An Encuentro was held between December 20th and 22nd in Acteal, a community several hours outside of San Cristóbal de Las Casas, to remember the massacre that happened in the same place 10 years ago on December 22nd, 1997. The local community has been committed to remembering the tragedy for the past 10 years, holding a religious ceremony the 22nd of every month. Rather than letting such repression go forgotten, it has become a reason to come together, hold authority accountable, and imagine a world without repressive violence.
The massacre was only one act of repressive violence amongst countless others that have occurred since the EZLN uprising in 1994. What distinguished these murders was their unprecedented extremity. In the morning of December 22nd, 1997, a paramilitary group entered the community of Acteal and murdered 45 people praying in the local church. It was believed that the violence was prompted by the support of local political organization “Las Abejas” towards the Zapatista movement. However, Las Abejas distinguished themselves as a separate, nonviolent, and religious organization. During the several hours of murder, soldiers in the nearby military base did nothing to stop the violence. Afterwards, military personnel were seen trying to remove blood and other evidence of the massacre from the scene. It was later discovered that military and police forces were not only complicit in the violence, but had assisted with the provision of arms. To no great surprise, the government stalled and eventually dropped the investigation into the murders, and no real repercussions or reparations were made following the massacre.
Thus the massacre is a grim reminder of the repressive state violence that continues unchecked to this day. Considering the continued presence of paramilitary groups directly trained and supported by the Mexican military, disappearances and murders, and complicity on the part of the government, nothing significant has changed. This theme rightfully dominated many of the discussions and memorials conducted during the Encuentro.
The first day focused on discussions of the events and related themes in politics and activism, and the final two days on demonstration and memorials devoted to the victims, the final day focusing mostly on religious ceremonies that have been conducted regularly by Las Abejas since the massacre. Bishop Samuel Ruiz spoke at the program, an important figure in the community and the liberation theology movement in general since the early 1970’s.
The event was poorly attended, a fraction of the recent Colloquium held in San Cristóbal de las Casas, and other encuentros held before. Is this because of the absence of celebrities like Subcomandante Marcos, or lack of direct connection to the Zapatista movement? Important questions are raised as to the intentions and priorities of political activists in Chiapas, especially after recent concerns raised by Marcos about the selective gaze of foreign supporters on the indigenous movement. The phenomenon of flagging support in the face of increased violence is eye-opening, especially in a time when participation and awareness raising couldn’t be more badly needed. How ironic that this makes itself apparent in an event memorializing repression gone unchecked and unpunished.
