Should the Navy Hold Off Vieques Rock Throwers with Tear Gas?
. April 12, 2002 Copyright © 2002 PUERTO RICO HERALD. All Rights Reserved. They Said, She Said, He Said! – Shed a Tear for the Protestors! In an April 6th incident, a group of about fifty protestors of the current U.S. Navy training on the Island of Vieques were dispersed with CS gas (tear gas) after what the Navy termed “threatening action” against its security personnel. “They threw rocks and debris at our vehicles,” Navy spokesman Lt. Corey Barker told the Herald. A Reuters dispatch from the scene reported that “demonstrators were observed taunting the sailors before the gas was used.” Puerto Rican Police Col. Cesar Garcia disputed the Navy accounts. They are provoking the situation,” he said, referring to the Navy s gassing of protestors. On the other hand, observers on the scene saw the police doing little to control the aggressive behavior of some protestors. No arrests of rock throwers have yet been made. Puerto Rico s Governor, Sila Calderon, repudiated the launching of CS gas
