EZLN Manifesto 1994 (by subcommandante Marcos)

Communique from the General Command of the Indigenous Revolutionary Clandestine Committee of the EZLN.
6 January, 1994

Here we are, the dead of always, dead again, but now to live. To the Mexican people: To the people and governments of the world: Brothers and Sisters:
Since the first of January, of this year, our Zapatista troops began a series of politico-military actions with the principle objective being to let all the people of Mexico and the world know the miserable conditions that millions of Mexicans, especially we the indigenous people, live in. With these actions that we began we also let people know our decision to fight for our elementary rights by the only way that the government authorities will allow: armed struggle.
The grave conditions of poverty of our compatriots has one common cause; the lack of liberty and democracy. We consider that authentic respect of liberty and democratic will of the people are the indispensable prerequisites for the improvement of the economic and social conditions of the dispossessed of our country.
For this reason, just as we fly the flag of improvement of life conditions of the Mexican people, we present the demand of liberty and political democracy, for which we call for the renunciation of the illegitimate government of Carlos Salinas de Gortari and the formation of a new government for a democratic transition, which would guarantee clean elections in all levels of the government. We repeat the life of our political and economical demands and around which we are trying to unite all of the people of Mexico and all independent organizations so that, by means of all of the different forms of struggle, a national revolutionary movement can begin where all of the forms of social organization can have a place, and the betterment of Mexico can be set forth with honesty and patriotism.
Since the beginning of our war for liberation we have received not only attacks by the repressive governmental bodies and the federal Army, but also we have been slandered by the federal and state governments and by the mass news media, who try, devaluing our struggle, to lie to the Mexican people saying that our struggle is financed by foreigners, mercenaries, dark interests and anti- patriots who only seek personal gain. Because of these slanders and lies, our EZLN is obligated to say the following:
First: our EZLN does not have, either in its ranks or among its leaders, any foreigners, nor has it ever received any support or training of revolutionary forces from other countries or foreign governments. The news that Guatemalans are fighting in our ranks and that they were trained in Guatemala are stories invented by the federal government to discredit our cause. We have not had, nor will we ever have, any connection with the Salvadoran FMLN, nor with the Guatemalan URGN, nor with any other latinamerican, european, african, asiatic or oceanic armed movement. The military techniques that we employ were not learned from the centralamerican insurgence, but rather from the mexican military history; from Hidalgo, Morelos, Guerrero, Mina, from the resistance to the Yankee invasion in 1846-47, from the popular response to the french intervention, from the great heroic exploits of Villa y Zapata and from the struggles of indigenous resistance throughout the history of our country.
Second: Our EZLN doesn't have any relations with the catholic church authorities or any other religion. We haven't received orientation, direction or support from neither the ecclesiastic structure of Chiapas or the papal nuncio nor the Vatican or anybody.
In our ranks, the majority are catholic, but include other creeds and religions.
Third: The orders and troop elements of the EZLN are mostly from Chiapas, this is so because the indigenous represent the poorest and most humiliated sector of Mexico, and also, as can be seen, the most dignified. We are thousand of natives armed, behind us there are tens of thousands of our families. Therefore, we are tens of thousands of natives in struggle. The government says it is not an indigenous uprising, but we think that if thousands of natives rise up in arms, then yes it is an indigenous uprising. There are also in our movement Mexicans from other social origins and distinct states of our country. They agree with us and have united with us because they do not agree with the exploitation that we suffer.
Just as these non-indigenous Mexicans have united with us, others will because our struggle is national and is not limited only to the state of Chiapas. Actually, the political direction of our struggle is totally indigenous; 100 percent of the members of the indigenous revolutionary clandestine committees in all territories of combat are ethnic Tzotzil, Tzetal, Chol, Tojolabal and others. It's true that not all the natives of Chiapas are with us yet, because their are many (brothers) who are still submerged in the ideas and tricks of the government but we are already thousands and they must take us into account. The use of masks to hide our faces is in keeping with elemental security measures and as a vaccine against caudillismo.
Fourth: There are a variety of arms and equipment that our people count on, (and it should be understood) that their total number and quality were not shown publicly to the mass media or to the civilian populations in the major municipalities that we took over on the 1st and 2nd of this month. These arms and equipment were (consigned) little by little and prepared by 10 years of accumulation of forces in silence. The "sophisticated" means of communication that we possess can be bought in any imported goods store in the country. To get the arms and equipment we never resorted to robbery, extortion, or kidnapping/hijacking, we always relied on what we were given by the humble and honest people, in all of Mexico. That we never resorted to banditry is the reason why the forces of repression hadn't detected us throughout 10 years of careful and serious preparation.
Fifth: Some have asked why we decided to begin now, since we have been preparing for awhile. The answer is that before we tried other pacifist and legal without result. During the last 10 years over 150,000 of our native brothers have died from curable illnesses. The social and economic plans of the municipal, state and federal governments don't offer any real solutions to our problems and are limited to giving us (alms) crumbs when there are elections, but the crumbs are temporary and then death comes again to our houses. Because of this we say enough, that we had enough of dying a useless death, and that it is better to fight for change. If we die now it is no longer in shame but with dignity, like our ancestors. Another 150,000 are prepared to die if necessary to wake up our people from the deceptive dream in which they are held.
