I.

Introduction

Zapatistas or Zapatista National Liberation Army, rebel group, made up primarily of Native Americans from southern Mexico who launched a brief military revolt against the Mexican government in 1994. Also known by its Spanish acronym, EZLN, the group is named for Emiliano Zapata, an early 20th-century Mexican revolutionary leader and agrarian reformer.

During the revolt, the Zapatistas occupied several towns in the southern state of Chiapas. Mexican troops quickly recaptured most of the rebel-held territory, however, and a cease-fire was called soon afterward. More than 145 people died in the initial confrontation. The rebellion and subsequent peace negotiations eventually prompted the Mexican government to agree to institute several political reforms demanded by the rebels.