{"id":11623,"date":"2014-05-19T05:00:20","date_gmt":"2014-05-19T12:00:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/elenemigocomun.net\/?p=11623"},"modified":"2020-11-11T16:02:33","modified_gmt":"2020-11-12T00:02:33","slug":"justice-for-galeano","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/elenemigocomun.net\/2014\/05\/justice-for-galeano\/","title":{"rendered":"Justice for Galeano: Stop the War Against the Zapatista Communities!"},"content":{"rendered":"

[ Jose Luis Solis Lopez (Galeano) ]<\/em><\/p>\n

On May 2, 2014, in the Zapatista territory of La Realidad, Chiapas, Mexico, the group CIOAC-Hist\u00f3rica [with the participation of the Green Ecological Party and the National Action Party (PAN)], planned and executed a paramilitary attack on unarmed Zapatista civilians. An autonomous Zapatista school and clinic was destroyed, 15 people were ambushed and injured and Jose Luis Solis Lopez (Galeano), teacher at the Zapatista Little School, was murdered. The mainstream media is falsely reporting this attack on the Zapatistas as an intra-community confrontation, but in fact this attack is the result of a long-term counterinsurgency strategy promoted by the Mexican government. <\/p>\n

More Information: An attack on the Zapatistas is an Attack on Us All | Enlace Zapatista<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Zapatista Comunicado<\/a>:<\/p>\n

FRAGMENTS OF LA REALIDAD I.<\/h3>\n

May 2014.<\/p>\n

The wee hours of the morning\u2026it must be like 2 or 3 o\u2019clock, who knows. It sounds like silence here in reality [La Realidad]. Did I say \u201cit sounds like silence?\u201d Well it does, because the silence here has its own sound, like the chirping of crickets; some sounds up front, stronger and dissonant; and others always constant, below. There is no light nearby. And now the rain is adding its own silence. The rainy season has arrived here already, but it is not yet heavy enough to wound the earth. Just enough to scratch it a little, a constant pitter-patter. A little scratch here, barely a puddle over there. As if to give a warning. But the sun, the heat,[i] hardens the earth quickly. It is not time for mud; not yet. It is the time of shadow. True, it\u2019s always the time of shadow. It goes anywhere and everywhere, without regard for time. Even where the sun is the most ferocious, the shadow can still be found, clinging to walls, trees, rocks, people. As if the light gave it even more strength. Ah, but night\u2026in the earliest hours of the morning, this is truly the time of [the] shadow. Just as during the day it brings you relief, in the tiny hours of the morning it awakens you as if to say, \u201cand what about you? Where are you?\u201d And you stammer in your slumber, until you can answer clearly\u2014answer to yourself\u2014\u201cin reality.\u201d<\/p>\n

-*-<\/p>\n

(\u2026)<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, I wouldn\u2019t know, to tell you the truth. Supposedly in the city there is a custom, a way of doing things we could say, that when there is a death in the family, the other family members and friends visit the family to let them know they support them in their pain. They call it \u201coffering condolences\u201d I think. Yes, that\u2019s it, to tell them that they are not alone.<\/p>\n

(\u2026)<\/p>\n

\u201cOk, from what I have read, the majority of the students of the little school said that they felt at home, that they had been treated like family. Well, some said they had been treated even better than in their families. That is, as they say, there are families and then there are families, for example in\u2026<\/p>\n

(\u2026)<\/p>\n

\u201cCould be. Yes, it could be that some feel the need to come and give condolences to the family of the deceased Galeano, or to the compas here, or both.<\/p>\n

(\u2026)<\/p>\n

\u201cIt isn\u2019t that easy, because here is very far away for them. What would it be, maybe some 7 hours from San Crist\u00f3bal? So you see, it\u2019s far. And a violent death doesn\u2019t give us any advance warning, it doesn\u2019t have its calendar or its geography marked, it just comes in and sits down, uninvited. Yes, it enters by tearing down the door.<\/p>\n

It isn\u2019t like death from old age or illness, that slowly slips in with a foot, then a hand, and soon it is sitting there in a corner, waiting, until it gets comfortable and says, \u201chere, I rule.\u201d And so one can prepare oneself, get used to the idea. But not with violent death. Violent death comes like a blow, it knocks you down, stuns you, kicks you, clubs you, slashes you, shoots you, kills you, puts a bullet in your head and then mocks you. That\u2019s how it works.<\/p>\n

