Zapatistas set sail for Europe; ‘invasion’ carries anti-capitalism message

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May 4, 2021

Zapatistas begin their trans-Atlantic voyage.

Seven Zapatistas set sail for Europe on Sunday to highlight and discuss inequality and spread their message against capitalist oppression.

Four women, two men, and one non-binary person departed from Isla Mujeres, Quintana Roo, in a century-old German sailboat christened La Montaña, or “The Mountain.”

The delegation from the Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN), a group best known for staging an uprising in Chiapas in 1994, plans to arrive at the port of Vigo in Galicia, Spain, in about six weeks to coincide with the 500th anniversary the fall of the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlán.

For the EZLN capitalism is responsible for violence against women, the genocide of native peoples, racism, militarism and the exploitation and destruction of nature.

The group has accepted invitations to meet with NGOs and other groups in 30 European countries and territories, according to their spokesperso,n Subcomandante Moisés, among which are Germany, Denmark, Hungary, Italy, the United Kingdom, Cyprus, Sardinia, Catalonia, France, Russia and Poland.

México | El viaje a Europa de los rebeldes zapatistas

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The travelers received special training in Chiapas, substantial parts of which are controlled by the EZLN.

“The invasion has begun” said Moisés, alluding to the voyage made by Spanish conquerors to Mexico more than half a millennium ago.

He stressed, however, that the EZLN’s invasion differs in its aims. “This is a journey for life,” he said.

The group’s former leader, Subcomandante Galeano, spoke of the obstacles the project has faced. “It was not easy. In fact, it has been tortuous. In order to stick to our calendar we had to face objections, guidance, discouragement … prudence and straight sabotage,” he said in a statement.

The oldest crew member, Bernal, 57, was confident. “We are not nervous, we are ready,” he said.

A group of indigenous Otomí people sent the adventurers off with applause, proclaiming with raised fists: “Zapata vive, la lucha sigue!” or “Zapata lives, the fight continues!”

Sources: Milenio (sp), The Guardian

Efforts to combat cartels have broken down due to loss of trust, cooperation: DEA

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MND Staff

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May 4, 2021

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DEA Head of Operations Matthew Donahue — DEA head of operations Matthew Donahue says that his government’s willingness to work bilaterally in targeting cartels is no longer reciprocated by Mexico.

Joint efforts by United States and Mexican authorities to combat drug cartels in Mexico have broken down due to a collapse in trust and cooperation between law enforcement forces and the militaries in the two countries, according to a high ranking Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) official.

Matthew Donahue, head of operations for the DEA, told National Public Radio that the organization is willing to share with its counterparts in Mexico but its desire to do so is not reciprocated.

“They themselves are too afraid to even engage with us because of repercussions from their own government if they get caught working with the DEA,” he said.

The breakdown in bilateral relations can be traced back to the United States’ arrest of former defense minister Salvador Cienfuegos last October on drug trafficking and money laundering charges. The arrest of the ex-army chief — whom the United States subsequently returned to Mexico under pressure from Mexican authorities — occurred without the U.S. first notifying Mexico, a slight that led the federal government to express “profound discontent” to its counterpart north of the border.

In response to the arrest of Cienfuegos, defense minister during the 2012–2018 presidency of Enrique Peña Nieto, Mexican lawmakers passed legislation that restricts and regulates the activities of foreign agents in Mexico. The law also requires Mexican officials to share intelligence the United States provides about cartels with other government agencies, including ones “the U.S. doesn’t trust,” NPR reported.

The US and Mexico's cooperation broke down over the US's arrest of former defense minister Salvador Cienfuegos last October with no previous notification to Mexico. — The US and Mexico’s cooperation broke down over the arrest of former defense minister Salvador Cienfuegos last October with no previous notification to Mexico.

As a result, information sharing and joint investigations ground to a halt.

“… Matthew Donahue says the winners in all this are the drug cartels,” NPR said.

“They do not fear any kind of law enforcement … or military inside Mexico right now,” said Donahue, who also noted that cartel-run labs in Mexico are the main source of fentanyl and methamphetamine that is fueling a drug-use epidemic in the United States, which he described as a “national health threat.”

