By Tim Gibbons

By Julie Cowles

Pastel colored colonial buildings, centuries-old churches drenched in history, vendors selling freshly sliced mangos, indigenous women hawking brightly colored shawls, the sounds of the accordion players that line the streets… My senses are flooded each morning as I walk to the children’s center where I have worked as a volunteer each morning for the past 7 weeks. For me as a visiting foreigner, the beauty of Oaxaca has not been buried under the conflict that currently exists here.

By Scout Finch

The dates March 23 – 25 have been circled on my calendar for weeks. They mark the days that the family of Brad Will will be in Oaxaca. My days are full, there is a lot to do, but mentally I am preparing for their fast approaching visit. I never met the Indymedia journalist, I arrived in Oaxaca just days after he was killed, but his death and his family’s visit affect my life in many ways. Of the five witnesses that will be testifying in front of the Federal Attorney General on behalf of the family some are my friends, and another, the only family I have here in Oaxaca. All five of these witnesses are aware of the danger they face in testifying; the events of this past year in Oaxaca have left little doubt as to the danger one faces when speaking out against the State Government. Each witness has been subjected to harassment and intimidation by various government agents; one witness was forced into hiding and their houses are under constant surveillance… yet they are all willing to take the risk now, and they do it in honour and in memory of Brad.

By Nacho

SEPTEMBER 26, 2006

Firefight at the Camino Real