"We thought you weren't coming back" they said as I arrived.
"Where were the Irlandes when the army came?"
Hard question to answer, that one.
So what happened? Basically as was reported on the front page of La Jornada- large deployments of troops surrounded the community, twice, and the community was forced to flee to the mountains for a night. Cattle, horses, hens and a large sum of money, over 100,000 pesos was taken. While the troops did not conduct house-to-house searches, nor harm any of the inhabitants, the resultant fear and tension has had a hard effect on the community. The events of January have been superseded by the current climate of uncertainty and anxiety. February 9th to 21st the community was on red alert and everybody under orders not to leave the village. People were glad to have an international presence- communities without foreign observers in January suffered more violence at the hands of the military.
The stress of this latest red alert was everywhere apparent in the community, but, as Don A. pointed out, "We're not going to leave again. The next time they're going to have to kill us"
The next time could have been the evening of Feb. 9th. Scouts rushed in to announce the presence of 15 military troop carriers at the cross-roads, a few minutes from the gate of the community. Frantically the people mobilised in the pitch black cloudy night. Men rushed off into the darkness while the women sharpened sticks in the community centre. We the international observers grabbed our cameras, tape recorders and posted ourselves at the gateway. A few tense hours ensued, with messengers coming and going - after an hour 10 of the lorries pulled away towards town. And at 10pm, the community responsable came to inform us that the threat had now passed, the remaining 5 troop carriers had returned to town and we could all get some rest. The relief all round was mighty, as people shared cigarettes and teased the foreigners for their panicky reaction!
Early the next morning, everybody was back harvesting the coffee and the previous nights military intimidation was shrugged off with a brave face. Don E. had his radio on and the news reported that the government were making noises about restarting the San Andres peace process. "Mentiras!" laughed a couple of the older folks and the rest of the people agreed whole-hearted." We don't believe one word the malgobierno says," asserted L.
Despite the times, there's a good mood in the Cafetal. The harvest is good, and here in this plantation where people used to work for about 8 pesos a day for the old Patron, the co-operative now reaps the benefit of up to 25 pesos a kilo, a few pesos up from last year. Everyday for 3 weeks a group of between 20 and 40 villagers, male and female, old and young, strip the trees bare of the beans, sun shining gloriously. It is a very social activity and the low murmur of conversation and laughter accompanies the industrious pickers. At tranquil times like these, the low-intensity war seems a million miles away.
The village has grown, and the 96 households have built up a remarkable development in less than 2 years. Where there was once just cattle-grazing pasture, there is now a spacious, well-organised self-sufficient community supporting 700 people.
While the coffee co-op, encompassing 36 families, is doing well, the cattle and womens' hen co-operatives have suffered from the losses in January. The Corn and the Honey co-operatives are expected to do well this year. "We would be doing all right," explains one of the workers, "if they left us in peace".
But nobody is expecting to be left in peace. The most recent political and military developments have been very worrying. A nearby community, San M. has suffered a split, with up to 30 families breaking off to form a pro-government organisation. The explanation given by people is that they have been bought off by the PRI-istas, and been offered financial incentives. At night, gun shots have been heard in the hills surrounding the community which people believe are these men receiving military training from Army-sponsored instructors. This nascent para-military group, probably part of "Los Punales" a Comitan-area based gun-gang, has appeared in much the same manner as Paz y Justicia, MIRA, the Chinchulines and other para-militaries as part of the government and military strategy of arming the anti-zapatista factions at base level.
Indeed, the night after 10 families finally returned to Nueva Esparanza, the community near the small arms find on Jan. 1 who had been holed up in the mountains since that time, reports came through of 3 lorry-fulls of Pri-istas/ Punales leaving the community of San M. late at night heading towards Nueva E. In the end, nothing came of it, but the tension in the region, once more, was heightened. Meanwhile back in Diez, 2 relief donations came in from the Diocese - a truck load each time of rice, beans, tortilla and other essentials. The stuff is unloaded and distributed carefully and methodically all night by village responsables. Everybody is happy to receive their share, much needed after all the disruptions brought about by the military manoeuvres. The chrismas lights are strung-up and the children play around till late at night, as a charitable donation becomes a festival of resistance....
People open up more and more to the Irish representatives- the fruit of our presence in '97. "Come to my house for Pozol" is the demand of the day, and stories are shared. "What planet is Ireland on", asks one of the village responsables, relating how he learned in his few days of schooling a long time ago that there were other planets like Saturn and Pluto - but on which was Ireland?
"Eh, Planet Earth," I answer, "but it could be another planet all right", as I glance around this small dirt-floor hut, home to a family of 8. The lads have finally got their soccer pitch in order, more a slope of a hill than a level playing field, but ni modos, it may be Mexico and Ireland playing but its not the World Cup.
And they've built a fine wooden school overlooking the basketball court. Two of the Masters remain, and even though they're supposedly Pri-istas, the community is glad to have them teaching the kids. " We're trying to make companeros of them" joked one of the catechists. And when the coffee-harvest was all in, we began work on the new mural on the side of the Co-operative Store. Soon Emiliano Zapata will be present in the community in more than just spirit!
The war is never far away. Just before returning to San Cristobal, where the anti-foreigner witch-hunt is reaching fever-pitch in the media, a house is pointed out. Thats where the "tout" lived- a young informer who left on January 1st when the army came, and with him went all the information of village life that will be of use to the army and the paramilitaries.
The atmosphere back in San C. is one of fear as roaming civilian-dressed migration officers stop and intimidate foreigners. In this contrived xenophobic atmosphere, violence against internationals seems inevitable, aside from the systematic deportations. And while the pro-government radio, newspapers and television continue to support the government -line that international observers are violating the Mexican Constitution (by taking an interest in Human Rights and other "crimes"), it seems the whole anti-foreigner campaign serves only to draw attention away from the continued paramilitary killings in the state, and the lack of action on behalf of the state security forces to bring the culprits of Acteal and other crimes to justice.