United States sources told NPR that the breakdown in bilateral security relations makes it harder to track shipments of fentanyl — a highly potent synthetic opioid that kills tens of thousands of Americans annually — and other drugs as they cross Mexico’s northern border. NPR said it was told by a White House official that drug interdiction will be the subject of bilateral U.S.-Mexico talks soon.

But a University of California at San Diego expert on security cooperation between the two countries told NPR that restoring trust and cooperation between Mexico and the United States won’t come easily, especially considering that the Mexican government is currently focused on the June 6 elections.

“With the elections coming up, my expectation is that there’s not going to be a lot of attention to what the U.S. would like to do and how to enhance that cooperation,” Cecilia Farfán-Méndez said.

Falko Ernst, senior Mexico analyst for the International Crisis Group, acknowledged that, as things stand, Mexican military and police officials are not providing information to U.S. authorities to allow them to target cartels in Mexico, as a small group did prior to Cienfuegos’ arrest.

U.S. operations in Mexico “have pretty much been paralyzed,” Ernst told NPR. “… What the U.S. has built up in terms of good relationships with … parts of the Mexican state have pretty much gone.”

Source: NPR (en)

San Miguel Writers Conference takes its acclaimed writing workshops online

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Michelle Aguilar

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May 4, 2021

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Author of Wage Peace, poet Judyth Hill will lead a workshop aimed at expanding writers' awareness of cross-cultural and experimental poetry to improve technique. — The author of Wage Peace, poet Judyth Hill, will lead a workshop aimed at expanding writers' awareness of cross-cultural and experimental poetry to improve technique.

While the coronavirus pandemic has postponed or canceled many cultural events worldwide, some organizers of such gatherings have seen the possibilities in transforming their events into virtual ones this year, using webinars, streaming services and videoconferencing.

The San Miguel Literary Sala in San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato, a local organization that hosts the internationally known San Miguel Writer’s Conference every year, has responded to the pandemic’s challenges this year by reinventing what would normally be in-person workshops in the Magical Town into online events anyone around the world can easily attend via Zoom.

The Literary Sala not only successfully attracts big-name authors as speakers (this year, Tom Hanks and Matthew McConaughey, who both published books in 2020, are featured virtual guests), it also puts on several workshops at the conference on writing, editing, and the publishing industry, led by accomplished writers, poets, and editors.

In 2021, the Literary Sala has been hosting virtual events since the beginning of the year and will continue doing so at least through August. This month, it is presenting four live Zoom workshops on writing with authors, journalists and writing coaches:

Narrative Voice: Where Prose Comes Alive. May 17 and May 19. Taught by Amy Gottlieb.
Gottlieb, a book coach and writing instructor whose debut novel The Beautiful Possible, was a finalist for the Ribalow Prize, Wallant Award, and a National Jewish Book Award, will lead a three-hour workshop on crafting memorable character voices to bring a compelling authenticity to a story that makes it come alive.
World Travels and Travel Writing: Turning One Passion into Another. May 17 and 19. Taught by Laurie Gough.
Gough, a journalist, author and freelance editor who has written for several newspapers such as The Guardian, the Los Angeles Times and the Globe and Mail, where she was a travel columnist, is also the author of three memoirs. Her workshop will be on travel writing, a genre she points out is needed more than ever with people stuck at home due to the pandemic. Attendees will engage in inspiring writing exercises and discuss the importance of conveying the wonder of the place about which one is writing.
Writing for Teens (even if you aren’t one). May 18 and 20. Taught by Kat Falls.
Falls, the author of the Scholastic Press science fiction series for tweens and teens called Dark Life, will be leading a workshop for both experienced writers and beginners who want to learn how to write a middle-grade or young adult novel. The seminar will include writing exercises and will touch on current and upcoming market trends, as well as how to catch an agent’s eye.
Shamanic Origins of Poetry: The Deep Magic of Saying. May 18 and 20. Taught by Judyth Hill.
Hill is a poet, author, editor and teacher who is the author of the internationally acclaimed poem, Wage Peace. Her workshop will expose attendees to examples of cross-cultural poetry, unusual styles and techniques for making poems and poetry through the ages, all with an eye toward gaining new skills of description and musical language.

