A coalition calling for an end to the war on drugs on Sunday began its monthlong campaign in San Diego, California, and will visit more than 20 US cities.
More than 200 people gathered at a park on the US-Mexico border as part of a movement known as the “Caravan for Peace with Justice and Dignity” that includes nearly 100 organizations.
The effort is led by Mexican peace activist Javier Sicilia, whose son was killed by drug gang members last year.
Photo: AFP
Sicilia and others want to draw attention to what they say are misguided anti-drug policies in both the US and Mexico. They estimate that tens of thousands of lives in Mexico have been lost because of the war on drugs.
“We will travel across the United States to raise awareness of the unbearable pain and loss caused by the drug war — and of the enormous shared responsibility for protecting families and communities in both our countries,” Sicilia said.
Sicilia has fought corruption and called for the resignation of top Mexican government officials. Caravan organizers said instead of curbing drug use or supply, the war on drugs has enriched drug traffickers and contributed to an increase in money laundering.
They also said more deaths have occurred over the past six years since the Mexican government launched an offensive on drug cartels.
“What we are trying to do is raise the level of conversation around this topic,” said Ted Lewis, one of the caravan’s organizers. “We’re trying to have a bi-national conversation and impact.”
Caravan leaders said they support reforms on weapons smuggling to Mexico and suspending US funding of Mexico’s military.
Throughout the trip, which will end on Sept. 12 in Washington, the caravan will be joined by police officers and other law enforcement officials who say the drug war has been a failure, as well as parents and family members who have lost loved ones either to drugs or drug-related violence.
SEEKING CHANGE: A hospital worker said she did not vote in previous elections, but ‘now I can see that maybe my vote can change the system and the country’ Voting closed yesterday across the Solomon Islands in the south Pacific nation’s first general election since the government switched diplomatic allegiance from Taiwan to Beijing and struck a secret security pact that has raised fears of the Chinese navy gaining a foothold in the region. The Solomon Islands’ closer relationship with China and a troubled domestic economy weighed on voters’ minds as they cast their ballots. As many as 420,000 registered voters had their say across 50 national seats. For the first time, the national vote also coincided with elections for eight of the 10 local governments. Esther Maeluma cast her vote in the
Nearly half of China’s major cities are suffering “moderate to severe” levels of subsidence, putting millions of people at risk of flooding, especially as sea levels rise, according to a study of nationwide satellite data released yesterday. The authors of the paper, published by the journal Science, found that 45 percent of China’s urban land was sinking faster than 3mm per year, with 16 percent at more than 10mm per year, driven not only by declining water tables, but also the sheer weight of the built environment. With China’s urban population already in excess of 900 million people, “even a small portion
UNSETTLING IMAGES: The scene took place in front of TV crews covering the Trump trial, with a CNN anchor calling it an ‘emotional and unbelievably disturbing moment’ A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former US president Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said yesterday. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said the man was declared dead by staff at an area hospital. The man was in Collect Pond Park at about 1:30pm on Friday when he took out pamphlets espousing conspiracy theories, tossed them around, then doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire, officials and witnesses said. A large number of police officers were nearby when it happened. Some officers and bystanders rushed
HYPOCRISY? The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday asked whether Biden was talking about China or the US when he used the word ‘xenophobic’ US President Joe Biden on Wednesday called for a hike in steel tariffs on China, accusing Beijing of cheating as he spoke at a campaign event in Pennsylvania. Biden accused China of xenophobia, too, in a speech to union members in Pittsburgh. “They’re not competing, they’re cheating. They’re cheating and we’ve seen the damage here in America,” Biden said. Chinese steel companies “don’t need to worry about making a profit because the Chinese government is subsidizing them so heavily,” he said. Biden said he had called for the US Trade Representative to triple the tariff rates for Chinese steel and aluminum if Beijing was