Room with a View

Viva Marcos!

First of all, I am not quite sure how to put two weeks into one blog entry, so I’ll try to give some of the big highlights. . When we arrived in Nuevo Rosario late that afternoon, Moritz and I set up our hammocks and unpacked our backpacks. It was a pretty amazing feeling knowing that everything you were going to “need” and eat within the next two weeks you just carried on your back for half a day. So, let’s see what we have, beans, rice, coffee. Hmmm, what else. Rice, coffee, beans. What is this? Pasta! Yeah! Pasta with beans, rice and coffee. Almost everyday there was someone from the community who brought us tortillas. We had a lot of visitors, the children coming by most often to see what was new. The photo is of Marcos and I playing with my camera. I have more of him and his brother and sister and a few of them wearing my glasses, in which they were very interested. One of the community leaders, sent her husband “el responsable” or “el encargado”, the guy that is in charge of what goes on in the community, to bring us tortillas that she had made. A few days later we stopped by to chat with her and the first thing she said to us was “Did you get the tortillas?” “Yes”, we told her, “they were fantastic.” She went on to say that she was gone for 3 days and she never heard from her husband, (el encargado and her husband) if he gave them to us or not. She was so worried about us receiving tortillas. I was blown away. They both work so hard doing everything in their power for this little community. They are trying to set up an autonomous school, attempting to bring in an health promoter once a week, all at the same time working in the milpa, taking care of their children, etc., etc., yet they were worried about us having tortillas to eat for breakfast.
Sleeping in hammock in the jungle is not as glamorous or relaxing as one may think. The smallest movement or body adjustment just maybe the making of a possible disaster, whether it being the hammock coming untied to the not-so-sturdy “wall”, falling out, or even trying to swat that mosquito buzzing by your ear could cause you another 30 minutes of adjustment before you can get situated to sleep again. My hammock wasn’t the greatest so the majority of the time I slept on the floor. I found a board and I put it on the slanted red dirt/clay floor and then my sleeping bag on top of that and vóila!…a bed. Some nights it was difficult to sleep with the mice and lizards and bugs of every sort coming to visit. The mosquitoes weren’t so bad, what was bothersome was the ANTS! They are huge and when they bite it is 5 times worse than a mosquito bite, but going to the river to bathe in the cool water usually helped soothed our insect bites, if only for a short while.
The river (el Río Jataté) where we would swim and bathe and wash clothes was one of the main disputes between Nuevo Rosario and another community on the other side of the river called Jerusalén. The community of Jerusalén is composed of members of the paramilitary groups OPPDIC and ARIC, both are linked to MIRA (Movimiento Indígena Revolucionario Antizapatista). Nuevo Rosario sits on land re-taken by the Zapatistas, which was previously uninhabited. However, once families began settling there the community from the other side of the river began harassing them. In January 2006 members of OPPDIC entered the Nuevo Rosario and set fire to a corral and some of the land as well as cut down and stole some 28 rolls of fence. In February 2007 OPPDIC returned, this time allowing their cattle to onto Nuevo Rosario land. The cattle destroyed and ate the community milpas (community corn gardens that provide food for the families) and set fire to 300 coffee plants destroying the entire “cafetal”. Again, these are just of few of the violations Nuevo Rosario has had to endure.
The dispute has to do more with land than with politics. The people of Nuevo Rosario state that the border between the two communities is the Río Jataté, which is about a 25 minute, walk from Nuevo Rosario and covers a considerable amount of land. There is a very small stream that encircles about one half of the community that has to be crossed in order to go to the Río Jataté. This stream is what the people of Jerusalén believe should be the border of the two communities. I’m interested to hear of new developments (hopefully we’ll see him at the Encuentros Intergalácticos at the end of July). I left on a Tuesday and there is supposed to be members of the JBG coming by the end of that week to try to sign a deal with the other community to solve the land and border dispute. One thing I keep thinking about is would there be as many aggressions and attacks on Nuevo Rosario if they were supported by the Zapatistas or not?
As we listened to and recorded peoples stories they always reminded us to tell the Human Rights Center to keep sending people like us to live with them in their little community. Just the mere fact that we are there is enough to deter threats and aggressions. Plus, it also allows the families to live and work in peace and their children to play and bathe in the river without the fear of violence from the neighboring community.
The two weeks passed quickly, faster then I imagined. And, I would have never had imagined that it would have been so hard to leave. The people of Nuevo Rosario really touched our hearts not only with their stories, but also with their determination to live in peace and dignity in the face of adversity and violence waged against them in their humble community all the while maintaining some of the biggest and most genuine smiles I have ever seen.
Do you remember the words of John Ross? Well, the people of Nuevo Rosario are truly engaged in a “War Against Oblivion”, it is ever present in their words, their work, and their smiles. Upon saying our goodbyes to the families, one woman step forward and grabbed our hands and said, “Don’t forget about us.” We all had tears in our eyes and even this is difficult for me to type as it already has taken me about 10 minutes just to get this sentence down…
She also wanted us to send “saludos” to our families back in our countries. So, everyone, a big hello and wishes of health and happiness from the people of El Nuevo Rosario, Municipio Autónomo en Rebeldía “Francisco Gómez”, Caracol “La Garrucha”, Tzeltal Jungle, Chiapas, México.

