An Encounter with the Zapatistas

In the early hours of January 1, 1994, while most of Mexico was sleeping off the New Year's festivities, the Zapatista National Liberation Army (EZLN) surprised the world when it captured San Cristóbal de las Casas and several surrounding towns, demanding land redistribution and equal rights for Chiapas's indigenous peoples. The Zapatista triumph was short-lived. The mostly Tzotzil and Tzeltal troops soon departed, and on January 12, the government called for a cease-fire. Sporadic clashes reared their heads in subsequent years, but things have been very quiet in Chiapas since the early 2000s.

The uprising lives on in the collective memory of residents, for its root causes—land appropriation and poverty—have never been completely addressed. The events of two decades ago live on in visitors’ memories too. Impressions linger that Chiapas is unsafe for travel. Nothing could be further from the truth. The U.S. State Department and its counterparts in other countries have issued extensive travel advisories for certain parts of Mexico, but Chiapas gets a green light. Take the standard precautions you would take when traveling anywhere, and you can have a safe, rewarding trip to this lesser known region of Mexico.

On the positive side, the past two decades have seen an influx of workers of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) who work hand-in-hand with local people to make a dent in Chiapas’s problems. The region has also seen an influx of visitors who romanticize the Zapatista rebellion. Residents look with bemusement and some disdain on tourists who parade around in EZLN T-shirts and bandannas. If you make such purchases—and there must be a market, for the clothing is for sale everywhere—we suggest that you refrain from wearing them until your return home.