CPTnet
August 12, 1999
CHIAPAS, MX: CPT holds "Celebration of Hope" in San Cristobal de las Casas

Nine members of Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) held a public "Celebration
of Hope" in the Cathedral Plaza of San Cristobal de las Casas last night.
The service was held to express the CPT members' hope for peace with justice
in that region of conflict.

"We did it to raise awareness and ask those listening to participate in
praying for peace for the poor and for all the people struggling for dignity
and hope in Chiapas," explained Drane Reynolds, a Mennonite from Homestead,
Florida.

Reynolds is in Chiapas with three other delegates; Nelda Nelson-Eaton, of
Tijuana, Mexico (currently living
in Chicago); Chris Schweitzer, of Philadelphia; and Paul Neufeld Weaver, of
Worthington, Minnesota. In addition to the delegation, CPT reservists and
corp members Matt Guynn, Anne Herman, Esther Ho, William Payne, and Sara
Reschly participated in the action.

For Nelda Nelson-Eaton--who has lived in both the U.S. and Mexico and holds
dual citizenship--this was her first time to take part in a public action
for peace. "I think that we reached many people," she said. "I was glad
that I overcame the fear of making a protest in a country that is not known
for its sterling record of human rights."

In light of the expulsion of international human rights observers over the
past two years, the delegation sought to plan an action which balanced a
respect for the right of Mexicans to determine their own political paths
with a desire to to express the right of all people everywhere to speak out
against injustice.

The service attracted the attention of many passersby in the busy plaza, and
about 30 people stopped and sang, shared prayers, and talked with the team
members. Several people asked how they could get involved in the kind of
work CPT is doing.

During the service, the delegates read words from Acteal, the indigenous
Tzotzil community where 45 men, women, and children were killed on December
22, 1997 by government-supported paramilitaries. The delegation visited
Acteal over the weekend. While there they met members of the Abejas, or
Bees, a group which has refused to join either pro-government groups nor the
Zapatista rebels. Instead, the more than 4,000 members of the Bees believe
that God calls them to witness for justice nonviolently.

On Saturday, the Bees celebrated the passing of authority from Bishop Samuel
Ruiz to Auxiliary Bishop Raul Vera. Don Raul told the Bees that the Acteal
massacre would always be a point of reference for Mexican history. The
brutal killing of the 45 bees while they were praying and fasting and
refusing to fight back "turned death into life," he said.

Bishoph Vera referred to the massacre as "the sacrifice of our brothers and
sisters into resurrection." He said that the courage of the innocents of
Acteal calls out to their brothers and sisters all over the world to
reflect, "If the poor [of Acteal] can face evil, why can't we? If the poor
can resist, . . . why can't we?"