Happy New Year everyone! We know that many of our readers are in/from the US, and are shocked and saddened by yesterday’s events in DC. We hope that today’s newsletter will serve as a useful distraction to today’s news cycle. 2020 revealed a fondness we didn’t know that we had for the certainty, sanity, and truth of the early 2000s. We’re optimistic that 2021 will heal some of that damage. -- Also, Kim K and Kanye filing for divorce? Who saw that coming? Never fear, you still have México Desde Afuera to make the most out of the craziness that will happen this year.
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A Mexican New Year Gift to Julian Assange
South China Morning Post / Vice
What happened? It seems AMLO found a new way to screw with his neighbor: by offering asylum to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, while the US is seeking his extradition on espionage and hacking charges. What looked like a totally unplanned announcement, in the form of an unscripted answer to a journalist’s question, the President said he would request his foreign minister to ask the UK to release Assange and send him to Mexico.
Who is Assange and why does AMLO want him? Through WikiLeaks, Assange has been able to release thousands of classified military and diplomatic documents, for which the US presented charges against him. After living for 7 years in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, he was handed over to the police and entered jail shortly afterwards. The US authorities have been seeking to have him extradited, but earlier this week a UK court rejected the request due to Assange’s poor mental condition.
As for bringing him to Mexico, AMLO has been a long time supporter of Assange, ever since WikiLeaks published diplomatic cables revealing that the US investigated him when he ran for office in 2006. In them, the American government showed a certain discomfort with the possible radicalization of his supporters after the presidential elections, among other concerns. When the documents were leaked, AMLO called these investigations a violation to Mexico’s sovereignty, liberty and democracy and basically became Assange’s fan.
When he announced the asylum offer, AMLO also cited Mexico’s long history to grant protection (Luis Buñuel, Evo Morales, and Leon Trotsky were granted asylum by Mexico in the past). However, critics have said that Assange is a different case and might damage Mexican relations with the US, especially when cooperation with intelligence and security offices is needed.
According to a Mexican official, AMLO’s asylum offer sent a message that “Mexico would pursue an independent foreign policy under the next US government”
What to look for? Although the US can still appeal the UK judge’s decision, one of Assange’s lawyers stated that it is unlikely that his client will accept Mexico’s offer as the judiciary process can still last two more years. He also mentioned that France and Belgium have offered similar offers … which might be a polite way of rejecting Mexico’s asylum.
Mexico’s Foreign Minister, and presidential hopeful, Marcelo Ebrard has already started to try improving the rough start with the incoming Biden administration, holding talks with Jake Sullivan, the future national security adviser
♀️ Women should decide whether to legalize Abortion in Mexico: AMLO
… through a referendum
President Lopez Obrador was asked about legalizing abortion in Mexico after it was legalized in in Argentina last week. Staying true to his character, he said that a referendum should take place, in which Mexican women would decide if abortion becomes legal or not. When a journalist pressed him on the fact that referendum would allow religious beliefs to limit women’s rights, the President replied that all opinions should be respected.
Context: Abortion is legal in Mexico City and Oaxaca, and remains unlawful in the rest of the country except under some circumstances, such as rape.
This should not come as a surprise. Even though the President is considered to be a leftist politician, he has been more moderate on social issues.
Back in a 2015 radio interview, he labelled reproductive rights and gay marriage as “secondary” matters for the left.
According to the Constitution, it’s already too late to ask for another referendum in the remaining 4 years of the President’s term. But even if one were to be held it would likely be rejected. According a poll published by El Financiero in September 2019, only 32% of Mexicans were in favor of legalising abortion. Reuters
❤️ Ballad singer and composer Armando Manzanero dies
Armando Manzanero was known as one of the greatest romantic composers of recent times. Some of his songs were performed by Elvis Presley, Andrea Bicelli, and Perry Como (his hit single “It’s Impossible” was written by Manzanero). In 2014, he was awarded a lifetime achievement Grammy. Although he was hospitalized with Covid-19, and at one point was on a ventilator, both his manager and son said that he died of complications from a kidney problem. Remember him by listening to some of his best tunes. Los Angeles Times
💉 Elderly people in remote rural areas are next in line to get the covid-19 vaccine
After the government vaccinates health care workers they will move onto the general population, starting with those 60 years and older located in smaller remote communities. The President stated that his administration will seek to first treat those that have been neglected by previous governments. Followed by the elderly in medium and larger cities - where the pandemic has caused greater damage - will get their vaccines, and afterwards, the population under 60 will be vaccinated. Those with pre-existing conditions and teachers will also be prioritized in this segment. Reuters
🔋 State-run electric company admits that it lied about a major blackout
On December 28th, over 10 million Mexican customers, including part of Mexico City’s subway system, experienced a two-hour blackout after the state-run Federal Electricity Commission (CFE) reported that a fire in the northern state of Tamaulipas had caused the problem. As proof, it presented documents supposedly issued by the state’s civil protection office.
A week later, CFE’s CEO, Manuel Bartlett, recognized that the documents were forged. As embarrassing as this was, he didn’t stop there. He blamed “an excessive generation of renewable energy” for the blackout and promised to continue limiting green energies - this is the latest (and lamest) attack from the government on renewables so far. AP
🏖️ Hugo López-Gatell, Mexico's Covid-19 czar, criticized after beach trip
After urging Mexicans to stay at home and avoid all non-essential travel, Deputy Health Minister Hugo Lopez-Gatell was caught eating out at a restaurant while vacationing on the beach in Oaxaca. This comes days after he was photographed not wearing a mask on a flight (he regularly preaches proper mask wearing in press conferences). What is his excuse? He said he didn’t break any rules by visiting close friends and family and following all health protocols. While this is true, it is certainly hypocritical to the message he has been broadcasting throughout the pandemic, and especially now when many Mexico City hospitals are at full capacity. CNN
What else we’ve been reading:
Mexico gets saved by a historic influx of remittances by migrants abroad
Context: After Deputy Health Minister, Hugo López-Gatell, came back from his beach vacation in Zipolite, Oaxaca, the President defended him and declared he wouldn’t fire him.
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Chamotón: It’s a town in Campeche where the Spanish army failed to defeat the native indigenous inhabitants.
AMLO uses the expression as a way of telling corrupt people that they have been defeated.