More than 49,000 human remains went unidentified in 2022. Mexico lacks funding and infrastructure to deal with what has been characterized as a "forensic crisis". (Genaro Natera/Cuartoscuro)
Mexican coroners were unable to identify more than 49,000 human remains in 2022, a 338% increase from 2021, reflecting the country’s crisis in forensic services.
Mexico’s Forensic Medical Services (Semefo) received 130,470 human remains last year, up 41% from 2021, according to a report presented by the National Institute for Statistics and Geography (INEGI) on Wednesday. The number includes 88,166 corpses, 1,216 bones and 39,610 fragments.
Over 88,000 corpses remain unidentified in Mexico, particularly in states with high numbers of missing persons. (César Gómez/Cuartoscuro)
Of the total, 62% (80,885) could be identified, while 37.6% (49,005) were not identified and 0.4% (580) are still being processed. In 2021, only 13% of human remains were left unidentified.
The increase in unidentified remains is another sign of the forensic crisis that is gripping the country, as forensic services struggle to keep up with Mexico’s huge number of disappearances.
Alicia Franco, of Data Cívica, told the El Economista newspaper that the crisis is due to a lack of resources, personnel and equipment. Institutions involved in processing human remains were given a budget of more than 4.3 billion pesos (US $254 million) in 2022.
Experts have also warned that more effective coordination between institutions is required to address Mexico’s forensic crisis. Mexico’s 2017 Law on the Disappearance of Persons ordered the creation of a National Forensic Data Bank (BNDF). The process has stalled repeatedly, and has currently missed its 2019 deadline by four years.
Despite a court order demanding the National Forensic Data Bank begin operation in 2019, the index is yet to become operational, leaving authorities with little support to identify human remains and families with little closure. (César Gómez/Cuartoscuro)
Although the Attorney General’s Office (FGR) announced in May that the BNDF would begin functioning at the end of the month, it is still not operational. According to César Contreras, of the human rights organization Centro Prodh, the BNDF is unlikely to be ready until 2025 or 2026 at the earliest.
Meanwhile, unidentified human remains are building up in Mexico’s forensic facilities. According to INEGI, 53,347 corpses and other remains were stored in 9,298 different facilities last year, of which 87.6% were unidentified. The border state of Coahuila alone accounted for 72% of the bodies and remains stored.
Coahuila was also the state that received by far the largest number of remains in 2022, with 29.6% of the total. Second-placed México state received just 8% and Baja California 6.3%.
There is also a huge disparity in the number of forensic centers in different Mexican states. Jalisco leads with 44 centers, followed by Michoacán with 31 and Guanajuato with 29. Meanwhile, Aguascalientes, Colima and Puebla have only one each.
Baja California registered the third-highest number of remains received in 2022, with 6.3% of the national total. (Adolfo Vladimir/Cuartoscuro)
Just under a quarter – 22.7% – of remains seen in 2022 received no forensic treatment at all. Of those that did, the leading causes of death were homicide, femicide, accidents and suicides. 57.4% of remains received were men, 11.7% women, and 30.9% of undetermined sex.
Remittances both entering and leaving Mexico in August this year significantly increased compared to 2023. (File photo)
Has the peso’s prolonged party come to an end or was last month’s depreciation just a fleeting break from the currency’s remarkable rise against the US dollar in 2023?
The Mexican peso depreciated 1.86% against the US dollar in August to end the month at 17.05 to the greenback, according to the Bank of Mexico. It was the first time this year that the peso was weaker at the end of a month than it was at the start.
The Mexican peso depreciated 1.86% against the US dollar in the month of August. (GRACIELA LÓPEZ /CUARTOSCURO.COM)
The peso started August at 16.74 to the dollar, meaning that its position weakened by 31 centavos during the month.
A depreciation roughly equivalent to the value of two rarely used Mexican coins doesn’t seem like much, but an interruption to the peso’s long winning streak could be significant if it is a sign of things to come.
Among the factors that affected the peso in August, the newspaper El Economista reported, were a downgrade to the United States sovereign credit rating, expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve could raise interest rates (the Fed’s next monetary policy meeting is scheduled for Sept. 20) and the decision by Mexico’s Exchange Commission (Comisión de Cambios) to cut a six-year-old hedge program aimed at reducing currency volatility.
The Bank of Mexico has maintained high interest rates this year which has contributed to the peso’s strength against the US dollar. (MOISÉS PABLO/CUARTOSCURO.COM)
Citing a return to “adequate levels of liquidity and depth” in the national foreign exchange market and “lower volatility” in international markets, Banxico said that “credit institutions and other economic agents have the conditions to cover their risks related to the exchange rate directly in the exchange market.”
“Therefore, the Exchange Commission has decided to instruct the Bank of Mexico to gradually reduce the current amount of the foreign exchange hedge program while always aiming to maintain the orderly functioning of the foreign exchange market,” Banxico said.
