In a Mexico ‘Tired of Violence,’ Zapatista Rebels Venture Into Electoral Politics Paulina Villegas - The New York Times
go to original August 29, 2017

María de Jesús Patricio Martínez is the first indigenous woman running for the presidency of the country. This is a completely new step for Indigenous rights. (ZoominTV)

The Zapatistas, the most powerful political rebels in Mexico in nearly 100 years, are renouncing armed revolution, after decades of opposing the government, for a simple reason: Mexico is so riddled with violence, they say, that the country cannot handle any more of it.

The decision is a searing commentary on the state of Mexico today, analysts say. The rebels have not reached a peace deal with the government, nor won their longstanding push for indigenous rights. But killings in Mexico are rising so quickly that even a movement rooted in armed struggle feels compelled to back away from violence.

“This shows the extent to which Mexicans are tired of violence,” said Jesús Silva-Herzog, a political-science professor at the School of Government at Tecnológico de Monterrey. “Political radicalism today has to be pacifist because the public, social and economic life in Mexico has been stained with blood for far too long.”

Subcommander Marcos, the rebel leader who became a global phenomenon in 1994 when the Zapatistas stormed into towns in the state of Chiapas, stood on stage for a brief moment a few months ago, hidden behind a throng of fighters, youngsters with piercings and indigenous followers in hand-stitched blouses.

After a few rounds of applause, photographs and revolutionary chants, he quietly walked off the stage, a stark departure from the fiery speeches on inequality and armed revolution that once drew him international attention and willing recruits.

But now, the Zapatistas say, more violence, no matter the cause, is the last thing Mexico needs.

Instead, they have decided to work within the system they once revolted against, backing a candidate to run for president in next year’s elections.

... Letting go of the revolutionary identity that once defined them, the Zapatistas, whose full name is the Zapatista Army of National Liberation, are venturing into electoral politics. They have endorsed María de Jesús Patricio Martínez, a healer from the indigenous Nahua people, in next year’s presidential elections.

María de Jesús Patricio Martínez, a healer from the indigenous Nahua people, has been endorsed by the Zapatistas in next year’s presidential elections. Credit Mauricio Lima for The New York Times “In Mexico, being an indigenous person means being treated as half a person, and if you are a woman, even less so,” said Mrs. Patricio, 57, who is not a Zapatista herself.

The Zapatista goal, they say, is not to win, but rather to use the 2018 election as a platform to voice the issues most pressing to Mexico’s indigenous communities.

Read the rest at The New York Times

Related: Indigenous Candidate Offers Voice, Unity to Mexico’s Long-Silenced Native People (PRI's The World)

We invite you to add your charity or supporting organizations' news stories and coming events to PVAngels so we can share them with the world. Do it now!