Alexis displays his toys for barter outside his Tijuana home.
A child in Tijuana has taken to trading his toys for food to help his mother who lost her job due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Alexis’ mother was let go from her job six weeks ago so he started bartering his favorite playthings on Friday night. He set up his stuffed animals, puzzles and balls on the fence outside his family home with a sign reading, “I’m exchanging toys for food. We want to help my mom.”
“The child said he wanted to give away his toys,” said the enterprising young man’s mother. “He asked me how he could help me and we began today.”
Alexis’ idea worked, and local media published photos of neighbors bartering food for toys.
Five weeks after the first case of Covid-19 was detected in the region, the outlook appears grim for those among the lowest wage earners in the economy, who have had to look for other ways to continue to make a living during the pandemic.
Federal employment data reveal that as much as 37.3% of the Baja California workforce is employed in the informal economy during normal circumstances.
Tijuana’s main intersections are crowded with local merchants who, like street vendors in other parts of the country, have dropped their usual wares to sell face masks, hand sanitizer and other medical care products to in order to meet changing demand.
Like Alexis, some have also taken up bartering in order to get by without their usual clientele. Street vendors in Los Cabos, Baja California Sur, have been seen trading their products directly for food for the lack of tourists.
State Economy Minister Mario Escobedo Carignan said that the number of lost jobs in Baja California is around 11,000, and that the number could rise further. But he expressed hope that things will soon return to normal.
“The job losses are temporary. The businesses consider it better to lay off rather than continue paying. We’re hoping that the companies will later rehire them when the quarantine is over,” he said.
Currently active Covid-19 cases as of Sunday evening.
Official statistics show that Covid-19 is more lethal in Mexico than the United States, which has the world’s largest known outbreak, and China, where the coronavirus that causes the disease originated late last year.
The fatality rate is 9.2 per 100 cases in Mexico, which has recorded 1,351 coronavirus-related deaths from 14,677 confirmed cases. The rate dropped slightly on Sunday from 9.4 a day earlier.
Among 137 countries that have recorded at least one coronavirus-related death, Mexico has the 10th highest fatality rate, according to a report based on Saturday’s numbers by the newspaper Milenio.
Health authorities have explained on numerous occasions that the high prevalence of problems such as diabetes and obesity among the Mexican population contributes to the higher fatality rate here compared to many other countries.
While almost one of every 10 people known to have Covid-19 in Mexico has died, one in 18 has succumbed to the disease in the United States, where the fatality rate was just over 5.6 on Saturday.
The fatality rate in China was slightly lower, at 5.5, while Brazil and Canada had rates of 6.9 and 5.2 respectively.
Mexico’s fatality rate is also well above the rates in Germany, Switzerland, Turkey and Iran, all of which have recorded more Covid-19 deaths, but below those in Belgium, France, the United Kingdom, Italy and Spain.
The fatality rate in Mexico is also above the global rate of 6.9 deaths per 100 known cases. However, in analyzing Mexico’s death rate, one factor that must be considered is the testing rate.
A total of 67,635 people had been tested for Covid-19 as of Sunday, according to data from the federal Health Ministry, a number that equates to a rate of approximately 525 people tested per 1 million inhabitants.
The United States, by comparison, has performed more than 16,500 tests per 1 million people and several countries have even higher testing rates.
A low rate inevitably means that many cases of Covid-19 go undetected, especially asymptomatic ones, which are believed to constitute a considerable portion of total cases.
Coronavirus deaths by state as of Sunday.
While the testing rate is low in Mexico, the Health Ministry says that it can estimate the real size of the Covid-19 pandemic by using the sentinel surveillance system in which data about confirmed and possible coronavirus cases is collected at 375 different health care facilities and extrapolated.
Based on that system, the ministry estimates that there are about eight undetected Covid-19 cases in Mexico for each confirmed one, meaning that the total number of current cases would be more than 130,000. In that case, the true fatality rate in Mexico would be about 1.
Although the true Covid-19 fatality rate is unknown, one thing that is clear is that the pandemic continues to grow in Mexico.
