 |
| Border drone at Fort Huachuca, Ariz. Photo by Border Patrol |
The most censored in Indian country: Drones, spy towers and the militarization of Indian lands
By Brenda Norrell
Censored News copyright
http://www.bsnorrell.blogspot.com
The use of drones on the
border, and the militarization of Tohono O’odham sovereign land, heads the list
of the most censored issues in Indian country. Tohono O’odham activists who
fight the militarization of their lands, and abuse by Border Patrol
agents, are oppressed by the elected Tohono O’odham government,
and targeted and abused by the US Border Patrol.
Among the most secret
issues are spy towers and drones. Currently, Tohono O’odham are reporting drones in the skies, but very little is known about these drones.
Censored News continue extensive research into the secrecy and militarization at the border.
Researching Tohono O’odham
and drones, the first surprise is to see that the elected Tohono O’odham government
scheduled a special session of the legislative council for a tour of the drones
at Libby Army Airfield at Sierra Vista, Ariz., on Jan. 31, 2011. The purpose
was a tour of Customs and Border Protection’s unmanned aircraft systems, also known as UAVs or drones.
Sierra Vista is where the
Army Intelligence Center at Fort Huachuca is located, and the site of protests over its role in
torture at Abu Ghraib and production of the torture manual of the School of Americas.
The manual was made public in 1996, after decades of torture and assassinations by US trained
military in Central and South America.
Already in the past month,
two secret plans have been exposed by Censored News involving the Border Patrol on Tohono O'odham land.
Currently, the Border Patrol
is scouting three Tohono O’odham districts to construct new spy towers,
after the billion dollar boondoggle of the last border spy towers that did not
work. The Tohono O’odham government approved by resolution the Border Patrol’s current visits
to the districts. The Border Patrol is targeting 14 sites for new US spy towers
on tribal land.
Censored News also exposed
the fact that the Border Patrol is planning a massive new complex on Tohono O’odham land,
in Pisinemo District, with housing for 32 agents, helicopter launch pad, horses and
dogs. Further, more O’odham land would be seized for a transmission corridor to
the north. The plan was kept secret from the public until the draft environmental
impact statement was discovered the same day that public comments closed in
September.
Thirteen months ago, on Sept.
14, 2011, the Tohono O’odham Nation gave preliminary support for this massive Border
Patrol complex, without telling the public, as revealed in another council resolution. The Tohono O’odham
Nation also gave permission for the US military to be involved in construction
of the complex.
When it comes to drones, few subjects are wrapped in so much secrecy.
Testimony before Congress
revealed that the Border Patrol operates the Predator B drones fly, primarily at night, and patrols the US/Mexico border. This includes the stretch between Yuma and Nogales,
Ariz. The Tohono O’odham Nation is located between the two cities, on their
traditional O’odham homeland.
One of the few public statements about the use of drones on Tohono O’odham land is a disturbing one.
The University of Arizona
entered into a joint agreement with the Tohono O’odham Nation, for a project that supposedly
focused on range land management. The agreement allowed the University of
Arizona to collect a large amount of information on Tohono O’odham archaeology,
cultural sites and geography.
The three year project
included the university’s Dr. Hermann F. Fasel, professor at the UA Department
of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering. Dr. Fasel headed the drone componenet of the project and the creation of a drone with a
seven foot wingspan, supposedly for monitoring Tohono O’odham rangelands. The rangeland project also encouraged Tohono O'odham students to work for companies like Raytheon Missiles.
Equally disturbing is the
fact that Dr. Fasel doesn’t just work for the university. Dr. Fasel is a military contractor who works
with the US Air Force and private corporations, including Boeing.
In Tucson, at Davis Monthan Air
Force base, soldiers operate the remote control killer drones that have been responsible for targeted assassinations and the killing of civilians in other countries. Meanwhile, Boeing
received the contract for construction of the border wall in Arizona and the previous flopped spy towers. On Tohono O'odham land, Boeing was
responsible for digging up the remains of O’odham on their land for the border
vehicle barrier.
As for the drone maker, the
rangeland project states Dr. Fasel is recognized for his pioneering
research in Computational Aerodynamics and Fluid Dynamics.
“His research has been and is
currently funded by Federal government agencies and private corporations. Examples of these funding agencies include:
the Department of Defense, the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, NASA,
Army Research Office, Office of Naval Research, Daimler Chrysler and the Boeing
Company. Directly related to the proposed effort is his past development and
flight testing of a UAV for the United States Air Force and this current
participation in the development and flight testing of a long endurance UAV
(also for the Air Force; in subcontract to The Boeing Company). His UAV expertise will be crucial for
developing and operating an UAV based system for on-demand aerial imaging for
range land management,” the rangeland project states.
As previously reported by
Censored News, the drone maker Advanced Ceramics entered into a joint venture with
the Tohono O’odham’s San Xavier District, which borders Tucson. The business included the University of Arizona’s drone design program.
Since that time, Advanced Ceramics has produced drones at a site on Tohono O’odham
land close to the Tucson International Airport. The project, involving research for high temperatures
and ceramics, was first accepted and then rejected by the Pascua Yaqui Nation,
which considered the project too risky.
Tohono O’odham human rights
activists continue to oppose the production of drones for the purposes of
spying and targeted assassinations. Tohono O’odham say the violation of human
rights, and taking of human life, violates the Him’daag, the sacred way of
being.
Copyright Brenda Norrell/Censored News
Brenda Norrell has been a news reporter of American Indian news for 30 years. She began as a reporter for Navajo Times, during the 18 years she lived on the Navajo Nation, where she was also a stringer for AP and USA Today. After serving as a longtime reporter for Indian Country Today, she was repeatedly censored, then terminated by ICT, and began publishing Censored News, now in its seventh year.
