Puerto Rico’s May 16-21, 2017 political week in tweets

by May 22, 2017News Week in Tweets0 comments

Oscar Rivera, finally freed after 36 years of jail time

During the end of the 70s and early 80s Oscar Rivera Lopez was a leader of Puerto Rican FALN (Armed Forces of National Liberation) and was linked to many bombings in New York and Chicago. The FBI named them a terrorist group. After spending 36 years in jail, Puerto Rico nationalist Oscar Lopez Rivera is finally freed and wants to continue his struggle for Puerto Rican independence.

 

Zika Reporting, who’s right and who is wrong?

The ZAPSS (the Zika Active Pregnancy Surveillance System) and the CDC, awarded $9.5 billion to the health department of Puerto Rico.

This project was achieved in the hopes to help births affected by Zika malformations.

The Controversy here, is that after setting up this system, officials have not been reporting the numbers of Zika case accurately. In fact, it seems that they have been underreporting for more than half a year.

Dr. Miguel Valencia, the main responsible  of CDC, has felt insulted of the many suspicions circling him, and demanded an apology, for false accusations.  Now, who’s to blame?

 

March Against Monsanto in Puerto Rico

This was the 6th time that Puerto Ricans peacefully marched to protest against Monsanto’s GMOs. This march was also directed to other GMO producing companies, such as Bayers, Syngenta, CropScience and others. The main concern for these protesters was that the Fiscal Board of Puerto Rico could override Environmental and public policies and regulations in the territory, resulting in bad news for Puerto Rican agriculture.

 

New Wave for Statehood

Governor Ricardo Rosselló is not backing down. No matter what the discouraging replies from the White House are, he still plans on having a vote in June to decide on the political status of the islands, and still encourages Puerto Ricans to vote for Statehood. Pasquines, logos and various slogans cover the streets of Puerto Rico.

 

Hispanic Police in NYC boycotts Puerto Rican parade honoring Oscar Rivera Lopez

A few hispanic officers plan on boycotting the parade, as they disagree on honoring the now free Oscar Rivera Lopez. This group, does not believe Oscar Rivera deserves any type of celebration.

There are split opinions regarding the latter. Many praise Rivera and view him as a national hero, for his struggle and his time spent in jail for Puerto Rican independence, while others see him as a terrorist responsible for many bombings and a few deaths.