The Health Ministry reported 1,805 additional confirmed cases over the weekend, taking the total number to almost 15,000, and 130 new fatalities, lifting the death toll to 1,351.
Director of Epidemiology José Luis Alomía said on Sunday that there are also 7,612 suspected cases of Covid-19 in Mexico. Of the cases confirmed since Covid-19 was first detected in Mexico at the end of February, 4,972 are currently considered to be active, he said.
Mexico City continues to have the highest number of confirmed and active cases in the country, with 3,966 and 1,470 respectively. México state ranks second in both categories with 2,355 confirmed cases and 908 active ones.
Baja California, where there are currently 224 active cases, is the only other state to have recorded more than 1,000 confirmed cases. Tabasco ranks third for active cases with 283 followed by Sinaloa with 225.
At the municipal level, Iztapalapa in Mexico City has the highest number of active cases with 265 followed by the capital’s Gustavo A. Madero and Centro (Villahermosa), Tabasco.
Mexico City has also recorded the highest number of coronavirus-related deaths with 309 followed by Baja California and México state, where 162 and 116 people, respectively, have lost their lives to Covid-19.
The northern border city of Tijuana, where hospitals have been overwhelmed with Covid-19 patients, is the only municipality in the country that has a triple-figure coronavirus death toll, with 116 people having died there.
Culiacán, Sinaloa, ranks second with 77 fatalities followed by Gustavo A. Madero, Mexico City, and Centro, Tabasco, which both have death tolls of 56.
Hospital personnel in Monclova show their resolve to beat the coronavirus.
Medical staff at a hospital in Coahuila in northern Mexico, where five doctors have died from exposure to the coronavirus, sent out a message of solidarity and hope over the weekend.
Clad in masks and blue scrubs, doctors and nurses taped a white piece of paper to a hospital window in the isolation area emblazoned with the handwritten message, “We are going to get through this,” and formed heartswith their fingers.
Staff at the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS) General Hospital in Monclova had been hit particularly hard by the virus, with at least 32 medical personnel testing positive for it in early April, prompting the newspaper Milenio to call the city Mexico’s Wuhan.
IMSS director Zoé Robledo Aburto conceded that errors, delays and oversights crippled the hospital’s ability both to treat patients and keep staff safe during the initial outbreak, and offered condolences to families, friends and coworkers of those who died due to the coronavirus. “This should never have happened in Monclova or anywhere else,” he said at a press conference.
Robledo also announced that his office will be investigating mistakes made at the onset of the coronavirus outbreak in Monclova, and conduct a review of hospital protocols.
The hospital has two wings and only one will be used for treating coronavirus patients while the other will be used to treat cancer patients. Births and critical medical emergencies will be redirected to other medical facilities, including private hospitals that have entered into an agreement with the government to treat overflow patients during the pandemic.
Personal protective equipment is also on its way to Monclova, he said, in the form of hazmat suits, and Robledo promised that testing and lab results will be expedited.
Currently, Coahuila has 340 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, with 33 deaths and 38 patients who have recovered.
This Black Bean Bake can be served as a hot dip or a side dish.
For a while I lived in Lo de Marcos, Nayarit, one of Mexico’s most productive agricultural states. Pineapples and beans are two of its biggest crops.
During harvest time, big piles of dried beans are piled on sidewalks outside the little tiendas and battered farm pickups drive through the pueblos selling 50-lb. sacks. Frijoles negroes (black beans) and Peruanas became my favorites, and I learned that because they were “fresh dried” there was no need to soak them overnight before cooking. (Although one had to search extra carefully for rocks and grit!)
Beans in general, and black beans in particular, are extremely healthy foods, high in antioxidants, zinc and fiber. While 70% of the calories in black beans come from carbs, they’re unique in that their starch content is what’s called “resistant starch,” meaning that much of it passes through our upper digestive tract without breaking down.
Because the starch doesn’t convert into sugars, blood sugar levels don’t rise, resulting in the desired low glycemic index value. (Confused? Just remember that black beans are good for you, and eat them whenever you can!)
