Inter Press Service English News Wire
12-31-1998
MEXICO CITY, Dec. 30 (IPS) -- The offer of "zapatours," a term
coined by tour operators offering visits to the Mexican state of
Chiapas has been heating up as the fifth anniversary of the
Zapatista uprising approaches.
Tourist agencies promote visits to Chiapas "to see the real
situation of the country" and to commemorate the first outbreak of
guerrilla war, they say, while representative of the diocese of San
Cristobal, the second city of Chiapas, made it known they welcome
foreigners wishing to express solidarity with the indigenous
people.
Reports from Chiapas, where indigenous fighters from the then
unknown Zapatista National Revolutionary Army (EZLN) declared war
on the government on Jan. 1, 1994, state nearly 300 foreigners have
entered the area within the last few hours.
Promoters of such visits include the U.S. agency Global Exchange
from San Francisco, which offers "reality tours" of Chiapas for
$800 on the Internet. The trip includes visits to areas of conflict
in the southern state and interviews with some of the lead players.
The most recent visitors have been not only tourists, but also
human rights activists, guerrilla sympathizers, academics and some
members of religious orders, said tour operators in the zone.
Alejandro Carrillo, coordinator of the National Migration
Institute (INM), warned the government was blocking "revolutionary
tourism" in Mexico.
"The institute will be monitoring fulfillment of the laws at al
times, with full respect for human rights, but also for national
sovereignty," he said.
Since January 1998, following the massacre of 45 indigenous
people in Chiapas at the hands of the paramilitaries -- an event
which drew international scrutiny to the government -- rules were
rigorously applied to avoid foreigners getting involved in conflict
with the EZLN.
Human rights organizations accused the Ernesto Zedillo
administration of closing the door on observers in order to hide
the violence and poverty of Chiapas, stating that more than 100
foreigners were expelled from Chiapas in the last year.
Invitations "to visit Mexico issued by tourist agencies do not
violate any disposition, but the organization of seditious visits
planning to use the pretext of getting to know the real situation
of the country in order to intervene in political events is
banned," declared Carrillo.
The Zapatista National Liberation Front, one of the groups made
up of EZLN followers in Mexico, stated, as on previous occasions,
that when the year ends celebrations will be held in the forests
of Chiapas and other zones of the country to commemorate the
uprising.
Five years ago, dozens of indigenous people with their faces
covered by ski masks, mostly armed with machetes or wooden rifles,
took towns and roads in the state of Chiapas initiating a 12-day
war against the army, which ended with the opening of negotiations.
From 1994 to the present day, the EZLN, which awoke sympathy
abroad due to the originality of its arguments, has gone through
armed confrontation, dialogue with the government, the signing of
agreements and suspension of negotiations -- a situation maintained
since 1996.
In the shadow of this process, the violence between rural people
on political, religious and economic grounds has worsened, as have
poverty and marginalisation. Meanwhile, the demands for justice and
democracy presented by the group have been taken up by all the
political parties as their own.
Before the government applied restrictions on foreigners
visiting the conflict zones of Chiapas, where thousands of
government troops are deployed today, the EZLN organized national
and international forums.
The organization was also visited by public figures like U.S.
film director, Oliver Stone, and the French intellectual, Regis
Debray.
In the last few months, under the public presence of the Mexican
guerrillas, who claim they do not want power, are not Marxists and
only want democracy -- especially better representation in the
communication media.
Analysts attribute the discreet role today played by the EZLN
to the natural wearing down of the group, the lack of success of
their demands and proposals, the greater importance of other issues
on the national agenda and the territorial control exerted by the
army.
In 1995 and part of 1996, the EZLN had prominent presence in the
communication media, and, at least here, they were able to "win the
war against the government," said historian Enrique Krause.
Copyright 1998 IPS/GIN. The contents of this story can not be duplicated in any fashion without written permission of Global Information Network
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