Chiapas: Complicado y Frustrado

When asked the question of what I learned about sustainable development during my stay in Chiapas, it led me to become completely confused and angered. So many responses come to mind, the concept itself is complicated, and typecasts images of bottom of the pyramid poverty. Below are some rants and ravings on my stay in Chiapas.

Sustainable Development, as described by the United Nation’s Brundtland Report is "Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs[1]." This description creates more frustration than clarity because it is so vague. If I were to tell someone that they should live by what they need, so that their grandchildren will be able to live by their needs, I would get a few blank stares and calls to clarify. As Castro also finds, scholars cannot agree on the perfect definition.[2]

Now back to Chiapas, I feel that sustainable development was/is there in the concept of culture and identity. The Zapatista Rebellions of1994, brought international attention, and with it came international tourism. Tourists come from all over the world to see the Modern Mayas, the ancient Mayan ruins, consume the best coffee in the world, and see how the indigenous communities live. This led to many foreigners staying and bringing their version of community into San Cristobal. In one block, you can have Lebanese falafels, Argentine steak, or if you miss American fast food, then have a Whopper from Burger King. But the gentrification has created tension. There is graffiti that states “Putos Hippies” and “Los terroristas son los turistas.” San Cristobal becomes two very different cities; one that is still colonial and you can get great coffee, while looking at local art, and one where the Tzotzil people hold mid-night market to sell their produce.

Upon arrival to San Cristobal de Las Casas, you see bright colors and gorgeous patterns abound, from the Tzotzil women selling their shawls, scarves, and Zapatista woolen dolls. Of course, you feel obliged to buy, and the products that they are selling just draw you in. I personally bought three shawls, a Zapatista doll, a woolen monkey, and the warmest purple pullover. The introduction of the Maya culture via textiles brings income to these women, but it also creates a new obstacle. While selling the shawls, income is being brought to the indigenous textile; it also creates a frozen state on development. What I mean to say is that in my time in Chiapas, there are only so many varieties in patterned scarves that a community can sell. The shawls bring income, they preserve culture, and they bring development, for example the women in Kinal Ansetik are taught how to weave and how to become independent, but these shawls do not bring further development. They are just a starting point for development.

Sustainable development in Chiapas has multiple obstacles: gentrification, tourism, and the largest obstacle, the Molotov Chiapaneco. The Molotov Chiapaneco consists of poverty, corrupt government, and narco-trafficking mafias, this cocktail is the hardest obstacle for development in Chiapas. It is one of the reasons that I am frustrated because there is so little that I can do to stop narco-trafficking, there is nothing I can do to stop corrupt government, just look at what happened in Arizona, but I can help in someway alleviate poverty. This leads me to more frustration because I do not know how I can help to do so. Therefore my final thought, is that I want to help, I just need assistance to find my calling to do so, I want to start hosing down the damage caused by the Molotov Chiapaneco.

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[1] Castro, Carlos J. “Sustainable Development: Mainstream and Critical Perspectives.” Organization & Environment. Jun 2004 p. 195-225

[2] Ibid.

Please feel free to comment, i would love an open discussion.

Chiapas and a Struggle for Recognition

Chiapas is a place where one gets the opportunity to further analyze words such as justice, liberty, equality, and dignity. Outsiders like me are also given the chance to explore the different meanings development and underdevelopment. These terms have no meaning if one does not place man at the center of our complex society. In the case of Chiapas, Indigenous Peoples are at the center of a world that has marginalized, oppressed, and exploited their place and relationship with the Earth. How to progress? How to create an environment that respects people of all nations?

Development is a kaleidoscope with many shapes, colors, and dimensions. At the social level, groups that are able to create peaceful relationships internally and externally are said to be progressing. Also, developed are those that have the capability to safeguard their independent position and live harmoniously. Populations are considered to be economically progressive when its members are able to effectively interact with the environment. Development ideas like these have prevailed since the Spanish first set foot in Mexico. For colonizers advancement included an increase in production. If the production of a particular society was not up to par with the dominant standard, there would be a change in the quality or character of its people. In Chiapas Indigenous Peoples were and still are targeted. Religious beliefs and political ideologies included. The presence of capitalism in a place like Chiapas has created tensions amongst its people, increased poverty, and deteriorated its environment.