With their meaty, dense texture and hearty flavor, “black turtle beans” (their formal name) are popular throughout Latin and South America and the Caribbean and a part of many traditional dishes. Elsewhere, vegetarians have used them for decades in all kinds of recipes. I like to cook them overnight in the crockpot, with just a little salt and maybe a veggie bouillon cube.
A meatless black bean burger.
Black Bean Brownies
Substituting black bean purée for the flour in brownies eliminates gluten and adds extra protein. One can of black beans (or equivalent fresh-cooked) makes about 1 cup black bean purée.
1 (15-oz.) can black beans, rinsed and drained well
2 eggs
3 Tbsp. coconut oil
3/4 cup cocoa powder (the higher quality the better )
Preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly grease a regular 12-slot muffin pan (not mini). With a food processor or in a large bowl with electric mixer blend all ingredients (except toppings) until smooth. If batter appears too thick, add a Tbsp. or two of water and mix again. Pour batter into muffin pan, smooth the tops and sprinkle with toppings if desired.
Bake 20-25 minutes or until tops are dry and edges start to pull away from the sides. (Middles will not rise as high as the sides.) Remove from oven; let cool for 30 minutes before removing from pan. Brownies will be tender, so remove gently with a fork. The insides will be very fudgy and moist. Store, refrigerated, in an airtight container.
Decadent Black Bean Bake
Serve as a hot dip or as a side dish. Make it on the stovetop if you want; just cover and cook on low until cheese melts.
3 Tbsp. olive oil
1 onion, chopped
5 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
¼ cup tomato paste
1½ tsp. smoked paprika (optional)
¼ tsp. red pepper flakes
1 tsp. ground cumin
2 (15 oz.) cans black beans, drained & rinsed
½ cup boiling water
Salt & pepper
1½ cups grated cheddar or Manchego cheese
Heat oven to 475 F. In a 10-inch ovenproof skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high. Sauté onion and garlic until lightly golden, about 1 minute. Reduce heat a little and add beans, water, tomato paste, paprika, red pepper flakes, cumin, salt and pepper; stir to combine. Sprinkle cheese evenly over top. Bake until cheese has melted, 5-10 minutes. To brown the top more, place skillet under broiler for 1-2 minutes. –nytimescooking.com
Black Bean Burgers
1 (15 oz.) can black beans, drained and rinsed
½ green bell pepper
½ onion
3-5 cloves garlic
1 egg
1 Tbsp. chile powder
1 Tbsp. cumin
1 tsp. hot sauce
½ cup bread crumbs
If grilling, preheat an outdoor grill for high heat, and lightly oil a sheet of aluminum foil. If baking, preheat oven to 375 F and lightly oil a baking sheet. In medium bowl, mash black beans with a fork until thick and pasty. Finely chop bell pepper, onion and garlic; add to mashed beans. In a small bowl, mix egg, chile powder, cumin and hot sauce. Stir egg mixture into mashed beans, then mix in bread crumbs until mixture is sticky and holds together. Divide into four patties. If grilling, place patties on foil and grill about 8 minutes on each side. If baking, place patties on lightly oiled baking sheet and bake about 10 minutes on each side. –allrecipes.com
Rice and beans: easy, good, comforting.
One-Pot Rice & Beans
So easy, so good and so comforting. If you like, sauté chopped jalapeño with the onions, or add ¼ cup salsa with the stock.
2 Tbsp. olive or corn oil
1 onion, chopped (about 1¼ cups)
1¾ cups chicken or vegetable stock or water
1 tsp. salt
1 cup long-grain rice
1 (15 oz.) can black, pinto or other beans
Lime wedges, cilantro leaves and crema for serving
In a large pot with a tight-fitting lid, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add stock, cover and bring to a boil. Next add salt, rice and beans (including the liquid). Stir to combine, then cover. Turn heat down as low as it will go and let simmer, undisturbed, for 18-20 minutes. Remove from heat and let sit for 4 minutes, then fluff with a fork. Season with salt and pepper, then garnish with lime, cilantro and crema. – nytimes.com
Janet Blaser of Mazatlán, Sinaloa, has been a writer, editor and storyteller her entire life and feels fortunate to write about great food, amazing places, fascinating people and unique events. Her work has appeared in numerous travel and expat publications as well as newspapers and magazines. Her first book, Why We Left: An Anthology of American Women Expats, is available on Amazon. Contact Janet or read her blog at whyweleftamerica.com.
