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General History
Lucio Cabanas
Ruben Figueroa
(Manifiesto de Aguas Blancas 1996)
Ruben Figeroa found himself in trouble when amid allegations revealed he had ordered Aguas Blancas massacre. He obstructed the investigation and tampered with evidence and as the state of Guerrero's old-guard Institutional Revolutionary Party governor, Ruben Figueroa Alcocer agreed to a permanent leave on March 12. His resignation came under pressure from the federal government and unprecedented public anger over the state's probe.
The outrage swelled following a February 25 television news broadcast by Televisa of a 16-minute police video showing police murdering 17 unarmed members of the leftist South Sierra Campesino Organization (OCSS) June 28.
Before judges received the tape, they had access only to an edited three-minute version provided by Figueroa that supported his contention that the campesinos fired the first shots. The original clearly showed the police issuing an order to fire immediately after the campesinos had been detained and then attempting to cover-up the massacre by moving bodies and putting guns in their hands.
In spite of the video, Guerrero prosecutor Varela Vidales, whose appointment to investigate was approved by Figueroa, cleared the governor and three top aides of the massacre February 27. Vidales blamed lower-level state officials and police at the scene. Twenty people, mostly police, have been arrested on charges of murder and other crimes.
Hoping to demonstrate a determination to hold politicians to the rule of law, President Ernesto Zedillo reopened the case and sent it to the federal supreme court. The OCSS and the opposition Democratic Revolution Party continued to demand a full criminal investigation into Figueroa's role.
Before leaving for Houston, Texas, Figueroa chose Guerrero PRI leader Angel Heladio Aguirre Rivero to succeed him as governor.
To view the english text version of the manifesto of Aguas Blancas to click to:
http://burn.ucsd.edu/archives/ats-l/1996.Dec/0023.html