Welcome to La Garrucha

The sign reads, "You are in Zapatista Rebel Territory. It is here that the people govern and the government obeys". No doubts.

"Esta pa'alla, no mas, cerquita"

I’m back. I spent the last 2 weeks in the Lancandon Jungle in a small community called Nuevo Rosario, the picture is in Nuevo Rosario at sunset. When I say small community I mean just that, small. It is made up of 8 families and about 35-40 people in total. I believe in the last entry I mentioned something about going to Nuevo San Pedro, well, that changed. Frayba, the Center for Human Rights, gave us a letter to take to the Zapatista Junta de Buen Gobierno so that they would clear us to stay in a community in resistence to observe and document the situation being lived in Nuevo Rosario.
My friend and I left May 28th, 2007 at 6:00am from San Cristóbal to the town of Ocosingo just north and east. We packed into a 12 passenger van with our backpacks loaded to the gills with everything we would need for the next “15 días” (2 weeks), hammock, sleeping bag, clothes, water purification drops, silverware, a pot to cook our food and make coffee, etc. After the 2 hour winding trip out of the mountains we finally arrived to Ocosingo much to the delight of the woman sitting next to me who made good use of her motion sickness bag. Once in Ocosingo we found the market and next to it a large enclosed parking lot which reminded me of a large airport with trucks coming and going every which way but going out of Ocosingo no farther than 200Km or so. We found a truck that was leaving for Caracol #3 “La Garrucha” at 10:00am. So, we waited around for another 2 hours and by chance met up with two other brigadistas, a Spanaird and a Swiss, who were on their way to the La Garrucha as well. By 10:00am (we didn’t actually leave until closer to 11:00am) it was already blazing hot. We helped a family load their things into the truck along with ours, including their turkeys and chickens. Sitting in the back of a pick-up truck for 3 hours with 7 people, a few young turkeys, a couple chickens and chicks in 100 degree weather, dust blowing everywhere and sticking to your sweaty body with the road winding like a snake, moving from asphalt to gravel to even worse gravel and the driver dodging washed out sections of “road” was quite a rollercoaster ride.
We arrived at La Garrucha around 2:00pm and welcomed by some of the members of the Junta……….At the end add spiel about JBG. The Junta was quite busy so they offered us a place to put our things and we hung our hammocks and waited for our turn. While waiting to present out letter to the Junta, my Spaniard friend and I got in on a game of basketball. As some of you know I’m a hockey player and I know next to nothing about basketball even the Spaniard made fun of my shot saying that it looked like I was trying to throw a shot put. Needless to say us foreigners were taken to school, even though the Tzeltales we were playing with were shorter than us.
Later that evening we finally were able to sit in front of the Junta and present our letter hoping they would give us the ok to leave for Nuevo Rosario for observation. After some deliberation and a few questions that we had difficulty understanding because of the Tzeltal/Spanish mix we were told to wait outside and they would come find us later. It wasn’t until the morning that we finally heard from the Junta that we were allowed to go to Nuevo Rosario for two weeks. By that time, the one and only pick-up truck had already left from La Garrucha to Ocosingo. So we went out and waited at the road trying to flag down any and every car/bus/truck that passed by. Over a span of about 5 hours that was a total of 5 trucks. We finally got in a “camioneta” (pick-up truck) and returned to Ocosingo but by the time we arrived there were no more trucks leaving that evening.
I stayed in a little hotel in Ocosingo that night. I took my last hot shower I was going to have for a while. We got up early and hopped in a “combi” (one of those old Volkswagon vans) and for 10 pesos (less than $1) we set out on the road south from Ocosingo toward Altamirano. About half way to Altamirano we were dropped off at the side of the paved road and told by the driver as he pointed in I don’t know which direction that “Ejido Campet está por allá” (Campet is just over there). We grabbed our packs and watched the combi take off down the road and we just looked at each other in a moment of “what just happened”. It felt like one of those movie scenes where someone gets dropped off in the middle of nowhere and the car speeds off and then there is total silence and the feeling of, well, I guess we’ll start walking.
I was not ready for that hike and it was NOT "just over there". Carrying my heavy pack in 100 degrees walking down the gravel road to Campet with no breeze was physically taxing, I found out real quick what kind of shape I was in. After a solid 30 minutes we made it to Campet. Once we arrived in Campet some little tour guides welcomed us with a million questions, ¿De dónde vienen? ¿A dónde van?, etc. (Where are you guys from? Where are you going?, etc.). A couple of kids were ready and willing to show us the way to Nuevo Rosario. We walked through Campet to the single track trail that would lead us another 25 minutes to Nuevo Rosario. When we got the trail I was already tired and I when I didn’t think this road could be anymore difficult, it was. A switchback trail straight-up the side of this STEEP hill. It was difficult keeping my balance with my pack and the mud didn’t make it any easier, plus every 200 yards we had to cross a barb wired fence. The most important part is that we made it. Obviously, I have a lot to write and to tell and I will stop here for now. It seems like a good place to rest because that is the first thing we did when we arrived in Nuevo Rosario…rest. JT

