By Lawrence Wittner, Afrilu 29, 2019
daga Yaƙe-yaƙe Zunubi ne
Vieques wani karamin tsibirin Puerto Rican ne tare da wasu mazaunan 9,000. Fringed by itatuwan dabino da kuma rairayin bakin teku mai kyau, tare da bayyane mai zurfi na halittu da kuma dawakun daji masu tafiya a ko'ina, yana janyewa lambobi masu mahimmanci na yawon bude ido. Amma, kimanin shekaru sittin, Vieques yayi aiki a matsayin zangon tashin bamabamai, wurin horar da sojoji, da kuma rumbun ajiyar sojojin ruwa na Amurka, har sai da fusatattun mazaunanta, wadanda aka tursasa su zuwa ga karkatar da hankali, suka ceci kasarsu ta asali daga mamayar militarism.
Kamar babban tsibirin Puerto Rico, Vieques-located mil takwas zuwa gabas-An yi mulki tsawon ƙarnika a matsayin mulkin mallaka ta ƙasar Spain, har zuwa lokacin Yaƙin Spain da Amurka na 1898 ya mai da Puerto Rico zuwa wani yanki na mulkin mallaka (wani yanki ne da ba a sanya shi gaba ba) na Amurka. A cikin 1917, Puerto Ricans (gami da Viequenses) sun zama 'yan ƙasa na Amurka, kodayake ba su da ikon zaɓar gwamnansu har zuwa 1947 kuma a yau suna ci gaba da rashin damar wakilci a Majalisar Dokokin Amurka ko kuma zaɓar shugaban Amurka.
A lokacin Yaƙin Duniya na II, gwamnatin Amurka, cikin damuwa game da tsaron yankin yankin Caribbean da Canal na Panama, ta ƙwace manyan yankuna a gabashin Puerto Rico da kan Vieques don gina babbar Rooungiyar jiragen ruwa ta Rosevelt Roads. Wannan ya haɗa da kusan kashi biyu bisa uku na ƙasar a kan Vieques. A sakamakon haka, an kori dubban Viequenses daga gidajensu kuma aka ajiye su a cikin gonakin rake da sukari da sojojin ruwan suka ayyana “rukunin sake tsugunarwa.”
Takeaukar Navy na Amurka da Vieques ya haɓaka cikin 1947, lokacin da ta keɓe Rosevelt Roads a matsayin ɗalibin horas da jiragen ruwa da kuma ajiyar ɗakunan ajiya kuma ta fara amfani da tsibirin don yin harbe-harbe da sauka ta dubun-dubatan matuƙan jirgin ruwa da na ruwa. Da yake faɗaɗa kwace ta zuwa kashi uku cikin huɗu na Vieques, sojojin ruwan sun yi amfani da ɓangaren yamma don ajiyar makaman sa da kuma ɓangaren gabas don fashewar bama-bamai da wasannin yaƙi, yayin sandwich da thean ƙasar a cikin ƙaramin yankin da ke raba su.
A cikin shekaru masu zuwa, sojojin ruwa sun yi ruwan bama-bamai kan Vieques daga iska, da ƙasa, da teku. A lokacin 1980s da 1990s, ya saki kimanin tan 1,464 na bama-bamai a kowace shekara a tsibirin kuma ya gudanar da atisayen horon soja wanda ya kai kimanin kwanaki 180 a kowace shekara. A cikin 1998 kadai, sojojin ruwa sun jefa bama-bamai 23,000 akan Vieques. Hakanan yayi amfani da tsibirin don gwaje-gwaje na makamai masu guba.
A dabi'a, don ra'ayoyi, wannan mamayar soja ta haifar da wanzuwar rayuwar dare. Korarru daga gidajensu da kuma tattalin arzikinsu na gargajiya cikin rudani, sun dandana mummunan halin kusa da bombardment. "Lokacin da iska ta fito daga gabas, sai ta kawo hayaki da tarin turbaya daga jerin bama-bamai," wani mazaunin ya tuna. “Sun yi ta jefa bam a kowace rana, daga 5 na safe har zuwa 6 na yamma. Ya zama kamar yankin yaƙi. Za ku ji. . . Bama-bamai takwas ko tara, kuma gidanku zai girgiza. Duk abin da ke jikin bangonku, hotunan hotonku, kayan adonku, madubinku, za su faɗi a ƙasa su fashe, "kuma" gidan suminti ɗinku zai fara fashewa. ” Bugu da kari, tare da sakin sunadarai masu guba a cikin kasa, ruwa, da iska, yawan mutanen ya fara fama da tsananin kamuwa da cutar kansa da sauran cututtuka.
A ƙarshe, Sojan Amurka ya ƙaddara yawancin tsibirin, gami da hanyoyin ruwa, hanyoyin jirgin, rafin ruwa, da kuma dokokin karba-karba a sauran yankunan farar hula, inda mazauna ke rayuwa cikin barazanar korar su akai-akai. A cikin 1961, sojojin ruwa sun tsara wani shiri na sirri don cire dukkanin farar hula daga Vieques, tare da ma wadanda suka mutu za a hako su daga kabarin su. Amma Gwamnan Puerto Rican Luis Munoz Marin ya shiga tsakani, kuma Shugaban Amurka John F. Kennedy ya hana Sojojin ruwa aiwatar da shirin.
