In many places across Mexico, Holy Week, which marks the lead up into Easter Sunday on April 9, kicked off with Palm Sunday processions. According to Christian tradition, Palm Sunday is when Jesus entered Jerusalem. (Moisés Pablo/Cuartoscuro)
Holy Week (Semana Santa), the week leading into Easter Sunday, is an important time of year in Mexico. Visitors to the country might be surprised to discover that many businesses and public institutions will be closed on Thursday April 6 and Friday April 7 — Holy Thursday and Good Friday, and that Mexicans will be celebrating not only during Semana Santa but the week starting after Easter Sunday, known as pascua.
Although not government-sanctioned holidays, many Mexicans traditionally take at least Holy Thursday and Good Friday off, giving themselves an unofficial puente (long weekend). As many Mexicans will take these days off anyway, many businesses simply close for the long weekend — maybe going on vacation themselves. You may find a sign on your favorite restaurant or local store saying “closed for Semana Santa.” Don’t expect them to be open until at least Easter Monday.
With schools out for two weeks, many families look to spend time making the most of their vacations. (Elizabeth Ruiz/Cuartoscuro)
Even many banks have announced that they will be closed this year on April 6 and 7. ATMs will remain in service, however.
As usual, the Education Ministry (SEP) has given students a two-week break, which already started Monday and lasts through April 14. (Some private schools not affiliated with SEP may follow an alternative calendar.) This means families who can afford to take off Holy Week or even both weeks for beach vacation or travel abroad.
Spending Holy Week with family is also traditional, and families often travel around the country to do so, meaning that this time of year sees high volumes of traffic on roads and at airports, so plan accordingly.
If you beat the traffic, however, you can look forward to a country that is fully in the holiday spirit, with beaches, monuments and parks likely to be full of vacationers looking to make the most of a rare week off work.
A young man prepares to play an ancient Roman soldier in a Holy Week procession later this week in Itzapalapa, Mexico City. The neighborhood will mark its 180th consecutive iteration of the event this week. (Graciela Lopez Herrera/Cuartoscuro)
Semana Santa can also be a perfect time to visit a normally busy place, like Mexico City for example — exactly because residents have left the megalopolis.
Whether you stay at home or travel yourself, wherever you are, Holy Week festivities will be taking place across the country in your area. They started already on Sunday, in fact, which was Palm Sunday.
According to Catholic tradition, the day marks Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem, and so in town squares all over Mexico, there are processions recreating this biblical event, and vendors often sell palm fronds and all sorts of food, souvenirs and toys to visiting tourists or people-watching locals.
While many Mexicans will spend Semana Santa reclining on a beach, for those foreigners looking to immerse themselves in Mexican culture, there is a lot to discover this week, as the nation celebrates.
From elaborate processions reenacting the Stations of the Cross to the devout making intense public displays of faith, to fireworks fueling sputtering castillosand “exploding” Judases, there will likely be something interesting to see in your town square on many days of Holy Week.
Normal hours for most businesses and institutions will resume on Easter Monday, April 10.
If you live in an expat enclave in Mexico, you're likely familiar with the phenomenon: around this time of year, many of your friends prepare to leave and spend the spring and summer in their home countries. (@suegresham/depositphotos)
No doubt about it, the expat enclaves in Mexico are full.
Restaurants, charity events, the charming cobblestone streets in Centro Histórico, grocery stores, the mercados, the theater and all the beaches … “We” are everywhere, in great numbers.
It happens every year at this time, and although it’s exciting and contagiously fun, it’s also a little bittersweet. It means we’ve reached the high point of our seasonal cycle, and the pendulum will soon start swinging back in the other direction.
If you live in one of these towns or cities, you know what I mean: people begin leaving, or making plans to leave, setting up last lunches and get-togethers, buying things to take back up north, getting their properties ready for the summer ahead.
As one-who-stays, I’m already planning for the summer months too, albeit in different ways. I’ll have my air conditioners cleaned and checked, put the extra bed covers away and start getting ready to change my schedule so that shopping, outdoor exercise and errands are done early in the morning rather than later in the day, before it gets too hot.
Reading is a big part of my summer life, and I’m thankful to those who bring new books when they come and then leave them here for those of us who might not travel back and forth so much. Yes, I have a Kindle, but I always prefer a real book experience, if at all possible.
I just finished Willa Cather’s classic, “The Song of the Lark,” originally published in 1915. It’s a sweet, simple story of a young farm girl gifted with a beautiful singing voice, and her struggles to learn more about music and get the training she desperately wants. Seeing her natural talent, a music teacher encourages her to go to Europe to learn from the best. “But how?” she asks.
“Nothing is far and nothing is near, if one desires,” he tells her. “The world is little, people are little, human life is little. There is only one big thing — desire. And before it, when it is big, all is little.”
This month, in between everything else you’re doing, I hope you find time to sit quietly and think about your own desires, your own dreams. Because, really, what could be more worthwhile or valuable to think about, to plan and direct one’s energy toward?
Those, more than anything else we do or say or accomplish, are what makes us exclusively and distinctly “us,” and what satisfies our soul like nothing else. And for most of us, whether we’re snowbirds or full-timers, moving to Mexico was one of those dreams that’s now been realized. Are we better people for it? I’d say yes — unequivocally and joyfully yes.
Guadalupe Taddei was officially sworn in as the new INE president on Monday. Outgoing president Lorenzo Córdova had a 41% approval rating as he finished his nine-year tenure, according to El Financiero's poll. (Instituto Nacional Electoral / Cuartoscuro.com)
Fewer than six in ten Mexicans approve of the work carried out by the National Electoral Institute (INE), according to the results of a poll published Monday.
A national survey conducted by the El Financiero newspaper found an approval rating of 59% for the elections oversight agency, a decline of nine points compared to October 2022.
The National Electoral Institute (INE) has been the subject of intense criticism from President López Obrador. (Archive)
The publication of the poll comes as INE president Lorenzo Córdova concludes his nine-year tenure at the helm of the autonomous body.
Only 41% of those polled said they approved of the work Córdova has done as Mexico’s electoral chief, while 53% said they disapproved.
