Four taxi drivers were shot dead in Acapulco this week. (Margarito Pérez Retana/Cuartoscuro)
Four taxi drivers were murdered in the Pacific coast resort city of Acapulco in a period of just 24 hours this week.
Three of the murders occurred on Monday, while the fourth killing came shortly after taxi drivers participated in a protest on Tuesday during which they called on authorities to put an end to violence in Guerrero state’s largest city.
On Monday, armed men opened fire from a vehicle and killed three taxi drivers at a taxi stand in the Las Cruces neighborhood of Acapulco.
On Tuesday, another taxi driver was gunned down while walking in the beachside Hornos residential district. He reportedly fell into the El Camarón River after he was shot.
Three other taxi drivers were wounded in a separate armed attack at a taxi stand in an inland neighborhood of Acapulco.
Authorities have not arrested or identified any of the perpetrators of the attacks, or speculated on their motives.
🗣️#Acapulco | Taxistas de la ruta de Las Cruces bloquearon los dos sentidos del bulevar Vicente Guerrero para exigir justicia y seguridad luego del asesinato de tres de sus compañeros en un ataque al sitio. 📲https://t.co/PIYBhoXqekpic.twitter.com/rxMBBeyAwT
The fourth murder occurred after a Tuesday protest against insecurity organized by taxi drivers after three of their colleagues were killed on Monday.
The attacks on Tuesday came after taxi drivers blocked the Vicente Guerrero boulevard to protest insecurity in Acapulco.
According to the Reforma newspaper, protesters complained that Guerrero Governor Evelyn Salgado hasn’t met with them and presented a security plan for Acapulco.
“We need more reliable security,” one taxi driver told the Milenio newspaper.
“…We’ve seen the security that the urban [transport] vans have. … We need that security [as well],” he said.
In addition to calling on the state government to do more to combat violence in Acapulco, taxi drivers urged the army and National Guard to take action against crime groups.
They held up signs with messages such as “We’re taxi drivers, we demand security” and “We don’t want any more taxi drivers murdered.”
In addition to violence, the city has been severely affected by two hurricanes in less than a year. Hurricane Otis devastated Acapulco in late October 2023, while Hurricane John claimed lives and caused major flooding in the city last month.
Among Sandra Domínguez's accomplishments has been the exposing of Oaxaca politicians and government officials who've engaged in discussions glorifying gender violence or otherwise degrading women. (X)
Nearly two weeks after Oaxaca human rights lawyer Sandra Domínguez went missing, state authorities say they have expanded their search for the feminist activist in response to an appeal from the U.N. Committee on Enforced Disappearances (CED).
Domínguez — a prominent defender of the Mixe Indigenous peoples native to Oaxaca’s eastern highlands — has been missing since Oct. 4. Colleagues say Domínguez regularly received threats related to her work.
Domínguez’s disappearance nearly two weeks ago has prompted video appeals, demonstrations, and an appeal from the U.N.’s Committee on Enforced Disappearances.
Domínguez, herself of Mixe descent, was last seen with her husband, Alexander Hernández, in a town in northeastern Oaxaca. Family members reported their disappearance on Oct. 8.
On Tuesday, the CED issued a statement urging officials to establish a comprehensive search strategy that includes a plan of action and a timeline to be completed by Oct. 29 and that keeps the missing activist’s family members fully informed.
Shortly thereafter, state authorities announced they had expanded their search into central Oaxaca, on the opposite side of the Sierra Madre mountains from where the couple was last seen. The couple’s car, however, was found in the neighboring state of Veracruz, 68 kilometers east of their last known location.
The couple’s phones were also detected in Veracruz before going dead.
On Monday, families, friends and colleagues demanded that Domínguez’s activist work in Oaxaca and the threats she received be treated as the primary line of investigation, according to the online news site Animal Político.
As Domínguez had made enemies of state officials in the course of her work, her family and colleagues accused the Oaxaca authorities of initially slow-walking the investigation.
Oaxaca’s peace coordinator Donato Vargas, center, whom Dominguez had previously accused of having taken part in a group chat glorifying gender violence, has been named as a person of interest in Domínguez’s disappearance. (X)
Marina Martínez, Sandra’s mother, recorded a video calling on President Claudia Sheinbaum to find her daughter. The San Isidro Huayápam Mixe community sent a proclamation to Oaxaca Governor Salomón Jara, urging him to take a more active role in the investigation.