So if you make a plan, as they say, for a \u201csharing\u201d or an exchange, or a meeting, or for courses at the Zapatista Little School, then you can say that it will be on this day in this place, and you let people know in advance, and each person, in their place, also makes their plan regarding work or school or family, and they arrange their trip. And you too use this time to prepare for where you will house them and what you will offer them.<\/p>\n

But because violence gives no warning, there is no time to prepare anything, not who will come nor who will receive them. And then, what is there to say? Even if you are all there together, looking at each other, the sound of the silence quiets you, as if death had not only taken the deceased, but your words also.<\/p>\n

So it is difficult for you to come, but not because you don\u2019t want to, or not because you don\u2019t love Galeano or the compas in La Realidad, but because it is hard to find a way to get here.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s more, where would we have these people stay, this caracol being very small and surrounded once again by paramilitaries? And what would we give them to eat? And what about the bathrooms, if 25 or 50 of them need to go, or if they want to bathe because of the heat[ii] or the rain?<\/p>\n

(\u2026)<\/p>\n

Ah, yes, and if the visitors brought their own food and their own tent for the rain, well that would change things a little, but not much, because as the health promoter already explained, we have to care for, as they say, hygiene, and make sure they don\u2019t turn this into, as they say, a pigsty. Because there are people you know who are really dirty, who always miss the toilet, above all the fucking guys. Because as women we are\u2026<\/p>\n

Huh? Yes, its important for preventing illness. Yes, like cholera. Huh? No, the other cholera, fury, rage.<\/p>\n

(\u2026)<\/p>\n

What? No, good visitors tell us ahead of time that they are coming; they don\u2019t just show up. When a visitor comes without warning, they call them, or used to call them, \u201cgorr\u00f3n,\u201d or \u201cgorrona,\u201d as the case may be. I don\u2019t know why they called them that, or still call them that, but they are referring to the people who show up without being invited, the ones who, as they say, invited themselves. Yes, death is like a \u201cgorr\u00f3n\u201d or \u201cgorrona,\u201d as the case may be, like a visitor who shows up without warning, who didn\u2019t ask if they could come. Yes, I know that it isn\u2019t exactly the same thing, but that\u2019s what came to mind<\/p>\n

(\u2026)<\/p>\n

Yes, I think that if you give them a particular day, then some will come, not all of them, but some. Because even though they don\u2019t all come, they are there in another way. Like \u201clisteners,\u201d but in reverse.
\nBecause death can also be defeated with another calendar and another geography. Why do I say \u201calso\u201d? Oh, I know what I am saying. Pay me no mind right now. Maybe another day I will explain to you\u2026or you will see.<\/p>\n

(\u2026)<\/p>\n

How many? I have no idea, but it could be many, depending, because over there I see that they are putting up another shelter, and sweeping and cleaning. Yes, as if they are expecting visitors.<\/p>\n

(\u2026)<\/p>\n

When exactly? Well, ask Emiliano or Max, or SubMoi who I saw over there speaking with a young woman who is from here. He was on his way to talk to the comit\u00e9s [CCRI].<\/p>\n

(\u2026)<\/p>\n

Me? Well, I\u2019m waiting. When the comit\u00e9s from the zone come to an agreement, I\u2019m sure they\u2019ll tell me write something and that\u2019s what I\u2019ll do.<\/p>\n

(\u2026)<\/p>\n

Look! \u2026There!\u2026 that little light over there. Did you see what a strange animal that is? Yes it looks like a dog\u2026or rather a cat. Yes like a cat-dog. Strange, no?<\/p>\n

(\u2026)<\/p>\n

Yes, it\u2019s true, reality is strange.<\/p>\n

-*-<\/p>\n

Fragment from Page 4 of the Investigative Report of the assassination of compa\u00f1ero Galeano. Questioning of compa\u00f1era S., Zapatista, base of support from La Realidad, age 16 going on 17 years old. May 11, 2014.<\/p>\n

(Warning: the following text contains language that may offend the sensibilities of the European royalty and those that aspire to the throne. Between us, it\u2019s nothing that isn\u2019t heard in any corner of the world below. Here goes).<\/p>\n

