THE UNMASKING OF CMLSOCIETY IN MEXICO: THE EZLN DISCOURSE ON DEMOCRATIC DEVELOPMENT Joanne Blake B .A.., Carleton University, 1 972 THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology o Joanne Blake 1996 SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY October 1996 All rights reserved. This work may not be reproduced in whole or in part, by photocopy or other means, without permission of the author. APPROVAL Name: Joanne Blake Degree: Master of Arts (Anthropology) Title of Thesis: The Unmasking of Civil Society in Mexico: The EZLN Discourse on Democratic Development Examining Committee: Chair: Dr. Ellen Gee - Dr. Marilyn Gates Senior Supervisor Associate Professor of Anthropology - - V Dr. Gary Teeple Associate Professor of Sociology Dr. John Brohrnan External Examiner Assistant Professor of Geography Simon Fraser University Date Approved: 10 /3[ /q &- I hereby grant to Simon Fraser University the right to lend my thesis, project or extended essay (the title of which is shown below) to users of the Simon Fraser University Library, and to make partial or single copies only for such users or in response to a request from the library of any other university, or other educational institution, on its own behalf or for one of its users. I further agree that permission for multiple copying of this work for scholarly purposes may be granted by me or the Dean of Graduate Studies. It is understood that copying or publication of this work for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. Title of ThesislProjectlExtended Essay The Unmasking of Civil Society in Mexico: The EZLN Discourse on Democratic Development Author: .-. (Signature) (Name) 31 October 1996 (Date) Abstract Millions of Mexicans have mobilized since 1 January 1994 partially in response to an indigenous rebellion in Chiapas and the discourse of the Zapatista National Liberation Army (Ejercito Zapatista de Liberacion National-EZLN). They are challenging the ideological underpinnings of neoliberal reform and calling for a revitalized nationalism based on principles of democracy, justice and liberty. Modernization's benefits failed to reach the poor majority while the corporate system of political representation appears incapable of providing the State with the legitimacy necessary to rule. Chiapas is an example of "ungovernability", compelling the government to rule through military and political violence. Human and civil rights demands, broadly conceived in the declarations and discourse of the EZLN, highlight the failure of neoliberal policies in satisfying basic human needs for all. This thesis analyzes current social movements in Chiapas in the context of the prevailing authoritarian and inequitable socio-political and economic structures that impede democratic practice. It also examines how the discourse of the Zapatistas is extending the thrust of organizations of civil society to challenge the entrenched party of the State, the Institutional Revolutionary Party (Partido Revolucionario Institutional-PRI), at all levels of Mexican society. Theories of liberation theology, development, and social movements are discussed which elucidate the motives and opportunities that propel civil society and the pro-democracy movements in their quest for political transformation. The theoretical focus is based on radical critiques of a globalized development enterprise. Development is represented as socially constructing the Third World. The analysis is based on ten months of participant-obse~ationin Chiapas between 1993 and 1996 as well as document and media research both in Canada and Mexico. The methodology reflects the researcher's involvement in an act of solidarity with a number of informants and social organizations. This work is thus a testimony whose intention is to support and augment the struggle in Mexico for democratization and human rights. Dedication To my Mother and Father Acknowledgments I would like to thank the people of Chiapas who so warmly and openly accepted me into their lives. Without their confidence and trust this thesis could not have been written. I appreciate the guidance and support given to me by my supervisors ,the faculty and staff of the Sociology and Anthropology Department of Simon Fraser University. Finally I am gratefhl for the support &om fiends and family who were there to comfort or assist me with this project when it was needed. Table of Contents .. Approval .............................................................................................................................. n ... Abstract ............................................................................................................................. 111 Dedication ........................................................................................................................ .iv Acknowledgments ................................................................................................................v ... List of Figures ................................................................................................................. vw Acronyms ...........................................................................................................................ix Introduction ................................................................................................................-1 Research Methodology ..........................................................................................3 Unmasking Civil society .......................................................................................5 The Modernization Project and Civil Society ........................................................9 Mexican Political culture and Liberal Ideology ...................................................10 "Hoy Decimos Basta " EUN Discourse on Democratic Development ...................16 Human rights Abuse and Resistance .................................................................... 17 New Zapatismo in Formation .............................................................................. -19 The Birth of the New Zapatistas ......................................................................... 20 Opening a Political space: la coyunfura .............................................................. 23 "ParaNosotros. Nada! Para Todos. Todo!": The Ethical Agenda ................... 26 A Death Sentence to Indigenous Culture: Neoliberal Restructuring .................. 27 Dialogue for Peace: A National Debate? ............................................................28 The Second Declaration of the Lacandon ...........................................................32 The National Democratic Convention: Aguascalientes Reborn ......................... 33 Constructing a Nation Movement: Continuing the dialogue with Civil Society ........................................................36 The Third Declaration: A Government of Transition ......................................... 38 The EZLN National Referendum: la Consulta (the consultation) .......................41 The Fourth Declaration: "Mandar Obediciendo " ...............................................42 Mexican Political Culture & Social Movements ...................................... d7 The Perfect Dictatorship ......................................................................................48 Populism .............................................................................................................Sl Corporation and Clientism ................................................................................. 53 Presidentialismo .................................................................................................. 55 Towards a New Theory of Social Movements .....................................................58 . Fact and Value: Radically Restructuring Development and Democracy .................. 68 Development or Domination? ..............................................................................68 Development Discourse: Discord or Harmony? ..................................................70 Development and Liberation ................................................................................73 Political Theology: an Option for the Poor .......................................................... 74 Liberation Theology and Social Action ............................................................... 77 Beyond Instrumentalism: Essentialist Politics .....................................................78 Development as a Woldview: "the Deconstruction of the West'? ......................80 Resistance and Survival in Chiapas: The Maya, Agents of History .........................83 Madre Tierra: Another Vision of Governance and Human Rights .....................84 A Bountikl Land: The Exodus ...........................................................................86 Economic Development in Chiapas: Testimony ..................................................91 The Forgotten and Faceless People: Collective Identity and Insurgent Consciousness ...............................................................................93 Development in the Highlands: Economic Differentiation and Class Consciousness...................................................................................... 97 A History of Exclusionary Politics and Cooptation: Land Reform .....................98 The Context of. Social Organizing in Chiapas: Towards a Pol~tics. of Inclusion ..........................................................................104