Joaquín Galvan, a Oaxaca activist and close friend of Domínguez, told the Associated Press that Domínguez often received threats because she handled delicate cases involving either government officials or members of organized crime.
In 2020, Domínguez denounced several state government officials for allegedly participating in misogynist group chats, the AP reported. According to Domínguez, the participants objectified women, often sharing images of Indigenous women along with derogatory comments.
One official identified as a prime suspect in Domínguez’s disappearance is Oaxaca’s peace coordinator Donato Vargas. Domínguez accused him of participating in a social media chat glorifying gender violence.
State authorities initially dismissed his involvement in the Domínguez case but now say Vargas is considered a person of interest.
In her morning press conference on Thursday, President Claudia Sheinbaum had little good to say about former president Calderón's online response to the García Luna sentencing. (Mario Jasso/Cuartoscuro)
“I never had verifiable evidence of his involvement in illicit activities.”
Shortly after District Judge Brian M. Cogan sentenced García Luna to 460 months’ imprisonment and a US $2 million fine in a hearing in U.S. federal court in Brooklyn, New York, on Wednesday afternoon, Calderón took to X to once again deny knowledge of the ex-security minister’s illegal dealings.
“About the García Luna case, I note: 1) I never had verifiable evidence of his involvement in illicit activities, nor did I receive information to that effect from Mexican or foreign intelligence agencies, which trusted him and interacted with him at the time,” he wrote.
Calderón said that he “hasn’t had access to the evidence and the testimony” presented at García Luna’s trial, but added that he is a “man of the law,” respects court decisions and is in favor of lawbreakers facing consequences for their actions.
The ex-president previously said he had “a lot of doubts” about García Luna’s guilty verdict, which was handed down in February 2023.
Then-Security Secretary Genaro García Luna with former President Felipe Calderón in 2012. (Iván Stephens/Cuartoscuro)
On X on Wednesday, he stressed that “the fight for the security of Mexicans” during his 2006-12 administration “was not the responsibility of just one person but of A WHOLE GOVERNMENT TEAM that combated crime with all the force of the state.”
Calderón, who launched a militarized “war” on drug cartels shortly after he took office, also said that the conviction of García Luna “doesn’t discredit the brave fight of thousands of women and men [who] defended Mexico from its true enemy, organized crime, even at the risk of their own lives.”
Although homicide numbers increased significantly during his term in government, the former National Action Party president largely defended his security strategy.
“Confronting organized crime as president of Mexico was one of the most difficult decisions of my life. But I would do it again because it’s the right thing to do. The true enemy of our country is organized crime, which kidnaps, extorts and kills citizens, especially our young people,” he wrote on X.
Former president Felipe Calderón led his country into the Mexican war on drugs, after he began deploying the military to combat organized crime in 2006. (File photo)
“My security policy had successes and mistakes. We confronted a powerful enemy that seeks to capture the state — in other words, to control territory by force, seize institutions, corrupt officials and divide and intimidate society. Despite all this, in 2012, when I left government, the state was advancing and organized crime was retreating,” Calderón said.
‘I would have liked to have known about the other life” of García Luna
In a radio interview on Thursday, Calderón noted that Judge Cogan, when handing down García Luna’s sentence, remarked that the former security minister lived a “double life.”
“I knew about one of those lives. I would have liked to have known about the other life and in good time,” he said.
“Of course it’s a complex, difficult, sorry situation,” Calderón added. “What has happened pains me a lot.”
Sheinbaum: Calderón ‘should apologize’
At her morning press conference on Thursday, President Claudia Sheinbaum characterized Calderón’s social media publication on Wednesday afternoon as “very cynical.”
“… Did Felipe Calderón know [about García Luna’s illegal conduct] or not? He says he didn’t. I invite you to reflect whether he knew or not,” she said.
Sheinbaum called on Calderón to apologize for having had a criminal as a top official in his administration. (Mario Jasso/Cuartoscuro)
Sheinbaum said that the ex-president “should apologize, at least” for having had a now-convicted and sentenced criminal as his security minister.
She also took aim at Calderón for his declaration that he would adopt the same security strategy if he had his time again.
The president, like her predecessor Andrés Manuel López Obrador, has been a staunch critic of the militarized “war” on cartels launched by the Calderón administration, blaming it for the high levels of violent crime in Mexico in a period spanning almost two decades.
Since taking office on Oct. 2, Sheinbaum has said on repeated occasions that her government won’t pursue the kind of “war” Calderón initiated after he took office in December 2006.
“The first thing, which is very important, is that Calderón’s war against narcos won’t return,” she said last week.
The constitutional reform bill, which now goes to the states for ratification, undoes a 1990s law that privatized Mexico's national rail company and ended its passenger rail services. (Presidencia/Cuartoscuro)
Mexico’s Congress has approved a rail reform bill to reestablish state control over railway services, particularly passenger rail service, clearing the way for President Claudia Sheinbaum to realize her ambitious rail development plans promising passenger train service throughout Mexico.
On Wednesday, the Senate unanimously passed the reforms to Article 28 of the Constitution 123-0, overturning Mexico’s railroad privatization laws enacted in the 1990s and declaring the railway system as a priority for national development.
Unlike many other controversial constitutional reforms the Congress has passed in recent months, the rail reform bill passed unanimously, though opposition senators warned that approval did not come with a blank check. (Cuartoscuro)
Because it is a constitutional reform, the bill now goes to state legislatures for ratification. At least 17 of Mexico’s 32 states must approve the reform for it to become law.
Sheinbaum championed the bill originally introduced in the Chamber of Deputies by her predecessor Andrés Manuel López Obrador, announcing during her campaign and again on Oct. 9 that she was preparing a public investment of 150 billion pesos (US $7.5 billion) to begin the construction of 3,000 kilometers of passenger train tracks during her six-year term.
After unanimously passing the reform bill through committee on Monday, deliberations moved to the floor of the Senate, where support for the revival of passenger services was notable.
Although participants recognized that modernization of the railroad sector would improve and broaden cargo services while also allowing cargo companies holding concessions for freight rail services to apply for concessions to operate passenger services, the expected boost to the economy from tourism received considerable attention.
Sen. Saúl Monreal (Morena) said the reform would make cargo traffic more efficient, reduce transport costs, increase competitiveness in key sectors and generate more tourism. He also said rail traffic emits 70% less pollution than truck traffic.
One of President Sheinbaum’s campaign promises was to bring back passenger rail service across Mexico. This Sunday, she was in Querétaro to launch the Mexico City-Querétaro railway project, which will be built and run by the Defense Ministry. (Presidencia)
Other speakers praised the reform as a chance for the profound transformation of Mexico’s mobility infrastructure and the reactivation of local economies.
While supporting the reform, opposition senators cautioned that they would not grant Sheinbaum a blank check to carry out her rail development plans and insisted that environmental-impact studies for such projects should be mandatory.
This year, the prestigious festival runs Oct. 18 - 27 in the capital city of Michoacán. (FICM/Facebook)
Five-time Oscar winner Francis Ford Coppola being honored in-person will be one of the highlights of the 22nd annual Morelia International Film Festival (FICM), which opens Friday and runs through Oct. 27 in the Michoacán capital.
The American director, screenwriter and producer is scheduled to receive the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) Film Archive Medal for his invaluable contributions to universal cinema, including “Patton,” “The Godfather” trilogy and “Apocalypse Now.”
In addition, the FICM will pay tribute to the 85-year-old with its sixth Award for Artistic Excellence — which was given to the director-actress Jodie Foster last year and previously to luminaries such as American icon Robert Redford, French director Claire Denis and Mexican filmmaker Alfonso Cuarón, himself a five-time Academy Award winner.
The festival’s opening night film on Friday is “Emilia Pérez” from multiple award-winning French director and screenwriter Jacques Audiard, who is scheduled to walk the red carpet along with two of the film’s stars, Karla Sofía Gascón and Adriana Paz.
A musical odyssey set primarily in a vibrant, pulsating Mexico City, the film weaves together the stories of four women. One of them is a cartel leader (Gascón) who lives publicly as a man but dreams of starting a new life as “Emilia Pérez.” To do so, she hires a struggling lawyer (Zoe Saldaña) to help carry out her longtime plan to fake her death and transition to living as Emilia.
Karla Sofía Gascón as Emilia in “Emilia Pérez.” (Screenshot via FilmAffinity)
Described as a Spanish-language French musical crime comedy — based on an Audiard opera libretto of the same name — the film premiered earlier this year at Cannes, where it won the Jury Prize and its four lead female actresses (the three above plus Selena Gomez) received a combined best actress award.
It is scheduled for a Nov. 1 release in select theaters and then a Nov. 13 debut on Netflix.
Overall, the FICM — one of the world’s preeminent film festivals — will screen hundreds of films from Mexico and around the world at several venues in Morelia’s historic downtown and at a Cinépolis VIP theater. Cinépolis, which traces its roots to a single theater in Morelia in 1971, is once again a major underwriter of the festival.
There will also be virtual screenings through the Mexican Institute of Cinematography (IMCINE) at nuesrtrocine.mx.
María Novaro, general director of the Mexican Film Institute, noted the FICM has “an annual average of 250 features over the past four years, [placing] it among the 12 most diverse and vigorous film [festivals] in the world.”
A wide range of Mexican features, short films and documentaries will be presented, and there are 14 categories of official prizes, several for Mexican films and one for films produced in Michoacán. Many workshops and forums will be held, including one about Indigenous filmmaking in Mexico.
This year’s festival will pay tribute to late Mexican film director Ismael Rodríguez, known for his collaborations with actor Pedro Infante and for shaping the Época de Oro, or Golden Age of Mexican cinema from the 1930s to the early 1960s.
Pedro Infante in a scene from the 1947 film “Los tres García,” directed by Ismael Rodríguez. (Screenshot)
Several Rodríguez movies, including “Los tres García” (1947) and “Los hermanos del Hierro” (1961), will be screened, as will a newly restored version of Emilio Fernández’s classic “María Candelaria” (1943).
Many of the older films are shown for free in an open-air pop-up cinema in the city’s main square.
Some of the most anticipated new films this year include Netflix-bound “Pedro Páramo” (based on Juan Rulfo’s literary masterpiece), “Disclaimer” (a star-studded psychological thriller by Cuarón) and “Nightbitch” (a horror-comedy about a suburban mom-under-pressure who thinks she’s transforming into a dog).
Attendees also will want to check out how to buy tickets, as there are several major changes. Advance tickets are now only available two days ahead of each screening, and seats are no longer reserved. Ticket holders will have to line up before each show and then race to any open seats.
Mexico’s Senate approved the federal government’s energy reform bill early Thursday, passing legislation that seeks to constitutionally enshrine state dominance in the electricity sector, among other objectives.
Senators with the ruling Morena party and its allies voted to approve the bill shortly after midnight, as did National Action Party (PAN) Senator Miguel Ángel Yunes Márquez, ensuring that the two-thirds threshold to pass constitutional reform proposals was met.
The reform bill passed easily in the Senate, with a final tally of 86 votes in favor, 39 against, but actual voting took until the early-morning hours Thursday. (Óscar Cantón Zetina/X)
The final count was 86 votes in favor, 39 against and one abstention.
The bill, which was sent to Congress by former president Andrés Manuel López Obrador in February and approved by the Chamber of Deputies last week, will now be considered by Mexico’s 32 state legislatures for ratification.
At least 17 must ratify the reform proposal before President Claudia Sheinbaum can sign it into law. Ratification by a majority of state Congresses is essentially a fait accompli as Morena is in power in more than 20 states. Sheinbaum is expected to sign the bill.
‘A historic error’
Promulgation of the bill will result in the revocation of parts of the 2013 energy reform, which opened up Mexico’s energy sector, including the state-owned Federal Electricity Commission (CFE) and state-owned Pemex oil company, to private investment.
While the reform will limit the participation of private and foreign companies in Mexico’s electricity sector, it will not preclude them from playing an important role in ensuring that Mexico can meet demand for power and make the transition to greater use of clean energy sources.
Senator Ricardo Anaya (PAN) opposed the reform, questioning the benefits of limiting private companies from participating in Mexico’s energy markets. (File photo/Daniel Augusto for Cuartoscuro)
Still, Morena Senator Óscar Cantón Zetina said that the objective of the bill is to “reverse the historic error” made by former president Enrique Peña Nieto’s (2012–2018) energy reform.
In light of its approval, Morena’s leader in the Senate, Gerardo Fernández Noroña, said that it was “another historic day” for Mexico.