Starting this month, the central bank said that it will “renew the maturities of foreign exchange hedges on one occasion only and by 50% of the current amount.”
The Bloomberg news agency reported that the reduction of the hedge program signals to traders that “the rally that made the … [peso] the world’s top performer [in 2023] may have gone too far.”
Even with the depreciation on Thursday triggered by the Exchange Commission’s decision, the peso was over 12% stronger against the greenback than it was at the start of the year, when the USD-MXN exchange rate was about 19.5.
Benito Berber, chief economist for Latin America at French bank Natixis, said that the decision to reduce the Banxico hedging program is “a clear sign that the peso might be too strong.”
Felipe Hernández, an economist who covers Mexico for Bloomberg Economics, said that reducing the hedge program makes “a lot of sense” considering the appreciation of the peso this year and record high interest rates in Mexico, which are currently set at 11.25%.
Clyde Wardle, a foreign exchange strategist at HSBC Securities USA Inc, said that Mexico is “basically using the MXN strength as an opportunity to unwind these outstanding forward positions.”
The peso on Thursday had its worst day since March, but will it continue to lose ground against the dollar?
The currency weakened again on Friday morning, trading at about 17.10 to the dollar at 11 a.m. Mexico City time, but a large depreciation is not expected, according to Gabriela Siller, director of economic analysis at Mexican bank Banco Base.
The president has heralded the peso’s appreciation against the US dollar this year as a sign of economic strength. (Gob MX)
“The market didn’t expect this decision by the Exchange Commission so it caused an overreaction. However, large depreciations for the peso aren’t expected, and it could eventually resume the downward [strengthening] trend, although it’s now less probable that it will reach a new minimum for this year,” she said.
An increase to the 5-25%-5.5% interest rate range in the United States could weaken the peso given that the significant difference between that rate and that in Mexico is one factor that has helped the peso this year.
However, Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank President Raphael Bostic said Thursday that rates are already high enough to reduce inflation in the U.S to 2% over a “reasonable” period.
Reuters reported that “traders bet on Friday” that “the U.S. Federal Reserve is likely done raising interest rates given that “a government report showed the unemployment rate rose [in the U.S.] last month and wage growth cooled.”
Inflation in Mexico is on the wane (4.67% in the first half of August), but Banxico isn’t expected to cut interest rates before December, meaning that the peso could be propped up by the record high 11.25% rate in the coming months.
Inflation has been declining, but remains above the target rate of 3%. (Cuartoscuro)
Strong incoming flows of foreign capital and remittances are among other factors that have benefited the peso this year.
So, what will the USD-MXN exchange rate be at the end of 2023?
The consensus forecast of analysts recently surveyed by Citibanamex is that the peso will trade at 17.85 to the US dollar at the end of the year, a considerable weakening from its current position but still a major improvement from where it was in January.
Currency forecasts, of course, are not an exact science, and a range of factors and events – including unforeseen ones – could affect the ever-so-slightly diminished “super peso” in the months ahead.
Heavy rains have caused flooding throughout Guadalajara (pictured) and Mexico City, with more rain forecast in the coming days. (Tani Tangerine/X)
Rain is predicted across Mexico this Friday, with particularly heavy downpours forecast in the states of Chiapas, Guerrero, Michoacán, Oaxaca, Sinaloa and Sonora.
According to a statement by theNational Meteorological Service, the wet weather is caused by two low-pressure channels in different regions of the country, combined with moisture from the oceans and atmospheric instability.
Parts of Mexico City saw heavy flooding, particularly in the Gustavo A. Madero and Cuajimalpa municipalities. (Dafne Mora/X)
In addition, the Mexican monsoon is moving across the northwest of the country, causing heavy showers, lightning, strong winds and possible hail in Sonora and Sinaloa. Strong winds with gusts of up to 60 kilometers per hour are predicted across the north of the country and the Yucatán Peninsula.
The rains come on the back of storms that swept central Mexico on Thursday, causing flooding in Mexico City, Guadalajara and the surrounding areas.
In Guadalajara, several vehicles were submerged in floodwaters of up to one and a half meters. Services were suspended on Line 1 of the Light Rail system and the Macrobus.
In México state, serious flooding was reported on the Periférico, in the areas of Naucalpan and Via Morelos. Local media shows cars submerged in water on the Toluca-Tenango highway, near the city of Metepec. The overflow of a canal also caused flooding of up to a foot of water in the Gustavo A. Madero and Tláhuac districts of Mexico City.
Samuel García, governor of Nuevo León, celebrated the arrival of rain in his state. (GOBIERNO NL)
According to the National Water Commission (Conagua), rains will continue throughout much of the Valley of México on Friday, causing risks of further overflows, landslides and floods. Residents are advised to stay alert to instructions from Civil Protection.