All four events will be one-time workshops that are not recorded. Each costs $80 but can also be bundled for a discounted price with other events coming up between May and August, including the Matthew McConaughey interview on May 14 and an event featuring Hallie Ephron and April Eberhardt on June 20.

For more information on times and purchasing tickets, visit the San Miguel Literary Sala website.

Mexico News Daily

19th-century church ‘rises from the water’ in Guanajuato

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MND Staff

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May 4, 2021

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A church hidden underwater for most of the past 40 years has reemerged due to drought in Guanajuato.

The Church of the Virgin of Dolores disappeared in 1979 after a dam was built in the area.

The church, built in the mid-19th century, was the heart of the colonial community of El Zangarro, which once housed the rectory and civil registry, of what was then Villa Real de Mina de Guanajuato.

The history of the community came to an end in 1979 when president José López Portillo ordered the construction of the Purísima dam, which flooded 200 hectares.

His hand was forced: six years earlier the city of Irapuato, 25 kilometers away, was completely flooded after another dam burst. The new dam was intended to avoid future flooding.

Dulce Vázquez, director of the municipal archive, said there was some resistance from residents of El Zangarro. “Oral history tells that it was very difficult for them to leave the place, not just because of the buildings, but because of the sense of belonging to the place … A few resisted until they saw it was already a reality that the water would arrive to cover the entire town,” she said.

The inhabitants of El Zangarro were relocated to nearby land, where they founded a community of the same name.

The Temple of the Virgin of Dolores reappeared in July last year as a result of drought.

More than 70% of the country has been affected by the prolonged dry season, with a lack of precipitation particularly acute in Guanajuato.

Source: Milenio (sp)

Farmers plead for federal government support as drought takes its toll

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MND Staff

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May 4, 2021

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Farmers are calling on the government to help relieve the damage of a severe nationwide drought.

The National Water Commission has registered exceptional drought conditions in municipalities in Chihuahua, Sonora and Tamaulipas and extreme drought in municipalities in 15 states. As of mid-April, 70% of the country had been affected by the prolonged dry season.

The farmers’ demands include the reinstatement of agricultural disaster insurance, a policy of the previous administration, subsidies to reduce the cost of animal feed and seeds, the modernization of irrigation technologies and other economic support.

Sinaloa farmer José Enrique Rodarte, who represents farmers in Culiacán and has worked in agriculture for 50 years, says the problem began in 2020. “The dams captured very little water. We estimated that 20 to 30% more water was used to irrigate completely dry land … There are crops that still lack 30 to 45 more days of irrigation, which means that they can’t be maintained. Most likely, if 6 million tonnes were produced, now there would only be five in total. The problem is serious and very worrying,” he said.

“We need agricultural insurance to be reinstated for these kinds of losses and the implementation of irrigation technologies that make water use more efficient …. We know that they can’t control the climate, but they can combat the lack of water,” he added.

Martín Ignacio Zuña produces corn and sorghum in southern Sinaloa. “We had a total loss, there’s no income to live on, we don’t have enough for self-consumption, there’s nothing for seeds, let alone to sell. The lack of water has been present for four years, but 2020 was the worst,” he said.

“We are not feeling sorry for ourselves and we have the right that the government not leave us at the mercy of God …. Thanks to what we farmers produce, they can eat at home, they don’t lack milk, meat, tortilla or beans. Thanks to the love we give to our work, we put food on their plates,” he added.

In Aguascalientes, rancher Marco Puga saw losses of 50% on previous years.

“We depend on the water we have to irrigate; if I only have water for five of my 10 hectares, we are talking about a 50% loss in production … In the case of livestock, I would have been paid 28 pesos per kilo for my cows when they were well fed, but now that they’re skinny just 20 pesos per kilo, a decline of almost 30% on the purchase price,” he said.

The states most affected by the lack of rain are Coahuila, Durango, Guanajuato, Chihuahua, Guerrero, Jalisco, state of México, Michoacán, Nuevo León, Quintana Roo, San Luis Potosí, Sinaloa, Sonora, Tamaulipas y Zacatecas.

Source: Milenio (sp)

Elevated section of Mexico City metro collapses; 23 dead, 70 injured

By

Jude Webber

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May 4, 2021

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The metro car after Monday night's accident.

