Guerrilla Warfare in Latin America

Guerrilla Warfare in Latin America

Guerrilla ≠ Gorilla OK, let’s get this straight right from the start: GUERRILLA WARFARE HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH MONKEYS! HUMPH!

Sorry Kong!It’s not all about you.Or any other kinda monkey for that matter. GET OVER IT!.

Guerrilla comes from the Spanish word for little war. We use guerrilla to describe unconventional warfare where small groups of men, rather than large armies, make raids or attacks against governments. TIME OUT: Remember Fidel Castro, the guy who eventually became the dictator of Cuba? He and his group of followers used guerrilla warfare to overthrow the Cuban government.

Guerrillas are rebel indigenas* who are dissatisfied with their country’s government and seek to overthrow the politicians by military force. They often have an agenda of their own and plan to take over and rule the country themselves. To avoid detection, guerrillas usually live in remote locations where it is difficult for regular army soldiers to find them. They conduct surprise attacks and raids on military targets such as transportation convoys or ammunition storage. Ambushes are their specialty. Guerilla attacks are carefully planned by a strong leader, such as Castro, and are designed to disrupt the lives of local people and politicians until they, too, join the cause of the rebels. *Indigenas are the native born folks.

A long History of Guerrilla Warfare Latin America has a long history of guerrilla warfare dating back to early 1900’s when Emiliano Zapata, a legendary fighter for land rights, gathered an army of farmers in the south of Mexico and urged them to join his fight against the government. Although the government could never seem to win a battle against Zapata’s men, they were able to eventually lure him to a secret location where he was shot and killed by government forces.

Guerrillas in South America Unfortunately, the use of guerrilla warfare has become all too familiar in South American countries such as Peru and Columbia. In both of these countries, activists seeking better lives for poor people take up arms against the government hoping to gain wealth and land for rural farmers and their families. Even with such noble ideas as sharing the land and giving money to the needy, guerrilla groups often resort to terrorism, murder and kidnapping. Authorities estimate that upwards of 70,000 people in Columbia alone have been killed in the conflicts between government authorities and guerrilla groups since 1980.

Guerrillas in Mexico The people in the southern state of Chiapas, Mexico are among the poorest in that country. However, the land of Chiapas is some of the richest in Mexico. Natural gas, oil and fertile coffee-growing land are all found there. More than half of Mexico’s hydroelectric power is generated in Chiapas. Yet many of these resources go north to fuel other Mexican states.

The people, or indigenas, of Chiapas are small-scale farmers of Mayan descent and many do not speak Spanish. They have less education and healthcare than most other Mexicans. Mexico’s political leaders tend to ignore their needs when they make national policies. In addition, many of the best farms and ranches in Chiapas are owned by a few very wealthy landowners who often act with the Mexican government in ways to benefit themselves and not the local indigenas.

Zapatistas In 1994 a rebel group calling itself the Zapatista Army of National Liberation, or EZLN for short, got worldwide attention as they declared war on the Mexican government and used guerrilla tactics to take over several Mexican cities and attack military posts. Taking their name from the first Mexican land fighter, Emiliano Zapata, the group complained about NAFTAand the lack of land for the poor indigenas of Chiapas. Led by a former professor calling himself Subcomandante Marcos, the EZLN consisted mostly of indigenas coffee growers and other poor people of Chiapas. Subcomandante Marcos ready to protest NAFTA.

Huh? NAFTA . . . . . Whata ?? The North American Free TradeAgreement (NAFTA) is a trade agreement signed in 1992 that allows the United States, Canada, and Mexico to join in free trade** between countries for certain goods and services. (Glad we cleared that up!) But the EZLN thought NAFTA would only increase poverty in Chiapas since it would make American farm products cheaper to buy than Mexican farm products, thus hurting the already poor farmers of Chiapas. The EZLN promised to fight on until the government abandoned the NAFTA agreement with the U.S. & Canada. ** Trade without embargo fees

Negotiations Not surprisingly, the Mexican government sent soldiers to the areas where the EZLN had taken over, and small battles took place between the two sides. Within a couple of weeks, the uprising had ended, but no leaders of the movement had been captured. Surprisingly, world opinion of the situation sided with the guerrillas as people in the U.S. and other countries voiced sympathy for the plight of the indigenas of Chiapas. Although the Mexican government refused to end the NAFTA agreement, it did agree to a series of negotiations to hear their concerns if the Zapatistas would agree to lay down their arms. The EZLN agreed and for the next two years conducted meetings with the Mexican government in an effort to improve the lives of the people of Chiapas.

Happily Ever After? For over two years, the Mexican government met with leaders of the Zapatista movement, hearing their demands for land redistribution and more democracy for the people of Chiapas. Although the government officially agreed with many of these demands, they have been unable to meet them. Meanwhile the people of Chiapas have begun forming self-governing communities and learning to use their own resources to meet the needs of their own people. The Zapatista group which once gained worldwide attention by declaring war on the Mexican government, has taken a new approach. Instead of weapons, they are using outside sources of help, technology and the media to gain win support for the still struggling people of Chiapas. Unarmed Zapatista Members

Guerilla Groups QuestionsUse Coach Book Lesson #11 - p. 74 Guerrillas in Peru 1. What was the goal of the militia group formed in the Andes Mountains in the 1960’s? 2. What was this movement called? (Give the ENGLISH name.) 3. T/F The Shining Path forced police out of the countryside and used terrorism. Guerrillas in Colombia 4. What does FARC stand for? (Use ENGLISH name.) 5. List 2 goals of FARC. 6. List 3 methods used by FARC to achieve their goals. 7. T/F FARC’s methods have been productive to the group’s goals. 8. What does Colombia have to spend money on rather than social programs? Guerrillas in Mexico p. 75 9.. Why do you suppose Mexican leaders ignore the needs of the indigenas of Chiapas? p. 7610. Who controls the best farming land in Chiapas and who do they act with? 11. Since 197O what has been an additional challenge for the Chiapas region? p. 105 12. What is NAFTA? 13. What does NAFTA allow? p. 7614. Why does the EZLN oppose NAFTA? p. 7615. What has happened as a result of the Mexican government’s inability to meet the needs of the Chiapas people?

Guerrilla Warfare in Latin America