Zapata Lives!: Histories and Cultural Politics in Southern Mexico

Conclusion: Reclaiming the Mexican Nation for the Poor and the Indigenous South

CHALLENGES AND HOPES FOR THE FUTURE The local histories of Unión Zapata, Santa María del Tule, Guadalupe Tepeyac, and La Realidad show that people appropriate aspects of national identity for their own purposes. An “experiential knowledge of the past transmitted through personal recollection can be harnessed in the context of political action,” Joanne Rappaport observes (1994, 19). Government-claimed nationalist icons are reprogrammed with local meaning and then mobilized in response to particular local and national conflicts and policies. Ejidatarios in Oaxaca and Chiapas have fashioned their own responses to the neoliberal economic policy that ended land reform, encouraged privatization, and has resulted in increasing socioeconomic stratification in Mexico. The role of culture has been key in how these men and women have been talking back to capital , to the government and its agencies, and indirectly to the institutions and actors, such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, that design global financial policy. While local identities and the ideas of local intellectuals found in this process of “talking back” cannot be called autonomous, because they have incorporated past nationalist ideas and discourses, they do offer hope for new ways of envisioning the nation on more equitable and democratic terms. The outcome of the July 2000 presidential elections in Mexico con- firms the idea of “talking back” to the status quo. Toppling the Partido Conclusion Reclaiming the Mexican Nation for the Poor and the Indigenous South 316 Revolucionario Institutional (PRI) after its seventy-one years in power was the work of a deep current of anti-PRI sentiment rather than an af- firmation of the political and economic policies of Vicente Fox as candidate of the Partido Acción Nacional (PAN). As summarized by the political analyst Wayne Cornelius: “Exit-poll data show that for two-thirds of those who voted for Fox, the main reason was a generalized desire for ‘change.’ Only one out of four voted for Fox because of the candidate’s personal qualities. Only 8 percent supported him because of his party af- filiation” (Cornelius 2000). Other significant factors in the PRI’s defeat included changing demographics (many more younger voters were credentialed than previously and most of these voted for Fox), a more level electoral playing field, the establishment of an autonomous Federal Electoral Institute to run the elections, and the grassroots organization of thousands of electoral poll watchers and participants (Cornelius 2000). The gubernatorial elections in Chiapas in August 2000 also sent a clear message of change when voters elected Pablo Salazar Mendiguchia on an opposition alliance ticket. While the federal elections were no doubt some of the cleanest in the nation’s history, their outcome—and some of their little-publicized problematic aspects—suggest some future challenges faced by Mexico, as well as the complex factors underlying the ouster of the PRI in July 2000 and Salazar’s victory in Chiapas. In this chapter, I highlight two aspects of the continued reality of rural Mexico: high levels of militarization and intimidation, on the one hand, and a strong national movement for indigenous rights and autonomy , on the other. The two are related, and are indicative of the contradictory factors that continue to coexist in Mexico despite the mandate for change spelled out by the 2000 elections. At the local level, particularly in the south, there are major problems to be resolved, yet also waves of hope generated by local and national movements, such as that for indigenous rights, that persistently plod ahead pushing for change. THE SURVEILLANCE AND MILITARIZATION OF MEXICAN SOCIETY The political opening in Mexico solidified by the outcome of the July 2000 elections has been accompanied by a history of intimidation and harassment of opponents to the government, including opposition political parties such as the PRD, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) working with peasants, indigenous peoples, human rights organizations , and a wide range of social organizations. The long-present culture Reclaiming the Mexican Nation 317 of political intimidation permeating many parts of Mexico operates in many realms outside the electoral process and involves parts of the military as well as multiple state and federal police forces. This strategy of intimidation involves three key pieces: 1. A war of covert intelligence and the development of a sophisticated intelligence apparatus 2. A civilian-targeted low-intensity war that involves intimidation, harassment, and a constant military presence in selected parts of Mexico —particularly in parts...