Conagua has also issued an Orange flood alert for the municipalities of Cuajimalpa and Gustavo A. Madero in Mexico City.
On the other hand, rains weregreeted with celebration in some northern states, including Nuevo León, which has seen severe droughts in recent years.
Despite the wet weather, temperatures will remain high in much of the country, particularly in the north andPacific regions. The states of Baja California, Campeche, Chiapas, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Colima, Guerrero, Jalisco, Michoacán, Nayarit, Nuevo León, Oaxaca, Quintana Roo, San Luis Potosí, Sinaloa, Sonora, Tabasco, Tamaulipas, Yucatán and northern Veracruz are all expected to see highs of 30 to 40 degrees Celsius.
Carlos Iván Erquizio Salazar and Fernando de Silva Hernández won a public vote at the Stockholm Junior Water Prize for their work in designing a sustainable aquaculture for Mexican shrimp producers. (Mexican Embassy in Sweden/X)
A science project developed by two Mexican high-school students from Sonora has won the People’s Choice Award at the Stockholm Junior Water Prize after thousands of voters from around the world recognized it as their favorite water innovation.
Developed by Carlos Iván Erquizio Salazar, 17, and Fernando de Silva Hernández, 16, the “Shrimply the Best” project aims to increase shrimp production, ensure food security and decrease pollution by recycling 95% of the wastewater used in the cultivation process.
Billions of liters of water are wasted every year by shrimp production in Sinaloa. The project looks to reduce this waste and improve the environment. (Víctor Hugo Olivas/El Debate de Sinaloa/Cuartoscuro)
In an interview with Mexico News Daily, the pair revealed that inspiration for the project came after a school trip to Kino Bay, Sonora, where they found out that the rapid expansion of the shrimp industry in the region had led to adverse environmental consequences for the Gulf of California.
“In the trip to Kino Bay,” Carlos explained, “we were surprised to learn that to catch 1 kg of shrimp in open fishing, 10 kg or more of other species gets filtered in the catch and is later thrown into the ocean, polluting it and destroying the environment.”
Their research led them to recommend sustainable aquaculture techniques to carefully breed, select and process shrimp for catch.
“It was a process of identifying ‘the problem of the problem,’” Fernando said.
The Stockholm Junior Water Prize ceremony has been held annually since 1997. (Carlos Salazar/Fernando Hernández)
Before the project won recognition in Stockholm, it had previously won Mexico’s most important National Youth Water Award organized by the Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), paving the way to Stockholm.
“It is wonderful to have been able to represent our country in the manner that Fernando and I did,” Carlos said. “I would’ve never imagined this. I feel very grateful for all the support that we received along this journey.”
“It’s an honor to have been able to represent our country in problems of such relevance,” Fernando added.
According to the pair, the next step will be to bring the government, scientists, academics and shrimp producers together to implement their project. They will also be working on a project demonstration with UNAM.
The PAN senator has been confirmed as the opposition bloc's candidate to run for president in 2024. (Xóchitl Gálvez/X)
With Xóchitl Gálvez now confirmed as the presidential candidate for the Broad Front for Mexico (FAM) opposition coalition, it’s an opportune time to look at what a Gálvez presidency might look like.
The National Action Party (PAN) senator was recently interviewed by Expansión Política, the politics site of the Expansión news organization, and expressed views on a range of issues she will face if elected as Mexico’s first female president on June 2, 2024.
In an interview with Expansión, Gálvez answered a series of policy questions. (Yerania Rolón/Cuartoscuro)
Let’s start with her brief answers to a series of rapid fire questions before delving into her more elaborate responses. As a reminder, the FAM is the three-party alliance made up of the PAN, the Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, and the Democratic Revolution Party, or PRD.
Yes or no to tax reform?
“Not at this time.”
Yes or no to the army in the streets?
“No to the army in the streets.”
Yes or no to help from the United States to combat narcos and crime groups?
“Yes, with limits.”
Yes or no to jail for ex-presidents?
“If it’s necessary yes, [but] no persecution [of former presidents].”
Would you live in the National Palace (as President López Obrador does)?
“No.”
Yes or no to the legalization of marijuana?
“Yes to the legalization of marijuana.”
The best president of Mexico is …?
“For me it continues to be Benito Juárez.”
The biggest mistake of former president Vicente Fox (2000-06) was …?
“Not combating the corruption of the past.”
The biggest mistake of former president Felipe Calderón (2006-12) was …?
“Taking the army out to the streets [to combat organized crime] without a strategy.”
The biggest mistake of former president Enrique Peña Nieto (2012-18) was …?
“Having a cabinet [full] of criminals.”
The biggest mistake of President López Obrador is …?
“His hate,” said Gálvez, who has been verbally attacked and portrayed as a tool of Mexico’s business elite by the president.