At least 23 people died and 70 were injured when an elevated section of the Mexico City metro collapsed on to a road below, leaving the train split in two and hanging precariously.

The accident, which happened late on Monday, came after reports that a car had crashed into a pillar supporting the rail bridge. Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum, addressing reporters at the scene in a hard hat, said a support beam had given way.

Videos shared on social media captured the moment when the line collapsed, crashing on to a busy road below. Sheinbaum said at least one car was trapped under the train.

Rescue workers were at the scene, searching for survivors or trapped passengers. Forty-nine people were taken to hospital.

The accident happened on Line 12, the newest metro line, in the south of the capital. The line was built when Marcelo Ebrard, now the foreign minister and considered a leading contender to succeed President López Obrador, was mayor of the city.

On Twitter, Ebrard promised his full assistance in the investigation of the “terrible tragedy.”

Line 12 was partially closed in 2014-2015 to repair what the authorities described at the time as structural faults. Four stations were also shut after a major earthquake struck the capital in 2017.

One survivor told Foro TV that he felt the train “brake suddenly and we were all pulled in the other direction. My cell phone flew out of my hand . . . I saw people who had fainted and were unconscious.”

Artisans celebrate opportunity to sell for first time since pandemic began

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MND Staff

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May 3, 2021

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Tenango de Doria textile artisan Susana Hernández Núñez.

A museum in Mexico City has given five artisans from Hidalgo a much-needed opportunity to sell their wares amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

The National Museum of Popular Cultures invited artisans from the municipality of Tenango de Doria to sell their colorful Tenango embroidery at a recent expo.

One of the five artisans who participated was Susana Hernández Núñez, who left her home in the community of El Dequeña at 3:30 a.m. to travel to the museum, located in the southern borough of Coyoacán.

She told the newspaper Reforma that it was the first time since the beginning of the pandemic that she was able to sell her embroideries at a public event.

“After a year and a half, this is the first outing,” said Hernández, who like most artisans has seen her income dry up during the pandemic due to the downturn in tourism and the lack of opportunity to sell her work at fairs and other events.

“… We’ve been through something very difficult. I believe that for everyone it was very hard, psychologically, physically, morally and especially economically,” she said.

Hernández said that she and other embroiderers from Tenango wouldn’t have had any income at all if they hadn’t begun making and selling face masks. Nevertheless, she estimated that her income has fallen by 8,000 pesos (about US $400) a month.

Another artisan who attended the museum expo was Alejandría Manilla Alarcón, the sole income earner in her family.

“I live with my kids; [all] three depend on me — one’s at university, one’s at high school and I’ve got a girl at primary school,” she said.

For Hernández, Manilla and the other Hidalgo artisans invited to Mexico City, the opportunity to sell their work — among which are dresses, blouses, bags, purses and table runners — to customers directly was a welcome one.

Still, their income, and that of countless other Mexican artisans, is unlikely to recover much while the pandemic continues to impact tourism and makes holding arts and crafts events difficult, if not downright unviable.

“Hopefully, the pandemic will end [soon]; it’s what we’re all asking for,” said María Teresa Hernández Núñez, another artisan who participated in the museum expo. “Let it end so we can move on,” she added.

Source: Reforma (sp)

March remittances up 10% to record-breaking US $4.15 billion

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MND Staff

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May 3, 2021

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Mexican workers living abroad sent home a record US $4.15 billion in March, a 10.4% increase on March last year.

In the first quarter, remittances sent to Mexico totaled $10.62 billion, another record, with a 13% increase on 2020.

The average remittance payment was $370, compared to $320 last year, and 1.8 million families benefited, according to data provided by the Bank of México (Banxico).

The International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) Alejandro Werner explained that the solid flow of remittances is due to the U.S. fiscal stimulus, the incentives for migrants to support their families back home, and payments switching to formal channels due to border closures.

Werner added that it is likely that the trend will continue, but could slow moderately as the pandemic further recedes in Mexico.

Goldman Sachs’ Alberto Ramos explained that the flow of remittances remains strong, referencing the impact of “the generous fiscal transfers that the United States government is granting to families; as well as the competitive exchange rate differential, and the deep contraction of employment and economic activity in Mexico.”