Both the INE and its staff have faced repeated attacks from President López Obrador, who recently called Córdova “an anti-democratic character.”
López Obrador claims that the INE’s predecessor, the Federal Electoral Institute, permitted electoral fraud that cost him the 2006 and 2012 presidential elections. A legislative proposal submitted by the president to reform the INE was approved in February but the Supreme Court suspended the application of the relevant laws in late March.
Protesters in cities all over Mexico showed up in the streets to express support for a robust National Electoral Institute in February. (Photo by Fernando Carranza García)
Hundreds of thousands of Mexicans took to the streets in late February to protest the so-called “Plan B” reform package – which critics consider a threat to Mexico’s democracy – and demonstrate their support for the INE.
But the results of El Financiero’s poll show that confidence in the agency’s capacity to organize elections has waned since October, when 68% of respondents approved of its election organization work. The percentage of poll respondents who disapproved of the INE increased from 29% to 38% in the same period.
Just over half of those polled – 53% – said they approve of the work the INE and the Federal Electoral Tribunal do to supervise electoral processes in Mexico, a decline of 10 points since October. The percentage of respondents who disapprove of their supervisory work increased by nine points in the same period to 43%.
Approval for Córdova’s work was highest among poll respondents who identified as supporters of Mexico’s opposition parties, among which are the National Action Party (PAN) and Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). Two-thirds of such respondents said they approved of Córdova’s work, while the figure among supporters of the ruling Morena party was 44%.
When Guadalupe Taddei was head of the Sonora Electoral Institute, the National Action Party accused her of favoring Morena and its allies in 2021’s state electoral process. (Photo courtesy of IEE Sonora)
Interestingly, Córdova’s approval rating among non-aligned respondents was just 33%, while 59% of that group said they disapproved of the outgoing INE president.
El Financiero also asked poll respondents about their confidence in the process to replace Córdova and three outgoing electoral councilors.
The survey was conducted on March 24 and 25, a week before the election of four INE officials, including new president Guadalupe Taddei. Typically, candidates need support from two-thirds of lawmakers in the Chamber of Deputies to be elected. After failing to reach a majority, the Chamber resorted to sortition, or the drawing of lots, to elect its new members.
Forty-seven percent of respondents said they were very or somewhat confident in the process to elect replacements, while the same percentage said they had little or no confidence in it.
The process, which resulted in the nomination of 20 candidates for four positions, was carried out by a “technical committee” made up of seven members of civil society.
Three-quarters of Morena party supporters expressed trust in the process, while the percentage of opposition supporters and non-partisan respondents who said the same was just 39% and 36%, respectively.
The election of Taddei – who on Monday became the first woman to lead Mexico’s electoral agency – has been criticized as two of Taddei’s relatives hold government positions and another is a Morena lawmaker in the state of Sonora.
The PAN said it would challenge the election of Taddei and one of the incoming electoral councilors due to their “clear links” to the Morena party, which was founded by López Obrador as a civil society association in 2011 before becoming a political party in 2014.
Remains of the balloon that caught fire and crashed in a field in Mexico state on Sunday. In the balloon was a pilot and a couple and their teenage daughter. Only the pilot and the daughter survived. (Alerta Copoya/Facebook)
México state authorities have located the pilot of a hot-air balloon involved in an accident Saturday, in which a married couple was killed and their teenage daughter injured.
The basket of the balloon caught fire Saturday morning, as it flew near the Teotihuacán archaeological site, located about 50 kilometers northeast of central Mexico City.
Site of the crash in Teotihuacán. The red fabric is a screen that emergency personnel set up to cordon off the site. (Rogelio Morales Ponce / Cuartoscuro.com)
Video footage shows a ball of fire engulfing the basket and at least one person plummeting toward the ground.
José Nolasco, 50, and Viridiana Becerril, 39, died, while their 13-year-old daughter Regina sustained first- and second-degree burns and a broken arm, according to authorities in México state, where Teotihuacán is located.
Regina was transported to a hospital in Axapusco, México state, and later transferred to the Children’s Hospital in the state capital, Toluca. She is reportedly in stable condition.
According to reports, Becerril threw herself from the basket when it was 10–15 meters above the ground while Nolasco remained in the basket and was burned to death.
Regina’s grandmother, Reyna Sarmiento Lara, told reporters Sunday that her grandaughter was conscious and that in addition to her other reported injuries, Regina had second-degree burns from the accident. (Screen capture)
Regina jumped from the basket when it was about 5 meters above the ground, while the pilot jumped when it was approximately 4 meters above the ground, W Radio reported.
The México state Attorney General’s Office (FGJEM) said in a statement Sunday that police had located the pilot in a hospital in Hidalgo, where he was receiving medical treatment for extensive burns.
The FGJEM said that police from México state and Hidalgo were guarding the pilot, who has been identified in media reports as Víctor Guzmán Pérez.
The newspaper El Financiero reported that Guzmán told police that he fled after jumping from the balloon’s basket because he had no experience responding to emergency situations and didn’t know what to do.
The FGJEM said it was “maintaining permanent contact with the family members of the victims,” adding that it has provided support to them “in the face of this terrible situation.”
The office said it was working with state and federal authorities to establish the cause of what it considered to be a crime.
From left to right: José Nolasco, Viridiana Becerril and their daughter, Regina. Nolasco and Becerril died in the accident. Regina leaped from the hot-air balloon when it was at 5 meters above ground and survived with injuries. (Social media)
The statement also said that the FGJEM has seized properties “allegedly related to the company” that provided the hot-air balloon flight – identified as Autocinema Retrovisor – and is carrying out a thorough investigation aimed at determining what happened on Saturday and establishing criminal responsibility.
Nolasco and his daughter planned the hot-air balloon flight as a celebration for Becerril’s birthday, according to Becerril’s mother, Reyna Sarmiento Lara. Sarmiento told reporters on Sunday that her granddaughter was already conscious and had second-degree burns.
The family reportedly traveled from their home in Mexico City to the municipality of San Juan Teotihuacán to take a flight over Teotihuacán, the pre-Hispanic city known for its two towering pyramids.
