By Ana Kailis
MEXICO CITY — On September 13, 1111 Zapatistas will begin a march from Chiapas to Mexico City to demand the implementation of the San Andres agreements (signed in 1996) and to protest against the continuing military incursions against the Zapatistas and the indigenous people of Chiapas. The march will coincide with the founding congress of the FZLN (Zapatista National Liberation Front), an urban-based civilian movement.
The Zapatistas will be joined by thousands of indigenous people from across Mexico, who will participate in a preliminary meeting that will lay the framework for a National Indigenous Congress in October.
In a communiqué issued on August 8, Subcomandante Marcos outlined the ongoing incursions by the Mexican army into Chiapas and other indigenous areas.
The federal armed forces have increased their troops and have advanced on new positions to annihilate indigenous communities and the leadership of the EZLN. Adding to these military pressures, a campaign of destabilisation in the north of Chiapas continues, with ongoing eviction, incarceration and assassination of indigenous people.
As a result of ongoing urban struggle, a certain political space has opened up in the capital, reflected in the recent elections, particularly the election of PRD leader Cuahtemoc Cárdenas as mayor of Mexico City.
In the communiqué, Marcos commented: "The election on July 6 has opened a space which can be democracy, liberty and justice or a sham and fraud. This space is in dispute between the powerful and their followers, and sitting opposite ... the popular forces and city dwellers. The electoral defeat of the PRI in some parts of the republic does not signal the end of the state party system and the democratisation of the country. Today, a struggle will ensue because nothing fundamental will change."
In contrast to this developing space in Mexico City, however, is the rest of the nation, where electoral shams and military occupations continue to be the norm. there is a growing disparity of political experience between city and country, indigenous and non-indigenous. By the time of the elections, according to Marcos, the government had traced a clear line separating indigenous Mexicans from others.
The lack of political, social and military conditions for a normal election process in many regional centres was condemned by human rights and indigenous organisations.
However, this was not taken up at all by the opposition parties. The Zapatistas therefore decided not to participate and to convert July 6 into a day "against contempt and forgetfulness".
Since the election, the government has attempted to use the result to prove that the armed struggle is invalid and that the Zapatistas should incorporate themselves into legal political life.
In response, the Zapatistas have argued that the conditions do not yet exist for the cessation of the armed struggle: "Our dream is to make useless our weapons, that is to say, to contribute to the construction of a country where one can struggle for equality, justice, liberty and democracy armed with nothing more than ideas, words, honest practice and commitment. Do we live in a country with these conditions? We believe not."
The decision to march on the capital is about bridging the experiences of rural and urban communities, bringing to the attention of the nation the realities of indigenous Mexico.
Teresa Rendon, adviser to the Zapatistas during the San Andres Roundtable, told Green Left Weekly, "The government has used all kinds of strategies to isolate the Zapatista movement, and in certain ways it has had some success. Although I am not very optimistic about the recent win of the PRD — it is a very heterogeneous party with some of the groups participating like those of the PRI — the election result has created an optimism in Mexico City, so this is a good time for the Zapatistas to reassert their presence.
"Since the Zapatista movement began, other movements have emerged, but they are dispersed. Maybe now these groups can be brought together."
The Zapatistas have called for national support for their mobilisation. "We come to Mexico City to demand a place for indigenous people in the nation ... We invite all of Mexico to march with us."
The decision to formally launch the FZLN at this time is also important because the strength of the civilian sectors will determine whether the political openings in the capital can be built upon and developed.
After 12 months of discussion by 320 civil dialogue committees involving 3600 people from 31 Mexican states, 37 proposals have been developed that will be discussed at the founding congress.
The agreed principles so far are the establishment of an organisation that struggles against neo-liberalism and the state party, to integrate itself with the social movements and to build conjunctural alliances with political parties.
There has also been a call to incorporate the 13 Zapatista demands — work, housing, land, education, food, health, independence, democracy, justice, freedom, culture, the right to information and peace. As a result of the city consultation, three more demands will be considered at the congress: security, the fight against corruption and defence of the environment.
So far, the government's response has been cautious. President Zedillo has been pressured into stating that the Zapatistas can enter the city with their balaclavas. However, the possibility of confrontation and harassment remains, and the Zapatistas will not be armed.
Rendon told Green Left, "The government's response will depend on whether they decide first and foremost to protect their international reputation, or if they consider this convergence on the capital too threatening."