Reading a Video (Part Three): Three Shoulders
22/08/2004
- Opinión
The moon appeared on the shoulder of the night, but for
barely a moment. The clouds separated, like curtains being
drawn apart, and then the nocturnal body flaunted its
tracing of light. Yes, like the mark a tooth leaves on the
shoulder when, in the flight of desire, you don't know
whether you're falling or rising.
Twenty years ago, after struggling up the first hill in
order to go into the mountains of the Mexican southeast, I
sat down at a bend in the road. The hour? I don't remember
exactly, but it was when the night says it was already-full-
of-crickets-I'd better-get-to-sleep, and the sun won't get
anyone up. It was the dawn.
While I tried to calm down my breathing and my racing heart,
I thought about the advisability of choosing a more serene
profession. After all, these mountains had done quite well
without me before I'd arrived, and they wouldn't miss me.
I should say that I did not light my pipe. In fact, I didn't
even move. And not out of military discipline, but because
my entire, at that time splendid, body was hurting.
Beginning a custom which I have maintained (with rigid self-
discipline) up to the present time, I began cursing my flair
for getting myself into problems.
That's what I was doing – the sport of gripe-gripe-gripe –
when I saw a gentleman with a sack of maize on his back,
going up the hill. They had taken the load away from me half
way up the hill so the march wouldn't be held up. But it was
life that was weighing me down, not the pack. Anyway, I
don't know how long I was sitting there, but after a while
the gentleman passed by again, going downhill now, and now
without his burden. But the gentleman was still walking
hunched over. "Chin!" I thought (which was the only thing I
could do without hurting all over), "that's how I'm going to
get with time, my manly demeanor is going to be destroyed,
and my future as a sex symbol will be like the elections, a
fraud."
And, sure enough, in a few months I was already walking like
a question mark. But not because of the weight of the pack,
but so I wouldn't catch my nose in the branches and the
vines.
About a year later I met Old Antonio. I went to his hut one
dawn to pick up tostadas and pinole. At that time we weren't
showing ourselves to the people, and only a few indigenous
knew about us. Old Antonio offered to accompany us to the
camp, and so he divided up the load into two sacks, and
attached the headband to his. I put the bag in my pack
because I don't have anything to do with the headband. We
made the trek with the flashlight until we reached the edge
of the dirt path, where the trees began. We stopped in front
of a stream, waiting for dawn to break.
I don't quite remember how it came up in our talk, but Old
Antonio explained to me that the indigenous always walk as
if they were hunched over, even if they aren't carrying
anything, because they carry the good of the other on their
shoulders.
I asked how that was, and Old Antonio told me that the first
gods, the ones who gave birth to the world, made the men and
women of maize in such a way that they always walked
collectively. And he told me that walking collectively also
meant thinking about the other, about the compañero. "That
is why the indigenous walk bent over," Old Antonio said,
"because they are carrying on their shoulders their hearts
and the hearts of everyone."
I thought then that two shoulders wouldn't be enough for
that weight.
Time passed, and, with it, passed what passed. We did not
prepare for battle, and our first defeat was in the face of
these indigenous. They and we walked bent over, but we did
so because of the weight of pride, and they because they
were also carrying us (although we didn't realize it). Then
we became them, and they became us. We began to walk
together, bent over, but all of us knowing that two
shoulders were not enough for that weight. And so we rose up
in arms one first day of January in the year of 1994…in
order to seek another shoulder which would help us walk,
that is, to exist.
The Third Shoulder
As with the origin of the Mexican nation, the contemporary
history of the zapatista indigenous communities also has its
founding legend: those who inhabit these lands now have
three shoulders.
To the two shoulders that the usual human beings have, the
zapatistas have added a third: that of the national and
international "civil societies."
In one of the subsequent parts of this "odd" video, I will
be speaking of the progress that has been achieved for the
zapatista communities. Then it will be seen that it is
great, greater than even we had dreamed.
But now I want to tell you that this has been possible
because "someone" gave us their shoulder.
We believe that we have been fortunate. From its beginnings,
our movement has had the support and kindness of hundreds of
thousands of persons on the five continents. This kindness
and this support has not been withdrawn, even in the face of
personal limitations, of distances, of differences of
culture and language, borders and passports, of differences
in political concepts, of the obstacles put up by the
federal and state governments, the military checkpoints,
harassment and attacks, of the threats and attacks by
paramilitary groups, of our mistrust, our lack of
understanding of the other, of our clumsiness.