There have been several other hot-air balloon accidents in the Teotihuacán area, where flying over the Pyramid of the Sun and Pyramid of the Moon is a popular tourist activity.
The Teotihuacán Hot-Air Balloon Association said in a statement that the company that owned the balloon involved in Saturday’s accident is not among its eight members that “operate within all applicable legal and regulatory frameworks.”
The Tianguis Turístico allowed Mexican states to advertise their tourist potential to investors and businesses across the world. Here, the state of Coahuila advertises itself as a site for tourism related to dinosaurs and fossils. (Daniel Augusto/Cuartoscuro)
The largest tourism fair in Latin America came to a close with record sales as reported by Mexico’s Tourism Minister Miguel Torruco.
The Tianguis Turístico, which gathered businesses from across the tourism industry, “broke all records in terms of business appointments, participation of buyers and representation of nations,” Torruco said, citing preliminary reports.
The Tianguis Turistico saw the best of Mexico come together to discuss the future of the sector and attract investment. Here a man advertises tourism on the Yucatán Peninsula. (Daniel Augusto/Cuartoscuro)
Companies and local governments used the four-day event to announce new tourism-related initiatives and products and traveling opportunities.
According to Torruco, preliminary sales numbers reached US $68.5 million — an 87% increase from the 2022 fair held in Acapulco.
“The event marked a milestone for tourism in the country and in the history of the tourism fair itself,” Torruco said.
Ninety countries from five continents attended the event, involving 2,338 buyers and 1,383 companies, the ministry said. The fair, which allows registered participants to make appointments in advance with business participants at the event, saw close to 90,000 such appointments scheduled.
Organizers attributed that number to a 34% increase in people attending the fair as buyers. Torruco said that 53% of those business appointments ended in sales.
Companies and local governments used the four-day event to announce new tourism-related initiatives and products and traveling opportunities, including announcements about new airline routes and the use of technology in the tourism industry, as we highlight below.
Viva Aerobus announces new Querétaro-Los Cabos flight
With three flights per week starting in July, the airline Viva Aerobus will launch a new route from Querétaro to Los Cabos, Baja California Sur.
Viva Aerobus also anticipates the delivery of 28 more A321 aircraft. (Viva Aerobus)
According to the government of Querétaro, Los Cabos is one of the most requested destinations by airport users. Authorities anticipate about 45,000 people per year will fly the new route.
“[The new route] will allow us to place and promote Querétaro in a market that, naturally, we do not have. With this new flight, Querétaro will be able to offer new travelers all our products,” Minister of Tourism for Querétaro Adriana Vega said during the announcement.
The route will use Airbus A320 aircraft, which can accommodate up to 186 passengers.
ChatGPT recommends Mexico as a tourist destination
Chairman of the Board of Directors at Grupo Carso Carlos Slim Domit (billionaire Carlos Slim Helú’s son) told audiences in a keynote address at the fair that he had tried out Open AI’s ChatGPT software and that it had good things to say about Mexico.
Slim Domit said he’d asked the chatbot the question: “Do you recommend visiting Mexico?”
The chatbot responded in the affirmative, he said.
Chat GPT says Mexico is one of the best tourist destinations in the world. (David Vives / Unsplash)
The AI (artificial intelligence) software told Slim Domit that Mexico has “a lot to offer.”
From modern cities to historical towns, mountains and seaside villages, ChatGPT said, “there’s something for everyone in Mexico,” and “Mexico is a great place to go if you’re looking to travel somewhere.”
Slim Domit said that technology is no longer an option but a necessity in the tourism industry and that it’s imperative to explore ways of using it. Tourism companies, he said, should use artificial intelligence to create personalized experiences for their clients.
Mexican states promote medical tourism
The northern, Bajío and western regions of the country are developing strategies to take advantage of increasing medical tourism.
In an interview with newspaper El Economista during the fair, San Miguel de Allende’s head of economic and tourism development Tania Castillo said that the most important destinations in the country are experiencing an economic boom in this sector. Her city is getting involved as well, she said.
Mexico is rapidly becoming a destination for medical tourists, with modern facilities designed to attract people from across the world. (archdaily.mx)
Castillo cited the Guanajuato city’s planned Alquería WTC San Miguel de Allende, a World Trade Center campus that in addition to businesses, will include a dedicated medical tourism hospital — which Castillo claimed will be the first such facility of its kind in Mexico.
Construction is anticipated to start this spring.
Medical tourism for cosmetic procedures is in increasing demand in Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, particularly from Canadian and U.S. citizens, said Sujey Cardenas, head of public relations for Puerto Vallarta’s Tourism Promotion Trust.
Baja California is also a hot spot for medical tourism. About 10% of tourism in the state belongs to this category, and double-digit rates are expected for the rest of 2023. Tijuana and Ensenada are building 15 complexes to accommodate this new breed of tourist.
The new factory in Nuevo Leon will produce millions of car sets by 2025 under the brand Faurecia. (@_JosePerales/Twitter)
The French auto part manufacturer Forvia has opened a new US $147 million plant in the northern state of Nuevo León.
Forvia, which produces car seating and interiors for major international brands, hopes that the creation of their new Apodaca plant will allow for the export of more than 2 million full sets of car seats per year in 2025.
The opening ceremony was attended by dignitaries from the government of Nuevo León. (Forvia)
The company is aiming to double its manufacturing capacity by the end of 2023. Clients of Forvia include the automakers Volvo and Stellantis.
“This new facility positions us to deliver exceptional value to our customers and enhances our mission to pioneer technology for mobility experiences that matter to people,” said Nik Endrud, Forvia executive vice president of the Americas.
The company believes that the plant’s opening, under the Faurecia brand, represents a “true milestone” for the business. Forvia is currently ranked as the global leader in the industry, with a 16% market share.
A number of state dignitaries were in attendance at the opening ceremony, including Governor Samuel García and Nuevo León Economy Minister Ivan Rivas.
The new factory is yet another development in the nearshoring boom that has seen significant investment in Mexico as a global manufacturing center — especially the state of Nuevo León.
The state has rapidly become a hub for the automotive industry, according to Rivas. One hundred twenty-five of its recent high-level investments have been in the sector.