\u201cToday is May 11, 2014.<\/p>\n

(\u2026)<\/p>\n

We have a compa\u00f1era present here who is going to tell us what was said to her, rather, what one person in particular said; the other didn\u2019t actually say anything. This is what the compa\u00f1era is going to tell us about.<\/p>\n

Go ahead, compa\u00f1era.<\/p>\n

Compa\u00f1era S: Well you see, compa Subcomandante Insurgente Mois\u00e9s, I am going to tell you what this murderer said to me.<\/p>\n

SCIM: When was it that he said this to you?<\/p>\n

Compa\u00f1era S: It was Saturday.<\/p>\n

SCIM: May 10?<\/p>\n

Compa\u00f1era S: May 10.<\/p>\n

SCIM: At what time?<\/p>\n

Compa\u00f1era S: At about 9.<\/p>\n

SCIM: 9 in the morning?<\/p>\n

Compa\u00f1era S: Yes, at about 9 he said to me: \u201cYou\u2019re really full of yourself,\u201d but I didn\u2019t want to answer him.
\nThen he said \u201cstop,\u201d and I stopped.
\n\u201cListen to what I\u2019m going to say to you,\u201d he said; I stopped.
\nSCIM: And what is this man\u2019s name?<\/p>\n

Compa\u00f1era S: His name is R.<\/p>\n

SCIM: R. Ok, continue.<\/p>\n

Compa\u00f1era S: He said to me, \u201clisten to what I am going to tell you,\u201d and I listened.<\/p>\n

He said: \u201cEnjoy your Caracol. Enjoy it now because we\u2019re going to take it; that Caracol is going to be ours very soon. With glee I\u2019m going to build my house there when it\u2019s ours. Very soon we\u2019re going to take it.<\/p>\n

I answered him: \u201cWell if that\u2019s the case, if you feel like such a man, if you\u2019ve got such a big cock and balls, that dead or alive you\u2019re going to take the Caracol, then go ahead and take it if you have the balls.\u201d<\/p>\n

And he said to me:<\/p>\n

\u201cI do have the balls and the cock, you want to see?\u201d<\/p>\n

And I answered:<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you want to show it, show it to your mother.\u201d That\u2019s what I said.<\/p>\n

Then he said:<\/p>\n

\u201cAre you so angry because we killed your husband?\u201d<\/p>\n

And I said:<\/p>\n

\u201cThat compa\u00f1ero isn\u2019t our husband. That compa\u00f1ero is our compa\u00f1ero in struggle, in the struggle for our communities, not for measly handouts from the government.\u201d<\/p>\n

And he started to laugh with his friend who was with him, and he said\u2026<\/p>\n

SCIM: What was his friend\u2019s name?<\/p>\n

Compa\u00f1era S: M.<\/p>\n

He told me: \u201cThe ones we are going to get our hands on are Ra\u00fal, Jorge, and Ren\u00e9. Once we get our hands on them we\u2019re going to kill them like we killed la peluda (Note: \u201cLa peluda\u201d is the derogatory name with which the CIOAC-H paramilitaries refer to compa\u00f1ero Galeano).<\/p>\n

I told him that if they were going to do it to go ahead and do it, to try it, but to come into the Caracol. Not when there aren\u2019t any people there, like they did in the school\u2014they went in there because there wasn\u2019t anybody there. I told him: \u201cif you\u2019re really men, take the Caracol.\u201d And they laughed and said:<\/p>\n

\u201cYou should be happy we didn\u2019t kill your father.\u201d<\/p>\n

SCIM: That\u2019s what he said to you?<\/p>\n

Compa\u00f1era S: Yes.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe didn\u2019t kill your father, but we will next time.\u201d<\/p>\n

And I responded: \u201cWhy didn\u2019t you kill him?
\n\u201cWell, we didn\u2019t see him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, if you\u2019re going to do it, do it. He\u2019s in the Caracol, that\u2019s where he is.<\/p>\n

That was when he said: \u201cYou know who killed la peluda?\u201d<\/p>\n

And I responded: \u201cHow am I going to know if I wasn\u2019t there when they killed our compa\u00f1ero?\u201d<\/p>\n

