From: "FRANCO BARCHIESI" <029FRB-AT-muse.wits.ac.za> Date: Thu, 21 May 1998 08:46:03 GMT + 2:00 Subject: AUT: "The Economist" on Social Centres' Chiapas Campaign The following, nasty article, filled with misrepresentations and disinformation, was on the latest "The Economist". It's about the recent visit to Chiapas by a group of Italian observers, mainly comrades from the Social Centres and the "New" Communist Party. I think such attention by one of the world "bibles" of neoliberalism is highly indicative. Franco ------- Forwarded Message Follows ------- Date: Wed, 20 May 1998 10:10:26 -0500 (CDT) From: "Harry M. Cleaver" <hmcleave-AT-eco.utexas.edu> To: Chiapas 95 Moderators <chiapas-AT-eco.utexas.edu> Subject: Articolo sull' Economist (fwd) --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mexico TOO MUCH "YA BASTA", Mexico's Zapatist leader "Subcomandante Marcos" is fond of saying: enough is enough. With good reason, as the massacre of 45 Amerindias in a Chiapas village just before Christmas showed.But this week the government felt the same way; and arguably it had good reason too. Since the massacre, which cost Mexico's interior minister his job, Chiapas has attracted foreign journalists,academics,clerics,human-rights observers and others in swarms.The interior ministry last month warned foreigners that observing was one thing, political meddling another. The actions of the latest swarm, the ministry decided, were more than enough: out they must go, and out, at the weekend they went. A swarm they were: 134 italians, who had arrived on ten-days visas, ostensibly to observe. In fact ,they came -as the Italian name of their group, Gia Basta, suggested- to offer the Zapatists their support.Forbidden to visit sundry rebellious villages, they went there anyway, and then tried to get their visas extended so they could visit more. No,said the government, fed up with "revolutionary tourism".Most of the italians flew out voluntarily, not before disputing with the airline the extra fares they would have to pay were they stay extended; 40, early on monday, were summarily expelled. "An insult to our country" said a spokesman for the group.And ours, was a widespread Mexican response. The incident may not end there. The group, which included four left-wing Italian members of parliament, on Wednesday met members of the European Parliament, already keen on proposed links between human rights in Chiapas and the EU-Mexican trade deal that is now being negotiated. But whether Gia Basta's real concern is justice in Mexico or politics in Italy is unclear. The group was born some three years ago. It owes much to Rifondazione Comunista, a hardline faction that rejected reform of Italy's old Communist Party. This faction's leader, Fausto Bertinotti, had returned enraptured from a visit to the subcomandante; here,at last,was a real-world yet unsullied class warrior.But the group also included Catholic activists, anarchists and members of what the Italians call the centri sociali- commune-dwellers, drop-outs and suchlike. In sum, a typucal European campaign for a cause in a far-off country of wich its members know almost nothing. Still, the campaign has made plenty of noise; first, around Mexican consulates in Italy, then, after last December's massacre, at a demonstration in Rome that drew 50,000 people.As for knowing nothing, was that not why the 134 went to Mexico? No, said that country's peace co-ordinator, Emilio Rabasa, as he prepared to welcome five Canadian parliamentarians who had come genuinely, he said, for that purpose.And from now on all human-right delegations to Chiapas must prove their experience in that field and will be limited to ten people, for ten days, and that's it. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Franco Barchiesi Sociology of Work Unit Dept of Sociology University of the Witwatersrand Private Bag 3 PO Wits 2050 Johannesburg South Africa Tel. (++27 11) 716.3290 Fax (++27 11) 339.8163 E-Mail 029frb-AT-muse.arts.wits.ac.za http://jefferson.village.virginia.edu/~spoons/aut_html http://pluto.mscc.huji.ac.il/~mshalev/direct.htm Home: 98 6th Avenue Melville 2092 Johannesburg South Africa Tel. (++27 11) 482.5011 --- from list aut-op-sy-AT-lists.village.virginia.edu ---
Display software: ArchTracker © Malgosia Askanas, 2000-2005