No, in spite of all of that (and of many other things which
everyone knows) the "civil societies" of Mexico and the
world have worked because of, for and with us.
And they have done so not out of charity, nor out of pity,
nor out of political fashion, nor out of a desire for
publicity, but because they have, in one way or another,
embraced a cause which is still, for us, great: the building
of a world where all worlds fit, a world, that is, which
carries the hearts of everyone.
In one year, persons and organizations from at least 43
countries, including ours, which is Mexico, from the most
unexpected corners of Mexico and of the world, from the
small islands which remain in spite of the neoliberal
hurricane, came to visit the caracoles and to speak with the
Good Government Juntas (whether about projects, donations,
explanations, or simply to learn about the process of
building autonomy).
Men and women, as individuals and with organizations, from
Spain, Germany, the Basque Country, Slovenia, Italy,
Switzerland, Scotland, the United States, Denmark, Belgium,
Finland, Australia, Argentina, France, Canada, Poland,
Sweden, Holland, Norway, Brazil, Guatemala, Turkey, Chile,
Colombia, El Salvador, Peru, Greece, Portugal, Japan,
Northern Africa (that's what the report said, I don't know
which exact country), Nicaragua, England, Uruguay, Bolivia,
Austria, New Zealand, Israel, Iran, the Czech Republic and
from all the states in the Mexican Republic. All of them
have put their shoulders next to the communities' two
shoulders in order to begin to radically change the living
conditions of the zapatista indigenous.
And so in one year there have come to the caracoles and to
the Good Government Juntas (JBGs) – (sometimes with economic
projects, sometimes with donations, sometimes to listen
attentively and respectfully, sometimes with the brotherly
word, sometimes with curiosity, sometimes with scientific
zeal, and sometimes with the desire to solve problems
through respectful dialogue and agreements between equals) –
thousands of persons as individuals, as social
organizations, as non-governmental organizations, as
humanitarian aid organizations, as human rights defense
organizations, as cooperatives, as municipal officials from
other states in Mexico and from other parts of the world, as
diplomatic corps from other nations, as scientific
investigators, as artists, as musicians, as housewives and
"househusbands," as sex workers, as market tenants, as
street sellers, as football players, as students, as
teachers, as doctors, as nurses, as businesspersons, as
contractors, as state officials, and as many other things.
In Oventic alone, the caracol reported that in one year they
had dealt with 2921 persons from other countries and with
1537 from Mexico, without counting the zapatista support
base compañeros and compañeras who go to the juntas to deal
with various problems.
The third shoulder of the zapatista struggle has many
colors, it speaks many languages, sees with many looks, and
walks with many others.
We are speaking to them, and we want, in addition to
thanking them, to give them…
The Accounts
Good, the hour of the accounts. I beg for your tolerance,
because it has fallen to me to review the accounts of all
the juntas, in order to draw up a kind of report, and each
one has their "way" of deciding what to put in the plus
column and what to put in the minus column. Anyway, it
hasn't been easy, but the details can be consulted in each
caracol as of this September 16.
Collectively, the five Good Government Juntas which are
functioning in zapatista territory reported income of almost
12 and a half million pesos, expenditures of close to 10
million and a balance of about 2 and a half million.
In each case there are considerable differences in the
accounts managed by the JBGs. This is because some of the
juntas report all the money they know about, that is, they
include in the accounting what they receive directly and
what the Rebel Zapatista Autonomous Municipalities (MAREZ)
receive with the approval of the Good Government Juntas.
Other juntas report only what they manage directly, without
including what the MAREZ receive.
There are also considerable differences in the JBGs' income.
In some cases this is due to the fact that there are juntas
(like the one in Los Altos and the Border Selva one) which
cover a very large territory. In other cases, it is because
their seats are more well known to "civil societies"
(Oventic and La Realidad), and in others because the
differences in organizational development throughout the
regions are still quite marked.
Nonetheless, in approximate figures (and rounded off,
because the compas report right down to the centavo), here
is some of the data which has been reported by each of the
juntas in one year of operation:
JBG Annual Income Annual Expenditures
R. Barrios 1,600,00 pesos 1,000,000 pesos
Morelia 1,050,000 pesos 900,000 pesos
La Garrucha 600,000 pesos 300,000 pesos
Oventic 4,500,000 pesos 3,500,000 pesos
Realidad 5,000,000 pesos 4,000,000 pesos
What is done with this money? Well, the part will be coming
which gets to that part. For now, let me just say that none
of it was for anyone's individual benefit.
