US military exercises disrupted

Navy personnel spent much of the day clearing the site

The United States navy has urged the Puerto Rican authorities to use riot police to prevent protesters disrupting American military exercises on the island of Vieques.

The call came after a second day of protests during which demonstrators again succeeded in getting onto the island's firing range, forcing a delay to practice shelling and bombing.

US congressmen are participating in the protests

A senior naval officer accused the Puerto Rican police of standing by while protesters broke the law, and appealed to Puerto Rico governor Sila Calderon to take action to defuse the protests.

But correspondents say Mrs Calderon is herself opposed to the exercises, which are deeply unpopular in Puerto Rico.

Dozens of demonstrators, including prominent politicians, have vowed to continue their action as long as the bombing exercises go on.

The protesters say they damage Vieques residents' health and the environment. The US Navy rejects the charge and says they are necessary for US military preparedness.

Call for force

About 15,000 sailors and marines, an aircraft carrier and about a dozen destroyers and cruisers are taking part in the exercises, which began on Friday and are expected to last several days.

I have no doubt that we will prevail

Governor Sila Calderon

They involve amphibious landings, ship-to-shore shelling and air-to-ground bombing.

On Saturday, the Navy spent much of the day trying to clear its camp, including the target range, of civilian protesters trying to act as "human shields".

Navy spokesman Lieutenant Jeff Gordon said that 128 people had been detained from Thursday up until Saturday afternoon.

In his letter to Governor Calderon, Rear Admiral Kevin Green wrote that "a significant number of protesters have cut a large portion of our fence and the number of trespassing incidents continues to escalate".

"I'm concerned for the safety of everyone involved and convinced the presence of the Puerto Rican Police Tactical Squad would help stem this increasingly dangerous situation."

The Navy spokesman reiterated the US charge that Puerto Rican police have stood by as the protesters break the law.

"They're stationed outside the gate, but all along the fence line they are doing nothing. This is very disappointing," he said.

Puerto Rican police officials have said they cannot act on federal land.

The Navy said it would halt the exercises for the day on Sunday as a mark of respect for Puerto Ricans as they celebrate the beatification of Carlos Manuel Rodriguez Santiago, who could Puerto Rico's first saint.

Opposition

On Thursday, a US judge rejected a last-minute request by Governor Calderon to halt the exercises on the grounds of environmental and health risks.

Thousands of people held a rally in the Puerto Rican capital, San Juan, in protest at the exercises.

Opposition to the Navy's presence on the island has grown since bombs fired off-target two years ago killed a local civilian, David Sanes, sparking an explosion of anti-US anger.

After the death of Mr Sanes, protesters invaded the range and prevented exercises from taking place until they were forcibly removed by US marshals in May 2000.

The White House then agreed to scale back exercises using only inert ammunition, and bombing resumed.