Like other developments opening in the region, the new factory will also adhere to modern sustainability standards, to help fight the chronic water shortages that have plagued much of Mexico.
“Our investment supports key sustainability initiatives in the fields of bioclimatic design, energy efficiency, and water recovery. This is why we are pleased to share with you that this new plant is certified as a green building,” said Jean-Paul Michel, executive vice president of the interiors division, told the business publication Mexico Industry.
It was another eventful week at President López Obrador's morning press conferences, covering everything from the tragedy in Ciudad Juárez to the Supreme Court blocking the "plan B" electoral reform. (Galo Cañas Rodríguez / Cuartoscuro.com)
President López Obrador triggered an outburst of positive and negative responses when he highlighted the natural beauty of Quintana Roo and the construction of two government infrastructure projects in the same social media post last Saturday.
“It’s not a dream, it’s a nightmare for nature,” one Twitter user wrote in response to AMLO’s publication of a photo showing “beautiful little lagoons close to where we’re building the new Tulum airport.”
Bellas lagunitas cercanas a donde estamos construyendo el nuevo aeropuerto de Tulum. Llevamos dos días de supervisión de avances del Tren Maya, que es como un sueño que pronto, muy pronto, se volverá realidad. pic.twitter.com/cBIdt3xOVE
AMLO shared this image of lagoons near the site of the new Tulum airport last Sunday
In the same post, the president said that the Maya Train railroad project – which will connect cities and towns in five southeastern states – is “like a dream that … very soon will become reality.”
The dichotomy between the comments praising the president for his commitment to carrying out transformative infrastructure projects and the remarks accusing him of defiling Mexico’s natural environment was not surprising.
Politically speaking, Mexico is a divided country, and that polarization is perhaps more evident on social media than anywhere else. Much of the public debate, online and offline, stems from AMLO’s discourse at his lengthy weekday morning press conferences, or mañaneras, exercises in oratorical – and auditory – stamina held mostly in the National Palace.
Monday
During the weekly update on the construction of the Maya Train railroad, the head of the National Tourism Promotion Fund reported that “significant progress” has been made on the 234-kilometer section between Escárcega and Calkiní in the state of Campeche.
“There are 80 kilometers of tracks completed and we already have 100% of the ballast, rails and sleepers required,” said Javier May Rodríguez.
“The drainage works are 70% complete, the 10 viaducts under construction are 60% complete and we already have half of the 148 pedestrian, vehicle and wildlife crossings we need. … All this has created 12,000 jobs,” he said.
“Traveling in the train along section 2 will allow [passengers] to visit and enjoy emblematic places like the historic city of Campeche, the Champotón River, the archaeological zone of Edzná and the Hecelchakán Museum, to name some of the marvelous places in Campeche. And of course … [passengers] will be able to enjoy the gastronomy and handicrafts of our amigos y amigas campechanos,” May added.
Governor of Campeche, Layda Sansores, speaks at the morning press conference on Monday. (@LaydaSansores/Twitter)
During a theatrical appearance before reporters, Campeche Governor Layda Sansores – an ardent AMLO ally – declared that the ambitious 1,500-kilometer-long railroad will be completed on time in December because the project was “predestined.”
“Its destiny was written on the bark of the ancient ceiba trees,” she said.
“… Let the thunder of the train reverberate on the [Yucatán] Peninsula. Let’s get on the train – we’ll discover the splendor and power of our Mayan culture, we’ll find another world of redemption and hope,” the governor gushed.
“Thank you, Andrés, president, for giving us the opportunity to write a line in the long history of peaceful and eternal battles you’ve led. Andrés Manuel, son of corn and restorative lightning, son of the four cardinal points, he who carries 32 suns in his soul, never forget how much your people love you.”
Justice Javier Laynez in court in 2019. ( ISAAC ESQUIVEL /CUARTOSCURO.COM)
“It’s thought that this justice overstepped the mark, went too far,” López Obrador said.
“… There can be interpretations of the constitution, of laws, but in reality that’s what he did. The important thing is to know why [judges] act in this way. I believe that the majority of people know that it’s not a legal matter, it’s a political matter and I would say a commercial matter because what they don’t want is for the electoral law to be approved or declared constitutional. What they don’t want is for the salaries of the high-ranking National Electoral Institute [INE] officials to be reduced,” he said.
Responding to another question, AMLO praised Constellation Brands for accepting the result of a 2020 referendum on a brewery the United States company planned to build in Mexicali, Baja California.
“They’re [now] building the brewery in Veracruz, near the port. … The owners of this company behaved very well because they were surprised to some extent, deceived by previous authorities who gave them permits when there was no water available,” he said.
“They thought there wasn’t going to be a problem but clearly there was a problem because the people of Mexicali didn’t agree. The consultation was done, the people reaffirmed that they didn’t want the brewery, we spoke with the owners … and they accepted the move … to a place where there is water.”
In response to the final question of the presser – What’s your schedule today, Mr. President? – López Obrador revealed that he is not as au fait with his day-to-day agenda as one might expect.
“We have some things, I don’t remember well,” he said reluctantly before flashing a broad grin.
Tuesday
López Obrador acknowledged at the beginning of his presser that 39 migrants had died in a fire in a government-run detention center in Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua. It appeared that migrants set mattresses alight when they found out they were going to be deported or moved, he said.
“It’s very sad that this happened,” AMLO said after noting that the names and nationalities of the victims had not yet been established.
(Migrants from Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Venezuela and Colombia were subsequently confirmed to have died.)
Education Minister Leticia Ramírez later announced that the government was launching “a campaign against addictions” that would be mainly directed at middle school and high school students
At least three days a week students will receive information from teachers about the harm caused by drug use, she said.
Ramírez ran through a list of brief but blunt messages that will be conveyed to students during the campaign: “fentanyl will kill you straight away; methamphetamine hooks you; vapes really are toxic; cannabis harms you; tobacco affects you and everyone; alcohol, be careful, don’t start; benzodiazepines aren’t a game.”
Education Minister Leticia Ramírez at the Tuesday press conference. (Gob MX)
After López Obrador expressed his support for the campaign, Culture Minister Alejandra Frausto took center stage and reported that 11,505 Mexican archaeological pieces have been repatriated since the federal government took office in late 2018.
