Thousands protest new government in Mexico
WORLD
the new government.
MEXICO CITY {Al’)
Ton* of thousand* of Mox
ii giu surged into a down
town pia/a Thursday in an
angry protest over an eco
nomic crisis that threaten*
the pocket book* of the
pour and the credibility of
Down with capitalism' the demonstrators
chanted. "No to inflation!"
At least 30.000 people took part in the protest,
the bigger t since the peso was abruptly devalued
by nearly a third beginning in late [December, rais
ing the speeder of runaway inflation
Groups representing labor unions, teachers, bus
drivers, leftist political groups and others earned
banners and chanted slogans denouncing the recent
peso devaluation.
"Punish those responsible for the devaluation!"
they shouted as they marched, jamming evening
rush hour traffic for miles through downtown Mex
ico City.
There were no immediate reports of violence
Police did not intervene ns the demonstrators
massed on the capital's main plaza, known as the
Zocalo.
The peso's abrupt slide began Dec. 20, capping a
year of political turbulonce marked by assassina
lion* and a guemlla revolt that still smolders in the
southern state of Chia|Mi* Since then, the peso has
lost nearly 35 percent of its value, making imports
mart' expensive
An emergency economic plan worked out by gov
ernment. businesses and labor leaders will hold
wage increases to 7 percent for 1995 The govern
ment also is predicting inflation will reach an aver
age rate of 15 9 percent in 1995. meaning a loss of
port hasing power for most Mexicans
"The devaluation is going to hurt us," said one
demonstrator, teai her Juan Amanay. 35 The }»e<>
pie in the government are just looking after their
own interests."
“Lower salaries mean our children won t have
anything to eat." said housewife luana Garcia. 51
The poorest working Mexicans will get a 3 per
cent wage hike to soften the effect of the plan Busi
nesses. meanwhile, are to refrain from excessive
price hikes.
Critics say there is little new in the plan, how
ever, since the 7 percent salary cap had boon agreed
to previously, and the pledge for businesses to "mit
igate" price hikes isn't mandatory
The peso strengthened slightly Thursday after
Mexico's new finance minister announced sober
ing new projections of low economic growth and
briefed Wall Street on steps to combat the curren
cy crisis.
Russians, Chechens trade fire in on going battle
GROZNY, Russia (AP) — Boris
Yeltsin's promise to halt air
attacks on Grozny was less than
a day old when Russian fighter
jets swooped over the ruined
Chechen capital on Thursday and
bombed the presidential palace
Russians and Chechens traded
heavy fire around Grozny 's main
train station, where burned-out
tanks and I todies lay abandoned
on the streets.
Warplanes also reportedly
made bombing runs outside
Grozny and heavy shelling
pounded outlying villages as
Moscow continued its fight to
reassert control over the mostly
Muslim, oil-rich southern repub
lic.
The palace in the center of
Grozny was hit by at least one
rocket, touching off a fire in the
upper stories of the tall concrete
building, said Western journal
ists who witnessed the attack.
Only the basement and first
floor of the palace were occupied
— by Chechen defenders and
wounded from both sides. Wit
nesses said there appeared to txt
nocasuahlM Chet ben President
Dzhokhar Dudayev was report
edly in a hunker elsewhere in the
city
It was the third air strike of
the day on Grozny. Compara
tively, however, Thursday's
attacks were light, perhaps ham
pered by the fog that blanketed
the c ity.
Rocket and gun fire rnttled the
railway station, hut clashes were
far less intense than in recent
days
Chechen fighters strolled
freely through central Grozny on
the sixth day of Russia's bungled
offensive to take the c ity and
quash the republic's 3-year-old
independence drive.
Yeltsin's promise on Wednes
day to stop the bombing was his
second of the Chechen cam
paign — and the second to be
followed by air strikes the next
day. Last time, warplanes
destroyed much of downtown
Grozny, including an orphan
age
Hut with dissension spreading
in the Russian army over the
military debacle, it was difficult
to determine whether Yeltsin
approved Thursday’s air strikes
Yeltsin ordered the bombing
halt in the face of growing criti
cism at home and abroad of his
heavy-handed offensive
Hundreds, perhaps thou
sands, of civilian* ami fighters
have lag'll killed or wounded in
the 1-weokold invasion The
Red Cross estimates 350.000
people are now refugees
The war grew even uglier after
Russia failed to take the capital
in a New Year's Kve tank assault
and was humiliated by out
gunned hut spirited Chechen
defenders, who drove the Russ
ian troops from the center of the
city.
Russian warplanes dropped
cluster bombs pat ked with
shrapnel on several villages
In Shall, Ui miles from
Grozny, they bombed a roadside
market Tuesday, then struck
again as people were helping the
wounded. An hour Inter, they
hit the maternity ward of the
local hospital Estimates of the
death toll in Shall ranged ns
high as 100 dead with scores
more wounded.
Russia's human rights com
missioner. Sergei Kovalyov,
arrived in Moscow from Grozny
on Thursday accusing his gov
ernment of "ruthless" and "mas
sive" human rights violations
Yeltsin is also under intense
criticism from foreign govern
ments
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Applications are available m 164 Oregon Hall Application deadline January 24, 1994
For more information call 346-1079 or 346-3211
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