should be charged criminally. Finally, the arrest and detention of Padilla and his sons violated their right to due process and Judicial security.

The resolution also criticizes the Matagalpa police for allowing a private citizen [McEwan] to influence police investigations and activities and for using McEwan's vehicle to execute a police action in a dispute in which he is involved.

The resolution is the result of a six-month investigation by the Ombudsman's office in consultation with the Padilla family and the Matagalpa police department. The document is a significant development because it represents an objective, third-party confirmation of the police brutality and the role played in the episode by State Street Coffee employee Jose Esteban McEwan.

For more information on the Ombudsman resolution, please contact the Casa Ben Linder at casabenlinder@gmail.com.

Security situation continues to deteriorate in San Ramon

2006-06-07T09:33:00.000-07:00

This morning Vicente called to report that at 6:30 am this morning a group of McEwan's workers accompanied by four armed private guards came to his land to threaten him. While they were on his land, they fired 20 shots. Vicente took photos of the men and collected the spent cartridges to present as evidence of McEwan's aggression to the San Ramon police department. However, he has been to the San Ramon police department many times before to accuse McEwan of sending men to threaten his family but has found local police unresponsive to his concerns.

In the past month these raids have become increasingly frequent and Vicente continues to fear for his life and that of his family. That McEwan's men are able to raid Vicente's land and threaten his family with total impunity is evidence of the partiality of the local police and the breakdown of law and order in the Matagalpa province.

Vicente Padilla meeting with Father Miguel D'Escoto

2006-06-02T07:35:00.000-07:00

Vicente Padilla meeting with Father Miguel D'Escoto
Originally uploaded by graceecary.

On May 26, 2006, Vicente met with Padre Miguel to discuss his case.

The Padilla Family at home

2006-05-31T09:55:00.000-07:00

pronica photos 001
Originally uploaded by graceecary.

Update on the Padilla case

2006-05-30T13:13:00.000-07:00

Since March, the Padilla family has been through further ups and downs as they continue their fight for justice against the violence and corruption of Nicaraguan coffee barons Jose Esteban McEwan and Victor Yanovich.

On March 24, Jose Esteban McEwan was found "not guilty" of property damages against the Padilla family that occurred last September. This was an appeal of an earlier decision, which you can read about below in "Setback for Vicente." In the previous trial, Matagalpa policeman Rafael Garcia recanted his earlier testimony and testified that he had seen no damage to the Padilla family's land. At the prosecution's urging Judge Maribel Parilla visited the Padilla farm and reluctantly agreed that damage had occurred. However, the Judge found McEwan "not guilty" anyway.

The March 24 appeal proved little different. Matagalpa District Judge Frank Rodriguez entered and read a prepared ruling absolving McEwan of any wrongdoing. This is not too suprising, given that a few days earlier a press conference was held at CENIDH (Nicaraguan Center for Human Rights) denouncing Judge Rodriguez's connections with defendant Jose Esteban McEwan. McEwan's defense attorney, Alvaro Jose Ruiz Cerras, serves as Judge Rodriguez's auxiliary judge.

In April, a Nicaraguan human rights activist who has been an active supporter of Vicente Padilla's case received a threatening phone call from Managua law firm Taboada and Associates urging him to cease his involvement in the case. Taboada and Associates has also sent threatening letters to various Nicaraguan and US human rights activists. However, their actions have only resulted in strenghtening resolve to keep fighting for justice for the Padilla family.

Also in April, McEwan's private armed guards visited the farm twice to threaten and harass the family. Though Vicente has make formal accusations against McEwan for these actions at the San Ramon police station, he has found the police uncooperative and unwilling to take on McEwan.

Vicente has told us that he fears that one of these encounters could result in the loss of his life but he continues his nonviolent struggle with great courage.

There have also been many exciting positive developments in the case:

The Padilla´s civil court case to determine final ownership of the land has been incorporated into a much larger suit on behalf of the indigenous people of the area. As a member of the Matagalpa indigenous community, Vicente identifies with their quest for historical justice. More information on the history of land tenure among the Matagalpa indigenous community will be posted later.

