New Bishop

On March 31, 2000, Felipe Arizmendi, Bishop of Tapachula (Chiapas), was named to succeed Mons. Samuel Ruiz, as bishop of the Diocese of San Cristobal de las Casas. In one of his first statements, Bishop Arizmendi stated, “I am not going to San Cristobal to compete or to destroy, but to complement”.

Representatives of the diocese expressed their contentment with the new appointment and Bishop Samuel Ruiz himself asked all pastoral agents and the Catholics of the diocese to “continue their accompaniment and support of the diocese’s path” when Mons. Arizmendi becomes the pastor effective May 1.

Military Movements

During the past three months there have been frequent reports from the communities about the military presence, low-level overflights, the number of military camps and road-blocks, as well as harassment by military personnel around various indigenous communities opposed to the government. Moreover, people have stated that the Army has established a network of indigenous PRI supporters to infiltrate and spy on communities in order to photograph and harass EZLN (Zapatista Army of National Liberation) sympathizers.

On March 17, hundreds of indigenous people who in 1994 settled in the Montes Azules Reserve in the Lacandon Jungle were given a deadline to leave the area before being forcibly removed. Authorities accused them of “ecological infractions.”

On April 3, several dozen agents of the Federal Preventive Police (Policia Federal Preventiva) arrived at the ejido Candelario (Ocosingo). They accused the settlers of “ecological damage” and threatened to evict them if they did not abandon voluntarily the settlements in the Lacandon Jungle that they have occupied since the 1970s. In the inhabitants’ view, they are being forced to move because they represent an obstacle to the construction of the military corridor connecting San Quintin and Guadalupe Tepeyac, two of the most important military bases in the region.

Meanwhile, many instances of civil resistance have been seen among Zapatista supporters, including road blockades, marches (including International Women’s Day with 15,000 men and women participants), and other activities such as the National Consultation on Women’s Rights. The latter took place in 50 counties in Chiapas in the context of International Woman’s Day, with more than 85,000 participants. The principal demands continue to be dismantling of the military camps; ending the military check-points; withdrawal of the Mexican Army from the region; and fulfillment of the terms of the San Andres Accords.

San Andres Accords

Four years after the signing of the San Andres Accords, Secretary General of the Mexican Bishops Conference Abelardo Alvarado observed that the situation in Chiapas is worrisome, given that there is no new mediation body. He added that the Church cannot be the mediator, as it would suffer the same harassment as Mons. Samuel Ruiz when he was President of the National Mediation Commission (CONAI).

During a recent trip to Chiapas, President Zedillo asserted that he has complied with the San Andres Accords. During his visit in March, Francisco Labastida, the presidential candidate of the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), erased any possibility of negotiating with the EZLN any changes to Zedillo’s legislative initiative regarding the San Andres Accords. He stated, “You cannot have a small group of people substitute for the legislative powers of the country. Laws are not made from the Jungle.”

Carlos Payan and Gilberto Lopez y Rivas, PRD (Party of the Democratic Revolution) members of the congressional Commission for Agreement and Pacification (COCOPA), stated that the federal government’s non-fulfillment of the San Andres Accords four years after they were signed makes the agreement “virtually null and void.” They added that the situation of the indigenous people has worsened and the possibilities of resuming negotiations with the EZLN are increasingly difficult.

Given the opposition of PRD and PAN (National Action Party) senators, President Zedillo’s legislative proposal on indigenous rights will not be passed before his term ends in December. According to the opposition, the proposal is not consistent with the San Andres Accords.

Paralysis of COCOPA

The long-standing lethargy of COCOPA has worsened in recent months. PRI members of the congressional commission have vetoed new initiatives, including a proposed visit to Chiapas to investigate reports of increased militarization. In addition, the PRI members voted as a group to cancel the planned International Conference on Peace Negotiators in Armed Conflicts, which had been promoted by PRD Senator Carlos Payan. While criticizing PRI members on the Commission, Payan insisted that if COCOPA were to serve “only to preserve the cease-fire in Chiapas, this would be a very important reason to keep it going in the next legislature.”

Official Statements

In the third week of February, the government’s Coordinator for Dialogue , Emilio Rabasa, said that the Chiapas conflict will not be able to be resolved during this presidential term because the EZLN is determined to prolong the conflict. He added that the intransigence of the Zapatistas is testing the patience of civil society.

At the end of March, Rabasa asserted that the EZLN uprising served only to make “evident at the national and international level, the dramatic misery and marginalization in which many indigenous communities in Chiapas live,” but it did not help resolve the problem. On the contrary, the prolongation of the armed conflict has exacerbated the deprivation, especially in the areas in which the Zapatistas are based. President Zedillo, during his 31st visit to Chiapas, described the situation in Chiapas as “a culture of violence from which, unfortunately, some communities still suffer”.