“We want to thank … the management of museums in other countries [and] citizens who had these assets in their homes for some reason – maybe they inherited them, but they became aware that they don’t belong to them,” she said.
Frausto also expressed gratitude to the governments of European countries that have returned artifacts to Mexico, including that of Italy, which recently handed over 43 pieces.
Alejandra Frausto at the Wednesday morning press conference. (@AleFrausto/Twitter)
Back in his element in front of a gaggle of eager reporters, AMLO declared that his government needs to “continue seeking the purification of public life” after 36 years of neoliberal policies implemented by the past six governments.
“We’re talking about 1983 to 2018. … This predominance of neoliberalism … penetrated deeply … [in] all aspects of public life,” he said during a prolonged response to a question about the need for judicial reform.
Among other remarks, AMLO said that “the family is the most important social security institution” in Mexico because of the support members can provide to each other and noted that he had a “very good” meeting on Monday with the lawyer for Pedro Castillo, the former president of Peru who was ousted by that country’s Congress late last year.
“He’s defending the case well. He explained to me that there is no legal foundation for what they did. In other words they acted at the margins of – and above – the law,” he said.
Wednesday
At the top of his presser, López Obrador expressed his condolences to the family members of the men who were killed in the Ciudad Juárez detention center fire and to the residents and governments of the Latin American countries from which they came.
According to reports, migrants set fire to mattresses after being informed they would be deported. (Juan Ortega/Cuartoscuro)
He said that the Federal Attorney General’s Office was conducting an investigation and pledged that his government wouldn’t “hide the facts.”
“In the face of this [tragedy] that is so painful and so sad for us, we’re not going to act unfairly in any way,” AMLO said.
After various officials presented a bombardment of statistics, including ones related to pensions for seniors (11.2 million recipients), the “Youths Building the Future” apprenticeship scheme (2.6 million participants in the past four years) and the government’s “Internet for Wellbeing” program (20,508 rural localities connected), fake news finder Ana García Vilchis made her regular Wednesday appearance to present another edition of her “Who’s who in the Lies of the Week” segment.
After defending the integrity of the government’s scholarship scheme for students in the wake of a report that questioned the whereabouts of more than 1.6 billion pesos in funding, she took aim at “opposition media outlets” that have reported on flooding at the new Pemex refinery on the Tabasco coast.
“Time and again they falsify information, publishing photos that don’t correspond, doing photomontage, reviving old lies and rehashing false information – a complete cocktail of disinformation,” García said.
She also denounced reports that claimed that Wells Fargo wouldn’t allow remittances to be sent to the government’s Bank of Well-Being due to the latter’s lack of anti-money laundering controls.
Reentering the fray, AMLO directed some of his ire at senior judges and high-ranking electoral officials who earn “double or triple” his salary (about US $9,600 per month gross) despite the constitution saying that no public servant can make more than the president.
“They violated the constitution through an injunction, legal chicanery,” he said before noting that he did succeed in eliminating exorbitant pensions for past presidents.
“How much did they give Fox, Calderón, Salinas, all of them? About 5 million pesos a month,” López Obrador said.
During a subsequent engagement with a storied mañanera figure, a reporter known as Lord Molécula (real name Carlos Pozos), AMLO’s mind suddenly turned to Mexican cinema and specifically a new film called ¡Que viva México!
“I was watching a movie, a churro [dud] against us, … [a film] for the consumption of the conservatives,” he said before going on to explain why he isn’t a big fan of cinema.
“Que Viva México” poster on the back of a Mexico City bus. (@QueVivaMexico__/Twitter)
“I regret [not being a fan] because [cinema] is something exceptional, it’s art, … but perhaps due to the reality in which I live I don’t need more drama. My reality, my experience, is very rich,” the president said.
Among other remarks, AMLO once again asserted that Mexico is a largely safe country as he sought to refute recent comments regarding cartel control made by members of U.S. President Joe Biden’s cabinet.
“I maintain that I, as president, and any person can go to any part of [Mexico’s] national territory,” he said. “Yes, there are more risks in some regions and cities than others, but life goes on unchanged in the entire country.”
Thursday
Members of the Consejo de la Communicación (Communication Council) – a private sector group that aims to raise awareness about social problems and help solve them – were guests of honor at López Obrador’s Thursday press conference.
Francisco Casanueva Pérez, who assumed the presidency of the council at the mañanera, declared that Mexico is facing “significant economic, social and environmental challenges” and asked the president to “allow us to continue joining forces with the federal government” to tackle them.
“We have a shared vision of achieving the wellbeing of society and the progress of our country,” Casanueva said. “Working together – the public sector and the private sector – we can reach our goals.”
Continuing the love-in, López Obrador said that the work of the council – which ran a pro-vaccine campaign during the pandemic and has supported other public health initiatives – is “highly renowned.”
“I want to thank [the council members] for what they did for our people in very difficult times, when we were facing the COVID pandemic in very difficult and sad circumstances. We all joined together and managed to save many lives,” he said. “… This is a council with a social dimension, a civic dimension.”
AMLO with members of the Communication Council at the Thursday press conference. (Gob MX)
Before opening up his presser to questions, López Obrador ran through a range of economic data, highlighting low unemployment, wage growth for formal sector workers, the strength of the peso and record-high remittances, among other favorable pieces of information.
He acknowledged that inflation is a “concern,” but stressed that the scourge is now declining.
During his engagement with reporters, AMLO noted that he had spoken with National Immigration Institute director Francisco Garduño since the detention center fire, but offered no details about the conversation. Asked whether Garduño would remain in his position, the president said that the government would wait for “the result of the investigation” before making any decision.
He later turned his mind to the importance of eating well and exercising. Eating a healthy diet and doing sport is “preventative medicine,” said the 69-year-old heart attack survivor.
“And prevention is better than cure. … We can have specialist hospitals but the best thing is for people not to get sick and we can achieve that with good eating habits, with exercise, by looking after ourselves and that’s why we have this [healthy eating] campaign,” he said.
“… There are other important issues. Water, for example, is extremely important,” AMLO added.