Gálvez has been critical of López Obrador’s policies and style of leadership. (Gabriela Pérez Montiel/Cuartoscuro)
The senator – a company owner, former mayor of a Mexico City borough and head of the government’s Indigenous affairs institute during the Fox administration – offered more detailed responses to questions on a range of issues including renewable energy, the opportunity presented by the growing nearshoring phenomenon and the role the business sector would play in a government she leads.
Gálvez on the use of the military for public security tasks
The presumptive FAM nominee told Expansión Política that the military can play a “controlled” support role in public security, but there should be limits to its involvement and it shouldn’t lead the effort to combat crime.
A member of the National Guard patrols a beach in Acapulco, Guerrero. (Carlos Alberto Carbajal / Cuartoscuro.com)
The federal security minister must be a civilian, rather than a military leader, and the National Guard – the security force created by the current government and subsequently put under the control of the military – must be a civilian force, Gálvez said.
(The Supreme Court ruled earlier this year that the transfer of control over the National Guard from the civilian Security Ministry to the Defense Ministry was unconstitutional.)
On what she would do in her first days as president
Gálvez said her first objective as president would be to “recover confidence in the country with the rule of law.”
(López Obrador’s term as president has been the most violent on record with over 164,000 homicides to date, although the homicide rate declined 10% in 2022.)
On public companies that are under military control
Defense Minister Luis Cresencio Sandoval at a press conference giving updates on the Maya Train. (Gob MX)
“The efficiency and effectiveness of each of them would have to be reviewed,” said Gálvez, referring to firms managing government projects such as the Maya Train railroad.
“I don’t like losses, I’m used to having profits so I believe that … [a company] that loses public money has to be reviewed,” she said.
On the future of state oil company Pemex
Asked whether she would “rescue Pemex” (an objective López Obrador says he is pursuing) or create a new state-owned renewable energy company, Gálvez said she would establish Emex, or Energías Mexicanas (Mexican Energy).
The company wouldn’t solely be focused on oil, she said. “There are other sources of energy, we can’t leave them out and [including them] would give much more financial viability to Pemex,” Gálvez said.
“Mexico is a world power in green hydrogen. We’re leaving new energies out [of current plans]. Investment won’t come to Mexico if there isn’t clean energy [here]. We don’t have a future if there’s no clean energy. Europe already put tariffs on products made with fossil fuels,” she said.
On tax reform and the use of pubic money
Gálvez criticized the current government because the cost of building both the Olmeca Refinery on the Tabasco coast and the Maya Train railroad in Mexico’s southeast has vastly exceeded the projects’ original budgets.
“There’s money [but] we’ve thrown it away. Why carry out a tax reform if we’ve thrown public money into the trash?” she said.
AMLO signature infrastructure projects include the Olmeca Refinery in Tabasco, the Felipe Angeles Airport in México state and the Maya Train in the Yucatán peninsula. (Presidencia)
Before any changes to tax policy are made, public resources need to be managed well, Gálvez said. The government also needs to “generate confidence” by implementing “clear public policies” so that new investment arrives, she said.
On what she would do to help attract foreign companies to Mexico
The growing nearshoring phenomenon – in which companies relocate to Mexico to be close to the U.S. market – is “the country’s best opportunity” for growth, Gálvez said.
“We can’t waste it,” she said, adding that the presence of more foreign firms in Mexico will spur economic growth and more revenue will flow into government coffers as a result.
“What do we need [to do]? Improve human capital, give young people English [skills], digital skills, workplace skills,” Gálvez said.
The nearshoring “dream” – in which Mexico takes full advantage of the current opportunity – is possible, but it won’t happen “as Mexico [currently] is,” she said.
Rendering of the planned Tesla gigafactory in Nuevo León, one of the most significant nearshoring investment announcements this year. (Tesla)
Issues related to water, energy, legal certainty, security and infrastructure need to be resolved or foreign “companies will go to other countries,” Gálvez said.
The issues can be resolved if “we get to work” and “stop fighting,” she added.
On fracking
Gálvez said she supports fracking if it’s carried out while “respecting the environment.”
“Pemex does fracking every day to extract oil. It’s nonsense to say that fracking doesn’t occur in Mexico,” she said, referring to claims made by López Obrador.
“So yes [to fracking], done well, not violating the law like they’re doing with the Maya Train in the southeast,” Gálvez said.
On the United States
Asked to choose between the United States and China, Gálvez opted for the former, saying that it is Mexico’s “logical ally.”
“… We have to understand that our main trade partners are the United States and Canada. A lot of jobs come from there, she said.
Gálvez stressed that Mexico shouldn’t fight with China or other countries, a view she shares with the current president.
On judicial reform
Gálvez said she supported judicial reform, explaining that “we need to stop punishing he who steals bread from a store.”
“We need a judicial reform that solves [problems with] everyday justice, what people are interested in. … We need a reform for true justice,” she said.
