Click here for original Spanish version. The following was translated by Lorna Dee Cervantes. *Note: The first cruise arrived with approximately 2,500 out of 3,500 occupants and of those,
eight people visited Isla Mujeres. Anyone with reservations to Cancun, the Mayan Riviera, or Cozumel, please consider spending your time on Isla Mujeres. They are ready to receive you and you will find it is like nowhere else on earth. Now, isn't that where you'd rather be? Lorna dice sí ~ LDC
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President Fox Visited the Victims of Hurricane Wilma in Cozumel
Friday, 28 of October of 2005 Cozumel, Quintana Roo.
Visit that President Vicente Fox Quesada made to the Convention Center converted into a shelter.
- Intervention: Here the children have their activities, we have a support area of psychologists from the Centro de Integracion... to help us. The state DIF also sent to us, from the beginning, aid equipment with eight of their members, and with psychologists to coordinate. This is the area of the dormitory, inside we have the infirmary, the kitchen there. Here is the dormitory, we have it divided.
- President Vicente Fox: ... working.
- Intervention: Yes, they are helping us much in unloading, many..., bricklayers are supporting us and they were supporting us in the cleaning, Sir.
- President Vicente Fox: ... we are working from the outside, here they have nothing to do.
- Intervention: We only to sustain to the elder adults and the children.
In this area, there are conversations.
In this area we have our provisions. Most of the supplies that are arriving are in bulk, we have people helping us stock the dispenses [pantries].
Here's where we take it out and make the aid packets [pantries/dispenses], approximately 10 thousand dispenses were given out yesterday, the day before that 10 thousand dispenses, or we have given out some 22 thousand dispenses.
This it is the storing center, Sir President, where we hold the supplies to make the dispenses. In addition to the two warehouses, we have another one we are about to to fill.
Yes, at this moment they are stocking them and on this side we have a group of people who are taking them in little rows to finally load them on the truck.
Right now we also have this from the warehouse, we received some dispenses already packed, they were what we began with, that is what could arrive. This arrived yesterday by ship and it arrived to us well, That arrived yesterday by cruise ship where they lowered approximately 40 to 50 tons of relief aid; and today they are arriving also...
The Red Cross also is supporting us. Already they brought us these cots and bedding to distribute; nevertheless, originally this was going to be in the storage area, but it got to be too much. There is another storage area just for medicine, and this we received to be dispensed in our pharmacy, because we have an infirmary where any person who does not have anywhere else to go can come here to this shelter and go to the infirmary. We also have like a dining room, where volunteers come, like a hot food kitchen.
And as to the aid equipment, it was also distributed with the help of medical psychologists; the island [Cozumel] was divided into 5 regions, these regions are those that are outside and in each region there is an aid brigade made up that will include a representative of the Red Cross, of the municipal DIF, and a representative from the state DIF.
Here is where we take out the dispenses, we are accumulating them and they are brought out by the five trucks to help to distribute them.
It was divided into 15 regions, in each region mainly goes a representative of the municipal DIF, a representative of the state DIF and a representative of the city council, and they are invited as observers who go to the different parts -- they are invited as observers to come to the different parts -- the Red Cross, too, is particpating, or will be, they go away in a brigade house to house and they are going to mark with lacquer, with paint, the house that already was given aid.
The idea is to take four weeks, a dispense every week; it's probably going to be a month that the family goes by the supply, through the lack of store merchandise.
- President Vicente Fox: Good afternoon, good afternoon, good afternoon young, good afternoon. Good afternoon, if they allow us, we are going to give a brief message. I am going to request, indeed, that Felix, the governor give us some words us, afterwhich he'll be your servant. Good afternoon.
- Governor Felix González Canto: Thanks President. We are coming to look over a series of municipalities and communities all very affected.
The damage that this hurricane left in Quintana Roo is great, but we have the support of all, the support of the society, the support of the President of the Republic, Vicente Fox Quesada and have the certainty, that working united, the municipal president, Gustavo Ortega, the government of Quintana Roo, the government of the state and the Government of the Republic and with all you, Quintana Roo will continue forward, of that there remains no doubt. Thanks
- Intervention: (Inaudible)...
- President Vicente Fox: I take note, I take note of the themet of the INFONAVIT, for here walks the chief of a main directorate, is he's here opposite, in Cancún, and we're going to take care of that, we're going to take care of that.
Well, good afternoon, what pleasure to greet you all.
There is no doubt that Hurricane Wilma showed no mercy, indeed, with this beautiful Island of Cozumel.
But as powerful as the hurricane was, that powerful is the will of the people of Cozumel to forge ahead and we are going to come out ahead together and working.
I just made a brief journey and there there are many people working, that is the number one value at this moment, that we all put ourselves to work to reconstruct.