Production and wealth are measurement tools of underdevelopment. The poor countries of the global South are considered to be “backwards” because of their unfortunate economic positions. However, one may ask who is really underdeveloped? Those that work hard to make a living on a day to day basis and fight for their dignity, or those that exploit, oppress, and massacre? The material wealth of a nation in having things such as social services, schools, hospitals, etc. have nothing to do with the level of “development” of a given community. Take into consideration the political structure of some indigenous groups in Chiapas, for example, Las Abejas. The members of this group have been able to organize themselves in a way that perhaps people in more economically stable countries would not be able to do so, and they have less resources. Furthermore, the Indigenous Peoples of Chiapas are living in a paradox of underdevelopment where, for instance, their own material production is landing in the hands of foreigners and they are not attaining the profits they deserve.

Developed or underdeveloped, Zapatismo in Chiapas emerged. Indigenous Peoples are ready to be heard. Article 39 of the Mexican constitution says that any public power derives from the people and is instituted for their benefit, and that at any time the people have the inalienable right to alter or to modify their form of government. The Mexican government failed its people and even signed the NAFTA, which only benefits about ten percent of the Mexican population and forgets about the “others.” Therefore, the EZLN with the use their words and not necessarily weapons want to put a halt to the genocide that has killed Tzotzil, Tzeltal, Tojolabal, and Chontal people in places like Acteal. Members of the EZLN want to work their land, feed their people, and put an end to curable diseases in their villages. The EZLN teaches us that one of the most important steps towards a more sustainable future is the recognition of those that are not necessarily like us. From the EZLN we also learn that we must have the ability to decolonize our minds, move away from our set political and social conditions, and have the ability to understand the system that oppresses us and eventually work for its removal from power. It will be perhaps then that we will be able to achieve justice, liberty, equality, and dignity.

REFERENCES

(subcomandante.), Marcos, Simon J. Ortiz, Elena Poniatowska, and David Romo.

Questions & swords. Cinco Puntos Press, 2001.

Farmer, Paul. Pathologies of power. University of California Press, 2004.

Rodney, Walter. How Europe underdeveloped Africa. Howard University Press, 1982.

Smith, Linda Tuhiwai. Decolonizing methodologies. Zed Books, 1999.

On Syncreticism, Inculturation and Cultural Sustainability: A Reflection from a visit to Chiapas, Mexico

“How far does the Catholic Church in Chiapas allows inculturation of Mayan indigenous?” I asked this question to Fr. Pedro Arriaga, a Jesuit priest who spent years with Tzotzil Mayan indigenous communities. However, his answers did not suffice my critical mind and my curiosity. Thus, I write this reflection to dig deeper to the issue. This article deals on questions on syncreticism, inculturation and cultural sustainability and to try objectively in finding some answers (or more questions?) to these issues.

Observation: Seeing with eyes of an outsider
It is undeniable that every foreigner visiting certain indigenous communities brings his/her own cultural and personal background in his/her observations. I am not excuse to it. Although I lived and worked for a number of years with indigenous communities in Taiwan, trying to understand and help inculturate some of their indigenous culture to present Christian beliefs, I still look at myself as an outsider to a community I learned to embrace and understand. Doing inculturation is a complex process for it calls for a “creative and dynamic relationship between Christian message and indigenous culture”. Inculturation puts emphasis on creativity and dynamism of relationship. The question is: How far? The things I saw in the church of Chamula made me asked that question.

The Case of Chamula: Syncretism or Inculturation?
The church in Chamula is run and manage independently by the indigenous community. According to a story, on the height of liberation theology in Chiapas, the indigenous community of Chamula expelled the parish priest who wanted to implement some revolutionary changes in the parish. Since then, the Catholic Church was prohibited from doing sacramental services, which only recently have gained access to do a monthly Sacrament of the Eucharist inside the church.

Indigenous people who seek physical or spiritual healing for themselves or for others frequently visit the church. Mayan priests are there ready to do rituals using herbs, chickens, candles, wooden sticks, soft drinks (Coca-cola or Pepsi) and chants. Smoke from burning candles fill the church; while cacophonies from mayan priests’ prayers surround the church’s solemn atmosphere. Catholic symbols are everywhere – crosses, images of saints, rosary beads and the likes. The church building is an everyday witness of how indigenous beliefs are intertwined with the beliefs brought by Catholicism.

The rituals in the church of Chamula are the epitome of syncretic practices and beliefs of Mayans and Catholicism but not inculturated forms. It is just a case of indigenous people combining traditional practices and beliefs with Catholicism. Theirs has not yet reached the stage of cleansing beliefs and practices that are incompatible for both indigenous Mayans and Catholicism. When that stage occurs, then inculturation begins to happen.