Vicente Padilla and his supporters in Managua have had many positive meetings with Nicaraguan government and human rights officials in an attempt to call attention to his plight and accumulate support.

In May, supporters met with Sixto Ulloa, head of citizen participation at the Nicaragua Human Rights Ombudsman, to discuss the involvement of Nicaraguan human rights organizations in the Padilla case and urge further action on the part of the office of the Human Rights Ombudsman. Currently the Human Rights Ombudsman is investigating allegations of police brutality against Vicente and his sons as well as complaints about child labor at McEwan's Santa Emilia Estates.

Vicente also met with Padre Miguel d'Escoto, the former Nicaraguan foreign minister who is an influential moral voice in Nicaraguan politics. Padre Miguel listened to Vicente's story and offered to do what he can to help.

Solidarity around the Padilla family continues to grow around the world. More and more people are becoming involved in the case in Nicaragua and in the United States, where State Street Coffee, which owns 80 percent of McEwan's Santa Emilia Estates, is based.

Urgent Appeal by the Ecumenical Committee and the Casa Ben Linder

2006-03-15T13:55:00.000-08:00

The Ecumenical Committee (EC) is a grass-roots, volunteer-based organization of about 75 members, representing approximately 30 different organizations. With an active Board of Directors, the EC oversees the activities of Casa Benjamin Linder in Managua, Nicaragua. This is the link through which many first language English-speakers stay connected to the solidarity movement in Nicaragua. Members organize a broad range of activities including educational presentations and activities that support international solidarity work with Nicaraguan social justice organizations and that pressure the US government to change policies that adversely affect the poor and marginalized.

Many of you are concerned with the poverty and difficulties that exist here in Nicaragua. We all have had the experience of seeing the pain and injustices but not knowing what we can do. Below is a situation of injustice where you can do something very concrete to help.

The Ecumenical Committee invites you to become part of a nonviolent campaign to secure justice for the Padilla family.

Vicente Padilla, his wife Carmen, and their five children farm a small plot of land about three hours north of Managua. Fourteen years ago they bought the land with hard-earned money and started an organic farm. All went well until 5 years ago when a wealthy landowner returned from the United States and decided that, even though he had been paid for this land in the mid-'90’s, he wanted his land back including the small parcel owned by the Padilla family. Since Vicente Padilla has papers and a court order verifying his ownership, this wealthy landowner has used intimidation and violence to get the Padilla family off the land.

This is one of thousands of similar situations in Nicaragua today in which poor farmers have found themselves fighting costly court cases, threatened and even killed trying to preserve their land. Since the 80’s much of the land in Nicaragua both rural and urban is in dispute and there are cases of bribery to judges and police. Many neighbors have been helping and are watching the Padilla case since he is a community leader who has taken a stand and they know if he fails they, too, will lose their land. (For further information read further down and visit www.casabenlinder.org)

Over the past few years the Ecumenical Committee has gotten to know the Padilla family. We are moved by their commitment to nonviolence even in the face of beatings and the recent stealing of their entire coffee crop, leaving the family without an income. Together with Nicaraguan organizations, we are accompanying the family as a way to encourage them, try to protect them from physical harm, and let the wealthy landowner and the courts and police know that others are watching.

And here is where you come in!

One of their main concerns right now are monetary needs: for the living expenses of the Padilla family and two other families who live on the land, for legal costs, to repay the loan from the coffee cooperative incurred because of the crop theft.

The Ecumenical Committee wants to raise:

$300.00 per month for living expenses of the three families
$150.00 per month for legal costs, transportation, copying/filing fees, etc.
$900.00 to repay the loan

We are particularly contacting delegations that have recently been to Nicaragua, know the situation and might be interested in being a part of the “accompaniment” team of the Ecumenical Committee. There are about 10 such delegations. However, we also welcome individual donations. This is one real way that you can fight for social justice here in Nicaragua.

It would be an amazing help to the family if your group or congregation were able to raise a total of $360
$ 90.00 towards the loan repayment
$270.00 for living expenses and legal costs ($45 per month for 6 months)

Your group or congregation will become part of the accompaniment team and we will keep you informed of what is happening.