Sixth: the conditions of "reconciliation" that the federal government is trying to impose on us is unacceptable to our organization. We won't lay down our arms until the demands that we made at the beginning of our struggle are met. On the other hand, we propose the following conditions for the initiation of dialogue:
A) Recognition of the EZLN as a belligerent force.
B) Cease fire on all sides in disputed territories.
C) Withdrawal of federal troops from all communities with full respect for the human rights of the rural population. Withdrawal of federal troops to their respective barracks in distinct parts of the country.
D) Stop the indiscriminate bombing of rural populations.
E) With the last three conditions as a base, the formation of an intermediary national commission.
Our troops are committed to respecting these conditions if the federal government does the same. If not, our troops will continue to carry out their advance on the capital of the country.
Our EZLN reiterates that we will continue to adhere to the laws of war approved by the Geneva Convention, respecting the civilian population, the Red Cross, the press, the wounded and the enemy troops who surrender without fighting to our troops.
We're making a special call to the North American people and government. To the first to initiate solidarity actions and aid to our compatriots, and the Northamerican government to suspend all military and economic aid to the dictatorial government that doesn't respect human rights and because said aid will be used to massacre the Mexican people.
Mexicans: the military balance in the dispute up to the 5th of Jan., has brought forth the following results:
1) Casualties of the Zapatista forces: 9 dead and 20 seriously wounded being attended in our field hospitals. An undetermined amount of slightly wounded that were reintegrated to their combat posts and 123 missing in action. We haven't included in this total our combatants who, wounded, were killed in cold blood (with a shot of mercy) by officials of the federal army. We have not determined yet the number of these comrades since our troops continue to fight in Ocosingo.
2) Casualties of the enemy forces (including police and federal soldiers) 27 dead, 40 wounded and 180 prisoners who surrendered to our troops and were then released in good shape. There are another 30 federal troops dead, at least, unconfirmed. These casualties along with an undetermined number of wounded were produced on the 4th of Jan., in the mountains south of San Cristobal de las Casas when bombs dropped by the F.A.M. fell on the trucks of the federal soldiers that were maneuvering in that zone.
3) Enemy war material destroyed or damaged: 3 artillery helicopters of the F.A.M. (one in the capital Ocosingo and 2 in SCLC), 3 F.A.M. (airships) rockets, 15 radio patrols, 4 torture centers of the State Judicial Police.
4) Liberated prisoners: 230 from attacks on 4 prisons (2 in SCLC, 1 in Ocosingo, 1 in Margaritas)
5) War materials captured: approximately 207 arms of different calibers (M-16, G-3, M-2, grenade launchers, rifles and pistols and an undetermined amount of ammunition of diverse calibers.
1266 kilograms of dynamite and 10,000 TNT detonators.
20 transport vehicles.
An undetermined amount of radio communications equipment used by the police, army and air force.
To the national and international press:
We call the attention of the honest national and international press to the genocide being conducted by the federal military forces in the principal municipalities of San Crist?bal de las Casas, Ocosingo, Altamirano and Margaritas, as well as on the roads bordering those points, where civilians were assasinated indiscriminately and later presented as casualties of EZLN. Some of the dead Zapatistas claimed by the Federal army, enjot perfect health. The behavior of the federal troops in these cities contrasts with that of our forces who are always preoccupied, as civilians in these cities can testify, with protecting innocent lives. The majority of the destruction to public and private buildings that were next to our troops were caused by federal troops when they entered the 4 principal municipalities.
To the Federal Army:
The conflict presents the unmasking, once more, of the nature of the federal army and it shows them in their true essense: the indiscriminate represion, the violation of all human rights and the lack of ethics and military honor. The assasinations of women and children perpetrated by the army in the area of conflict show an army without control. We are calling on officials, (classes) and troops of the army to fully refuse to carry out orders handed down to them by their superiors to exterminate civilians or sumarily execute prisoners of war and wounded and to maintain military honors and ethics. We reiterate our invitation for you to abandone the ranks of the bad government and to join with the just cause of the people, (as you have proven yourselves), that only longs to live with justice or die with dignity. We have respected the lives of soldiers and police that have surrendered to our forces, you take pleasure in sumarily executing Zapatistas that you find wounded, unable to fight, and those who surrender. If you begin to attack our families and not to respect the lives of prisoners and wounded, then we will do the same.
To the Mexican people:
Finally, we call to workers, poor peasants, teachers, students, progressive and honest intellectuals, house wives and professionals, and to all independent political and economic organizations to join our struggle which has already begun and that in all possible ways they help us achieve the freedom that all Mexicans desperately want.
WE WILL NOT TURN IN OUR ARMS!
WE WANT JUSTICE, NOT FORGIVENESS NOR ALMS!
--From the mountains of Southeastern Mexico.
Indigenous Revolutionary Clandestine Committee. General Command of the EZLN
Signed by subcomandante Marcos