CORRECTION: The earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that bean purée could be used to replace some of the flour in the recipe for Black Bean Brownies. In fact, the purée replaces all of the flour.
Mother Protector Cat, a Oaxacan alebrije by Fátima Janice Fuentes. Friends of Oaxacan Folk Art
In the 2017 movie Coco, Walt Disney Pictures popularized the idea of alebrije for mass audiences around the globe as a kind of “spirit-guide” between the lands of the living and the dead.
This is not what alebrijes are in Mexico, but a cultural and legal dispute is centered on their definition.
There are essentially two craft figures made in Mexico that claim the title – wood carvings from the state of Oaxaca, and papier-mache figures from Mexico City.
Both versions appear in the movie. At the beginning, the boy is seen painting animal figures in bright colors and meticulous patterns. This is a nod to the Oaxaca tradition. The “spirit guide,” however, is an amalgam of animal parts, recognizing the creatures credited to master craftsman Pedro Linares.
So which is the real alebrije?
Alebrije artisan Pedro Linares. Alebrijes.net
Let’s start with what is not in dispute. Pedro Linares was an artisan who worked making holiday and festival decorations in papier-mache. Sometime in the late 1930s or 1940s, he began making colorful creatures which combined body parts from several animals, real or imagined. These were painted in bright, often clashing colors and became popular as collectors’ items in Mexico City.
According to family lore, maestro Pedro fell ill with a high fever and while unconscious, dreamed about various monsters which he described as both beautiful and scary at the same time. The creatures whispered “alebrije,” resulting in the name. After recovering, Linares used his papier-mache skills to recreate what he saw.
It’s a great story but not literally true. There is no firm date, not even a year, for when Linares had such a dream or when he began making the monsters. Instead, there is photographic evidence that shows that the creatures evolved from modifications of “judases,” a devil-like effigy burned on Holy Saturday.
How Linares created alebrijes does not really matter. What does matter is that these creatures speak to the Mexican psyche. Otherwise, the making of alebrijes would have died with the maestro.
In Mexico, intellectual property rights must be claimed, and Pedro Linares did not do the required paperwork. It is rare for a Mexican artisan even to sign his or her work, never mind think that it needs legal protection.
After the maestro’s death in 1992, the Mexican federal government passed laws that declared folk art/handcrafts to be the national heritage of Mexico, severely limiting any individual rights artisans may have. Since alebrijes were never patented or trademarked, most authorities consider them to be folk art.
Oaxaca alebrije artisan Jiménez. Friends of Oaxacan Folk Art
So how did “alebrijes” wind up in Oaxaca? Although there have been attempts to claim him as oaxaqueño, Pedro Linares had absolutely no connection with the state.
The colorful wood carvings with the same name are the brainchild of Manuel Jiménez of San Antonio Arrazola, just outside the city of Oaxaca. Like their Mexico City cousins, they are in bright colors. However, the painting is much finer and more detailed. The creatures themselves principally depict only one animal.
Should the carvings be called alebrijes?
According to the Linares family and supporters, the answer is no. They state that the work of Pedro Linares, as defined by his heirs, should be the determining factor. The Oaxacan creatures should be called tonas.
The Linares family has worked hard to promote this idea. Grandson Leonardo Linares did what Pedro did not, make an official claim to the creation and the name. This documentation has had some legal and moral effect, but it is far from the last word on the subject. In addition to alebrijes’ folk art status, there is a question as to whether the family has any legal standing to rights Pedro never claimed.
On the other hand, Jiménez’s work does have some link to Pedro Linares. The two artisans met in the 1970s through documentary filmmaker Judith Bronowski. Jiménez adapted Linares’ idea to the medium he was proficient in – Oaxacan-style wood carving.