Once promulgated, the Mexican state via the Federal Electricity Commission will have a constitutional right to generate and supply the majority (54%) of electricity in Mexico. Private companies will share the remaining 46% of the market.
The CFE and state oil company Pemex will no longer be called “productive” state companies, but rather “public” state companies. According to a Senate press release, the CFE and Pemex were renamed “productive” state companies on the recommendation of “international financial organizations.” The renaming “distorted the obligation of the state to guarantee the public service of electricity and reduced [its obligation] to the mere obtention of profits,” the statement said.
The Bloomberg news agency reported that President Sheinbaum will “gain increased control over Pemex and the national electricity utility” if the reform bill becomes law. The reclassification of Pemex and the CFE from “‘state productive companies’ to ‘public companies’ … would force the companies to prioritize the government’s social and economic objectives over corporate profits,” Bloomberg said.
The newspaper El Sol de México reported that CFE and Pemex “will lose their operational autonomy” and will once again “be under government control” after the reform bill becomes law.
The bill states that the CFE has the obligation to provide electricity at the cheapest possible price. The CFE will also be able to provide internet services once the bill becomes law.
According to the bill, secondary laws will establish how private companies can participate in Mexico’s electricity market. An earlier version of the bill gave the Mexican state sole responsibility for the energy transition. However, that provision was removed, ensuring that private companies can operate renewable energy facilities in Mexico and thus help the federal government reach its renewable energy targets.
According to the bill, state energy companies won’t be considered as having monopolies, even if they have complete control of an industry, as will be the case in Mexico’s nascent lithium sector with the state firm Litio para México (Lithium for Mexico).
The bill “returns energy sovereignty to the country,” said Senator Cantón Zetina, “given that it establishes that electricity, hydrocarbons, lithium and the internet will no longer be objects of speculation and monopolization by private interests.”
Competing views on the energy reform
Morena Senator Laura Itzel Castillo Juárez said that the approval of the reform bill provides “firm steps” toward the recovery of Mexico’s energy sovereignty as the legislation reverses changes made in 2013.
During the six-year term of Peña Nieto, the aim of the government was to “dismantle” the CFE and Pemex, “turn them into scrap and hand them over to the highest bidder,” she said.
Green Party Senator Virgilio Mendoza Amezcua said that the 2013 energy reform left the sector “weakened, indebted and at the mercy of [private] economic interests.”
The bill approved by the Senate will allow mistakes of the past to be corrected, he said, adding that it will support the CFE and Pemex, as well as Mexico’s quest to develop the lithium sector.
Among the provisions of the 2013 reform was allowing foreign companies to explore and produce oil and gas in Mexico for the first time. The new reform limits the share of the Mexican market foreign companies may own. (Moisés Pablo Nava/Cuartoscuro)
Labor Party Senator Alberto Anaya Gutiérrez noted that “the doors are [still] open to foreign capital” in the energy sector, but said that the reform will ensure that the Mexican state takes the leading role in the nation’s electricity and oil industries.
For her part, PAN Senator Imelda Sanmiguel Sánchez asserted that the reform seeks to “saddle” Mexican citizens with the debts of the CFE and Pemex, the world’s most indebted oil company.
The future of the following generations will be placed at risk “under the nationalist argument of energy sovereignty,” she said.
PAN Senator Ricardo Anaya, a presidential candidate in 2018, questioned the need to limit private companies’ participation in electricity generation.
“We believe it’s folly because in the end what people want are three things: clean energy, number one; cheap energy, number two; and abundant energy, number three,” he said.
“We can’t support the reform while the CFE continues burning fuel oil to generate electricity,” Anaya said.
On Wednesday, Senator Ricardo Anaya also said that the reform could create difficulties for Mexico at the 2026 review of the UMSCA free trade pact given that it limits foreign investment in the energy sector.
Institutional Revolutionary Party Senator Mely Romero Celis asserted that the reform “subsidizes inefficiency” in the CFE and Pemex and is “a backward step disguised as progress.”
She also claimed that the CFE and Pemex don’t have the capacity to support themselves without collaborating with private companies.
Olinia, which means “to move” in Nahuatl, will be designed as an affordable EV for Mexican families and young people, with competitive prices compared to other available brands. (Shutterstock)
This week, President Claudia Sheinbaum gave further details about her plans to produce an electric vehicle (EV) that is fully manufactured and assembled in Mexico.
