Photos

Everyday market in San Cristobal de las Casas. When I was there travelling in Chiapas was considered not safe. The buses were often stopped by police, the control was quite strong. Exact the day we were there large group of Zapatistas with Subcomandante Marcos went to Mexico City. We observed them in the moment of leaving but were afraid to make photos.

The Zapatista March to Tenochtitlan began on February 25, 2001 from San Cristobal de Las Casas, Chiapas and covered 12 states and stay-overs in 25 municipalities. It was a gruelling affair with multiple incidents and one, as of yet, unexplained accident that took the life of a federal police officer that was providing security for the Zapatista Delegation.

Chiapas is the southernmost state of Mexico, located towards the southeast of the country. To the east Chiapas borders Guatemala, and to the south the Pacific Ocean. In general Chiapas has a humid, tropical climate. In the past, natural vegetation at this region was lowland, tall perennial rainforest, but this vegetation has been destroyed almost completely to give way to agriculture and ranching. The state capital city is Tuxtla Gutiérrez; other cities and towns in Chiapas include San Cristóbal de las Casas, Comitán, and Tapachula. Chiapas is home to the ancient Mayan ruins of Palenque, Yaxchilán, Bonampak, Chinkultic, and Toniná.

As of the mid 1990s, most people in Chiapas were poor, rural small farmers. About one quarter of the population were of full or predominant Maya descent, and in rural areas many did not speak Spanish. The state suffers from the highest rate of malnutrition in Mexico, estimated to affect more than 40% of the population. "Without roads, cities or even small towns, eastern Chiapas is a kind of dumping ground for the marginalized, in which all of the hardships peasants confront in the highlands are exacerbated."

The increasing presence of Central American gangs known as Maras, and illegal immigration from Central America in general (mostly immigrants on their way to the United States), stresses an already poor state.
In 1994, violence erupted between the Mexican Government and the Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN).