Chiapas and points east, west, north, and south

This is about a few thoughts I’ve been having recently concerning the land and policy struggles being played out by our companeros and companeras down in Chiapas Mexico as well as many other Latin American locales.

There is a very real problem of state sponsored terrorism and genocide being perpetrated upon the poor and indigenous peoples of these lands by the right wing paramilitary groups sponsored by the bad governments of Mexico et al. In Chiapas it all came to a head in 1994 when the Mexican government changed the land policy and signed onto NAFTA which affected the poorest farmers in Southeastern Chiapas which allowed their land to be sold off to big business to be exploited by same, the indigenous get run off their farmland and get their crops stolen, but you can read all about it at these sites.
http://www.lasolidarity.org
http://www.mexicosolidarity.org
http://www.ezln.org

That last one being the official site for info on the Zapatistas down in Chiapas. I urge you to go there and read “The Sixth Declaration of the Selva Lacandona” written by a committee of the Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN)
Also there is a links page where you can get a world of information on other organizations helping.
http://www.ezln.org/fzln/links.html

The 12 day armed conflict which broke out in 1994 down in Chiapas resulted in the Zapatistas recapturing a big portion of their land back that was stolen from them, since then the Mexican government has been waging a clandestine low intensity war on the poor there. NAFTA was a major cause of the hostilities. The US government set that up, and the Mexican government signs on to it, the indigenous get their rights trampled on while US multinationals run off with the booty. It’s called neoliberalism by the capitalist conglomerates, but the Zapatistas just want their land and rights back with their autonomy to govern their own small areas without being shot at or stolen from by the government goons.

Back in 1994 the zaps cry was “Ya Basta!!!” meaning enough is enough, and their three biggest demands were: Democracy, Liberty, and Justice, but there were 10 or 11 other demands set forth in the first declaration of the Selva Lacandona , and they were these: peace, independence, land, shelter, work, labor, bread, health, education, communication, and culture.

These things are so astoundingly universal to all countries of the world, the US included, and so relevant today that it needs to be said anew, ENOUGH! All the rest of us were not looking close enough when these rights were abrogated by the capitalist systems of the west for the richest of the population. Oh sure they tell us we have them, but when it comes to it they lie to us, only about 10 percent of the population really has them in varying degrees. Now these big corporations who wish to “globalize” “free trade” are working to destroy the spirit and culture of every other country on the globe with slave labor and do it “legally”. This must be curtailed, it only adds to the problems, think about it.

Viva La Otra!

Be a Zapatista where you live!

Thank you.