The president first mentioned the EV during her inaugural speech at Mexico City’s Zócalo on Oct. 1. “Mexicans have creativity, determination and capacity to spare. So, we will produce ‘Olinia,’ a small, 100% electric, accessible car, designed by young people and assembled in our country,” Sheinbaum said.
Although the country has seen significant growth in the assembly of electric and hybrid vehicles, Mexico has yet to manufacture and export a domestically designed electric vehicle model.
Where will Olinia be manufactured?
During her morning press conference on Oct. 15, Sheinbaum said that Olinia could be produced in Sonora, one of several northern states with low electricity prices.
After the announcement, Governor Alfonso Durazo Montaño thanked Sheinbaum on his official X account for considering Sonora as a potential production hub for Olinia.
In a follow-up comment, he emphasized Sonora’s suitability for EV production, citing the state’s promising potential to develop its clean energy sector.
Sheinbaum said on Tuesday that her government is considering the northern state of Sonora for the production of the EV Olinia. (Cuartoscuro)
“[Olinia] will represent an important step towards the transition to clean energy in Mexico,” Durazo stressed.
How much will it cost?
Olinia, which means “to move” in Nahuatl, will be designed as an affordable EV for Mexican families and young people, with competitive prices compared to other available brands.
It is expected to cost under 500,000 pesos (US $25,000), a price tag lower than that of EVs currently available in the national market, such as the SEV E-Wan Cross, the BYD Dolphin Mini and the Tesla Model 3.
Is Olinia Mexico’s first-ever EV?
Although both Sheinbaum and Durazo said that Olinia would be Mexico’s first-ever EV, Olinia will be the second EV model to come out of Mexico.
Zacua launched production of the first Mexican-made EV in 2018. (Cuartoscuro)
In 2018, Zacua launched its manufacturing plant in Puebla to produce two models of EVs: the Zacua MX2 and the MX3. Both are exempt from paying tenencia (ownership tax) and from verificación (a vehicle inspection only applicable in Mexico City).
Zacua EVs can be bought in their Mexico City showroom or online.
It's Mexico's favorite curse word. What does it mean? (Facebook)
Se chingó un chingo de chongos.
It’s the most Mexican of curse words, and a phrasal verb whose meanings span the cultural spectrum. You may not like it, but you’d better make sure you understand it.
A Chingar a su Madre – expression Aggressive expression indicating that something has reached its conclusion, and that participants and onlookers should depart.
e.g. Y con eso terminamos, y a chingar a su madre.
It’s finished, please leave.
Chinga! – exclam
Darn!
Wow!
En Chinga – adj
Hurried, or under pressure.
Busy.
Chinga su Madre! – exclam ‘To hell with it!’ Used in the context of taking a quick decision.
e.g. La luz esta en roja, pero Chinga su Madre! Me la como.
The traffic light is red but Fuck it! I’m running the light.
Chingada Madre! – exclam Expressing frustration or annoyance. Best translated as ‘Ah damn it’!
Chingadera – noun Something without value or importance.
Chingarle – verb To put effort into something.
Chíngatelo – imperative
Finish whatever you are doing quickly, most commonly used with a beer.
Instructing an individual to steal something.
Chingarse– verb
To steal, shoplift or ‘nick’ something.
e.g. Se estan chingando la lana.
They are stealing the money.
To eat something quickly.
e.g. Se chingó ese bistec.
They scoffed that steak down.
Se chingó – expression It failed, or it is ruined.
Chingón –
adiVery common expression meaning that something is excellent, or of top quality.
e.g. Ese diccionionario esta chingón!
This dictionary is great!
nounAn impressive or powerful individual; the best in their own field.
e.g. El es un chingón
He’s the best.
Chingonería – noun Something of superb quality.
e.g. Que chingonería güey!
What a great thing dude!
This bull is about to have it’s “chingada” both given and taken. (@PrensaEsau/Twitter)
Hecho la Chingada – expression Moving at a very fast pace, most commonly referring to irresponsible motorists.
No me chingues – expression Don’t nag or bother me.
Me lleva la Chingada – exclam Expressing surprise, furstration or anger. In this expression, the chingada can also be substituted for other nouns: la fregada, la tiznada, la trampa, la trompada and also commonly, la verga.