If you find it in your hearts to become part of the accompaniment team, please contact me at casabenlinder@gmail.com attn: Penn, so we can figure out the best way of arranging your financial assistance. On behalf of the Ecumenical Committee and the Padilla family, I’d like to thank you in advance for even considering this proposal. More than the money, just knowing that there are people who have never met the family but care is very important to the Padillas. If you would like, next time you’re in Nicaragua we’ll make sure you meet them and perhaps even visit their land!

With sincere appreciation,
Ms Penn Garvin
President of the Board of Directors
Ecumenical Committee/ Casa Benjamin Linder

US Students Visit the Padillas

2006-02-23T05:22:00.000-08:00

Right now medical students from Wayne State University in Michigan are staying in Vicente's community and providing medical care to people of the area.

In mid-March a group of law students from Saint Louis University will visit the Padilla family at their farm in Matagalpa after meeting with other Padilla supporters in Managua. As law students, they are particularly interested in learning more about the case. We hope that enough interest will be generated to strengthen the support the family has and to spread the word about the injustices being committed against this peasant family.

In mid-February, students from Xavier University in Ohio also met with Vicente and accompanied him at the trial in San Ramon.

If your group is interested in meeting with Vicente or staying in his community, please contact Lillian Hall (friends@ibw.com.ni)

Vicente Visits the National Assembly

2006-02-21T06:39:00.000-08:00

On Thursday, February 16th, Vicente and 22 supporters and human rights activists from the US, Canada, and Nicaragua, visited the National Assembly to speak with the Human Rights and Agrarian commssions. After waiting nearly three hours because the deputies were in a plenary session, Vicente and a handful of the activists were allowed to speak with them. Miguel, a Nicaraguan law student who has recently gotten involved in the case, gave a clear and concise summary of the situation. Then Vicente, in his calm and dignified manner, gave an eloquent testimony about the way this case has affected his life and the life of his family. He also focused on the way he was brutalized by the TAPIR special forces brought to the farm in the private vehicles of McEwan on December 29th, 2005. He still bears the mark of these beatings on his forehead.

He also emphasized that he feels his life is in danger and that should anything happen to him, his wife or children, the person responsible is José Esteban McEwan.

Several of the deputies showed interest in pursuing the issue and encouraged Vicente to submit a formal complaint to the human rights commission. They also said they would bring the issue up at their inter-institutional meeting with army and police to discuss the issue of police brutality.

Vicente also pointed out to the deputies that this was his second visit to the National Assembly since the problem began and that the last human rights commission did little to help.

We hope that this time the human rights commission will help and we will follow-up with them, so that they don't put his case in a drawer like they seem to have done last time.

Setback for Vicente: Judge dismisses property damages despite abundant evidence

2006-02-21T06:12:00.000-08:00

On Friday, February 17th, the final decision was to be made regarding property damages on Vicente's land. On September 13th, workers of Santa Emilia Estates, owned by José Esteban McEwan and Victor Yanovich, invaded the 3 manzanas of land in dispute, ripping out fence posts, cutting and stealing the barbed wire fencing, and cutting down banana plants.

For this final decision, McEwan appeared in the San Ramon couthouse escorted by his armed guards and this time accompanied by truckloads of farmworkers from other farms his family owns. These workers, carrying signs saying "Abajo los cheles" ("down with the foreigners"), ironically are unaware that 80% of Santa Emilia Estates is owned by a US citizen, Victor Yanovich. Vicente spoke with some of them and they did not even know why they were brought there and showed surprise that it was a property dispute in which McEwan was taking land from a poor peasant like themselves.

Vicente was supported by some human rights activists from Managua and a few people from his community. Since it is an expense to transport people from the community to San Ramon, Vicente did not have many people from La Grecia there. In retrospect, he feels this was a good thing, since he suspects McEwan had hoped to create a confrontation between his workers and Vicente's supporters.

During the trial Matagalpa policeman Rafael García was called to testify. García had been the policeman sent to the farm to verify the damages after the Sept. 13th incident. During his testimony his legs were bouncing up and down as he would glance over at McEwan and his armed bodyguards. García testified that he had not seen any damages despite the fact that he had months before inspected the property and written up an assetment that indeed there were damages. His contradiction in his verbal testimony and his written and signed inspection report did not seem to interest the judge Maribel Parrilla.

