End of Caravan and Arrival in Cancun

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Hola companeros! I have arrived in Cancun, after a wonderful journey from Mexico City with La Via Campesina. Friday, the 3rd, was the last leg of our Caravan. We drove through the night and arrived in Medina for a demonstration and rally. This rally was for indigenous rights, Mayan, to protect sacred land that was being taken away from them to develop a large super highway project. we also heard from various workers unoins and environmental organizations voicing their support that the Cochabamba Accord to be enacted in Cauncun. Yet again and again the rights of Mother Earth was brought up and need to protect her from greedy governments and transnational corporations.

After leaving Medina we went to Chichenitza, home of sacred Mayan pyramids, for an indigenous ceremony with the local Mayan community and members of the Pancho and Dakota American tribes. The ceremony was held to give thanks to ancestors, the brother and sisterhood of all indigenous communities from around the world and for the rights of Mother Earth. During the ceremony elderly Mayan women, were doing prostrations and prayers and aromatic inscents filled the air. The ceremony took place on day of the women according to the Mayan calendar, the day of nine threads. A women Pancho tribe member, participating in the caravan, reminded the audience: ...We woman are a mirror image of Mother Earth, we must protect her and remember her image. During the ceremony there was beautiful chanting, praying and solidarity amongst the various indigenous tribes represented. The represented tribes are thousands of miles apart but they all experience similar exploitation of thier lands and communities. During the ceremony there was a small symbolic fire on stage. A member of the Dakota tribe had a prayer for the event and for our work in Cancun:

No matter how strong the wind blows,
How strong the oppressors voice may be,
This fire will not go our, a fire from our Mother Earth
A fire that burns inside all of our indigenous brothers and sisters.
We all share the same fire, no matter where on earth you are from...
We must remember, the path of our ancestors is the most righteous path that we have. We must remember that path and use our ancient traditions to protect Mother Earth.

After the ceremony we left for Cancun and arrived the Via Campesina Camp a few hours later. The camp and forum are in a large sports complex in north Cancun. It was purposely placed there because the local authorities wanted it far away from the Blue Moon Palace,where the official conference is taking place, and other high profile events. But it is a great spot and filled with all sorts of colorful posters and strong energy! No matter who you are, a member of the Mexican liberation movement or a Canadian organic farmer or a Mayan corn farmer or a twenty something American working for an NGO, everyone sleeps, eats and talks together under the same large tent. The event is very well integrated and there is a strong sense of solidarity amongst all peoples.

The following day was the start of the Global Forum for LIfe, Social Justice in the Environment. The day started with a Mystica, a Via Campesina tradition, which was an indigenous ceremony solidifying our intentions for the event and respect for ancestors. After that there were many speakers  talking about environmental justice, rights of mother earth, what we learned on the caravans and the long fight against capitalism. I will give a longer report on the forum in my next post!

Through out the caravan Via Campesina dealt with many obstacles perfectly and I am incredibly impressed with the organization. Whether it be a road being taken over in protest, undercover police officers following the caravans, difficult delegates or illness amongst the participants on the caravan. Carlos, the main organizer of the event, was the coordinator of my bus. Everyday he cleaned the bathroom of our bus that had over 50 people, he did this with out announcements or asking for volunteers, I only noticed this was happening when I saw him carrying a bottle of bleach one day. To me this really shows the uniqueness of Via Campesina, not only is there bilateral leadership throughout the entire organization, but the main organizer does not have a poorly paid bus drive clean the bathroom, he does him self. Every thing went very smoothly and hundreds of people and caravans from all over Mexico arrived safely in Cancun to participate in activities for Climate Justice.

I end this post from a book I am reading, that talks about the struggles Mexican campesinos face because of American led Free Trade policies:

More than a way of earning a living, the campo, land, is a way of life for many Mexican campesinos. It is an ideology with roots in the pre Columbian past that has been sustained by the agrain reforms and the rheroric of the revolution. Being a campesino is different from having a job. It is a way of relating to land and community. It is a sense of place and identity not easily shaken. The campo is the heart andsoul of Mexico all readily discovered in the deep melancholy and joy for life tapped by its ranchera music, the instinctive hospitatlity of its people, the resonance of its rituals, and the easy acceptance of lifes natural rhythms

Zapata Revenge, Free Trade and the Farm Crisis in Mexico by Tom Barry