La Jornada, January 13th, 1995 by Rosa Rojas
The Human Rights Coalition for the Ethnic Groups of Chiapas urged
President Zedillo to "attack the root of social problems that gave rise to
the Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN), since there will not be
peace until these problems are solved," and to "analyze deeply and
carefully the three conditions the Zapatistas set for the beginning of a
dialogue."
These points are: the resolution of the post-electoral conflicts in
Chiapas, Tabasco and Veracruz; the resignation of Eduardo Robledo Rincon
as governor of Chiapas and the recognition of Amado Avendano as the same,
and the recognition of the National Commission of Intermediation (CONAI)
as the official interlocutor between the EZLN and the government. Of
these, only the last has been fulfilled, indicated Enrique Perez Lopez,
president of the Association of Human Rights of the South-Southeast.
He explained that this Association and the regional councils of human
rights of Tapachula and Tuxtla Gutierrez make up the Human Rights
Coalition for the Ethnic Groups of Chiapas. This Coalition urged
President Zedillo that he should immediately give up land to all the
indigenous, campesino and social organizations in Chiapas, "regardless of
the groups' political, ethnic, or religious affiliations."
Correspondingly, fair and equal compensation, according to the quality of
the land, should be awarded to the cattle ranchers and property owners
whose lands and ranches were invaded, because for many of them their land
represents a life's work.
Similarly, the letter underlined the necessity of recognizing, "as a form
of popular government," the municipal councils that have been named after
accusations against various mayors, and of investigating the denouncements
that have been made against them. It also demanded that "the Mexican Army
be withdrawn from the zone of conflict, so that the armed forces show
their desire for peace."
Perez Lopez added that the human rights organizations urge the undertaking
of projects that finance the production of campesinos, which, out of
necessity, are obliged to invade land. They also urge the creation of
jobs for combating unemployment, which affects not only Chiapas, but 22
million people throughout the country.
The letter also demanded the speeding up of the investigation of 7,500
cases of indigenous prisoners in the state's 13 jails.
If these points are not taken up, underlined the defender of human rights,
"the declarations and visits will not help to attain peace. On the
contrary, right now we are seeing the outburst of the state's conflictive
situation."
He pointed out that members of the Coalition visited the cities of
Comitan, Trinitaria, San Cristobal and Oxchuc and "all the little towns
are full of soldiers. If the solution to the conflict is not war, (as the
government says), the only way to achieve peace is that the army returns
to its cuartels."
"We said to the president that 365 days of war was enough time to have
responded to the demands of the civil population. To not have done it is
to demonstrate that the government does not want peace--the government has
bought airplanes and military cars with the resources that could have been
used for social problems. We have 50,000 soldiers in Chiapas."
He warned also that the civil population "has to understand that it can't
take justice into its own hands. Both the government and the people have
to understand that to attain peace there must be harmony."
Perez Lopez also informed that last December 28th the Coalition applied to
the Federal and State Interior Ministers for authorization to check cases
in the prisons of Chiapas, "which would permit us to diagnose who is
innocent and who is guilty, because there are many innocent prisoners, and
above all indigenous," in the prisons, in addition to the fact that many
prisoners have already completed half of their sentences and could benefit
from early freedom laws.
With respect to the acts of Chicomuselo, where seven people died in a
confrontation allegedly between police and PRD party members who attempted
to take the town hall, Perez Lopez said that before giving any opinion,
the Coalition will investigate the actions, since, he said, its wrong to
hurry judgments in the way that the government does, which, "before
investigating is blaming Amado Avendano--who heads of the Transitional
Government in Rebellion--for being the intellectual author of the
confrontation."
Human Rights Coalition Urges President Zedillo to Seek a Solution in
Chiapas La Jornada, January 13th, 1995 by Rosa Rojas