Source: El Economista (sp)

137 children’s handprints discovered in Yucatán cave

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MND Staff

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May 3, 2021

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The children's handprints have been determined by archaeologists to be more than 1,200 years old.

More than 100 black and red handprints that date back over a thousand years have been discovered on the walls of a cave on the Yucatán peninsula.

According to a report by the news agency Reuters, 137 prints — most of which are believed to have been made by children’s hands — were found in a cave near the northern tip of the peninsula. Archaeologists have determined that they are more than 1,200 years old.

The date the handprints were made corresponds to the end of the ancient Mayan society’s classical zenith, a time at which major advances in math and art were being made. The cave in which they were found is located some 10 meters beneath a ceiba tree, considered sacred by the ancient Mayan people.

Sergio Grosjean, an archaeologist who has explored and studied the cave, told Reuters that the handprints are likely associated with a coming-of-age ritual of the ancient Mayan people. He said they were probably made by children upon reaching puberty.

“They imprinted their hands on the walls in black … which symbolized death, but that didn’t mean they were going to be killed, but, rather, death from a ritual perspective,” Grosjean said.

“Afterwards, these children imprinted their hands in red, which was a reference to war or life,” he said.

Other Mayan artifacts have also been found in the cave, including a carved face and six painted relief sculptures. Dating from between 800 and 1,000 A.D., the sculptures were made at a time when the Mayan region was experiencing severe drought that may have caused inhabitants to suddenly abandon major cities that are today archaeological sites visited by tourists.

Grosjean was also part of a team of archaeologists who discovered a treasure trove of Mayan cave paintings in the east of Yucatán state in 2018. That cave also has handprints on its walls.

“It’s not the only cave with paintings in Yucatán, but it is the most important because they have many elements: birds, mammals, a cross, geometric figures, human forms and, among those, that of a warrior as well as [prints made with] the front and back of hands,” Grosjean said at the time.

Source: Reuters (en)

Mexico’s King Midas, head of conglomerate Grupo Bal, retires at 89

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MND Staff

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May 3, 2021

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Alberto Baillères, Mexico’s fourth richest person, has decided to retire at the age of 89 after 54 years at the helm of Grupo Bal, a conglomerate of at least 15 companies with interests in a range of sectors including mining, retail, insurance, finance and beverages.

Alejandro Baillères, the magnate’s son, will take over as head of the conglomerate, which includes companies such as the mining firms Peñoles and Fresnillo – the world’s largest silver miner, the department store chain Palacio de Hierro, the insurer GNP and the asset manager and stockbroker ValMex.

Several of Grupo Bal’s listed companies announced Baillères’ decision to step down to investors. The 89-year-old, dubbed King Midas and “the silver king” for his lucrative mining interests, certainly has enough wealth to fund a comfortable retirement: Forbes magazine said last month that his net worth is US $10.48 billion, a 63.8% increase compared to a year earlier.

President López Obrador said Friday that the announcement that Baillères’ son will succeed him is “good news” because it will provide stability and confidence and lead to more investment and more employment.

“The process of handing over administrative command in Grup Bal has ended,” he said before highlighting that Baillères’ companies employ 75,000 people in Mexico.

In praising the tycoon and his companies, López Obrador put aside past bad blood: Baillères was a member of a group of powerful businessmen who campaigned against his third and ultimately successful tilt at the presidency on the grounds that he represented a risk to the economy.

While stepping back from the day-to-day management of Grupo Bal, Baillères, a bullfighting enthusiast and father of seven, will remain an honorary adviser to the conglomerate. That will provide certainty to investors, according to experts consulted by the newspaper Milenio.

The fact that Baillères, who will turn 90 in August, will still have some say in the running of the conglomerate – founded by his father Raúl Baillères in the first half of the 20th century – will boost investors’ confidence and ensure that they don’t abandon Grupo Bal companies, said Alejandra Vargas, a mining and industrial sector analyst at the financial company Ve Por Más.

The magnate’s decision to stay on as an adviser provides a “period of certainty for investors,” said Óscar Fonseca, director of the business school at the Tec de Monterrey campus in Mexico City. “… These changes of leadership are planned and prepared,” he added.

Source: El País (sp), Milenio (sp)