P.S. I never got to ride on a horse but a few riders passed us along the trail offering us a ride. We refused because people kept telling us that "está pa'allá, no más, cerquita." (It's just over there, a little further), which usually means you have at least another 20 minutes of hiking to do.

P.P.S. I am attaching some information I typed up trying to learn more about how the Zapatistas organize themselves and what is all this business about Caracoles and Juntas de Buen Gobierno. So here you have a very brief overview.
In late summer of 2003, the Zapatistas reorganized the structure of autonomy in the Municipios Autónomas Rebeldes Zapatistas (MAREZ), which would now be administered from Caracoles by Juntas de Buen Gobierno (JBG). The word ‘Caracol’ takes on a double meaning. The literal translation is ‘conch shell’ which represents the Zapatistas’ five political cultural centers spiraling outward from the center and the sounding of a conch shell is used to summon the community to meetings. From these political cultural centers is where the JBG are based. Each Caracol is administered by a Junta de Buen Gobierno (JBG), which is loosely translated as ‘good government committees’. Here I provide a list of the Juntas de Buen Gobierno and the autonomous municipalities they govern.

1. Caracol Mother of Caracoles-Sea of Our Dreams – Meeting at La Realidad (Tojolabal Jungle). JBG “Hacia la Esperanza” (Toward the Hope) – Autonomías: General Emiliano Zapata, San Pedro de Michoacán, Libertad de los Pueblos Mayas, Tierra y Libertad

2. Caracol Whirlwind of Our Words – Meeting at Ejido Morelia. JBG “Corazón del Arcoiris de la Esperanza” (Heart of the Rainbow of Hope) – Autonomías: 17 de Noviembre, Primero de Enero, Ernesto Che Guevara, Olga Isabel, Lucio Cabañas, Miguel Hidalgo, Vicente Guerrero

3. Caracol Resistance Until the New Dawn – Meeting at La Garrucha (Tzeltal Jungle). JBG “El Camino del Futuro” (Road to the Future) – Autonomías: Francisco Gómez, San Manuel, Francisco Villa, Ricardo Flores Magón

4. Caracol That Speaks for All – Meeting at Roberto Barrios (North). JBG “Nueva Semilla que Va a Producir” (New Seed That Will Fructify) – Autonomías: Vicente Guerrero, Del Trabajo, La Montaña, San José en Rebeldía, La Paz, Benito Juárez, Francisco Villa

5. Caracol Resitance and Rebellion for Humanity – Meeting at Oventik (Highlands/Los Altos). JBG “Corazón Céntrico de los Zapatistas Delante del Mundo” (Center of the Zapatista Heart Before the World) – San Andrés Sakamchén de los Pobres, San Juan de la Libertad, San Pedro Polhó, Santa Catarina, Magdalena de la Paz, 16 de Febrero, San Juan Apóstol Cancuc

The Juntas de Buen Gobierno administer five Zapatistas Municipal Rebel Autonomous Zones (MAREZ) grouping together 29 municipalities that includes 2,222 villages, a total nearing 100,000 people (Ross).
The Sixth Declaration from the Lancandon Jungle continues with more detail how the JBG’s are operated: “[. . .] we are passing the work of safe guarding good government to the Zapatista support bases, with temporary positions which are rotated, so that everyone learns and carries out this work. Because we believe that a people which does not watch over its leaders is condemned to be enslaved [. . .]”. Since the initiation of the JBG’s in 2003 there has been continued self-learning and continued exercise of the Zapatista saying “mandar obediciendo”, or “govern by obeying” the will of the community. That is to say the Zapatistas continue to develop their worldview and administer autonomy in the region based on practice. Their experiment with participatory democracy and the promotion of dialogue, meetings, and exchanging ideas with people from the entire world helps build consciousness.