He said: \u201cIt was me who killed him. I shot him in the head and sent him to hell. And that\u2019s what we\u2019re going to do when we get our hands on the others\u2014the ones I already mentioned to you, that\u2019s what we\u2019re going to do to them. But each will have his moment. You know what? We\u2019re fed up with you all.\u201d This is what he said to me. \u201cBecause what you\u2019re doing isn\u2019t fair. We\u2019re fed up with it.\u201d<\/p>\n

But I responded: \u201cWe\u2019re the ones who are fed up with what you all are doing. Even more so when we found out what you did to our compa\u00f1ero. We compa\u00f1eras went to pick up the body; that\u2019s when we got really fucking fed up.\u201d<\/p>\n

And that\u2019s when they laughed.<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course, because they are all your husbands,\u201d he said to me.<\/p>\n

SCIM: And when they were making fun, what was it that he was saying about what they do, that they do what they say, no? Didn\u2019t he say something about the Good Government Council? Or didn\u2019t he say something about\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

(inaudible).<\/p>\n

SCIM: Okay.<\/p>\n

Compa\u00f1era S: He said: \u201cWe are going to kill them, break them once and for all. You all are the Good Government Council, you are good governments, whatever we do to you, you\u2019re not going to do anything in response. Why? Because you are good governments.<\/p>\n

I said to him: \u201cYes, of course we are good governments, but not that good.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut what are you all going to do to me? Even if you know exactly who killed him, you\u2019re not going to do anything to us because you\u2019re the Good Government Council that protects everyone. I\u2019m not scared,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m not scared, that\u2019s why I\u2019m telling you that I killed him.\u201d<\/p>\n

And I answered: \u201cI wish that were the case. When your day comes I hope you posture like the tough guy you\u2019re posturing with me right now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat is what I\u2019m going to do. But when? That day isn\u2019t going to come,\u201d he said. \u201cBecause you all are the Good Government Council, you are good governments and you\u2019re not going to do anything to us.\u201d<\/p>\n

SCIM: Anything else you remember about what he said to you? You had said something about him laughing and cackling.<\/p>\n

Compa\u00f1era S: Yes, he laughed and his friend was yelling, but didn\u2019t say anything.<\/p>\n

SCIM: M didn\u2019t speak, he just laughed?<\/p>\n

Compa\u00f1era S: He didn\u2019t say anything, he just laughed. M was there, he poked the other guy\u2019s back so that he wouldn\u2019t say anything else.<\/p>\n

SCIM: Ah. He poked him?<\/p>\n

Compa\u00f1era S: Yes, he poked his back and they started yelling. He said:<\/p>\n

\u201cYou should go on your way, go do your errand.\u201d I didn\u2019t respond to him.<\/p>\n

SCIM: Okay, if later on you remember anything else he said to you, we can do some more work here. This is to keep gathering information, because in this case that guy himself said what happened.<\/p>\n

Compa\u00f1era S: Yes.<\/p>\n

SCIM: And he himself had tried to cover it up. So you say that he had asked you if you knew who killed compa\u00f1ero Galeano. And then he says he did it, right?<\/p>\n

Compa\u00f1era S: Yes.<\/p>\n

SCIM: \u201cAnd he says he shot him in the head.\u201d<\/p>\n

Compa\u00f1era S: \u201cThat he shot him in the head and that finished him off.\u201d<\/p>\n

SCIM: Okay compa\u00f1era. What is your name in the struggle?<\/p>\n

Compa\u00f1era S: My name is S.<\/p>\n

SCIM: S?<\/p>\n

Compa\u00f1era S: yes.<\/p>\n

SCIM: Okay compa\u00f1era. That\u2019s what we wanted, so that it is clear that the testimony is direct, because you are from here, from La Realidad. What was your work when you went to the \u201csharing\u201d or exchange in Oventik?<\/p>\n

Compa\u00f1era S: Listener<\/p>\n

(Note: \u201cListener\u201d is a job or a commission or a responsibility given to some compa\u00f1eras and compa\u00f1eros that consists of \u201clistening\u201d to what is said in one of the \u201csharings\u201d or exchanges and then recounting it to their community, region, and zone. This is so that what happens in the exchange isn\u2019t limited to those attending, but is heard by all of the Zapatistas. It would be like the equivalent of \u201cnarrator.\u201d The compas select young people to be the \u201clisteners\u201d who have a good memory, understand Spanish well, and can explain in their own languages what was said. The exchange with National Indigenous Congress (CNI) already had dozens of young people from the various zones assigned as \u201clisteners.\u201d The idea was that whatever the compas from the indigenous peoples of the CNI said would be heard by all of the Zapatista bases of support.)<\/p>\n

