March 21, 1999
Web posted at: 8:17 p.m. EST (0117 GMT)

In this story: Government allows ballot Peace talks at stalemate RELATED STORIES, SITES

MEXICO CITY (CNN) -- From the sandy beaches of Acapulco to the crowded plazas of Mexico City, an unusual referendum on Indian rights was held Sunday in Mexico -- sponsored not by the government but by leftist Zapatista rebels who took up arms five years ago in the southern state of Chiapas.

Any Mexican over age 12 was allowed to vote, either in person or over the Internet. About 5,000 Zapatista supporters, wearing their trademark ski masks, set up voting tables at locations nationwide. For some, it was their first trip ever out of the jungles of impoverished Chiapas.

"We are not calling for a military or a violent protest," said Subcomandante Marcos, leader of the Zapatistas, in a videotaped message issued in the days leading up to the vote. "What we seek instead is a peaceful demonstration which consists simply of expressing one's ideas."

Government lets ballot go forward

The government labeled the referendum a "ruse" but let it go forward on the condition that the Zapatistas remained unarmed. Results were expected late Sunday or early Monday.

Voters received a ballot with several questions: Should indigenous people share in Mexico's wealth? Should they enjoy special constitutional rights negotiated by the Zapatistas in peace talks that later broke down? And should Chiapas be demilitarized while peace talks continue?

The results were a foregone conclusion. Only Mexicans sympathetic to the Zapatistas were expected to participate, and the wording of the questions made opposition unlikely.

Still, the rebels hope the results will put pressure on the government to address the Zapatistas' demands for better conditions for Indians in Chiapas.

"We're not used to being asked our opinion about important national affairs," said Eugenia Gutierrez, 34, a pro-Zapatista activist. "The government never asks for the people's opinion. They don't care about their opinion. There is no forum for a plebiscite or referendum in the Mexican constitution."

Chiapas peace talks at stalemate

The Zapatistas staged a 10-day uprising in 1994 in Chiapas in the name of greater rights for indigenous people. Peace talks have been at a stalemate since a partial accord was signed in 1996.

The Zapatista army lacks the military punch to pose a serious threat. Its several hundred cadres are badly outnumbered by the Mexican army, which surrounds them while a cease-fire holds.

Though the conflict with the army has been silent for several years, hundreds of people in Chiapas have died in related political violence, often pitting Zapatista supporters against forces aligned with Mexico's ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party.

Many participants in Sunday's referendum criticized the government for not doing more to resolve the conflict.

"If millions of people turn out to support the indigenous people against racism and militarization, the government must heed the popular demand," said Candido Gutierrez, 66, after voting in downtown Mexico City. "We can't continue treating Indians like they did 500 years ago."

To counter rebel publicity, the government bombarded the airwaves with advertisements promoting its social spending in Chiapas and its willingness to settle the dispute with dialogue.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

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