Rikice-rikicen da aka dade ana yi tsakanin Viequenses da sojojin ruwa sun dagule daga 1978 zuwa 1983. A tsakiyar tsawan bama-bamai na sojan ruwan Amurka da kuma kara karfin aikin soja, wani yunkuri na tsayayya na cikin gida ya fito, karkashin jagorancin masunta tsibirin. Masu fafutuka sun tsunduma cikin zaba, zanga-zanga, da kuma rashin biyayya ga jama'a - ta hanyar sanya kansu kai tsaye a cikin layin makamai masu linzami, ta yadda za su tarwatsa atisayen soja. Yayin da yadda tsibirin ya zama abin kunya na duniya, Majalisar Wakilan Amurka ta gudanar da zaman tattaunawa a kan lamarin a 1980 kuma ta ba da shawarar cewa sojojin ruwa su bar Vieques.
Amma wannan zanga-zangar ta farko ta shahararren zanga-zanga, wacce ta shafi dubban Viequenses da magoya bayanta a duk Puerto Rico da Amurka, sun kasa fatattakar sojojin ruwan daga tsibirin. A tsakiyar Yakin Cacar Baki, sojojin Amurka sun manne wa ayyukan su na Vieques. Hakanan, fifiko a cikin gwagwarmayar gwagwarmaya na 'yan kishin kasa na Puerto Rican, tare da rakiyar bangaranci, ya takaita rokon motsi.
A cikin 1990s, duk da haka, ƙungiyar gwagwarmayar faɗaɗa kai tsaye ta ɗauki fasali. An fara a shekarar 1993 ta hanyar Kwamitin don karewa da bunƙasa na Vieques, ya kara da tsayayya ga tsarin jiragen ruwa don shigar da tsarin radar maras amfani ya kashe bayan 19 ga Afrilu, 1999, lokacin da wani matukin jirgin ruwan Amurka ba da gangan ya jefa bama-bamai biyu na fam 500 a wani yanki da ake zargi da tsaro, inda ya kashe wani farar hula na Viequenses. "Wannan ya girgiza hankalin mutanen Vieques da Puerto Ricans baki daya ba kamar sauran abubuwan da suka faru ba," in ji Robert Rabin, babban jigo a boren. "Kusan nan da nan mun sami hadin kai a tsakanin iyakoki, siyasa, addini, da kuma yanayin kasa."
Rallying a baya da bukatar Aminci ga Vieques. Dubun dubatar Puerto Ricans a cikin Puerto Rico da maƙwabta sun halarci, tare da wasu 1,500 da aka kama don zama a cikin tashar bam ko kuma don wasu ayyukan rashin biyayya na jama'a. Lokacin da shugabannin addinai suka yi kira ga Maris don Aminci a cikin Vieques, wasu masu zanga-zangar 150,000 sun mamaye titunan San Juan a cikin zanga-zangar da ta kasance mafi girma a tarihin Puerto Rico.
Fuskantar wannan guguwar wutar zanga-zangar, a ƙarshe gwamnatin Amurka ta ci nasara. A cikin 2003, Sojojin Ruwa na Amurka ba kawai sun dakatar da tashin bam din ba, amma sun rufe tashar jirgin ruwa ta Roosevelt Roads kuma suka janye gaba ɗaya daga Vieques.
Duk da wannan babbar nasara ga ƙungiyar jama'a, Vieques ta ci gaba da fuskanta manyan kalubale a yau. Wadannan sun hada da bama-bamai da ba a fashe ba da gurbata muhalli daga manyan karafa da sinadarai masu guba waɗanda aka saki ta hanyar faduwar kimanin tonsin tons na harsasai, gami da uranium da ya ragu, a ƙaramin tsibirin. A sakamakon haka, Vieques yanzu babban shafin Superfund ne, tare da cutar kansa da sauran cututtukan cuta musamman mafi girma fiye da sauran Puerto Rico. Hakanan, tare da lalata al'adun gargajiya, tsibirin yana fama da talauci mai yawa.
Duk da haka, 'yan tsibirin, wadanda ba a hana su ba, sun yi ta fama da wadannan batutuwa ta hanyar sake ginawa da ayyukan ci gaba, ciki harda ecotourism. Rabin, wanda ya yi aiki da wasu laifuka uku (ciki har da watanni shida masu zuwa) domin ayyukansa na zanga-zanga, yanzu yana jagoranta Count Mirasol Fort-A makaman da aka yi wa gidan kurkuku a kan bautar masu adawa da kuma daukan ma'aikatan gwanayen sugar, amma yanzu suna ba da ɗakuna na Vieques Museum, tarurruka na gari da bikin, tarihin tarihi, da Radio Vieques.
Tabbas, gwagwarmayar cin nasara da Viequenses suka yi don 'yantar da tsibirin su daga nauyin ayyukan soji ya kuma ba da tushen bege ga mutane a duniya. Wannan ya haɗa da mutanen da ke cikin sauran Amurka, waɗanda ke ci gaba da biyan kuɗin tattalin arziki da na ɗan adam saboda shirye-shiryen yaƙin gwamnatocinsu da yaƙe-yaƙe marasa iyaka.
Lawrence Wittner (https://www.lawrenceswittner.com/ ) shi ne Farfesa na History Emeritus a SUNY / Albany da kuma marubucin Ganawa Bom (Jami'ar Stanford University Press).