SCIM: Ah, yes, yes, yes. The exchange that was going to take place with the National Indigenous Congress. Very good. That will be all, compa\u00f1era S. Thank you.<\/p>\n

(inaudible)<\/p>\n

SCIM: Oh wait. When you talked to this guy R, was he drunk or sober?<\/p>\n

Compa\u00f1era S: No. I got pretty close but I didn\u2019t smell alcohol. And when I got to L\u2019s house, the same guy passed by on his way home. He looked at me and turned around and laughed. I looked at him with anger in my face.<\/p>\n

SCIM: So we could say that he was sober when he said what he said to you? He wasn\u2019t drunk then.<\/p>\n

Compa\u00f1era S: No, he wasn\u2019t drunk.<\/p>\n

SCIM: Okay, that\u2019s all compa\u00f1era. Thank you.<\/p>\n

-*-<\/p>\n

Another night, in the wee hours of the morning. Subcomandante Insurgente Mois\u00e9s comes and tells me:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe decision is made. The agreement is that the arrival will be Friday May 23, the homage for compa Galeano will be Saturday May 24, and Sunday May 25 everybody goes home. The bases of support that is.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd for those from outside our communities?\u201d I ask.<\/p>\n

\u201cSame, but for those from outside, tell them the same applies as for the bases of support: everybody brings their own food and place to sleep.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo I should make it a communiqu\u00e9 or a letter or what?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhatever you think, but make it clear so that they aren\u2019t a burden on the compas. They are coming to lend their support, to offer their condolences to the family of the deceased and the compas here, not to be attended to. Meaning, it\u2019s not a party.\u201d<\/p>\n

Oh, and also tell them that the bases of support will be holding an homage to compa Galeano in all of the caracoles on May 24. And that it would be good for them to do something that day in the places where they live also, according to their own schedules and styles.<\/p>\n

And another thing. Tell them we are especially inviting the compa\u00f1eras and compa\u00f1eros from the independent media or alternative media or autonomous media or whatever, the media that isn\u2019t paid off, that is part of the Sixth, the ones that are our compa\u00f1eras and compa\u00f1eros and have the responsibility of \u201clistener\u201d commission in their lands. Tell them that maybe\u2014say it like that, \u201cmaybe\u201d\u2014the General Command of the EZLN will do a press conference with the independent media or whatever you call them, the ones who are part of the Sixth. I say \u201cmaybe\u201d because it could be that it won\u2019t happen because of work we have to do and we don\u2019t want to end up on bad terms. Also, the paid media aren\u2019t invited; we won\u2019t receive them.<\/p>\n

\u201cShall I send them a photo of the deceased?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, but the one of him alive, not of the cadaver. Because we remember our compa\u00f1eros for how they lived the struggle.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay. What else?<\/p>\n

\u201cJust that we are here\u2014which I think they already know\u2014here in la realidad [reality].\u201d<\/p>\n

-*-<\/p>\n

Vale. To health and listening.<\/p>\n

From the mountains of the Mexican Southeast.<\/p>\n

Subcomandante Insurgente Marcos.
\nMexico, May 2014. In the twentieth year of the war against oblivion.<\/p>\n

[i] Calor, or heat, is a masculine noun in Spanish. Here the author uses \u201cla calor,\u201d in the feminine.<\/p>\n

[ii] See footnote 1.<\/p>\n

\"\u00a1Galeano
\u00a1Galeano Vive!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

An autonomous Zapatista school and clinic was destroyed, 15 people were ambushed and injured, and a teacher at the Zapatista Little School was murdered.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":11624,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[322,317],"tags":[],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":6}},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/elenemigocomun.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/galeano-jose-luis-solis-lopez.jpg?fit=1000%2C664&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/elenemigocomun.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11623"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/elenemigocomun.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/elenemigocomun.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elenemigocomun.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elenemigocomun.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11623"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/elenemigocomun.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11623\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elenemigocomun.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11624"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/elenemigocomun.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11623"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elenemigocomun.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11623"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elenemigocomun.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11623"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}