Liberation theology and Mayan political culture in the Mexican state of Chiapas: The Indian Congress of 1974 and the roots of the Zapatista Army of National Liberation

• Grant number: 11/22628-6
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants - Publications - Books published in Brazil
• Start date: March 01, 2012
• End date: February 28, 2013
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - History - History of America
• Principal Investigator: Carlos Alberto Sampaio Barbosa
• Grantee: Carlos Alberto Sampaio Barbosa
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências e Letras (FCL-ASSIS). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Assis. Assis , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Our main objective is to investigate the roots of the process of ethnical revaluation and political awareness occurred within indigenous communities of the Mexican state of Chiapas, thus aiming to focus on the least researched part of the equation that allowed the process of neo-Zapatistas insurgency, as is seen from 1994, since the references we raised focused explanations for the emergence of the Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN) in analysis on the militant group of urban origin who settled in Chiapas in the early 1980s. We stated from the hypothesis that the Indian Congress held in 1974 represented a breaking point, a milestone in relation to ethnic and political positions of the participating communities, belonging to four ethnic groups of Mayan descent, Tzeltal, Tojolabal, Tzotzil and Chol. We seek to demonstrate that Congress was prepared and organized under the strong influence of the diocese in the city of San Cristobal de las Casas, who since 1960 was ruled by Bishop Samuel Ruiz Garcia, whose socio-theological guidelines adopted from the year 1968 - according to our analysis and conclusions - were largely responsible for triggering this process of politicization and ethnic appreciation, which culminated in the Congress of 1974 and made it possible for future relations between indigenous communities and the group of urban origin to become fruitful and guiding the direction taken later. Furthermore, we argue that, from the Indian Congress, one can see signs of an incipient process of structuring a political culture shared by ethnic participants. Thus, the main goal of our research was to present the 1974 Indigenous Congress and liberation theology - in their specific characteristics for the period and territory reached by the diocese of Bishop Samuel Ruiz Garcia - as essential to the formation of the EZLN as he has showed to the world since 1994. (AU)