“… We already have problems with a shortage of water in the country and we have to look after water, both surface and subterranean water. There are areas in the country with water stress – there’s no water in other words,” he said.
Friday
Right off the bat, AMLO was asked about the election of Guadalupe Taddei Zavala as president of the National Electoral Institute (INE). He promptly noted that her election and that of three new electoral councilors occurred via sortition, or selection by lottery.
Gudadalupe Taddei, the new president of the INE. (IEE Sonora)
Compared to the “bad habit of dividing the positions between the parties, this is a more democratic way of choosing,” he said. “In ancient Greece this method was used as well, it was part of democracy.”
López Obrador went on to describe Taddei – who has family links to the government – as an “experienced, professional and honest” woman who is “incapable” of acting like outgoing INE chief Lorenzo Córdova, a noted foe of the president. He dismissed a suggestion that the INE was being taken over by the ruling Morena party.
The president was later asked about his exhortation on Monday for citizens not to vote for “the conservatives.”
The INE ruled on Thursday that his remark threatened equity in upcoming elections in México state and Coahuila and ordered the removal of the relevant section of his mañanera from the internet.
AMLO charged he didn’t do anything wrong, although the government has removed Monday’s presser from its websites and social media pages.
“To say ‘not one for vote for conservatism’ is not to say ‘not one vote for PRIAN,'” he said, using a hybrid acronym for the Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, and the National Action Party, or PAN, political allies that are sometimes accused of being one and the same.
AMLO discusses immigration policy at his Friday press conference. (Gob MX)
“If they put on the [conservative] jacket, that’s another thing. There’s not a formal conservative party, right?”
The president put politics aside to discuss the Ciudad Juárez tragedy, noting that he would travel to the border city and meet with the doctors treating the injured migrants.
“I’m going to have a meeting with the doctors to ensure they don’t lack anything, so that we can save lives. That’s the essential thing now,” he said.
“… This case has been very painful for a lot of people. And I confess it has pained me a lot, it has hurt me. I’ve had difficult moments [as president], the most difficult was the explosion in Tlahuelilpan,” AMLO said, referring to the 2019 petroleum pipeline blast in Hidalgo that claimed well over 100 lives.
“That was the hardest event, the one that affected me the most emotionally. And then this, this moved me, it broke my soul.”
By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies ([email protected])
Using just a few basic ingredients, garlic shrimp is easy and quick to make.
In Mexico, you can find garlic shrimp — camarones al ajillo — on menus everywhere; it’s a ubiquitous dish served in seafood restaurants coast to coast (and in between).
It’s simple to make, but like most recipes with just a few ingredients, it can easily go wrong.
A perfectly cooked camaron is a work of art.
Arguably, the most common mistake is overcooking the shrimp, resulting in tough, leathery, flavorless lumps no one wants to eat. No matter their size, shrimp cook in minutes (or less!). The flesh will turn from grey to white that’s tipped with pink, which means that they’re done and need to be removed from the heat.
The other challenge with this dish is cleaning the raw shrimp — always kind of a hassle. At some of the fish markets where I live, the shrimp vendors will clean the shrimp for you, but usually what you’re going to find are bags of flash-frozen shrimp with the heads off, which makes the process a little easier.
Purists will prefer them that way because as soon as the shrimp begins to die, the head releases enzymes that make the flesh mushy. That said, if the heads are still on, cut or break them off; same with the legs.
The shell can be peeled off in one piece and discarded, although in this recipe, we’ll be keeping them to infuse the oil with extra flavor. (They’re also great for making stock; seal them in a freezer bag and save for future use.) Tails can be kept on or twisted off, as you like.
Once the veins are removed, pass the shrimp under running water. You’ll be glad you did.
Now for the gross part: deveining. Hold the shrimp in your left hand with the back side up. With a small, sharp knife, make a slit from end to end, about 1/8-inch deep.
It will split open, and you’ll see a dark blue or black “vein” (actually the digestive tract). Pull that out with the knife and discard. If you’re lucky, it will come out in one piece. I like to do this under running water.
Once the veins are removed, rinse the shrimp well under running water, discarding any veiny bits that may surface. If you’re not using them right away, set the shrimp in a bowl of cold ice water until you’re ready.
Another method is to use a fork to slit the back and pull out the vein with one smooth move. That’s never worked for me, but feel free to give it a try.
For more info about buying, cleaning and cooking with shrimp, go here.
I always try to time making shrimp dishes with garbage night so I can get rid of the shells quickly. Otherwise, I wrap them tightly in two plastic bags before putting them in the trash; in the hot summer, I sometimes put the wrapped shells in the freezer until they can go out in the trash.
What makes this dish stand out? Not the amount of garlic, although that’s certainly part of the flavor profile. What takes this dish to the next level is that you’re going to infuse the oil with a rich shrimp essence you don’t get by just sautéing the camarones in the oil for the few minutes required to cook them. It’s a small additional step that’s well worth the little bit of extra time it takes.
Freshly mincing garlic releases all of its flavorful oils into whatever dish you’re making.
The Best Garlic Shrimp
12 cloves garlic
1 lb. large shrimp, peeled and cleaned, shells reserved
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt (Kosher if you have it)
¼ tsp. baking soda
Pinch red pepper flakes, or a 1-inch piece dried guajillo chili
1½ tsp. sherry vinegar OR red wine vinegar and a pinch of sugar
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
Finely mince four garlic cloves and place in a large bowl. Smash four more of the cloves under the flat side of a knife and place in a large skillet. Thinly slice the remaining four cloves and set aside.
In the bowl with the minced garlic, add shrimp, 3 Tbsp. olive oil, ¾ tsp. salt and baking soda. Toss to combine thoroughly. Set aside at room temperature.
Add shrimp shells, remaining olive oil and pepper flakes to skillet with smashed garlic. Set over low to medium-low heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until the shells are deep ruby-red, the garlic is pale golden brown and the oil is intensely aromatic, about 10 minutes. The oil should be gently bubbling the whole time, but don’t let the garlic burn.
When ready, strain through a fine mesh strainer into a small bowl, tossing and pressing the shrimp shells to extract as much oil as possible. Discard shells and garlic.