Gálvez, who owns two firms that specialize in “intelligent buildings,” said that business sector representatives would play “an important role” in a government she leads as “they’re the ones who create wealth and jobs.”
Gálvez at a meeting with Cancún business leaders earlier this month. (ELIZABETH RUIZ/CUARTOSCURO.COM)
In discussions with such people, the senator said she would advocate for better paid jobs and ask them to pay their taxes.
“What would I give them in exchange? Legal certainty and I wouldn’t be harassing them, stigmatizing them or hating them,” Gálvez said, adding that she would seek to support and attract companies that specialize in things such as robotics and artificial intelligence.
On why the Mexican people should believe what she says
Without specifying what they were, Gálvez pointed to her past results when asked why people should believe her when most politicians “deceive” or don’t do what they promised.
“And because I come from where people suffer,” she said, alluding to her upbringing in Tepatepec, Hidalgo.
“… Everyone has to be part of the government,” Gálvez added.
“We have to create a great project of citizens’ participation. It’s not just me, I can’t do it on my own. I need the support of all Mexicans,” she said.
Gálvez, who has gone from being a relatively obscure senator to a household name in the space of just a couple of months, will be officially designated as the “coordinator” of the Broad Front for Mexico at an event at the Angel of Independence monument in Mexico City on Sunday.
She will become the FAM’s presidential candidate when the 2024 electoral period officially commences, and find out who her Morena party rival will be next Wednesday.
Rodrigo Martínez Méndez and his grandfather, Juan Martínez Garcia make mezcal in the mountains of Oaxaca. (All photos by Mirja Vogel/text by Gordon Cole-Schmidt)
The sticky air is thick with the smell of chopped and charred agave plants at Palenque Don Goyo in San Baltazar Guelavila. Rain falls heavily on the rustic, family-run distillery that has been producing artisanal mezcal for 30 years. Droplets coat the leaves of 30,000 agave plants spread across this hidden valley in the Oaxaca hills.
The paved road connecting San Baltazar Guelavila to larger towns around Oaxaca city does not reach Palenque Don Goyo. The only route is a muddy track laden with footprints of horses, donkeys and goats.
Chopped agave plants ready for roasting outside the palenque.
“If the rain continues like this, it won’t be possible to drive back today,” Rodrigo Martinez Mendez, grandson and heir to the family’s mezcal business, tells us as he unlocks two arched doors to a large barn-like building.
Gray hazy sunlight showers the remarkable contents of the space inside. Four huge wooden vats, or ‘tinas,’ with a capacity of 1,200 liters cast huge shadows across wooden walls. In the darkest depths sits a large circular wooden mill or ‘tahona’ which resembles a clock face the size of London’s Big Ben, but built into the stone floor. With three bottles in hand, Rodrigo jokingly remarks:
“At least we won’t run out of things to drink.”
The wild landscapes surrounding Palenque Don Goyo befit the type of mezcal made here.
The circular mill or “tahona”.
The Mexican spirit is produced as an artisanal distillation, meaning each step of production is carried out by hand under the supervision of a maestro mezcalero, and more importantly, without machinery. Agave plants – once ripe, chopped up and roasted – are crushed by a horse-drawn wheel prior to fermentation and distillation.
Under the palenque’s flagship brand, Revelador, four different types of agave varieties, espadín, tepeztate, tobalá and cuixe, are made into mezcal, but only the maestro Gregorio Martinez Garcia and his close family know the specifics. The recipe remains a secret.
Today is a quieter day at the palenque, but Juan Martinez Garcia, the oldest member of the family and father of maestro Gregorio, is working the fields. He’s now 89, but his grandson Rodrigo tells me he starts promptly every day at 7 a.m. He’s hard of hearing, walks with a cane and breathes heavily. The sparkle in his eye when he introduces himself however, is as youthful as ever.
The family has had a busy month. Six hundred liters were made and then packed on pallets destined for New York in July. The batch constitutes their first-ever order from the United States, where the market for mezcal is booming.
The palenque’s maestro, Gregorio, checks on his precious agaves.
Standing amongst endless rows of agave plants, we watch and listen as three generations of mezcal producers discuss the next commercial order in their native Zapotec language.
Much like the recipes for the artisanal mezcal produced here, the Zapotec language has been passed on through generations. The language, in which all three men learned about mezcal as young boys, faces possible extinction. Rodrigo, the youngest member of the family, tells us, “Whenever I am home with the family, we speak and work in Zapotec. But other than that, I don’t use it.”
As migration and travel become more possible and technological processes advance, there is a risk that Indigenous languages and artisanal processes will die with the older generations. Efforts are being made to keep them alive, but a cloud of uncertainty looms.
Juan Martínez García will work the fields from dawn until dusk.
These traditional processes are some of the most-loved and admired aspects of life here, but whether they will become a remnant of times past is still to be determined.
