Why did Cuban rebels launch La Guerra Chiquita in 1879?

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Theodore Roosevelt and the Rough Riders — Spanish-American War Theodore Roosevelt leading the Rough Riders during the Spanish-American War, 1898; print created by Kurz & Allison.

La Guerra Chiquita ("The Little War") was launched in August 1879 by Calixto García and other nationalist leaders who refused to accept the conditions of the Pact of Zanjón (1878).12

Although the Pact of Zanjón ended the Ten Years’ War by promising amnesty and political reforms, the Spanish government failed to implement most of these changes. Consequently, the uprising was driven by continued dissatisfaction with Spanish colonial rule, which remained corrupt, inefficient, and resistant to granting true political autonomy to the Cuban people. The rebellion was ultimately quelled by superior Spanish forces in the autumn of 1880.12