Church and peace groups have been trying for years to close down the US-sponsored "School of the Americas." SOA Watch reports:
The School of the Americas (SOA), in 2001 renamed the "Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation," is a combat training school for Latin American soldiers, located at Fort Benning, Georgia.
Initially established in Panama in 1946, it was kicked out of that country in 1984 under the terms of the Panama Canal Treaty. Former Panamanian President, Jorge Illueca, stated that the School of the Americas was the "biggest base for destabilization in Latin America." The SOA, frequently dubbed the "School of Assassins," has left a trail of blood and suffering in every country where its graduates have returned.
Over its 59 years, the SOA has trained over 60,000 Latin American soldiers in counterinsurgency techniques, sniper training, commando and psychological warfare, military intelligence and interrogation tactics. These graduates have consistently used their skills to wage a war against their own people. Among those targeted by SOA graduates are educators, union organizers, religious workers, student leaders, and others who work for the rights of the poor. Hundreds of thousands of Latin Americans have been tortured, raped, assassinated, "disappeared," massacred, and forced into refugee by those trained at the School of Assassins.
This weekend protestors gathered at the school's site to demand its closure. Among the protestors were students from the social justice committee at Eden Theological Seminary:
Joe Rowley, 24, of St. Louis, a third-year student at Eden Theological Seminary, attended with the school's Social Justice Committee. "I'm here because at the seminary, we believe that Jesus Christ embodied justice and nonviolent resistance," he said. "We're representing our faith by working for justice."
Sister Pat Hoffman, 74, of San Francisco, came to her second event. "I'm here to help close the SOA," she said. "We have a martyr in our group. She was killed in the Amazon, trying to help the people of the Amazon region save their houses. She was targeted as a troublemaker -- Sister Dorothy Stang. We're absolutely sure soldiers from Brazil who were involved trained here... . There has to be something to it for all these people to come here for years."
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