San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas
January 1, 2003
In the biggest concentration yet of the EZLN bases of support more than
20,000 indigenous and peasant farmers literally took the city of San
Cristobal tonight. Coming from every region of the state, some 20,000
machetes in the hands of Tzotziles, Tzeltales, Choles, Tojobales, and
Zoques struck eachtoher like bell stokes on Avenida Insurgentes during the
more than three hours it took them to fill the center of the city in a line
that seemed unending.
The manifestation concluded with a concentration presided over by the
Comandancia of the Zapatista movement. The Comandantes Ester, David, Tacho,
Fidelia, Omar, Mister, and Bruce Lee addressed the mass of people with
seven speeches that without a doubt broke the almost two years of silence
of the EZLN.
In the middle of this, the Comité Clandestino Revolucionario Indigena del
EZLN (the Revolutionary Underground Indigenous Commitee of the EZLN)
reiterated their backing of Subcomandante Marcos. We tell them that when
Subcomandante Marcos says that he supports a political struggle of a nation
or people, the same is being said by all of the Zapatista men, women and
children expressed Comandante Mister.
Comandanta Ester addressed a few words to Mr. Vincente Fox: I am only
telling you that the nation is disenchanted with the tricks that you pull.
After mentioning the threats of displacement in Montes Azules, returning in
the same white flowered shawl that turned that world during her appearance
in the drawing room of the Congress almost two years ago, the Comandanta
asked: Where is the peace? You don't care that you spoil the strength of
those that made you President.
A few days before the indigenous said: They are going to have to widen the
city of San Cristobal so that we will fit. Tonight you can see that it
wasnt a boast: the Zapatistas overflowed the streets and didnt fit into the
plaza of the cathedral. The experts say that some 18 thousand can fit
there. Today that wasnt sufficient. Thousands of natives had to stay in the
surrounding streets during the whole gathering.
The manifestation ended close to midnight with thousands of lit ocotes
(wood sticks used to light fires) illuminating the air with their flames.
And they again sounded their machetes, axes, hoes, and other farm tools.
Thousands of indigenous coming from the Highlands began to gather in the
morning outside of the city but the march did not begin until six in the
evening when the last those contingents arrived from La Realidad whom had
spent almost 15 hours coming.
The placards, that were adding up all day on sheets and cardboard, were an
unending chorus from the Zapatista support bases. The three government
powers are racist. Fox equals Zedillo. PAN equals PRI. Here and there they
read No to the terrorism of Bush and Bin Laden and they proclaimed their
support for the political struggle of the Basque Country.
They highlighted expressions of salutation and admiration to the rebels of
Argentina and proclaimed the globalization of rebellion and dignity. They
also supported the fight of Salvador Atenco (without the San) asking: Don't
leave the struggle, because we the Zapatistas want liberty like the
desobedientes Italians. In Italy, thousands of them united tonight in order
to directly follow the concentration of Zapatistas in San Cristobal.
Screaming vivas to Subcomandante Marcos, to the CCRI, to the autonomous
communities and to the insurgents of the EZLN, the demonstrators left clear
the message that the Comandantes David and Omar had explained close to
midnight: We came to tell you that we are here and we continue vividly. We
havent tired. We are neither disunited nor fighting between ourselves. Why
would there be fighting between ourselves if we still have those that fight
us.
Calling various times the government of Vincente Fox the bad government,
the Zapatistas from close to 40 autonomous municipalities expressed strong
criticism to the political parties, which for their respective interests
that refused to pass the Cocopa law, because it is not convenient for them
to have peace in Chiapas.
In what was the toughest speech, Comandante Tacho called Diego Fernandez, a
senator of the PAN, a lawyer for the criminals and accused him of opposing
peace in Chiapas because he wants to be president, even before 2006 in the
place of Vincente Fox and turn the entire country into a big ranch. About
the PRI senator Manuel Bartlett, Tacho said that he opposes the Cocopa law
and peace to appease the authorities of the United States who investigated
him for narco-trafficking.
Relating to the PRD, he said that this party unanimously passed the
Barlett-Fernanadez de Cevallos-Ortega Law to change the government of
Michoacan and pointed out that if only one senator had said no to the
judgment, the law would have had to be discussed again.
Ester, addressing the Commissioner for Peace, Luis H. Alvarez, said: You
were put to choose between being like Camacho or like Rabasa and you chose
to be like Rabasa, and she announced to him that the communities of the
EZLN would no longer permit him to pass through their controlled
territories for delivering money to the communities in order to divide them
and for saying that the Zapatistas are divided and other lies.
In their unyielding balance of how things are in the country and in the
world, the General Comandancia of the EZLN did not leave out a denouncement
of the operation of Television Azteca against CNI, channel 40. Although
recognizing that the commentators on 40 were not always objective in
relation to the Zapatistas, Comandante Tacho expressed the support of the
Zapatistas for the workers of the attacked television station. We cant see
how they impede, the work of informing and stay quiet.
The Comandante Fidelia directed a moving message to the women exploited,
scorned, and violated and Comandante Mister vindicated the right of the
indigenous to know the situation of the world, to have an opinion and
decide. He accused the government of being racist for blaming the
indigenous for no knowing the world and no having the right to talk about,
for example, the struggle of the Basque Country.
Before the globalization of death that the powerful impose, Mister declared
the right of everyone to globalize liberty.
To the Zapatistas he said, it doesn't frighten us to talk about the
political struggle of the Basque Country, and he expressed a special
backing of support to the self-determination of Venezuela and to the people
in struggle in Argentina.
The city of San Cristobal received the Zapatista takeover in silence, with
doors and windows shut, and its population, hardly showing itself, hearing
the ring of the machetes and the thousands of voices saying that they are
not defeated. Like Comandante Bruce Lee said, We don't have to ask
permission from the government to be free and defending the universal human
right to rebellion, he finished We dont have to ask permission for anything.
The Zapatista manifestation of tonight is also an affirmation of belonging
to the world and of the deeper strength the indigenous communities give to
modern Mexicans. They know that they are capable of teaching Mexico and the
world, not only learning.
To fill the plaza of San Cristobal on this night, one voice solicited over
the microphone; Comrades, see if you can advance those who are in front. It
seems like a good metaphorical expression for what has just occurred
tonight, that ended in flames and smoke in the plaza, and an echo of voices
and farm tools. The indigenous zapatismo is a ripe fruit. The racism of the
powerful can no longer stop them. This struggle has hardly begun David said
in Tzotzil and Spanish in the last speech of the Zapatista Comandantes.
And the night was flooded with torches. We will make a big light so that
the nations and people can see that we have maintained the rebellion, David
said to end the night.
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