Zapatistas in Palenque

So yesterday I discovered that one of the three major waterfalls within a day's reach of the city of Palenque has been taken over by the Zapatistas, who are charging anyone who hasn't been warned away exorbitant amounts of money to enter. This is my first time being so close to rebel-controlled territory, modest though it is. One also occasionally sees signs by the side of the road, painted crudely in black and white, that say things like: "You are in Zapatista rebel territory. Here the people rule and the government obeys." This is mostly not true, and to the extent that it is true, it's because Mexico's federal government has never really bothered to take care of the incredibly poor state that is Chiapas anyway.

That said, most people speak well of the Zapatistas here, crediting them with various public works projects and giving indigenous villagers a sense of pride and dignity. People ask about "Marcos"--subcomandante Marcos, the Zapatista leader--as if he were an old friend who they had lost touch with. The people who complain mostly point to excessive numbers of topes on the road--topes being asphalt bumps on the highway laid by the people of various small towns it passes through to force drivers to slow down and not run over their children. A German traveler coming from San Cristobal said that there, you can ask certain taxis to take you to the Zapatista offices and ask them for an interview. Maybe worth a try?