Giant-sized alebrijes of papier-mache are paraded through Mexico City every year in October. leigh thelmadatter
Jiménez’s version is far more commercially successful because it has wider appeal and Oaxaca is a major tourist destination. The carvings have been called alebrijes since their inception, and Oaxacan woodworkers have shown no interest in changing the name to appease artisans from Mexico City.
Even among Mexico’s papier-mache artisans, the Linares claim has not had an enthusiastic reception. Artisans are certainly aware of how vulnerable their work is to imitation, not only from other artisans but also from international manufacturers. But papier-mache artisans are dependent on the folk-art designation of alebrijes and the freedom it gives them to make the figures and use the term.
Disney is evidently aware of the matter, to its credit. But this thorny issue shows that the adaptation of cultural and artistic imagery can cause problems within a country as well as globally.
Leigh Thelmadatter’s culture blog appears weekly at Mexico News Daily.
Espita was the scene of a clash this week between residents and 'thugs from Cancún.'
The next few weeks look tough for the residents of the Yucatán. Those lucky enough to live far enough from the tropical climate of the southern states will be spared the classic heat of April and May, but as new reports this week suggest, the spike in temperature is about to be steeper and more suffocating than ever.
Yucatecos are being told to prepare for the mid-40s C and higher over the next week, in lockdown. They are also in the rare paradox of being unable, by law, to quench that sun-scorched thirst with an ice-cold beer; as much as we’ve heard the term “unprecedented times” over the last few weeks, it applies to few situations more appropriately than it does to this one.
On top of this, and in a continuation of current life insisting on imitating art, tempers in the Yucatán are rising with the temperatures. Having begun this saga in the strongest of moods, positive and encouraged by the resilience of the Mexican spirit, residents are beginning to display their restlessness with the current reality.
The world at large is sick of staying at home, hopeful for a quick off-ramp back to normality, and becoming increasingly sceptical of anyone who seems to be putting this at risk. The Yucatán is really no different, simply the latest victim to quarantine frustrations, but instances of conflict, violence, and civilians taking matters into their own hands raise further questions.
Something is different here. From Mérida to Campeche, Tulum to Cancún, the backbone of the peninsula’s economy is tourism. As this industry comes to terms with the ever-falling levels of demand, now and projected throughout the next year, many employees are having their hours cut back if they’re lucky, and if they’re not, being told that their services are simply no longer required.
Apart from the obvious economic repercussions on a personal level, broader worries about the displacement of these individuals are being voiced. The herd-like manner in which former employees of the tourism industry are forced into moving away from the cities and back to small towns across the region is aggravating already active tensions between populous and sparse communities along the peninsula.
Ever since the outbreak of coronavirus across Mexico, many civilians of rural areas have adopted a scepticism of those from densely populated towns and cities. These are often seen as breeding grounds for the virus, and in many cases across Mexico, small-town folk have been reported to bar travel to their communities from anyone leaving these large cities.
In the Yucatán, this scepticism isn’t just hypothetical: thousands of individuals are making the journey back to their hometowns to many an upturned nose. In Espita, Yucatán, a clash between locals and outsiders turned violent this week.
About 160 kilometers from Mérida, workers from cities in Quintana Roo, Tulum, Playa del Carmen, Cancún, and Cozumel have been arriving back in Espita to a reception that built into violent outrage this week. Residents of the small town described “thugs from Cancún” who clashed with the community, climaxing with a stoning assault on a local house, but details of the damage and participants are still disputed.
This incident, which led to the near destruction of the house of an elderly local, is just one outburst of violence instigated by the demographic shift of the southeast. For the past month, towns and municipalities have been autonomously closing their roads and borders to outsiders in order to curb the infection rate of Covid-19, but rates of outright conflict and violence have also been on the rise in parallel.
Despite increasing restrictions and the tightening of attitudes across the country, March was the bloodiest month in Mexico’s history. In light of this, one journalist suggested that successful quarantine wasn’t thanks to a fear of the virus as much as it was to the fear of bullets.