The personal needs of the autonomous authorities who rotate
in to lead the Good Government Juntas are supported, for the
days they are serving in the caracoles, through
contributions from the villages or with support from the
EZLN. The average daily expenses (without counting
transportation from his community to the caracol and his
return) for a member of La Garrucha junta, for example, is
less than eight pesos (other places it goes a bit higher).
In the case of Oventic, it's zero pesetas, because the
authorities carry their own tostadas, their beans and their
coffee, if they have it (if not, then it's zacate tea).
Compare this, in Mexico for example, with what the director
of the IMSS earns (who charges for dismantling the
achievements of the workers of that institute), or for
example with what a few towels cost in our country's
presidential residence, or for example with what's paid for
some mattresses in the home of a Fox government official
abroad, or with what a deputy or senator earns.
Obviously our authorities do not use bodyguards, nor do they
pay advisors, nor do they buy new cars, nor do they eat in
luxury restaurants, nor do they put their relatives on the
payroll.
Or, to put it another way, governing does not have to be
onerous.
The Shoulder of the Birthday Celebrant
Any mention of the "third shoulder" would not be complete
without mentioning those who – even though silence might
have suggested losing the way, internal fights,
disappearance or the rumor that has become fashionable these
days – have remained attentive and willing to try and
understand what is being fought for here (and the means and
times with which they fight).
Listening to what the other says and, above all, to what he
does not say, is only possible among those who share the
path and, by times, the burden.
And I am referring to those who, while certainly having more
important things to do, find the time and the attentiveness
necessary for listening and seeing those who are not
generally heard or seen (or only when there are "important"
events).
Those of whom I am speaking will be celebrating, just as I
am, 20 years this September. I mentioned them only in
passing in the first part, because to us they are not just a
media. You'll know then that I am speaking and thinking
about those who direct and work at the Mexican newspaper La
Jornada.
Like many men and women who support the struggle of the
Indian peoples (and therefore the zapatistas), the
"jornaleros" do not look at or listen to the zapatista
peoples because it is fashionable or out of media
considerations. Their path goes beyond that of just
journalistic work. It has to do with what some call an
"ethic of commitment," and it is in keeping with the desire
for a real and just change, and not with the desire for
economic and/or political gains. I do not want to be unfair,
by saying that the "jornaleros" have been generous. On the
contrary, I would say that they have been conscientious, and
there are few, very few, people about whom one can say that
and who have been so for 20 years.
I know that I'm getting ahead of myself, but it's almost
certain that on that day, the birthday day, La Jornada will
come out full of display ads congratulating them on their
twentieth anniversary, and it will be hard to find room for
the congratulations which we, the smallest of their
brothers, are sending them.
That is why we are acting ahead of time, and, on this, your
"non-birthday", we are sending all of you an embrace, just
one, but one of those which can only be given between
brothers, and which says things which cannot be said. My
personal best wishes as well, in hopes of being able to give
them personally (hopefully not post mortem) to each and
every one of the jornaleras.
And, since "the early bird is worth a bird in the hand"
(Isn't that how it goes? Pardon, the office incoherence is
contagious), we ask for the same at the moment of cutting
the cake which, no matter how large it may be, we know will
never be the size of the heart which you carry.
In sum, a very happy birthday (don't have too many pints,
because then things will happen which need honest listening
and seeing).
And, to everyone, "civil societies", congratulations on the
birthday of the caracoles and the Good Government Juntas.
And thanks for the third shoulder.
Vale. Salud and, if the piñata has Bush's face, I'll ask for
a go at it.
From the mountains of the Mexican Southeast.
Subcomandante Insurgente Marcos
Mexico, August of 2004. 20 and 10. P.S. My birthday will be light to moderate. There will be bitter pozol, and not because I like it, but because then the compas get to act dumb.
Subcomandante Insurgente Marcos
Mexico, August of 2004. 20 and 10. P.S. My birthday will be light to moderate. There will be bitter pozol, and not because I like it, but because then the compas get to act dumb.
https://www.alainet.org/en/active/6726
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