After this obvious perjury, the prosecutor insisted that the judge visit the farm to see for herself. While she apparently did not want to go, in the end she did. The judge, lawyers, and Vicente were accompanied in the site inspection by journalists from Channels 2 and 8 (TV), radio stations Radio Vos and Radio Corporación, and the newspaper La Prensa. The judge and all the journalists saw the damages. The judge reluctantly signed a document stating that there were damages, but upon arriving in San Ramon after the inspection found McEwan and his workers "not guilty."

According to witnesses judge Parrilla made a comment to the effect that while that was her verdict, higher authorities might disagree.

Vicente's analysis is that the judge lacked the courage to find a large landowner, such as McEwan, guilty of a crime despite abundant evidence. She knew that Vicente can appeal the verdict, which he intends to. She, quite simply, passed the buck.

Getting involved

2006-02-06T13:31:00.000-08:00

There are a few ways to get involved. If you are in Nicaragua, or are planning to be, and would like to stay with the Padilla family on their farm, please contact me at msgracecary@comcast.net. Vicente and his family feel more protected when accompanied and it shows McEwan the support which Vicente has.

Currently there is a major need for economic support for Vicente's family and the two peasant families helping them on the farm. Since McEwan's workers came in on Dec. 29th and 30th and took all the coffee berries on the disputed part of the property, Vicente has lost all of that income; money he counted on for the upcoming year.

Therefore, he is in need on financial support to pay his lawyer, to send his children to school, to travel from the farm to Matagalpa and Managua to meet with human rights activists, journalists, and lawyers, and money just to work the farm. We feel that this amount comes to about $ 300 dollars per month.

Any contribution, no matter how small, is urgently needed and gratefully accepted.

To make a financial contribution, 100% of which will go directly to the family, please send a check to Lillian Hall. Please earmark the check: Vicente Padilla case.

Lillian Hall
AP. 5391
Managua
Nicaragua

Community Solidarity in La Grecia

2006-01-25T11:05:00.000-08:00

There have been many examples in the past few weeks of the community of La Grecia coming together in solidarity. The trial of December 13th was very significant in this way. Also, a large community gathering at the Padilla´s house a few nights after the hearing was a very powerful. The event was religious, with one man reading passages from the Bible, and a group of musicians playing as others sang. (see pictures)

I was told It was the first time in years the community had come together, for fear of upsetting the landlord (McEwan). Most of the Campesinos do not own their land, they do not have formal title as Vicente does. The members of the community fear that if Vicente loses the case, their small farms and homes will be next. It is commonly believed that Vicente´s property was ¨attacked¨first because he is the community leader. If his land is under the control of McEwan, the land of his neighbors will be easier to obtain.

Also, a series of Human Rights workshops have been taking place in the community. The first was for adults and youth of La Grecia and San Ramon. The second two were smaller and included only the youth of the community of La Grecia, children from ages 10-20. It was inspiring to listen to many of the young adults speak about their rights and the rights of the people of their community. As many of them witnessed or where victims of the police brutality of December 29th, their passion to change the situation was especially heart felt. (See Pictures)

The next human rights workshop is scheduled for Feb 28th, if anyone is interested in attending or supporting the workshop financially, please contact Grace at msgracecary@comcast.net.

Hearing on December 13th

2006-01-25T10:42:00.000-08:00

On December 13th a hearing took place at the courthouse in San Ramon to determine if the case of property damage (damages occuring last September) and land ownership would go to trail. McEwan´s lawyer wanted the case dismissed, while Padilla´s lawyer argued there was sufficient evidence for a trial.

At least 50 activists and supports, from Padilla´s comminity of La Grecia and students from Managua and the United States, accompanied Vicente into the courtroom. This large presence made an impression on the judge, as well as McEwan and his lawyer. McEwan´s lawyer spent the fist part of his opening statement asking that the supporters be forced to leave. The Judge said they were welcome to stay if they remained silent, which they did. McEwan had come with his own ¨support,¨ three armed guards, who put their automatic weapons away at the site of activists with cameras.