Return flavored oil to skillet and heat over medium-high until shimmering. Add sliced garlic and cook, stirring constantly, until garlic turns a pale golden brown, barely 1 minute. Stir in shrimp, tossing and stirring constantly until barely cooked through, about 2 minutes.
Add vinegar and parsley and toss to combine. Season to taste with salt. Serve immediately over rice, or use as a filling in tacos, quesadillas or burritos.
Xavier López, better known as "Chabelo," was a beloved performer best known to generations of Mexicans for his kid-friendly variety show "En Familia Con Chabelo" (Family Time With Chabelo). He died on March 25 at age 88. (En Familia Con Chabelo/Facebook)
Maybe I have been in Mexico too long. I was at the market when I looked up at a television set to find out that performer Xavier López, a.k.a. Chabelo, had died. My response was “no manches!” (You’re kidding!)
Understanding the character known as “the friend of all children” is one key to understanding 20th-century Mexico.
López doing a presentation in character during a Day of the Child event at the Auditorio Nacional in Mexico City in 2007. (Fernando Acevez/Cuartoscuro)
López died at age 88 in Mexico City on March 25, and Mexican newspapers are still writing up homages to him. But they don’t explain why he was/is so important to Mexicans, likely because “everybody knows.”
With a career spanning over six decades, López essentially wound up as a “little boy” with the face of an old man. While he did some other work, including in film and theater — he had a voice role in the movie “Coco” in 2017 — just about his entire career was based on the playing of a single character, Chabelo.
The character was readily identifiable through the voice López affected for the part, his body movements, and his wearing of shorts/cargo pants. It emerged early in his career, appearing in movies, radio and television. But López’s mark on Mexican culture was made with the show “En Familia Con Chabelo” (Family Time With Chabelo), which appeared every Sunday morning for more than 2,400 episodes from 1967 to 2015, according to its broadcaster, Televisa.
That longevity means that Mexican families have two, even three, generations of viewers. Parents who grew up watching him watched him again with their own children. The show was part of a Sunday ritual which included breakfast and, often, Mass.
“En Famila Con Chabelo.” missed only seven broadcasts during its continuous run from 1967 to 2015. According to its broadcaster, Televisa, the show produced 2,459 episodes.
Artisan José Guadaluupe Urbán notes that until relatively recently, Mexican homes had only one television set, so during those hours of the day, having family-friendly entertainment was important. My Mexican husband has fond memories watching the show with his brothers on their parents’ bed, as the family’s only set was in their room.
“En Familia” was a variety and game show for kids and featured celebrity guests — often comedians or musicians performing. Like game shows in the U.S., seeing normal people winning and losing was part of the excitement.
Professional dollmaker Ana Karen Allende appeared on the show once and won, interestingly enough, a doll.
“I can still remember her smell and her blonde hair,” she says.
En Familia con Chabelo | Último Programa
This 2015 ad for the last episode of “En Familia Con Chabelo” gives an idea of the show’s format.
The show’s most famous element was the part of the show called La Catafixia. López made up this word to refer to a gamble that offered contestants the chance to keep a prize they had just won in the game show for an unknown — possibly better, possibly worse — hidden prize on the stage (“The Price is Right” game show does something similar.).
Actress Itatí Cantoral remembers that she was “always nervous” when she saw the Catafixia part of the show.
“I would yell, ‘No, please! Don’t do the Catafixia!'”
Catafixiar has since entered Mexican Spanish, meaning to take a risk with no idea if the result will be better or worse.
In his younger days, López appeared with legendary comedic actor Mario Moreno, left, a.k.a Cantinflas, in the 1962 Mexican film “El Extra.”
The show’s sponsors, such as the candy Paletas Payaso (find them at supermarket checkouts) and the furniture company Muebles Troncoso became famous in Mexico, not only for the plugs that Chabelo did during the show but also for their products appearing as prizes. Many Mexican children’s lists for Santa and/or the Reyes Magos (the Three Wise Men, who give out Christmas holiday gifts to children in Mexico) were based on products they saw on the show.
But the fun and games had a serious side: López promoted values such as teamwork, trust, confidence and even being a good parent, says Jessica Alcántara of the Mexico City media company BBmundo.
The comedy on the show was “white humor,” meaning no satire, sarcasm or innuendo. Although Mexico has another famous “old man dressed as a child,” “El Chavo del 8,” the two shows were distinct — the latter a sitcom, sometimes with a darker edge.
The last episode of “En Familia Con Chabelo” in 2015 was still drawing child viewers almost three generations later after it premiered in 1967. (Armando Monroy/Cuartoscuro)
“En Familia” cut across Mexico’s rather strong class divisions, as it appealed to what Mexicans have in common, especially the appeal to family unity.
“There is not one Mexican person who doesn’t know Chabelo,” journalist Laura Martínez told the BBC.
A 2019 Alliant International University dissertation notes that relating to Chabelo (and other pop culture icons) is something that can separate Mexican immigrants from Mexican-Americans. Mexican Tik-Toker celebrity @jezzzini was embarrassed in London because when he was asked about idols similar to Queen Elizabeth (who had recently died) Chabelo came to mind.
Although he was a legend for his Chabelo persona, Xavier López was far from a one-trick pony: in 2016, he celebrated his 150th performance of a Spanish-language version of the Broadway musical, “Young Frankenstein” at Mexico City’s Teatro Aldama. (Antonio Cruz/Cuartoscuro)
English-language sources about López tend to call him “Mexican-American” or the like because he was born in Chicago, but neither he, and definitely not his fans, would consider him such. His U.S. birth was simply a matter of where his mother was when he was born. He was raised in Mexico and always identified as such.
The show on every level was about family, which López called “…the most beautiful in human life and should be fundamental in television” but lamented that much modern programming is “trash.” He also commented that “The world has changed and therefore the children. It’s not that they have lost their innocence; what has happened is that they live more hurriedly [to grow up].”
One way that the world has changed is that Mexican audiences do not seem to be as forgiving about actors who do not look the age of their parts. Chabelo got a pass until the end, but others from the same era have been recently ridiculed in social media for continuing to play their characters.