Inculturation: Syncretism of goodness and beauty of both cultures
Inculturation must pass certain criteria to be authentic. There are a number of schemas use in evaluating the authenticity of inculturation, but most of them consist of basic elements namely, the Christian message, the cultural situations, and the pastoral agents.

Is the element being inculturated faithful to the Christian message? Does it shows universal goodness? Are the people themselves with the help of church leaders and scholars doing the process of inculturation? If these three elements are present, then authentic inculturation may happen. This process of authenticating inculturation may sound easy in this article, but it is a complicated matter that needs thorough understanding.

For us who are not so familiar with inculturation, let us just simply say that inculturation is done collaboratively by the indigenous community and church leaders in syncretizing the goodness and beauty of both indigenous culture and Catholicism.

Inculturation: A way for cultural sustainability
In the light of sustainable development, does inculturation helps in cultural sustainability? Inculturation is not changing of culture over another; it is rather preserving and developing the good elements of culture and adds Christian meaning to them. Some elements of both indigenous and Catholicism may lose in the process, but these elements may not be essential to both parties. An authentic inculturated element of indigenous culture shows values and goodness of its culture with deeper and relevant meaning because of integration of Christian meaning.

Inculturation is not an imposition of Christian practices and beliefs to certain culture, rather giving Christian message to already established values. The people themselves with the help of church leaders will discern which elements are to be inculturated. This kind of process is in consonance with the process on cultural sustainability that calls for decision from below.

For more readings on Inculturation and Syncretism kindly click:
www.loyolajesuit.org/peter_schineller/resources/SYNCRET1.doc
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14383c.htm
http://www.caribbeantheology.net/Inculturation.htm

Reference:
Schineller, Peter, S.J. Inculturation and the Issue of Syncretism: What is the Real Issue? www.loyolajesuit.org/peter_schineller/resources/SYNCRET1.doc [accessed April 1, 2010]
Shorter, Aylward. Inculturation of African Traditional Religious Values in Christianity – How Far? http://www.afrikaworld.net/afrel/shorter.htm [accessed March 31, 2010]

Las Abejas

The Civil Society Organization called "Las Abejas", or "The Bees," is a Christian pacifist group of indigenous Tztotzil Mayan people. It was founded in the locality of Tzajalchen, Chenalho, in the highlands of Chiapas, Mexico in 1992 following a familial property dispute that left one person killed. When members of the community took the injured man to the nearest town for medical attention, they were accused of attacking him themselves and jailed. When family members realized what had happened, they began a pilgrimage on foot to San Cristóbal de Las Casas. Along the way, Christian pacifists in other villages joined the group, which is dedicated to peace, justice, and anti-neoliberalism. Las Abejas freed their companions and grew as an organization.

When the Zapatista Army of National Liberation uprising took place in 1994, Las Abejas stood in solidarity with the demands for justice, democracy, education, health, land and dignity for the indigenous people as expressed by the Ejercito Zapatista de Liberacion Nacional (EZLN). However they separated themselves from their violent means of achieving change and proclaimed themselves as "active nonviolent" civil society organization.

They paid a high price for their support however, when on December 22nd, 1997, forty-five of their members were massacred while praying in a church, in what's come to be known as the Acteal Massacre.

The Las Abejas logo, often used in the press communiques, symbolizes the sufferings and hope from Acteal (and its "Columna de la Infamia" or 'Pillar of Shame' at the center of the world.

Today, Las Abejas is a civil society movement represented by the civil society leadership in Acteal representing their demands for justice, reparation and human rights after the massacre and ongoing situations of paramilitary presence. Las Abejas of Acteal plays an important symbolic role for the catholic Church and oppressed indigenous groups in resistance.

Las Abejas is also represented by the "returned" displaced people in Nuevo Yibeljoj, organized as a Las Abejas Mexico civil association (A.C.) and seeking the government cooperation to recuperate their lost properties.

Tzajalchen remains also important for The Abejas as the founders remain quite active in the monitoring of the integrity of the organization, its national presence and international relations. They also play a vital role for helping young leaders elected in the yearly renewed "mesa directiva" (board of directors) and other service-leadership roles (cargos) of the organizations.

Please read the Acteal Blog of Las Abejas for updated news and communications.

Read the Las Abejas website for additional information on the Civil Society Las Abejas.

If you are interested to learn more about the identity and formation of Las Abejas consult this book: Tavanti, Marco. Las Abejas: Pacifist Resistance

and Syncretic Identities in a Globalizing Chiapas. New York: Routledge, 2003.

If you would like to understand the struggle, conflict and suffering of Las Abejas in Chiapas, see this video: The Victims of the War In Chiapas