Article written by Michelle Akane Storey

La Garrucha, Sept 16th (Chiapas Indymedia)

On September 16th the EZLN holds a sixth meeting discussing their “Other Campaign” for non-electoral politics and a new Mexican constitution (as proposed in the Sixth Declaration of the Lacandon Jungle, aka "the Sexta"). After soliciting the comments, criticisms and words of support from groups, collectives, organizations and individuals from across Mexico and beyond, the Zapatistas are to begin a series of encounters to form specific proposals on what form this “Other Campaign” will take. Here, Akane gives us a recap of the meetings held thus far.

The Zapatistas are currently holding meetings in the smoldering heat of the Mexican Southeast to discuss their Sixth Declaration of the Lancandon Jungle (the Sexta) with groups and individuals from all over the country.  The encounters have drawn together some 48 leftist political organizations, 95 indigenous organizations, 135 social organizations, 287 non-governmental organizations (NGOs), groups and collectives, 1079 individuals, and a myriad of others from throughout the Mexican Republic and beyond, who together are embarking upon a new national political initiative.

The Sexta, which sums up and evaluates the 11-year history of the Zapatista struggle, gives evidence that the Zapatistas have arrived a point at which a new step in their struggle is possible. To take this step, it is necessary for them to join together with other national and international movements from the left. Following the series of meetings taking place in the jungle, a Zapatista delegation will tour the country to form and strengthen alliances, creating a national anti-capitalist movement of the left. By creating alliances with other indigenous, worker, campesino, populist, student, political and social movements that are also struggling against neo-liberal globalization, the Zapatistas hope to create an alternative atmosphere where basic rights, justice, democracy, and freedom are possible for all. They hope to turn the general populace away from electoral politics so that real structural change, including a new constitution, becomes reality.

Internationally, the Zapatistas have proposed an “intergalactic” meeting for network building between anti-capitalist, anti-globalization movements. Previous “intergalactic” meetings called by the Zapatistas in 1996 and 1997 (in Chiapas and Spain, respectively) sparked the global justice movements that shut down the WTO talks in Seattle in 1999.

The Sexta followed a Red Alert called by the EZLN. The Red Alert, the third in Zapatista history, was called for internal reorganization of the political-military structure of the EZLN, which, according to the communiqués, occurred after a long process of internal reflection and analysis. Just prior to the Red Alert, a communiqué sent out by Marcos dealt harsh blows to Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO), leading candidate of the quasi-leftist Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD), and affirmed the EZLN`s opposition to Mexican electoral politics. In his communiqué, Marcos claims that AMLO does not represent a real alternative for the Mexican left, but is instead another representative of corruption and neo-liberal values that would continue to sell Mexico to the highest bidder in the game of international capital. For Marcos, AMLO represents an option worse than the current conservative PAN (National Action Party) or the PRI (Intsitutional Revolutional Party) that held the reins of Mexican politics for more than 70 years.

For some time now, the Mexican political scene has been focused on the coming 2006 presidential elections. The massive social mobilizations this past Spring in opposition to attempts to impeach AMLO, and thereby eliminate him from the presidential race, were supported heavily by some of the same groups the EZLN hopes to collaborate with. Given this circumstance, Marcos' position has been controversial, especially for the scores of Mexicans who hope that AMLO will represent all those who have been ignored by the majority of Mexican politicians. Many anticipate that AMLO, who is considered to be a populist candidate similar to Luis Ignácio Lula da Silva of Brazil, could ultimately shift Mexico away from its affinity with the US and towards a concord with states like roguish Venezuela. There is hope that he will strive to represent those from below, the poorest Mexicans, and work to implement the San Andrés Accords as agreed upon between the Zapatistas and the government. Differences on this matter have caused Marcos to alter his position slightly and welcome groups and individuals that are involved in electoral politics to participate in the Sexta campaign. This is not to be confused with Zapatista participation in the electoral process.

In typical Zapatista style, the meetings have drawn hoards of individuals and groups representing diverse causes, all of whom support and share with the Zapatistas the hope that a different Mexico and a different world are possible. Representatives of indigenous organizations, student collectives, political prisoners, transexual rights groups, musical groups, artist collectives, socialist groups, feminists, ecological justice campaigns, and anti-biopiracy groups, among others, have been pouring into the Chiapan jungle to share stories of their struggles, their visions, and their proposals for constructing this new anti-capitalist movement. Despite what happens on the electoral level, this movement is far from over. Rather, it is just beginning, and the impact it will have is yet to be seen.