Topic: Southern Exposure
MEXICO SOLIDARITY NETWORK
WEEKLY NEWS AND ANALYSIS
JUNE 21-27, 2004
1. MEXICO'S OIL RESERVES WILL BE USED UP IN 12 YEARS
2. HISTORY EDUCATION WILL BE REDUCED IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS
3. MARCH IN MEXICO CITY AGAINST CRIME
4. TARAHUMARA ACTIVISTS RELEASED FROM PRISON
5. TIJUANA EDITOR KILLED
6. US DEMANDS WTO RULING
7. MSN PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS - contact MSN@MexicoSolidarity.org
1. MEXICO'S OIL RESERVES WILL BE USED UP IN 12 YEARS
Fernando Elizando Barragan, Mexico's Energy Secretary, reported this week that Mexico's known petroleum reserves will only last 11 or 12 more years at current rates of production. Previous estimates predicted sufficient reserves for 25 years. Elizando blamed the reduced estimate on changes in accounting, and claimed that unexplored fields could yield petroleum for another 30 to 35 years. Daily production is currently about 3.8 million barrels. Mexico has the fourth largest proven crude oil reserves in the Western Hemisphere after Canada, Venezuela, and the United States. Mexico is the third largest foreign supplier of US petroleum, behind only Canada and Saudi Arabia, and is the world's fourth largest producer of petroleum, behind Saudi Arabia, Russia and the United States.
2. HISTORY EDUCATION WILL BE REDUCED IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS
The Secretary of Education caused on uproar last week by slashing education on pre-Hispanic history to only ten hours in secondary schools throughout the country. Secondary school is roughly equivalent to middle school in the US. Historians and indigenous activists throughout the country criticized the virtual disappearance of pre-Hispanic history from the classroom. Unlike the US, Mexico has a long tradition of education steeped in historical context, making for a richer cultural and political context. The education department promised to evaluate the proposed changes, but will most likely implement them. The Fox administration is trying to "modernize" the educational system, with greater focus on the hard sciences and less on history and the humanities.
3. MARCH IN MEXICO CITY AGAINST CRIME
On Sunday, hundreds of thousands of Mexicans from as far away as the northern border state of Chihuahua participated in a silent march to protest high crime rates. Members of the PRD interpreted the march as yet another attack orchestrated by the Fox administration against Mexico City Mayor Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, though marchers were reported to be decidedly apolitical and united against crime. Business leaders organized the march and President Fox endorsed it earlier in the week. Crime, especially robbery, is rampant throughout Mexico, though the capitol is notorious, in part because of provincial fears of the "big city." This reporter lives part of the year in Mexico City and finds the crime rate to be equivalent to most other big cities in the United States. The major difference is that a good deal of crime is apparently committed by police or their associates, resulting in near impunity for many criminals. Police routinely use torture to extract "confessions" from suspects who often turn out to be fall guys for the real criminals. In addition to the obvious human rights violations, torture has proven to be of dubious utility in solving crimes. With little confidence in police or the criminal justice system, Mexicans took the streets on Sunday to demand solutions.
4. TARAHUMARA ACTIVISTS RELEASED FROM PRISON
Isidro Baldenegro and Hermenegildo Rivas, Tarahumara environmental activists, were released from prison Wednesday after serving 15 months on trumped up charges. The two activists gained fame for protesting illegal logging operations on native lands in the state of Chihuahua. They were apparently arrested by police aligned with powerful local interests who wanted to put an end to their political activities.
5. TIJUANA EDITOR KILLED
Francisco Ortiz, editor of the weekly magazine Zeta, was murdered this week in Tijuana, apparently by drug dealers upset at his investigative reporting. Ortiz had a reputation for fearless reporting in this city scarred by drug dealing and corrupt politicians. This was the second attack on a Zeta journalist. In 1997, publisher Jesus Blancocornelas was wounded and his bodyguard killed in an attack attributed to the Arellano Felix gang.
6. US DEMANDS WTO RULING
On Tuesday, US officials asked the World Trade Organization to determine if Mexico's 20% tax on corn sweeteners used in soft drinks violates trade agreements. The Bush administration interprets the tax as a protectionist measure designed to boost Mexican sugar cane growers but detrimental to US corn producers. Cargill and Archer Daniels Midland control more than three-quarters of US corn sales in international markets. The Corn Refiners Association, a trade group with close links to Cargill and ADM, claims the Mexican tax closes off corn sweetener markets worth US$620 annually. The trade dispute is one in an escalating series of disagreements, including, most recently, the admission of Mexican trucks on US highways. WTO meetings in Cancun last year failed when the US and the European Union refused to end agricultural subsidies that destroy markets for small and medium-sized producers in the global South.
7. MSN PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS - contact MSN@MexicoSolidarity.org
July 26 - August 7: Women's Delegation to Chiapas and Ciudad Juarez.
September 21 - October 5: Militarization tour with CAPISE to IL/IN/OH/KY, co-sponsored by SOA Watch
October 20-30: National Caravans to Ciudad Juarez
October 31-November 4: Delegation to Ciudad Juarez
November 7-21: Women's Fair Trade Tour to NM/AZ/CA
November 8-22: Militarization tour to SE United States, co-sponsored by SOA Watch
November 20-28: Delegation to Chiapas
December 26-Jan 2: New Years Delegation to Chiapas
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Mexico Solidarity Network http://www.mexicosolidarity.org
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Posted by mvskokee
at 11:44 PM CDT