Protesters angry about a fraudulent investment scheme closed the main entrance to Mexico City International Airport for several hours on Thursday. (SSC/X)
Dozens of protesters demanding the return of their money from a defunct financial institution blocked access to Terminal 1 at Benito Juarez International Airport (AICM) in Mexico City on Thursday.
The protest began at 9:30 a.m. and the blockages bled over into the afternoon, according to the traffic bureau of Mexico’s Public Security Ministry.
Travelers had to walk to the terminal as vehicular access was blocked. (ROGELIO MORALES/CUARTOSCURO.COM)
Finally, at 2 p.m., transit authority OVIAL announced the end of the blockade via social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter. “Circulation is restored on Av. Capitán Carlos León from the Interior Circuit at the height of Terminal 1 of the AICM [though] protesters remain on the sidewalk area.”
Calling themselves “Savers Defrauded by Ficrea,” the protesters demanded that the federal government get their money back from Sociedad Financiera Popular Ficrea SA de CV, a company that offered investment, savings and credit services.
Launched in 2008, Ficrea was authorized and regulated by the federal government through the National Banking and Securities Commission (CNBV). In 2014, it was decertified and has since filed for bankruptcy and its owner, Rafael Antonio Olvera Amezcua, stands accused of involvement in organized crime and operations with resources of illicit origin.
The fraud reportedly affected 6,848 people, and the protest would indicate that at least some of those affected have been left high and dry.
The collapse of Ficrea in 2014 affected thousands of Mexican savers, who were left without access to their money. (Rodolfo Angulo/Cuartoscuro)
The protesters were shouting and holding up banners demanding the full return of their money, which in many cases was savings from their paychecks. Public financial institutions (SOFIPO) are for-profit companies that focus their business in rural areas, though Ficrea had many customers in Mexico City.
With most access roads to Terminal 1 blocked between 10:30 a.m., and 1:30 p.m., many travelers exited their vehicles and walked to the airport. Later, airport vehicles began to offer rides, although people could still be seen walking with their suitcases.
“Fortunately, we arrived early enough to catch our plane,” said Gerardo González, who was heading for a flight home to Monterrey, Nuevo León. “We were able to walk without a problem. But for those who just arrived [at the height of the road blockages], well, that’s where I think they will be affected.”
Writer Rich Tenorio interviews author Alexandra V. Méndez about her acclaimed young adult novel set in 2001 Atlanta, that follows a story of a Mexican-American girl and her encounters with a mysterious shape-shifting jaguar. (Courtesy)
On a walking trail near her home, middle schooler Jade encounters a creature that seems out of place in Atlanta – a jaguar. But this is no ordinary big cat. It’s actually a 500-year-old Indigenous Mexican man named Itztli who has the power to manifest as a jaguar. A friendship develops between the two: as Itztli shares stories in paintings of life under the Mexica Empire, Jade connects more deeply with her own Mexican heritage on a journey toward greater self-discovery.
This is the premise of “What the Jaguar Told Her,” a young adult novel by Mexican-American author Alexandra V. Méndez. Set in 2001, the multilayered plot covers subjects from the Spanish conquest of Mexico to the 9/11 terror attacks. Influenced by Mexican primary sources such as the Florentine Codex, the book was originally published in English, but a Spanish translation by Ariadna Molinari will be released on Oct. 10.
“What the jaguar told her” book cover art. (Courtesy)
“It’s almost exactly to the day, one year, that the English [version] originally came out,” Méndez told me. “I’m very excited about this.” She’s likewise excited about Molly Mendoza’s cover art, which shows Jade’s emerging artistic talent bringing a jaguar to life.
“What the Jaguar Told Her” is informed by its author’s own family background: like Jade, Méndez has one Mexican and one white American parent.. While an undergraduate at Harvard College, Méndez interned at Dumbarton Oaks in Washington, DC, getting to see the museum’s pre-Columbian section. Later, as a doctoral student at Columbia University, she worked with Mesoamerican archaeology dating back to the 16th century.
“I wanted to make sure every story Itztli told had some basis in a primary source document,” Méndez said. “It doesn’t mean straight recreation, but primary sources are still important.”
In the novel, Jade’s connection to Mexico is further highlighted by such aspects as food and language, including both Spanish and Indigenous languages of Mexico.
“I definitely feel like I couldn’t tell the story without using words in Mexican languages,” Méndez said, mentioning scenes with Jade’s family as well as with Itztli. She notes that there is no English equivalent for Itztli’s role as a tlacuilo – the Nahuatl term for “a person who writes, and also paints, one and the same.” “It’s such a very specific thing,” Méndez said.