After retirement, Chabelo’s fame got a second wind thanks to the same internet… and this is how I know him best. Like Queen Elizabeth, Betty White and others, it seemed that Chabelo/López would live forever.
Internet memes about his longevity are legion, with more appearing after some elderly Mexican celebrity died, implying that Chabelo had outlived yet another contemporary.
Some memes have since appeared since his death, as a kind of homage.
So, yet another person I thought (jokingly) would outlive my relatively young self is now gone, and I have to wonder, “Does this mean Keith Richards will really someday die?”
Leigh Thelmadatter arrived in Mexico over 20 years ago and fell in love with the land and the culture in particular its handcrafts and art. She is the author of Mexican Cartonería: Paper, Paste and Fiesta (Schiffer 2019). Her culture column appears regularly on Mexico News Daily.
If you're an American citizen living and earning an income in Mexico (or any other country outside the U.S.), you still might owe the IRS some tax on that income. (Illustration: Angy Márquez)
April is here! For many, this means the sprouting of spring: perhaps some nice, warm rain, maybe picking some wildflowers, or maybe even getting to see a few cute baby animals.
For those of us either from the U.S. — or who happen to have dual citizenship through a U.S. parent, it also means that tax season is once again upon us.
For U.S. citizens, April (or June if you’re out of the country, though you still must pay by April) is the time to file and very likely pay wherever you might happen to be in the world. If you’ve been an immigrant to another country for 50 years, there are, officially, IRS filing requirements.
If you’ve never really stepped foot in the United States but are a citizen by birth — for example, if you were born in the U.S. to parents who left the country shortly thereafter — there are, officially, IRS filing requirements.
The United States is the only country in the world still holding on to citizenship-based taxation (save a small Eastern African country, Eritrea, who asks its own citizens residing outside of the country to pay them a flat 2% tax on their earnings). That grip, unfortunately for those of us trying to build sensible financial lives in our homes outside of the United States, has only strengthened of late.
And with the extraterritorial law FATCA (Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act), there’s no playing dumb or being “dumb” for that matter: foreign banks are required to report U.S. citizens’ local accounts to the IRS; those banks that refuse to do such reporting simply do not serve anyone with U.S. citizenship.
And for all U.S. citizens, failing to file one’s financials in another country through the FBAR (Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts) can mean extremely heavy fines.
Meant to catch the uber-wealthy and U.S. corporations from stashing cash tax-free oversees, these rules have quite a big negative impact on those of us “regular folk” who live outside of the U.S.
In Mexico — as well as for U.S. expats living around the world — it means that we must deal with two different tax systems: contrary to popular belief, filing and paying taxes to your host country doesn’t mean that you’re off the hook with the U.S.
U.S. tax law does allow some expat taxpayers to take the foreign income exclusion, but not if you’re not a full-time, bona fide resident of Mexico; and if you’re self-employed in Mexico, you can qualify for the exclusion, but the excluded amount will only reduce your regular income tax, not your self-employment tax.
Mr. Lehagre, for his part, is an “accidental American:” though he was born in the US, he has never lived there nor had ties to the country. He and many like him, he says, were not even aware that they were required to file with (and much less pay) the IRS until FATCA came along.
“Imagine the surprise of having to declare your income to the IRS when you have no connection with the United States or even though you left the United States a very long time ago…For accidental Americans, it’s even more Kafkaesque because beyond the fact that many do not even speak English, most did not even know that they had American nationality.”
Examples of this unpleasant situation abound. Says Lehagre: “A business owner, a French citizen born in the United States of two French parents, having left the United States when he was 15 days old and having no connection with the United States, had to, for professional reasons in accordance with the IRS, renounce U.S. citizenship. It cost him over $130,000 in attorney fees and taxes.”
As more and more U.S. citizens move their families to Mexico, it’s easy to see the implications of this for our own children should they decide to stay in Mexico as money-earning adults.
So why is it like this in the first place?
Reasons, of course, are numerous. Lehagre points to the Civil War as a starting point: the US decided that all citizens would need to be taxed to support the war effort, and CBT (citizenship-based taxation) never went away after that.
Redmond adds: “It’s a multidimensional reason…the real question is, why doesn’t the US change to RBT (residency-based taxation) the rest of the world practices?”
For citizens residing outside of the U.S., the consequences of it are quite punitive. Intentionally or not, there are numerous ways in which it restricts many U.S. citizens from accessing financial products to help them save for retirement or invest in both the U.S. (many products are restricted to residents) as well as in their countries of residence.
Another particularly difficult example: the Transition Tax, part of the Tax Cut & Jobs Act (TCJA), a retroactive tax “adversely and ruinously affecting Americans overseas with small to medium sized businesses” who are in the U.S. tax system.
Among those reasons, too, are political ones: “Americans overseas are not a strong voting block, as their votes are diluted across 50 states and territories. Plus, no candidates acknowledge the plight of Americans overseas,” says Redmond. Taxation without representation, indeed.
And who among us immigrants to Mexico haven’t been met with a “that’s what you get” attitude from our fellow citizens? “It is an unusual cultural phenomenon that if one is an American not living in ‘the greatest country in all of mankind,’ one must be hiding money and/or committing some type of nefarious activity,” points out Redmond.
So, what options do U.S. citizens abroad have? As Redmond points out, there are pluses and minuses to any one of them, none of them as perfect as the United States simply ending CBT. These range from “deal with two tax systems and good luck” to renouncing one’s U.S. citizenship or simply choosing to move to the U.S. (whether you’ve lived there before or not).
If you’re like me, none of the choices sound quite fair, which is why lawsuits are currently in the making to fight for residency-based taxation like the rest of the world has (see the link above for the GoFundMe campaign started by Lehagre).
American emigrants face two types of damage, says Redmond. First, there’s the actual damage in terms of financial gains being lost to the U.S. tax system through extraterritorial taxation. Then, there are the opportunities for financial growth that are lost as a result of being outside of the country.
For the growing number of US citizens now permanently living in Mexico, the damage can add up quickly.
Sarah DeVries is a writer and translator based in Xalapa, Veracruz. She can be reached through her website, sarahedevries.substack.com
