Womens News Network
Katherine Ronderos
October 3, 2013
Excluded from the debate on educational reform, women teachers in Mexico, who represent more than 96 percent of teachers in preschool, 66 percent in basic education and 51 percent in secondary school, are protesting against a new law that will affect them negatively, especially those working in rural and indigenous communities.
Mainly women teachers in the states of Veracruz, Michoacán, Oaxaca, Guerrero and Chiapas (Mexico) went on strike while more than 30,000 teachers from some of the country’s poorest states moved into Mexico City and set up camp in the Zócalo, the city center, for three weeks in September. They are protesting en masse after the government pushed through “secondary” laws aimed at reforming the Education Act, in particular aspects related to teachers’ careers. They are demanding that the government moderate its education reforms. Read more.
The MexicoBlog of the Americas Program, a fiscally sponsored program of the Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR), is written by Laura Carlsen. I monitor and analyze international press on Mexico, with a focus on security, immigration, human rights and social movements for peace and justice, from a feminist perspective. And sometimes I simply muse.
Showing posts with label privatization. Show all posts
Showing posts with label privatization. Show all posts
Aug 20, 2013
Fight over revered ex-president’s image dominates Mexico’s oil reform debate
The Washington Post
August 16, 2013
The son of Mexico’s most revered modern president, known for nationalizing Mexico’s oil industry, says his dad is rolling in his grave.
In fact, both sides in the heated debate over proposals to open Mexico’s oil industry to private companies are using the image of former president Lazaro Cardenas, roughly Mexico’s equivalent of Franklin D. Roosevelt.
Current President Enrique Pena Nieto has launched a blitz of TV ads that prominently feature photos of Cardenas, who expropriated foreign oil companies and nationalized the industry when he was president from 1934 to 1940.
Like FDR, who was known for helping pull America out of the depression with his ‘new deal’ public works programs, Cardenas is remembered for handing out land to poor farmers and standing up to the foreign oil companies that once took the lion’s share of profits from Mexican oil. Read more.
August 16, 2013
The son of Mexico’s most revered modern president, known for nationalizing Mexico’s oil industry, says his dad is rolling in his grave.
In fact, both sides in the heated debate over proposals to open Mexico’s oil industry to private companies are using the image of former president Lazaro Cardenas, roughly Mexico’s equivalent of Franklin D. Roosevelt.
Current President Enrique Pena Nieto has launched a blitz of TV ads that prominently feature photos of Cardenas, who expropriated foreign oil companies and nationalized the industry when he was president from 1934 to 1940.
Like FDR, who was known for helping pull America out of the depression with his ‘new deal’ public works programs, Cardenas is remembered for handing out land to poor farmers and standing up to the foreign oil companies that once took the lion’s share of profits from Mexican oil. Read more.
Leftist leader wants to repair, not privatize Mexico's oil industry
Los Angeles Times
By Tracy Wilkinson
August 19, 2013
Mexico’s most prestigious leftist leader on Monday challenged President Enrique Peña Nieto’s proposal to open the national oil industry to private investment, setting the stage for what is sure to be a pitched political battle.
Cuauhtemoc Cardenas said the state oil monopoly, Pemex, is in dire need of repair, but that amending the Constitution, as Peña Nieto plans, is unnecessary and makes Mexico’s resources dangerously vulnerable to outside exploitation.
Instead, Cardenas offered an eight-point plan that would give Pemex financial and administrative autonomy, relieving it, he said, of the onerous state bureaucracy that cripples its ability to grow and become more efficient [link in Spanish]. The plan would also lower Pemex’s tax burden; currently, the company pays up to 70% of its revenue to the government. Read more.
By Tracy Wilkinson
August 19, 2013
Mexico’s most prestigious leftist leader on Monday challenged President Enrique Peña Nieto’s proposal to open the national oil industry to private investment, setting the stage for what is sure to be a pitched political battle.
Cuauhtemoc Cardenas said the state oil monopoly, Pemex, is in dire need of repair, but that amending the Constitution, as Peña Nieto plans, is unnecessary and makes Mexico’s resources dangerously vulnerable to outside exploitation.
Instead, Cardenas offered an eight-point plan that would give Pemex financial and administrative autonomy, relieving it, he said, of the onerous state bureaucracy that cripples its ability to grow and become more efficient [link in Spanish]. The plan would also lower Pemex’s tax burden; currently, the company pays up to 70% of its revenue to the government. Read more.
Mar 4, 2013
Mexico’s ruling party votes to reform energy sector, allow sales tax on food, medicines
The Washington Post
March 3, 2013
Mexico City - Mexico’s ruling party changed its platform on Sunday to allow for private investment in the oil industry, paving the way for a possible overhaul of a state-owned company that is seen as a pillar of the nation.
Nearly 5,000 members of the Institutional Revolutionary Party, also known as the PRI, voted unanimously at their national convention to remove language in the party’s platform that for years had opposed injecting private money in the sector. Petroleos Mexicanos, or Pemex, is the only company that can carry out oil refining. The party also erased its opposition to sales taxes on food and medicines.
President Enrique Pena Nieto, who led last year’s electoral comeback for the party that governed from 1929 to 2000, said the energy and fiscal reforms are needed for Mexico to become more competitive. He urged party members to support him when he sends the bills to Congress, likely in the second half of this year.