International Response

During her visit to Mexico in the first week of February, Erika Daes, President of the United Nations Working Group on Indigenous Peoples asked the Mexican government to respect the terms of the San Andres Accords. She said that the Mexican Army should suspend its patrols in Guerrero and Chiapas and return to its bases and that those responsible for the massacres in those states should be punished. She called for guerrilla groups to lay down their arms and “make a peaceful effort for dialogue with the government.” She added that the United Nations could participate as a mediator in the conflict if the government and EZLN so requested.

A week later, her colleague Asma Jahangir, the Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial Executions, presented a report to the United Nations on her trip to Mexico in July 1999. The report mentioned that the federal and local governments, the army, paramilitary groups, and armed opposition groups “execute innocent persons throughout the country, but mainly in Chiapas and Guerrero.” The report observed that with respect to the massacres in the mentioned states, “not all those responsible (materially or intellectually) have been captured” and that furthermore “the incapacity of the judicial system results in an increase in human rights violations.” The report recommended that the Mexican government “continue the reform process that it has begun,” but at the same time “ensure the demilitarization of society and avoid deputizing the armed forces to maintain law and order or to eradicate crime.”

The Attorney General of the Republic, Jorge Madrazo, argued that the report was done “without proof or objectivity.” The Minister of Foreign Relations said that the Rapporteur exceeded her mandate by analyzing in her report the role of the Federal Army. She went on to describe the report as lacking in balance and objectivity.

On March 23 while in Portugal on a European tour, Foreign Minister Rosario Green recognized that Mexico “regrettably” has not been capable of ending violations of human rights, nor of cementing “in a solid manner” the foundation of a culture of respect for those guarantees and of combating impunity.

In its annual report presented at end of February, the US State Department observed that the Mexican government “has generally respected much of its citizens’ human rights.” However, “serious problems” continue to persist, such as police corruption, arbitrary arrests, judicial ineffectiveness and corruption, discrimination against indigenous communities, and threats against promotion of human rights to mention a few.

During a visit to Chiapas on April 2, Antonio Seguro, president of the European Parliament Commission for Relations with Central America and Mexico, indicated his willingness to mediate in the Chiapas conflict. Even though Chiapas Governor Roberto Albores assured him that he had no knowledge of the existence of paramilitary groups in Chiapas, Seguro stated, “It seems to us that if the rule of law is to be restored in Chiapas, there needs to be a struggle against the paramilitary groups since they represent an obstacle to the return of displaced people back to their homes.”

International Jurisdiction

At the end of February, the coordinator of the Mexican diplomatic mission to the Organization of American States announced in Washington that Mexico will not attend the meeting of the Inter-American Human Rights Commission (IAHRC) in March. The coordinator indicated that he feared being “put on trial” at the meeting. The government was invited by a group of Mexican non-governmental organizations (NGOs). At a hearing on March 2, these national NGOs presented a report on the human rights situation in Mexico.

A few days later, eight international organizations (among them Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch) reported that they are pursuing their complaint before IAHRC that the Mexican government is refusing to comply with the recommendations previously directed to them by IAHRC.

Mexico and International Trade

In the middle of February, the foreign affairs ministers of the European Union unanimously passed the Free Trade Agreement with Mexico. A month later, the European Parliament gave its approval of the trade agreement. In the third week of March, the Mexican Senate approved the Free Trade Agreement. The final obstacle now is the Italian Parliament which did not achieve a consensus to ratify the agreement. Until the Italian Parliament ratifies it, the treaty cannot go into effect.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Commerce and Industrial Promotion, Herminio Blanco, made a trip to Japan to pursue the signing of a trade agreement with that Asiatic country. At the same time, the process of approving a similar agreement with Israel continues to move forward. Although the leaders of the two countries already signed the treaty, the Mexican Senate still has not ratified it. As in the case of the ratification of the trade agreement with the European Union, the opposition and various social organizations complained that they have been left out of the negotiations that led to the treaty.

New expulsion

The recent deportation of experienced electoral observer Ted Lewis by immigration authorities has raised the specter that the Mexican government is expanding its campaign against human rights observation to target observers of its election process as well. Lewis, Mexico Program Director of US-based Global Exchange, was deported despite having obtained accreditation from the Federal Electoral Institute (IFE) to undertake observation activities related to the current electoral campaign. An advisor to IFE, Jaime Cardenas, expressed his concern that the Interior Ministry, acting through immigration authorities, is putting obstacles in the path of foreign observers.