While a certain level of protectionism in communities is healthy for slowing the infection rate of coronavirus, rising tempers stray dangerously close to hostile and aggressive behaviours that only beget further hostility. Stresses and strains between communities and the cultural divides permitted by quarantine are all too easily etched into the fabric of “how we live now.”
A cursory look at some of the countries worst hit by the virus will confirm this. In the U.S., President Trump’s disregard of the advice of medical professionals, accompanied by his historic chastising of medical expertise, has enabled a bitter resentment of doctors and nurses. In the U.K. and across Europe, racism toward the East Asian community is on the rise and is further perpetuated by images in the media of specific ethnicities depicted in medical masks, coughing.
Coronavirus, and all its myriad implications, truly can bring people together, but resentment and misinformation left on its own trajectory has proven to be equally destructive.
There is of course no shame in recognizing the need to alter one’s personal actions as well as community mentality in the face of the coronavirus threat; the hope of carrying on as normal has long left our field of view.
But the true danger is in being held hostage to fears and in turn allowing divisions, that are to an extent necessary, to widen. As we’ve seen worldwide, and are beginning to see in our own backyard, these divisions left to their own devices threaten to define not only the legacy of coronavirus, but the legacy of how we coped.
Remains of a settlement found near Mahahual, Quintana Roo. Fernando Cortés/INAH
Archaeologists with the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) have confirmed the existence of a pre-Hispanic settlement between jungle and mangroves in southern Quintana Roo.
Located on private property near the coastal village of Mahahual in the municipality of Othón P. Blanco, the Mayan settlement is believed to have been built in the late postclassical period between 1200 BC and the arrival of the Spanish in the first half of the 16th century.
Dubbed Mahahual by the archaeologists who are documenting it, the pre-Hispanic town is the only known late postclassical era settlement in the area, INAH said in a statement on Friday.
The archaeologists have so far uncovered remnants of some 80 structures – mainly homes as well as walls that surround the settlement. They have also located natural wells and primitive receptacles that were used to store water. It is believed that the settlement was inhabited by Mayan commoners who devoted their time to fishing and agriculture.
However, archaeologist Fernando Cortés de Brasdefer said that the INAH team will continue to explore the site to see if there is any evidence that it was also occupied by the elite or if religious rituals were carried out there.
He said that there is evidence that the Mayans used adobe, wood and guano palms to build small houses on limestone platforms. Modern day Mayans continue to build homes in the same way, Cortés added.
The archaeologists have not yet found any ceramic relics, stone tools or bone fragments, suggesting that the settlement may have only been inhabited for a relatively brief period of time.
The direct access to the sea for those who lived there, Cortés said, “would have given them an advantage in exchanging commercial products with other coastal peoples” as well as inhabitants of inland towns.
López-Gatell warned Friday that many businesses continue to defy the order to close.
Under pressure from the United States and manufacturers on both sides of the border, the Mexican government announced on Friday that it would reopen automotive factories which it had previously deemed unessential businesses.
Mexico’s Foreign Affairs Ministry assured that the reopening would come with strict safeguards to protect the health of workers. “The Mexican government will be emphatic about health protection and will ensure that the reopening will be orderly, gradual and cautious,” it said in a statement.
The automotive industry accounts for 17.6% of the country’s manufacturing sector and, as of July 2019, employed some 977,000 people.
The move comes after the United States ambassador to Mexico posted a message on Twitter on Tuesday to persuade the government to get automakers back to work out of concern for the North American free trade zone’s supply chain.
“There are risks everywhere, but we don’t all stay at home for fear we are going to get in a car accident,” Ambassador Christopher Landau tweeted. “The destruction of the economy is also a health threat.”
Landau’s remarks echoed the concern of U.S. Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment Ellen Lord, “we are seeing impacts on the industrial base by several pockets of closure internationally. Particularly of note is Mexico, where we have a group of companies that are impacting many of our major primes,” she said.
Economic pressure could mean that Mexico’s maquiladora sector, which also makes electronics and aerospace goods, could also reopen on a staggered schedule and with somewhat limited capacity.