“The PRI is seeking renovation to bring the changes Mexico needs,” Pena Nieto told a crowd of thousands. “The PRI is not pleased and it is choosing to reexamine and redefine where it stands on the challenges facing the country.” Read more.
March 3, 2013
Mexico City - Mexico’s ruling party changed its platform on Sunday to allow for private investment in the oil industry, paving the way for a possible overhaul of a state-owned company that is seen as a pillar of the nation.
Nearly 5,000 members of the Institutional Revolutionary Party, also known as the PRI, voted unanimously at their national convention to remove language in the party’s platform that for years had opposed injecting private money in the sector. Petroleos Mexicanos, or Pemex, is the only company that can carry out oil refining. The party also erased its opposition to sales taxes on food and medicines.
President Enrique Pena Nieto, who led last year’s electoral comeback for the party that governed from 1929 to 2000, said the energy and fiscal reforms are needed for Mexico to become more competitive. He urged party members to support him when he sends the bills to Congress, likely in the second half of this year.
“The PRI is seeking renovation to bring the changes Mexico needs,” Pena Nieto told a crowd of thousands. “The PRI is not pleased and it is choosing to reexamine and redefine where it stands on the challenges facing the country.” Read more.
Feb 26, 2013
Mexico's Pena Nieto enacts major education reform
BBC News
February 26, 2013
Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto has enacted a major reform of the education system that includes new standards for hiring teachers.
Under the changes, a census is to establish the exact number of schools, teachers and pupils in the country.
The reforms appear set to weaken the powerful teachers' union, led by Elba Esther Gordillo, which has largely controlled access to the profession.
The union has argued that reforms could lead to massive lay-offs.
Critics also say the changes could signal the start of the privatisation of education in Mexico. Read more.
February 26, 2013
Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto has enacted a major reform of the education system that includes new standards for hiring teachers.
Under the changes, a census is to establish the exact number of schools, teachers and pupils in the country.
The reforms appear set to weaken the powerful teachers' union, led by Elba Esther Gordillo, which has largely controlled access to the profession.
The union has argued that reforms could lead to massive lay-offs.
Critics also say the changes could signal the start of the privatisation of education in Mexico. Read more.
Jul 11, 2012
Wirikuta, ready to fight for their sanctuaries
El Universal: Americas Program Original Translation by Anna Moses
See Spanish Original.
Demonstrations of discontent have grown in number and categories, experts say.The lawyer of the Wixarica Regional Council, Santos de le Cruz Carillo, explained the map he held in his hands: the 111,197 acres in Wirikuta which on May 24 the federal government declared a national mineral reserve, sacred territory in the desert of San Luis Potosi just in the region with no mining agreements.
The thirty year old who wears traditional Wixarican or Huichol clothing looks annoyed. He recently attended the press conference in Mexico City at which he was informed that the Wirikutafest, a rock concert that happened two days after the government announcement earned 9 million pesos for the legal process and programs for the people.
The indigenous leader hardens his look as he says, "The government announcement is a lie, a farce, a hoax not only to the Wixarika people but to national and international society."
Fact: 75% of the Wirikuta territory which is composed of 345,947 acres has become mining concessions. He warns, "We'll see the ultimate consequences."
The Wirikuta case is one addition to the national map of rural and indigenous communities fighting for their territorial rights. According to experts it is a phenomenon that had grown over the past six years in its conflict, articulation, and visibility.
See Spanish Original.
Demonstrations of discontent have grown in number and categories, experts say.The lawyer of the Wixarica Regional Council, Santos de le Cruz Carillo, explained the map he held in his hands: the 111,197 acres in Wirikuta which on May 24 the federal government declared a national mineral reserve, sacred territory in the desert of San Luis Potosi just in the region with no mining agreements.
The thirty year old who wears traditional Wixarican or Huichol clothing looks annoyed. He recently attended the press conference in Mexico City at which he was informed that the Wirikutafest, a rock concert that happened two days after the government announcement earned 9 million pesos for the legal process and programs for the people.
The indigenous leader hardens his look as he says, "The government announcement is a lie, a farce, a hoax not only to the Wixarika people but to national and international society."
Fact: 75% of the Wirikuta territory which is composed of 345,947 acres has become mining concessions. He warns, "We'll see the ultimate consequences."
The Wirikuta case is one addition to the national map of rural and indigenous communities fighting for their territorial rights. According to experts it is a phenomenon that had grown over the past six years in its conflict, articulation, and visibility.
Jun 14, 2012
Analysis: Mexico election favorite faces stiff test on oil reform
Reuters: MEXICO CITY - Mexico's state oil giant Pemex, the country's most celebrated symbol of self-sufficiency, risks becoming a net importer of crude within a decade unless it can find more oil.
To rescue it, presidential front-runner Enrique Pena Nieto has pledged to open up the firm to more private investment, breaking with the traditions of his Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), which nationalized Mexico's oil industry in 1938.
Pena Nieto's promise of "bold steps" to boost outside involvement in oil exploration, refining and production are at the heart of his vision to grow the economy and revamp the image of the PRI, which ruled Mexico for most of the 20th century. Read more.
To rescue it, presidential front-runner Enrique Pena Nieto has pledged to open up the firm to more private investment, breaking with the traditions of his Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), which nationalized Mexico's oil industry in 1938.
Pena Nieto's promise of "bold steps" to boost outside involvement in oil exploration, refining and production are at the heart of his vision to grow the economy and revamp the image of the PRI, which ruled Mexico for most of the 20th century. Read more.
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