Rebellion in Chiapas Memories from 1992
 
by Teddi Borrego
 
During the summer of 1992, I spent a month in Chiapas, the region that is
now the site of  guerrilla rebellion and army retaliation.  Most of that month I
was with a small group of Catholics from Belgium who have funded
projects in Central America and Chiapas for many years. Together we went
to the countryside, to small indigeneous communities and to Christian base
communities, to speak with the campesinos (peasants) about their lives,
their work and their hopes for the future.
 
In community after commmunity, from high pine-covered mountain villages
to the low steamy jungle ranches, we heard the same cries of desperation.
Campesinos told us about how their life had always been difficult, but each
year was becoming more so as prices for their crops continued to fall, and
with the changes that the Mexican  government was making regarding their
land and credit. Access to credit, which poor farmers desperately need for
seeds or to replace hoes and machetes, has been greatly reduced or the
interest is too high to repay. (International lending agencies required Mexico
to eliminate many subsidies and government agencies before it could receive
new funding.)
 
The campesino men discussed how Article 27 of the Constitution had been
modified so that ejido land could now be sold. This land, guaranteed to
campesino communities by the Constitution, is held communally by
members of the village. With falling prices, little or no credit, and difficulty
 in
selling their products, campesinos will be easily tempted to sell their land for
the needed cash. The campesinos  used simple language, but clearly
understood the implications of the loss of land--their entire way of life would
be eliminated, with no promise of alternatives. Those who had gone to the
cities knew that there
were not enough jobs for even the people who live there, let alone for
peasants who have few of the skills needed for urban survival.  Many of the
campesinos spoke about the North America Free Trade Agreement--to
them the TLC (Tratado de Libre Comercio). They felt it would only
increase the threat to their way of life as cheap grains entered the country,
and there was more pressure for land for agro-business. (Even Mexican
government officials estimate that with NAFTA millions of campesinos will
be displaced.)
 
It was difficult for the women to speak to us, both because many do not
speak Spanish, and because of their reserved nature. A good number did
talk, however, describing their long days of work just surviving. They spoke
of rising hours before the sun was up to begin grinding corn for the tortillas.
"I need to grind it twice so the tortillas will be good", said one woman.
Another told about a communal mill that their village had gotten, "but it
doesn't always work".  Because the diet is mainly beans and tortillas, the
tortillas must be made two times a day. It takes a lot of wood to cook both
the tortillas and the beans, but there is a new law against cutting wood. The
campesinos understood that cutting down the forest was not good, but they
didn't see any alternative.  If they were caught cutting wood they were fined,
if they could not pay the fine they were jailed.  Meanwhile, logging
companies were cutting down large tracts of land with impunity. The
campesinos spoke of their needs for medical attention--many are far away
from any help and by the time they walk out to the road, the patient's
condition may be too critical for him to survive. Some men described their
children's deaths with great sorrow, others in anger, knowing that with
minimal medical care, a child may have survived. The indigenous
campesinos described the racist attitudes of some doctors and nurses when
they did go long distances to a government clinic.
 
Catholic nuns and lay members told about the political difficulties of working
with the poor in Chiapas.  Government official and large land owners
accused them of causing trouble, or creating problems.  The seriousness of
this situation was evident in the local newspapers which reported  threats
made on the life of  San Cristobal Bishop Samuel Ruiz  who has been a
long-time supporter of indigenous rights.
 
 
 
>From the Albuquerque Central America Peace Alliance Newsletter
($10 /year, SASE for Sample Copy )
144 Harvard SE, Albuquerque, NM 87106.  Email dbroudy@igc.org or
dbroudy@quincy.unm.edu.