Itztli’s stories resonate for Jade, who fears she is losing touch with the Mexican side of her family. Her horticulturalist father is an Irish-American from Nebraska, while her CNN reporter mother has family roots in Mexico and in Chicago’s Mexican-American community. In addition to feeling uprooted by her family’s move from Chicago to Atlanta, Jade is grieving the loss of her beloved Abuelo and the void he leaves in terms of family knowledge. It’s that grief that makes her miss her Abuela, who’s still in Chicago, and to listen to Itztli’s stories.
“Part of what Jade wrestles with is that her Abuelo told her all these stories, but she can’t remember them,” Méndez said. “She needs to get in touch with her family and Abuela.” She added, “Itzli has a certain wisdom on that. He can get to Jade because he has 500 years of knowledge about what happened in those early days of encounters between Spaniards and Indigenous Mexicans.”
The narrative aims to present that encounter in a way that Méndez describes as more nuanced than previous portrayals. Itztli, for example, comes from a background that includes both the Mexica and the Purépecha, one of the peoples they fought against.
“There were many Indigenous groups with lots of reasons for wanting to overthrow the Aztecs,” Méndez said. “They were very resentful of them. It’s part of the reason, in fact, why Cortés and the Spaniards were successful in overthrowing the Aztec Empire or Mexica Empire … I think it’s important to kind of complicate some of the simplistic narratives we have.”
As the author incorporated history into the novel, she also worked with the theme of magical realism, notably with the scenes involving Itztli.
“Part of the challenge is having something that seems fantastical, like a jaguar turning into an old man who’s also a storyteller and an amazing painter,” Méndez told me. “Of course, Jade is surprised the first time. She quickly subsumes that into the rest of her existence.”
“A big part of my challenge was writing those scenes. How can it be part and parcel of Jade’s regular existence as a middle-school kid trying to make friends, trying to get on the cross country team?”
As it turns out, magic is deeply embedded in Jade’s family. One way she realizes this is through a special heirloom: an obsidian mirror.
“Obsidian mirrors were used, were associated with the god Tezcatlipoca, who turns into a jaguar at a certain point in one of the stories,” Méndez explained. “I use the magic, in some way, linking Jade to things that are bigger than herself – to her family, to her family lineage, that family connection to Mexico.”
Reflecting on the primary source documents and artifacts that she drew upon, the author said, “I think teachers can do a lot with them, think of this book as a way to engage with students, young readers, to think about Mexican colonial history, Mexican art.”
“It is a story about stories,” Méndez said. “It’s also the real stone objects and books, things that we have a lot of historical and archaeological evidence about – as well as the living stories people tell to this day.”
Rich Tenorio is a frequent contributor to Mexico News Daily.
Frontier will connect Chicago and Cancún this winter. (Raymond Wambsgans/Wikimedia)
Two major airlines in the United States and Canada will expand their schedules to increase flights to popular Mexican beach destinations this winter.
In the United States, low-cost carrier Frontier Airlines has added Cancún to its expanded winter schedule, with direct flights from three cities in the U.S. starting Nov. 16. Detroit, Minneapolis and Chicago will benefit from one daily non-stop flight to the Cancún International Airport, pending government approval.
Canada’s WestJet will use larger aircraft to increase capacity to Puerto Vallarta. (Taylor Beach/Unsplash)
“As we head into winter, now is the time to start planning those tropical getaways,” Daniel Shurz, Vice President at Frontier Airlines said. “Getting there is easier and more convenient than ever.”
Canadian airline WestJet will increase capacity to Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco by 19%, with flights from Abbotsford, Calgary, Comox, Kelowna, Edmonton, Regina, Saskatoon, Toronto, Vancouver, Victoria, and Winnipeg, offering travelers across Canada a diverse range of options to plan a winter vacation in Mexico. The carrier also announced a new weekly route between Prince George and Puerto Vallarta in July, as well as the return of services to both Mazatlán and Los Cabos.
WestJet currently offers the largest number of routes to Puerto Vallarta in Canada. According to website Aviación 21, it operated up to 183 flights per month during the monthly operations last winter season and is planning to carry out 212 per month in the autumn-winter season 2023-24.
The increase in capacity comes as the airline switches to using larger Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft and the acquisition of low-cost rivals Sunwing.
The U.S. and Canada are the largest sources of tourists to Mexico.
The old Caribbean port city is full of fun and flavor, not to be missed in your travels around Mexico. (Shutterstock)
It’s the year 1519. A dirty, weary group of Spanish explorers led by Hernán Cortés land on a small island, now known as San Juan De Ulúa. The weather is hot and humid, and the nearby coastal region is inhabited by long-established Indigenous peoples.
Not one to be deterred from his goals, Cortés quickly gains control of the coastal territory, using it as the primary base he needs to conquer the mighty Mexica (or Aztec) empire. He names the town Villa Rica de la Vera Cruz.