Un Chingo – expression A lot, many or much. Can be used in reference to actions, as well as both countable and uncountable nouns.
e.g. Ella tiene un chingo de coches.
She has a lot of cars.
e.g. El tiene un chingo de dinero.
He has a lot of money.
e.g. Duele un chingo.
It hurts a lot.
Una Chinga – noun
A task which takes a great deal of effort.
A physical beating.
You can buy The Mexican Slang Dictionary on Amazon in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.
MND readers can find the physical book stocked in bookstores:
Almost half of the phony bills identified between January and September were located in just three federal entities: Mexico City, México state and Jalisco. (Moisés Pablo/Cuartoscuro)
Double check your change!
More than 200,000 fake banknotes were detected in Mexico in the first nine months of 2024, according to the Bank of Mexico (Banxico).
The 20 and 50-peso bills, and most 100-peso ones, are made out of polymer, making them more difficult to forge. (Cuartoscuro)
The central bank reported that it identified 224,390 counterfeit bills between January and September.
That means an average of around 822 fake notes were detected every day in the period.
Almost half of the phony bills identified between January and September — 108,835 or 48.5% of the total — were located in just three federal entities: Mexico City, México state and Jalisco.
Almost one-third of the fake banknotes were found in the capital, while more than 10% were located in México state, which includes many municipalities that are part of the Mexico City metropolitan area. Just over 7% of the billetes falsos showed up in Jalisco.
Baja California Sur and Campeche were the only two states where fewer than 1,000 fake bills were detected in the first nine months of the year.
Based on the January-September data, the Bank of Mexico is on track to identify just over 300,000 fake banknotes this year, a figure which would represent a small increase compared to 2023.
Banxico identified 299,476 counterfeit bills last year, a 17% decline compared to the record-high 360,926 fakes that were found in 2022.
What is Mexico’s most counterfeited banknote?
According to Banxico, the 200-peso note is currently Mexico’s most forged bill.
The most forged bill is the 200 peso note, of which there are two designs in circulation: Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz and Miguel Hidalgo with José María Morelos. (Cuartoscuro)
Data shows that the central bank has identified 50.9 fake 200-peso bills this year for every 1 million in circulation.
The second and third most counterfeited notes this year are the 500 peso and 1,000 peso bills, respectively.
The 200, 500 and 1,000 peso notes are all made out of paper, unlike the 20 and 50 peso bills, and most 100-peso ones, which are made out of polymer.
“When you’re handling Mexican banknotes, be sure to feel the paper; it should feel the same as, for example, US or Canadian dollars, British pounds, or euros,” says Mexperience.
“If the note doesn’t ‘feel’ right — paper used for counterfeit notes is often thicker than genuine banknote paper — check for additional security features,” the article continues.
Paper used for counterfeit notes is often thicker than genuine banknote paper. (Mexico City SSC).
On its website, the Bank of Mexico says it offers “training to identify security features in Mexican banknotes for financial institutions, legal authorities, government institutions, companies, and the general public.”
The training (Spanish only) can be completed in person in Mexico City or online. More information is available here.
What should you do if you think you have a fake bill?
According to Banxico, “if you have a banknote/coin which you believe is not authentic (presumably counterfeit/forged), do not continue using it.”
“Paying with a counterfeit banknote/coin is a federal crime punishable by up to 12 years in prison. You must turn it in to any bank so that they can send it to the Bank of Mexico to be analyzed. The Bank of Mexico is the only institution in Mexico that can determine whether a banknote/coin is authentic or counterfeit,” Banxico says.
“If at the moment of paying you are told that your banknote/coin seems counterfeit/forged, ask them to return it to you so that you can take it to a bank. Only banks can retain presumably counterfeit banknotes/coins and, in exchange, they must give you a receipt,” the central bank says.
“The bank must then send the presumably counterfeit banknote/coin to the Bank of Mexico to be analyzed,” it adds.
Mexican beaches are often overrun with waste from holidaymakers. Here's how you can play your part in keeping Mexico's perfect beaches... perfect. (Carlos Alberto Carbajal/Cuaroscuro)
Our little town of Chacala recently experienced a waste crisis when the trash pickup service stopped for several weeks. The landfill that usually accepts our garbage had caught on fire — the second time this year — and couldn’t take more waste until it was under control. Piles of trash accumulated on every street corner. Rotting food, plastic bags and bottles, styrofoam containers, soiled toilet paper, and other unmentionables were strewn everywhere.
