Page 12 - ARUBA TODAY
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A12   WORLD NEWS
                     Thursday 18 July 2019
            Fed up Puerto Ricans protest, demanding governor resign



            By MICHAEL WEISSENSTEIN                                                                                             already."
            Associated Press                                                                                                    Martin said he was flying to
            SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP)                                                                                          Puerto Rico to march along
            —  Karla  Villalón  has  three                                                                                      with other Latin music stars
            elementary-age     children                                                                                         from  the  island,  including
            and an 81-year-old grand-                                                                                           singer/producer  Benito  A.
            mother.                                                                                                             Martínez  Ocasio,  known
            Her  kids  have  been  up-                                                                                          as  Bad  Bunny,  and  rap-
            rooted  twice  in  two  years                                                                                       per  René  Pérez,  known  as
            when first one school, then                                                                                         Residente,  who  released
            another,  was  closed  by                                                                                           a  song  online  Wednesday
            budget cuts under Gov. Ri-                                                                                          morning  calling  people  to
            cardo  Rosselló.  Her  grand-                                                                                       the streets.
            mother,  a  retired  teacher,                                                                                       "This is coming out early so
            is anguished over the possi-                                                                                        you  can  eat  it  for  break-
            bility of losing her pension in                                                                                     fast,"  Residente  raps  on
            future rounds of cutbacks.                                                                                          the  song,  "Sharpening  the
            Villalón   was    outraged                                                                                          Knives." ''Fury is the only po-
            when     Rosselló's   former                                                                                        litical party that unites us."
            education  secretary  was                                                                                           In  colonial  Old  San  Juan,
            arrested  and  accused  of                                                                                          police  were  erecting  con-
            steering millions in improper                                                                                       crete barricades and shop
            contracts to politically con-  Karla Villalon stands at Fortaleza Street near the executive mansion as she protests against gov-  owners   were   covering
            nected  contractors.  Then   ernor Ricardo Rossello, in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Tuesday, July 16, 2019.              store  windows  with  metal
            hundreds  of  pages  of  on-                                                                       Associated Press  sheeting  or  plywood  as  if
            line chats between Rosselló                                                                                         a  hurricane  were  coming.
            and members of his admin-    day  afternoon.  "My  kids'  It  is  struggling  to  emerge  dreds of schools have been  The  multi-colored  umbrel-
            istration  leaked,  revealing  classrooms  have  mold  in  from  a  debt-driven  finan-  closed to save money and  las  that  form  a  photoge-
            the men mocking women,  them.... There's just so much  cial failure and receive fed-   a wide range of social ser-  nic  awning  over  the  street
            the handicapped and vic-     outrage  that's  been  build-  eral funding to help recov-  vices and pensions are be-  in  front  of  the  governor's
            tims of Hurricane Maria.     ing over time."              ery  from  Hurricane  Maria.  ing cut back, or are under  mansion were taken down.
            Villalón has had enough.     That  feeling  was  rippling  The  September  2017  storm  threat.                     The  scandal  erupted  as
            "It's  the  final  straw,"  the  across Puerto Rico Wednes-  left  thousands  dead  in  its  "Puerto Rico has suffered so  Rosselló's  former  secretary
            31-year-old    homemaker  day  —  the  feeling  of  a  wake  due  to  the  collapse  much  and  we  can't  deal  of education and five oth-
            said  as  she  prepared  to  people fed up with neglect  of the island's electrical sys-  with  the  cynicism  of  these  er people were arrested on
            march  with  thousands  of  from  Washington  and  the  tem and a months-long fail-    leaders  anymore,"  singer  charges of steering federal
            other  Puerto  Ricans  from  U.S.  territory's  own  govern-  ure to provide care to the  Ricky Martin said in a video  money to unqualified, polit-
            the  capital  to  the  gover-  ment.                      elderly  and  medically  vul-  message  posted  online.  ically  connected  contrac-
            nor's  residence  Wednes-    The island is mired in crises.  nerable.  Since  then,  hun-  "Enough  already.  Enough  tors. q

            Rio governor: rising police killings 'normal,' will continue



            By MARCELO SILVA DE SOU-                                                               Command - has ties to He-    criminals  resonating  with
            SA                                                                                     zbollah.  He  provided  no  voters  in  the  violent  state.
            Associated Press                                                                       evidence  to  support  the  During  his  campaign  he
            RIO  DE  JANEIRO  (AP)  —                                                              claim.                       proposed using helicopters
            Amid  a  soaring  number                                                               "Are  we  going  to  be  tol-  as platforms for sharpshoot-
            of  police  killings  in  Rio  de                                                      erant  toward  Hezbollah,  ers, who could target any-
            Janeiro,  the  state's  tough-                                                         which acts with bombs and  one carrying a weapon.
            talking governor said Tues-                                                            missiles against the popula-  Mauricio  Santoro,  a  po-
            day that it was "normal" for                                                           tion  of  Israel?  No,  we  are  litical  scientist  at  the  State
            the rate to increase and will                                                          going  to  act  with  rigor,  as  University of Rio de Janeiro,
            likely  keep  rising  during  his                                                      does Israel," he said.       said the rise of Witzel should
            administration.                                                                        "The  message  is:  If  you  do  be seen in the context of a
            Gov. Wilson Witzel said the                                                            not want to die, do not walk  generalized disbelief in the
            high  number  of  killings  by                                                         with a rifle in the street," he  political class and an eco-
            police in the state of Rio is a                                                        said during a meeting with  nomic  crisis  that  battered
            consequence  of  his  policy                                                           foreign correspondents.      the state.
            of  "confronting  terrorists,"   In this Jan. 3, 2019 file photo, Rio de Janeiro Gov. Wilson Wit-  According  to  official  fig-  "Like Bolsonaro, Witzel - an
            as  he  calls  drug  trafficking   zel attends the swearing-in ceremony for the new president of   ures,  police  lethality  in  Rio  unknown  -  benefited  from
                                         state-run oil company Petrobras, Roberto Castello Branco, in Rio
            groups.                      de Janeiro, Brazil.                                       has reached its highest lev-  the  current  idea  that  the
            "It is normal" that there are                                         Associated Press  el since 2003, when records  entire  political  elite  is  cor-
            more  deaths,  said  Witzel,                                                           began. Homicides by crimi-   rupt  and  incapable  of  of-
            who is known for his contro-  Police in Rio killed 714 peo-  saying  it  is  due  to  police  nals have fallen by 24% so  fering an alternative," San-
            versial  comments  and  ties  ple in the first five months of  "hitting hard" at criminals.  far this year.         toro  said.  "Many  (voters)
            to  far  right  President  Jair  his year - almost five a day -  Witzel also said "an investi-  Witzel  went  from  being  al-  chose  a  harsh  approach
            Bolsonaro. "We live in a situ-  20% more than in 2018, ac-  gation will soon reveal" that  most  unknown  in  Brazil  to  as  a  manifestation  of  their
            ation of confrontation and  cording to official figures.  one  of  the  largest  criminal  being the governor of Rio,  despair  and  the  lack  of
            the criminals are testing the  The  governor,  a  former  factions  in  Brazil,  which  one  of  the  largest  states  government  perspectives"
            limits of the police and the  judge  with  a  military  past,  controls  drug  trafficking  in  in the country, with his dis-  on the violence impacting
            government."                 shrugged  off  the  increase,  many  Rio  slums  -  the  Red  course of zero tolerance for  them.q
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