We are, on the one hand, verifying that the supply of food, medicines, clothing, that everything donated by the whole country arrives at its destination and that destination is you and your family.
And I find a well-organized activity continuing to support with the most elemental [needs] until we have again returned to normality.
But you, just as I, well know that this lovely, this wonderful island, lives largely on tourism and the visitors, for that reason the brevity of the time it takes tourism and the visitors to return is so important.
It is evident that we have a great task ahead, an enormous challenge and a challenge that already has a ceiling as they have already announced to us that the next cruises are going to return on a very near date, and it is indispensable that we are prepared to take care of those tourists and those visitors, it's indispensable who we put all the services, all the small businesses, the restaurants, everything what serves to take care of tourism up on it's feet.
Without a doubt, I find force and will to obtain this by November 14; here, we have two weeks, two weeks of hard work.
Now that the airport has returned [to service] I am going to reunite with the industralists, the retailers, micro and small businesses, and with its representatives; with them we are going to offer an ample and complete package that includes access to fast financing, that includes direct supports, that includes suspending the collection of taxes until everything is working normally, that includes a moratorium and a truce... states... the INFONAVIT, IMSS statements [accounts?], CFE statements.
We are going to open the distances enough so that you can go to recover little by little, and not... from you.
In the same manner, the governor has offered to make an equivalent program with the rights of taxes that have to do with the state government.
So the task is to contribute the essential, so we recover soon to regenerate the source of income.
We worked in the basic services, 24 hours a day for the potable water supply, for the electricity supply, and in this next weekend we are going to be working closely together to regularize the situation.
But in the same manner we say to all and to all of you, that we are going to have very clear and concrete programs of support for whomever in the world who is affected, whomever in the world who lost furnishings, who lost stove and refrigerator, who lost house furniture, we are going to accompany them to replace them and to recover them.
In the same manner, the affectations to the house; to deal with smaller damages, of more numerous damages to total loss, also we are going to be with you to fix that house, to repair that house, or to construct the new house, in that case.
In all this we are going to be the slope to support them, so that this subject doesn't worry me, we are going to support them to return to have their worthy house, to return to have their furniture and equipment.
In the same manner, income: I have asked to the industralists, the hotelkeepers, the lenders of tourism services that they do evict anybody, that there not be unemployment.
And it is therefore under that commitment which we are going to strongly support the industralists, but only under the condition that they do not fire anybody.
But in addition, in addition, they need much, they need many more arms to work, a need for the efforts of the women, a temporary work party must be authorized, by means of which they can be added to work to clean streets, to reconstruct, to help to put us on our feet and to be able to recover tourism.
As of this next week already we are going to announce, we are going to have a strong advertising campaign that the Mayan Riviera, Cozumel, Isla Mujeres, is on it's feet and ready to return to growing.
I leave an order, all to work, all to propel us because Cozumel will return to be as great as it was and much more so; because for that we are here, for that reason you are. We are going to work. Thanks.
- Gustavo Ortega Joaquin: Good afternoon to all.
I wanted to take advantage of this opportunity to thank the President of the Republic, Vicente Fox Quesada; to Mrs. Marta Sahagún, to the governor of the state and Mrs. Polly for all the overwhelming support that they have given Cozumel.
Because the strong support that we have received from the Armed Forces, like we have received also from the Federal Commission of Electricity, from the National Commission of Water and the Secretariat of Tourism, and from the PROFECO, from so many people who have come to assess from as far as from... from FONATUR, Cozumel will be put on its feet.
I believe that the President of the Republic has been very clear, we need to all work so that the next cruises return, so that the source of employment returns; so that we prune, one more time, to get ahead and proud to have this tourist paradise.
We have already obtained the support of the cruise lines so that by the 14 of November we begin to operate.
We have a great task ahead, we have a big job to do because of the commitment so that they come is that Cozumel will be cleaned up, Cozumel will be on its feet.
Last night President Fox said to me; Gustavo, give me the list of the priorities that there are to do so that by the 14 of November they are ready and able to receive tourism.
Thanks, Mr. President, for all the support that is offered us.
Thanks, Mr. Governor, for all the support that you has given us.
And thanks, mainly to all you, to the people of Cozumel who have not surrendered and are standing, working.
Sir President: Wilma beat us up hard, but we are proudly Cozumeleños and go forward.
Thank you very much.
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Last modification: Saturday, 29 of October of 2005 to the 15:55 by Jesus Olguín Sanchez. Related documents: Visit that President Fox to the Convention center made, qualified like alberge (RealVideo) http://www.presidencia.gob.mx/archivos/2/0/6/1/2/files/archivos/sip-6813.ram related Enlaces: Official notice http://www.presidencia.gob.mx/actividades/contenido=21604
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