The county government provided no alternate plan for trash removal, leaving the community on its own to figure out a solution. Several Chacaleños rallied to pay for dump trucks to haul trash away, at a cost of tens of thousands of pesos.
Beach towns might seem like a weekend paradise – but spare a thought for what happens after the crowds go home. (Elizabeth Ruiz/Cuartoscuro)
The crisis got me thinking about just how much trash is left behind on Mexico’s beaches, how waste removal is handled (and mishandled), who is responsible, and how we can all do a better job reducing waste, especially tourists.
Tourists often complain about how much litter is on Mexico’s beaches and assume that local Mexicans are primarily responsible. This is not only condescending and harmful cultural stereotyping, it couldn’t be further from the truth. Foreign tourists and out-of-area visitors contribute far more waste than locals, putting extreme pressure on communities to keep beaches clean with little to no government support.
Take Chacala as an example, our resident population is about 500 people. But on any given weekend or holiday, we can see our population quadruple to 2,000 people or more. Mondays are the worst day to walk the beach after everyone has gone and the evidence is left behind – styrofoam plates, plastic cups and bottles, dirty diapers, plastic bags, cigarette butts – you name it. While plenty of people use the trash cans provided, there is simply too much waste for them to hold.
And when the garbage cans are overflowing, it falls on community members and local business owners to organize volunteers to clean up or pay someone to collect it, all at their own time and expense.
Beach cleanups are often run by local communities, at their own expense. (Elizabeth Ruiz/Cuartoscuro)
Instead of complaining about trash, here are some ideas for visitors to help keep beaches clean:
Separate your trash: Much of the waste people generate is recyclable or biodegradable. You can reduce the amount of waste that ends up in landfills by separating recyclables and food waste from other trash. Many beach towns have receptacles or collection centers for recyclables and organics.
Bring reusable shopping bags: This is already common practice in many parts of the world, but for some reason, when people go on vacation, they seem to forget. When you travel, pack your good habits and a few reusable bags with you. Or buy some bags here. Mexico has one of the longest reusable market bag traditions in the world.
Buy more whole foods: Fill those reusable bags with fresh fruit, vegetables, bread, tortillas, and other goods that can be bought locally and don’t come in plastic packaging.
Bring a plate to taco stands: No one can resist the temptation of a street taco, but you can resist being given a styrofoam plate to eat it on. Next time you have a hankering for a taco, leave no trace and bring your plate (and cloth napkin) with you.
Order drinks that come in returnable bottles: Skip beverages that come in plastic bottles and choose ones that come in returnable glass bottles or are made fresh in large batches like aguas frescas that are served in glass cups or clay mugs.
Bring a to-go container to restaurants: If your eyes are bigger than your stomach and you often have leftovers when eating out, make sure to bring a reusable container to bring leftovers home instead of having the restaurant put them in a styrofoam box.
Patronize businesses that reduce waste: It’s becoming more common in Mexico (and in some cities, it’s the law) to not use disposable plates, bags, and other items at shops and restaurants, and opt for natural and biodegradable products. (We have a local ice cream shop in Chacala that uses coconut husks as bowls!) Seek out and patronize those businesses that are taking action to reduce waste.
Put trash in cans with lids: Leaving trash in bags on the street attracts dogs that scatter it around and leave a mess. Put trash in a can with a lid, and if your hotel or rental doesn’t have one, be a champ and buy one for them.
Collect trash while walking the beach: Since you are likely to walk the beach anyway, why not bring a trash bag with you and pick up some litter along the way?
Donate to local limpieza efforts: The community you are visiting most likely has an environmental committee or limpieza campaign that is working to educate the public and raise money for waste removal, reduction, and recycling efforts. Ask around and find the groups in your community you can support.
This goes without saying, but companies that produce throw-away products are the real culprits of the world’s waste problem, not consumers. We are pressured to make better choices, and that certainly helps, but it’s corporations that need to be responsible for the life cycle of their products. As a society, we must continue to advocate for laws that hold companies accountable for the waste they produce, and as consumers, we must stop supporting companies that contribute to the problem.