After hearing from lawyers on both sides, the Judge ruled in favor of Padilla and set the date of the trial for Feb 3rd. This is a small victory for the Padilla family and those that support them. There will hopefully be just as large a presence at the trial on the 3rd.

Thoughts on the events of December 29th

2006-01-25T10:04:00.000-08:00

The police up for hire by the highest bidder, is to me one of the most important aspects of the brutality of December 29th. The police of San Ramon should be actively working to protect the people of that community. Unfortunately the police are being used, transported in PRIVATE vehicles, to do exactly the opposite. It is amazing that McEwan could drive to San Ramon and pick up the police in his own truck, drive them to Padilla´s farm, and then sit in the truck watching as the brutality took place. There is no system of protection for Campesinos. When Vicente went to the San Ramon police station to file a formal report of the harrastment and brutality, he had to look the same men in the eye that just days earlier had beaten him unconscious.

With the help of Human Rights workers, the police chief of Managua has been informed of the corruption in San Ramon. A formal investigation is to take place. Also, CENIDH (an independent human rights organization) and La Procuradoría de Derechos Humanos (The government run office of Human Rights) both located in Managua, have been informed of the situation. Various activists from Nicaragua, the United States, and Canada have also been staying with the family to provide support and a certain level of protection.

I would also like to point out the racism toward indigenous people has a huge effect on the treatment of campesinos in Nicaragua. The idea that an indigenous person, lacking European blood, is inferior and should not be listened to or taken seriously, or in most cases abused and exploited, is prevalent in society. It is amazing to see this in contrast to the strong sense of pride and culture alive and well within the indigenous community.

December 29th, 2005

2006-01-25T09:38:00.000-08:00

Below is a letter written by an activist here in Nicaragua, which I think captures the events of December 29th well. It was addressed to a number of different police authorities.

January 12, 2006

First Commissioner Edwin Cordero; Inspector General, Aminta Granera; Chief of Internal Affairs Juan Baez Nicaraguan National Police

I am writing to protest a case of police brutality in Nicaragua. Eye witness accounts have been brought to my attention that on Dec. 29, 2005, seven members of the Special Forces Police (TAPIR) accompanied Hacienda owner Jose Esteban McEwan to the home of peasant land owner, Martin Vicente Padilla in La Grecia, Yasica Sur, Matagalpa. The police hit Mr. Padilla with a rifle butt, beat him brutally until he lost consciousness and continued to beat him even after handcuffing him and tying his feet together. They dragged him to one of the vehicles that also transported the police. The vehicles are owned by Mr. McEwan or la Finca Santa Emilia, owned by State Street Coffee. According to the report of the forensic doctor, Mr. Padilla has a broken rib.

Witnesses also reported that the police brutally beat up two of Mr. Padilla's sons, one a 16 year old and four other neighbors there at the time. The police chased his small children through the coffee plants so they could not go tell neighbors. They also pushed his wife who is traumatized psychologically. Mr. Padilla and his oldest son were imprisoned for two days, then released without charges brought against them. While they were in prison, police were on the farm while Mr. McEwan's workers picked the coffee from the plants on Mr. Padilla's land.

Witnesses affirm that Padilla met the police peacefully with a camera in his hand to document this aggression. They also affirm that guards working for Mr. McEwan have, on other occasions, come to Mr. Padilla´s farm, fired guns, made threats, and destroyed property. Human rights activists in Nicaragua have photos which have probably reached you by now.

There is an ongoing legal dispute over land that began in 2000. Mr. Padilla has had title to the land and worked the land since 1991. This dispute needs to be resolved in the courts and certainly not through police brutality.

This case creates the appearance that the police in Nicaragua are now up for hire by the highest bidder. Since 1979 the Nicaraguan police have been known for their respect for human rights, their professionalism and independence. The role of the police is to maintain order and to protect the citizenry. In this case they have created disorder, and violated human rights by beating Padilla unconscious even while handcuffed.

that you carry out a thorough investigation of the events that took place on December 29, 2005. I am concerned for Mr. Padilla's life and that of his family as well as other peasants, who, like all of us, depend on the police. I hope that the police will return to acting in a professional and nonpartisan manner. Those police who committed brutalities should be brought to justice. When this happens we will know that these were acts of members of the police and not of the police as an organization.

