grarian reformer. The EZLN has organized itself among some of the most dispossessed people of the world. Its' soldiers are drawn from the forests, mountains and small towns of the region, both from the indigenous Mayan population, and from immigrants from Central and Northern Mexico. The EZLN soldiers have been subsistence cultivators and landless wage-laborers. They have grown and marketed their own export crops and have worked on the plantations and ranches of others. A very few are intellectuals drawn to the area over a decade ago by their ideals and hopes. The EZLN understands how NAFTA opens Mexico to U.S. exports and imports, and how the most threatening of these is corn, the basic food crop of the indigenous population and an important source of cash income. Already they are suffering from low prices for coffee, another cash crop, due to government's elimination of financial support for that production. They also know that export development means ecological destruction, especially deforestation. (Marcos) Although Mexican troops quickly retook most of the territory held by the rebels and a cease-fire was called soon afterward, the rebel group generated momentum for political reform in Mexico. A government negotiating team, headed by former Mexico City mayor Manuel Camacho Solis, met with rebel leaders and offered them a 34-point proposed agreement that included promises of political changes, new social programs, land reform, and better standards of living. However, the group rejected the plan in June. Subcommandante Marcos is the enigmatic spokesperson and highest army commander of the Zapatista National Liberation Army. He is known for his well-written press releases filled with wit and sarcasm. He is always masked in public, and often smokes a pipe. The government claims to have "identified" Marcos as Rafael Sebastian Guillen Vicente, but Marco...