A 1615 drawing of the city of Veracruz. (Wikimedia Commons)
The colonial period saw Villa Rica de la Vera Cruz become the central link between Spain and Mexico, thanks to its eastward-facing port. Over centuries, the city experienced foreign plunderers, savage hurricanes, the slave trade and epidemics. Still, Veracruz stands strong, and is a prosperous and bustling commercial center today.
I lived in Miami for 11 years before moving to Mexico City and I miss four things – high heat, thick humidity, excessive sun and easy access to open water. Veracruz offers all those things and I effectively fell in lust as soon as I exited the car. To my delight, my time spent in Veracruz showed me that there was even more to love.
What to do:
The Caribbean coast lends Veracruz an intense, tropical charm as well as delicious fresh seafood. (Bethany Platanella)
Start your day with a famous café lechero at Gran Café de la Parroquia which has been serving authentic veracruzano coffee since 1808. Enjoy live music, perhaps a housemade pan dulce, and what’s sure to be excellent people watching. There are several locations; I went to the Gran Café on the malecón, next to my hotel.
Adjacent to the café is the Mercado de Artesanías, and if you’re like me, you’d never pass up a good market. It’s fantastically full of regional treats, including:
Vanilla (the state of Veracruz is the cradle of vanilla cultivation)
Coffee
Candy
Sweet liquors made of almonds, fruit, or coffee
Handcrafted bags and clothes
Take a short walk to the historic center, where you can visit the Museo de la Ciudad de Veracruz, the Mexico Naval Museum, the fortress at San Juan de Ulúa, or all three. It’s beautiful, and its architecture contrasts from haunting, Havana-style dilapidation to freshly painted reconstructed facades.
Since you’re likely hungry by now, might I suggest a seafood feast at Mariscos Villa Rica? There are a handful of locations and I chose the one situated directly on the town square. It showcased that old school, coastal town elegance that I’d been searching for and the food was excellent.
The author found Veracruz reminiscent of Miami and old Havana in its ambience. (Bethany Platanella)
I was lucky enough to travel with a friend with whom I could share huachinango a la Veracruzana, a local red snapper dish with garlic, capers, and onions – with a side of tortillas, always. In addition, we ordered fresh ceviche, cazuela (a tomato-based soup overflowing with chunky seafood, to die for), and a bottle of crisp white wine from Valle de Guadalupe.
If you’re up for it, consider a (hopefully) breezy stroll along the malecón toward the beach. No, Veracruz beaches aren’t the nicest, but they’re a great spot to watch a spectacular sunset. Especially if you walk toward the fisherman’s pier, where there are also options to rent boats, go snorkeling, and engage in other water-sport activities.
From this positioning, you can admire the sleek skyline of Boca del Rio. I did not go to Boca, but promise to return and explore further for a future article. If you’re not up for that, the Aquarium of Veracruz is considered one of Mexico’s best.
In a country of unique traditions and culture, Veracruz has a distinctive feel all of its own. (Rubén Espinoza/Cuartoscuro)
By now, you’re likely pretty hot. If you choose to take my advice to book a room at the Hotel Emporio, it’s an ideal time for a late afternoon dip in the pool. Keep in mind, however, that locals will soon gather in droves to watch Veracruz’s “best” dancers take part in a danzón, and it should not be missed.
At 7:00 p.m. sharp, a live orchestra will kick off this unmissable dance party in the zócalo. It lasts just one hour, at which point the crowd scatters for the ultimate nightcap – ice cream. If the line at the ¡Pásele Güero Güera! ice cream truck on the malecón is any indicator of its quality, I’d advise you to beeline there as soon as possible.
At night, the malecón comes to life with vendors, families, games, and music. Veracruzanos are noticeably friendly and smiley, which is very evident during their evening paseo along the water. It’s fun to observe before your real nightcap at the Great Lounge in Hotel Emporio.
The next day, I’d suggest an early day trip to El Taíin. It’s about 2 hours away but if striking Mesoamerican ruins without the crowds is your thing, don’t skip this. From here, you can opt for casual lunch on a restaurant terrace in nearby pueblo mágico Papantla, home of the famous voladores.
Where to stay:
Hotel Emporio is a time capsule, taking you back to Miami in its mafia heyday. On the weekends, the chic restaurant Restaurante Condimento offers a locally-famous Mar y Tierra buffet. The rooms are clean, cool, and comfortable. It’s worth splurging for a wrap around balcony with a view of the ship-lined port.
Overall, my visit to Veracruz was a memorable one. In fact, I think about returning every day. Its location makes it a bit lengthy to arrive by bus from Mexico City, but I’m willing to suffer the seven hours to revisit. Unless someone wants to drive me?
Bethany Platanella is a travel planner and lifestyle writer based in Mexico City. She lives for the dopamine hit that comes directly after booking a plane ticket, exploring local markets, practicing yoga and munching on fresh tortillas. Sign up to receive her Sunday Love Letters to your inbox, peruse her blog, or follow her on Instagram.