History of the Padilla Case

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Many of the details of the Padilla case miror the larger history of land distribution in Nicaragua. In this sense, the Padilla case can be seen as a case study. His story is the story of thousands of campesinos all over Nicaragua.

Jose Esteban McEwan Callejas, a landlord of Scottish descent, owned a large coffee plantation (over 1,000 mazanas) called "Santa Emilia" during the Somoza era. He left his land and moved to the United States before the Sandinistas took power. In the early 1980´s his land was redistributed; the majority became a state run farm, some small parcels were given out to campesino farmers to be cultivated.

One of these farmers, Wilfredo Blandon Vasquez, sold his 5 manzanas to Vicente Padilla in 1991. Vicente therefore has a legal document proving his title to the land (something many campesinos, unfortunately, did not have when the revolution ended).

McEwan returned to Nicaragua in the mid-1990´s to reclaim his land. Although he had already been paid reparations, he was able to buy the section converted into a state farm back from the government. The small parcels given to individual campesinos were still not under his control. One day when Vicente and his family were at a religious procession, McEwan's workers bulldozed a road through the property and fenced off three of the five manzanas. (One manzana is 1.7 acres). They then secured it with armed guards.

Here began a long and draining legal battle. Over the course of the next five years, up to the present day, this battle has cost the family a huge amount of money, in many cases paying lawyers instead of eating.

The battle has also turned violent at times, as harassment by McEwan´s armed guards has increased. The guards have at times shoot bullets over the house, and stopped by to intimidate the family when they know Vicente is out working and his wife and children are alone.

In August 2005, a judge named Padilla the temporary owner of all five manzanas until the case was fully resolved. Padilla remarked his land with a new fence. On September 13th, McEwan´s guards tore out the fence and caused other property damage. The final assult came on December 29th, 2005 when McEwan arrived at Padilla´s small house with armed riot police, who beat up and arrested Vicente, his two sons, and a handful of other men in the community. While Vicente and his oldest son were inprisoned, McEwan sent his workers and armed guards in to pick the coffee growing on the three disputed manzanas. (see more on December 29th in next entry)

Background information - Somoza and the Sandinista Revolution

2006-01-09T10:25:00.000-08:00

Under the Somoza dictatorship, the lands of Nicaragua were divided into large estates, often owned by foreingers or people of foreign decent, supporters of the Somoza dictatorship, or members of the Somoza family themselves. 80% of the airable land in Nicaragua made up these large estates.

When the Sandinistas took power in 1979 many things changed. Through argicultural reform, the lands of the Somoza family and their associates were confiscated. Many large land owners, fearing the same would happen to their property, left Nicaragua for their countries of origin, or the United States. The land they left behind, and other lands confiscated, where turned into state farms, peasant co-operatives, and other small farms owned by individual campesinos (peasant farmers). This was the Sandinista way of returning the lands of Nicaragua back to the Nicaraguan people.

When the Sandinistas lost power in 1990, Violeta Chamorro was elected and the rules of land distribution changed yet again. Should the peasants now occupying the land, in many cases without formal titles, be considered the owners? Or should Somoza era landlords be allowed to reclaim the lands lost or left behind in 1979?

Chamorro´s government pay reparations to many landowners of the Somoza era. But in many cases, with the help of the United States, Somoza era landlords were able to reclaim what they had lost. The peasants owners and peasants working on state farms and co-operatives where therefore forced to return to the status of low paid workers on large privately owned estates.

In many cases they were not able to cultivate crops for local consumption. The land was converted back into large export crop plantations, where cash crops such as coffee are grown. Using the campesinos as cheap labor, the landlord can sell the coffee on the international market and make a large profit. Without local crops to rely on, the campesino is forced to try to feed his family with the meager wage of about $1 per day. Today, 80% of Nicaraguans live in poverty.