Every summer the teachers from the state of Oaxaca gather in the capital city of the same name. Their intention is to ask for more money and to raise awareness of some of the dire conditions they face in order to educate Oaxacan youth, especially in the more rural locations. They meet in the Zocalo, or the city square, because until last year all of the government offices were held there. The governor of the state could not miss their petitions, though he could and usually did dismiss those petitions.
In the summer of 2006 the annual teacher's march and protest was backed by the Section 22 union, otherwise known SNTE (Sindicato Nacional de Trabajadores de la Educacion). In 2006 the teachers set up an encampment, blocking the usually busy tourist-commerce center of the city and decided to stay until their petitions were met. Throughout the state there was an overwhelming sense of dissatisfaction with the governor Ulises Ruiz, contemptuously referred to by his first name only, who is said to have been given power through a corrupt and unfair election. With anti-Ulises sentiment and a cause at hand, a progressive (and sometimes radical) group was created. APPO (La Asemblea Popular de los Pueblos de Oaxaca), or the Assembly of the People, joined the teachers in the Zocalo last summer to fight for teachers rights as well as to fight commercialization and privatization, and to call for the perseverance of indigenous culture in Oaxaca.
On June 14, 2006, Ulises called in a police force to put a stop to teacher control of the Zocalo. A brutal conflict ensued. Police officers used teargas, physical blows, and gunfire. More than a dozen people were killed. Many others were arrested. While the teachers were evicted from the Zocalo, the APPO remained well into November. APPO took over the Autonomous University's radio station in order to get their message out to the people. On the night of November 25, 2006 state and federal police initiated civilian raids which included beatings, torture, and arrests. At this point the teachers promised not to hold permanent blockades in public spaces in exchange for the assurance that the government would refrain from using violence to quiet their protests. From November until this summer the conflict has lain relatively hidden from the tourist eye, though unresolved and brewing.
Oaxaca is a popular tourist destination because it boasts a bounty colorful artisan crafts as well as the largest percentage of indigenous people in any Mexican state. On top of this, Oaxaca has some of the most mild and comfortable weather in all of Mexico. The state of Oaxaca itself is geographically diverse with mountain ranges, coastal tropics, and an urban center. One of the biggest summertime draws of tourist dollars to Oaxaca is the Guelagetza. This is an annual celebration of folkloric dance which brings dancers from all over the state. Their are two culminating events of the month long celebration, and they fall on the two Mondays after July 16th. The Guelagetza is usually held in the Stadium on top of the hill that overlooks the city. It's an all-day affair. People sometimes get to the stadium as early as 5:00 am to settle in for an all day picnic and viewing of the dances.
Last year, the Guelagetza was canceled due to the occupation of the city by APPO. The effect of the cancellation was severe financial hardship to the state. Hundreds of local merchants shut their doors. Hotels operated at half-mast. Many people had to leave their homes in Oaxaca for the outlying villages that were more affordable. The economic hit will takes years to repair. With the absence of the Guelagetza last year, the people of Oaxaca were more tenacious about holding the event this year. Even so, the event seemed threatened. Postings and stenciled graffiti on the walls called for the boycott of the Guelagetza. Both teachers and APPO called it the "commercialization of our culture." In fact, tickets were sold through Ticketmaster even though the majority of the local spectators attend on the grassy picnic area for free. In place of the "Commercial Guelagetza," the teachers and APPO joined forces again and declared they would have a "Popular Guelagetza" on the Monday proceeding the two official Guelagetza celebrations. The Popular Guelagetza was scheduled for Monday, July 16th.
"Boycott the comercial Guelaguetza," photo by Curt Douglas
The night before the celebration of dance staged by the protesters, there was a parade through the bustling Zocalo. Usually this annual parade consists of the dancers announcing their arrival in town and the commencement of the festivities. This year there was a mixture of agenda. Certainly there were the dancers, the giant papier mache puppets on stilts, and people offering shots of Mezcal from their plastic liters of "Coke." But along with this animated and happy affair was the call to protest, the same cry for unification against the larger power, the same "Si se puede" of immigrant marches and workers' rights the world over. After the parade came the traditional burning of the bulls, or rather papered bull heads that a few select male dancers wore over their heads as they burned. Loud fireworks shot high up into the air. Toddlers watched from their fathers’ shoulders, street venders sold corn on the cob, tortas, and more Mezcal. It was an atmosphere of celebration, with a sense of something revolutionary underneath. The grand final of the firework show was the traditional burning of the "castle," a tall structure of fireworks. Out of the ordinary, however, this year the castle was covered in APPO propaganda so that when it lit up it said APPO. At the finale of the fireworks display a mini helicopter lit up from the castle and took flight over the city, a symbolic reminder of last year's struggle when the police fired over the protestors from helicopters above.
I went to bed that night anxious from all the firework explosions which have always rung like bombs in my ears. I woke the next morning to the same explosions. Just before noon on that day, the day of the Popular Guelagetza, we walked from the apartment up the hill to the road leading the Stadium. We wanted to see how many people were planning to attend the "non-commercial" celebration. Two days prior, we'd taken a trip to nearby Mount Alban. In order to get to the site of the famous ruins, we had to pass by the Stadium where the Guelagetza would be held, and we saw the trucks full of police in riot gear. We saw the federal troops with semi-automatic weapons on their backs. But when we arrived on the scene, it was peaceful. Paraders, dancers, and spectators were standing and sometimes sitting in the wide avenue leading up to the hill. It was quiet except for the occasional sound of a firework exploding above our heads. We continued to walk uphill and saw buses stopped in the middle of the road. We assumed the police were blockading anyone from passing further up. Within a matter of minutes, though, the conflict broke out.
Graffiti art by ASARO, photo by Curt Douglas
What I witnessed: clouds of dust or fog; a tourist-packed bus trying to back up away from the scene; a few APPO members with face masks; not a mass exodus but a dozen or so women and children running past me, some with tears in their eyes; a woman who was shaken after having come from a hotel partially on fire; spectators who wanted to see closer what was happening; my feet as they carried me quickly away from there.
We followed the news from the safe distance of the Internet cafe, from the newspapers, and now from home. And here's what I've learned. The numbers vary from source to source, so this is the closest approximation I can make.
*Fifty civilians and fifteen soldiers were wounded at the confrontation on the hill. *Forty-two people were arrested.
*Members of APPO threw rocks at the police. The police in turn threw tear gas.
*APPO set fire to buses and to one hotel.
*The Popular Guelagetza did not happen that day in the Stadium, but the congregation of people moved to a nearby park and celebrated there instead.
Since the events of July 16th, the “commercial” Guelagetza ran its traditional course on the 23rd without violence or uprising. Ulises and APPO reached an agreement in regards to the July 30th “commercial” Guelagetza in which APPO promised not to disrupt the celebration if Ulises would release five of their detainees. Ulises complied. Ulises also agreed to accelerate the process of liberating two of the principle leaders of last year's uprising. Finally, Mexico has created a commission to investigate the police brutality in the 50 injuries of two weeks ago, as one victim in particular suffered brain damage.
These concessions on the part of Ulises may have more to do with the gubernatorial election this Sunday, August 5th than it does with a willingness to meet the wishes of APPO and the teachers. But at least for the moment, Oaxaca is quiet again, the Mexican Revolution waiting.
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