However, dozens of maquiladoras deemed non-essential continue to operate in violation of the government’s order anyway. Lear, an automotive seat plant in Ciudad Juárez, finally closed down operations on April 1 after 16 of its workers died from the coronavirus.
Mexico’s Deputy Minister of Health underscored the need for most businesses, big and small, to obey quarantine regulations and remain shuttered, arguing that business owners, managers and shareholders need to abide by measures “that have a constitutional basis to protect one of the most important assets, people’s lives.”
Hugo López Gatell said Friday evening that businesses continue to defy the order to cease operations, warning that they are impeding the process of slowing the spread of the virus.
The reopening of factories would come at a time when Mexico has yet to see peak pandemic numbers. Currently, the country has 12,872 confirmed cases and has seen 1,221 deaths, although the Health Ministry estimates the actual rate of infection may be eight times that due to insufficient testing.
Mexico’s Financial Intelligence Unit (UIF) is warning that unemployment due to the coronavirus pandemic may lead to an uptick in recruitment by organized crime.
The UIF, a government agency designed to track and prevent financial fraud such as money laundering and the financing of terrorism, came to the conclusion in part after noticing a surge in internet fraud.
The UIF also pointed out other opportunities for the propagation of illegal activity during the pandemic it continues to monitor.
In a recent virtual meeting with government officials, UIF chief Santiago Nieto highlighted the need to make sure that supplies of fentanyl, a medicine used in the treatment of the coronavirus, go to pharmacies and hospitals instead of ending up in the hands of organized crime and drug addicts.
Nieto also advocated for government assistance to those who have lost their jobs, cautioning that without federal aid, many people are turning to pawnshops and predatory money lenders.
He said his agency is monitoring the situation closely, especially in the case of online crime via social media platforms, the use of money transfer services and suspicious bank deposits to launder money, and cases of price gouging.
Non-profit organizations soliciting donations to help fight the coronavirus can also be used as fronts to launder money, he said.
Governmental corruption during the pandemic is also a possibility Nieto raised, noting that his office is investigating the theft of supplies from a Mexican Social Security Institute warehouse. The UIF is currently investigating Health Ministry officials during the presidency of Peña Nieto for tax fraud.
As more cash begins to circulate outside the formal economy, Nieto cautioned, the probability of “issues related to possible cases of corruption and issues related to organized crime,” will be on the rise.
Trade negotiators signed the new deal in Mexico City in December before President López Obrador and other officials.
The new North American free trade agreement will take effect on July 1, replacing the 26-year-old NAFTA.
The United States notified Mexico and Canada on Friday that it had completed the domestic procedures required to implement the new pact, the final step needed for the USMCA to enter into force.
Mexico advised its trade partners on April 3 that it had completed its own domestic requirements to implement the agreement while Canada did the same a day earlier on April 2.
The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) said in a statement that the entry into force of the USMCA will mark “the beginning of a historic new chapter for North American trade by supporting more balanced, reciprocal trade, leading to freer markets, fairer trade and robust economic growth” across the region.
The agreement, the result of a lengthy and at times heated negotiation process that started during the presidency of Enrique Peña Nieto, contains “significant improvements and modernized approaches to rules of origin, agricultural market access, intellectual property, digital trade, financial services, labor, and numerous other sectors,” the USTR said.
“These enhancements will deliver more jobs, provide stronger labor protections, and expand market access, creating new opportunities for American workers, farmers, and ranchers.”
Jesús Seade, deputy foreign affairs minister for North America and the government’s chief USMCA negotiator, expressed his satisfaction with the U.S. notification on Twitter.
“We are delighted with this fundamental step for the North American region! The USMCA is crucial for the three countries,” he wrote.
“We could discuss a thousand things about the entry into force of the USMCA … but let’s not complicate things: the USMCA is a great instrument for the medium and long term, and a vital base for the … relaunch of the economy after the Covid-19 crisis.”
United States Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said that “the crisis and recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic demonstrates that now, more than ever, the United States should strive to increase manufacturing capacity and investment in North America.”
The entry into force of the USMCA, he added, “is a landmark achievement in that effort.”
