Urgent: Solidarity with Nuevo Poblado Comandante Abel

Urgent Call for Solidarity with Nuevo Poblado Comandante Abel
by UK Zapatista Solidarity Network

"We were numb with fear when we came here, we could not feel our bodies; I felt that there was a tiger behind me, I was lost, I was terrified, I felt that I was no longer in the world", Lucía (refugee in the community of San Marcos)

The Autonomous Municipality of La Dignidad is in the state of Chiapas, Caracol V, Roberto Barrios, Good Government Junta - New Seed that is going to Produce; historically people from the Chol, Zoque, and Tzeltal indigenous groups have lived there. The land was reclaimed in 1994. This Junta, like the others, was created in 2003, when the Aguascalientes were replaced by the Caracoles; their main role is to watch over and promote autonomy in their territory, and since 94 the government has not ceased to attack the compañeros, using paramilitary groups as it has done in Nuevo Poblado (New Community) Comandante Abel, creating a very worrying situation. The community has denounced since September 2011 an invasion by the paramilitary group "Peace and Justice", as a result of which they have lost their crops of corn, beans and fruit trees. A year later they suffered a paramilitary incursion and invasion that caused the forced displacement of some compañeros, and the resistance of other support bases of the Zapatista National Liberation Army who stayed in the Nuevo Poblado.

In an interview with compañeros from the Space for Struggle against Forgetting and Repression, from the Network against Repression, they told us that the people of the Nuevo Poblado until recently lived in the community of San Patricio, but this was invaded by paramilitaries from a nearby community, so the compañeros decided to move to the piece of land known as la "Lámpara", thus demonstrating that the struggle of the compañeros is a peaceful one. But in spite of this the paramilitary incursion did not stop, and they were invaded again in September 2012, culminating in the displacement of the Zapatista support base, leaving some compañeros to defend their new community, called Nuevo Poblado Comandante Abel. It should be noted that these displacements were enforced by firing shots at the compañeros; this led to hunger and some epidemics.

Some of the attackers are the chief leaders of Unión Hidalgo: Pedro Ramírez Guzmán, Hipólito Ramírez Martínez, Jesús Ramírez Martínez, Leopoldo Pérez Hernández, Carlos Cleber González Cabello, Miguel Encino Gómez, Javier Guzmán Encino, Pedro Gómez Gómez and Marcelino Gómez Guzmán, who are in complicity with the State Police.

This situation gets worse every day; there is no food, there is no water, and the road is guarded by paramilitary forces, so it is increasingly difficult for peace to return to the community, which is why the Good Government Junta in December 2012 again called for the collection of money and food to help our Zapatista sisters and brothers. It is important for us to keep informed and in collaboration with the struggle of our compañeros; the situation is alarming and the government, in spite of its discourse, does not change its strategy against the Zapatista support base.

Solidarity: Collection for Nuevo Poblado Comandante Abel
Reinforcing solidarity!
San Cristobal de las Casas, December 2012
To the compañeros and compañeras, adherents to the Sixth Declaration of the Lacandón Jungle, to state, national and international participants in the "Other Campaign", to the Network against Repression and for Solidarity, to the National Indigenous Congress (CNI), to people of good heart, to all of you, we make a humble call from the Space for Struggle against Forgetting and Repression to weave together Organized Solidarity.

The defence of a political project, manifested in the Zapatista Autonomous Rebel Municipalities, the Good Government Juntas, the Zapatista Caracoles, which were set up with dignity by the EZLN support bases, as well as the defence of the "reclaimed land" is the commitment of all of those who struggle to make possible one of those other possible worlds.

The events in Nuevo Poblado Comandante Abel, Autonomous Municipality La Dignidad, Caracol V, Roberto Barrios, Good Government Junta New Seed that is going to Produce, have left the compañeros in a worrying situation. Nuevo Poblado Comandante Abel suffered an invasion in September 2011 by the paramilitary group "Peace and Justice" ("Paz y Justicia"), in which they lost their crops of corn, beans and fruit trees. On 5 and 6 September 2012 they again suffered a paramilitary incursion and invasion which caused a situation of forced displacement of some, and resistance from other EZLN support bases who remain in Nuevo Poblado Comandante Abel.

All of this calls us to Activate Solidarity in order to reinforce the collection of supplies, nationally and internationally, which began on 12 September this year, but IN VIEW OF THE GRAVE SITUATION this collection will continue PERMANENTLY until a new call is made.
Equally we must respect the conditions and needs of the indigenous campesino families themselves. The call for Solidarity to strengthen the collection at this time accepts what your hearts want to contribute, but we believe it is important to continue to respond with the support of the specific food goods that are needed:

Rice
Beans
Sugar.

And finally, in response to ‘How?’ the delivery and handing over of supplies can be made in Chiapas at the following locations:
-Comedor "Qué Bárbaras", calle María Adelina Flores #5, San Cristóbal de las Casas.
-Espacio Cultural "El Paliacate", calle 5 de mayo # 20, San Cristóbal de las Casas.
Those's who are far way, in other geographies and want to support what is born from the heart can contact us by writing to elcor.chiapas@gmail.com

Against Forgetting there is memory!
Against Repression there is Solidarity!
Space for struggle against Forgetting and Repression
(ELCOR)
Network against Repression and Solidarity

AGAINST DISPOSSESSION AND REPRESSION: SOLIDARITY!
Network against Repression and for Solidarity
Email: redcontralarepresion@gmail.com
Page: http://www.redcontralarepresion.org
facebook.com / redcontralarepresion
http://twitter.com/RvsRepresion

Address: Dr. Carmona y Valle # 32, colonia Doctores, Del. Cuauhtémoc, México D. F. C.P. 06720

http://regeneracionradio.org/index.php/represion/despojo/item/3773-urgente-solidaridad-a-nuevo-poblado-comandante-abel
http://regeneracionradio.org/index.php/represion-m/item/3772-solidaridad-acopio-para-el-nuevo-poblado-comandante-abel
http://desinformemonos.org/2012/09/la-base-de-apoyo-zapatista-no-llora-volvemos-a-trabajar-para-resistir-y-vivir/

More information in English:
http://sanmarcosavilesen.wordpress.com/about-the-community-of-comandante-abel/

ENDS

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