Rejecting a dialogue with Gov. Ulises Ruiz Ortiz, the striking teachers and their supporters in Mexico's southern state of Oaxaca occupied the streets around the state government buildings in the capital for a third day July 29, blocking the entrances. The state government has been forced to operate out of hotels on the outskirts of Oaxaca City. One of the hotels was also blockaded by some 70 members of the Popular Assembly of the People of Oaxaca (APPO), the group coordinating the protests.

APPO activists also shut down all traffic on the toll bridge at El Caracol in Tuxtepec, a major artery linking Oaxaca with Veracruz, the next state to the north. Several other roads remain blocked throughout the state. They are demanding that Gov. Ruiz Ortiz step down, accusing him of repression and corruption. (La Jornada, July 29 via Chiapas95)

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