OPEC secretary general meets with President López Obrador

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March 10, 2023

Mexico President Lopez Obrador and OPEC leader Haitham Al Ghais — The visit of OPEC Secretary General Haitham Al Ghais to Mexico is historic in that it's the first time OPEC's leader has come here. Mexico is a member of the OPEC+ consortium. (Presidencia)

The federal government has found a like-minded energy sector ally in the chief of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), who on Thursday praised Mexico for investing in oil refineries.

President López Obrador — an energy nationalist who has championed the ongoing use of fossil fuels while showing more muted support for renewables — met in Mexico City with Haitham al-Ghais, secretary general of OPEC, a group of 13 countries including Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria and Venezuela.

OPEC Secretary Haitham Al Ghais with Mexico's Economy Minister Raquel Buenrostro at World Market of Oil presentation in Mexico City — The OPEC secretary general, right, with Economy Minister Rocío Nahle, left, at the World Market of Oil event. (Rocío Nahle/Twitter)

Energy Minister Rocío Nahle also attended the meeting, and later on Thursday hosted a “World Oil Market” event at which al-Ghais was the main draw.

López Obrador, a native of the oil-rich state of Tabasco, noted on social media that it was the first time than an OPEC chief had visited Mexico, and he asserted that he and al-Ghais understood each other well.

The federal government has invested heavily to increase Mexico’s oil refining capacity as the president seeks to make the country self-sufficient for fuel. It has built a new refinery on the Tabasco coast, purchased Shell Oil Company’s share of a jointly-owned refinery in Texas and spent some 50 billion pesos (US $2.7 billion) to upgrade Pemex’s six operational refineries in Mexico.

Al-Ghais, a Kuwaiti oil executive who became OPEC’s chief last August, congratulated Mexico — which is part of a larger OPEC+ grouping of oil-producing nations — for its “vision” in investing in refining capacity at a time when many countries are closing refineries and focusing on growing the renewable energy sector.

Hoy se eligió al nuevo secretario general de la OPEP, Mr. Haitham Al Ghais ocupará el secretariado a partir del próximo 1 de agosto. El @GobiernoMX le extiende una felicitación y deseos de éxito.
Nuestro reconocimiento a Mr. Mohammed Barkindo por la excelente labor realizada. 🇲🇽 https://t.co/bey5D14euV

— Rocío Nahle (@rocionahle) January 3, 2022

When Al Ghais became the secretary of OPEC, in January 2022, Mexico’s Economy Minister Raquel Buenrostro made a point of congratulating him on behalf of Mexico on Twitter.

“Investing is key for a successful future because we’re going to need more oil,” he said at the Energy Ministry event.

“… What you are doing … here in Mexico is not just for the country, … it’s for humanity as a whole, you’re boosting global growth,” al-Ghais said.

He said that OPEC members are also investing heavily in oil production and refining, and noted that he spoke with López Obrador and Nahle about the importance of Mexico reaching self-sufficiency for fuel.

Al-Ghais predicted that demand for oil will continue to grow in coming decades and make up 30% of the world’s energy mix in 2045. He asserted that some US $12.3 trillion in global investment in the oil and gas industries will be required by the same year.

“We have to be realistic. Renewables are not enough. Although we celebrate and support the [energy] transition, today we remain in this reality, not because we don’t want more renewables but because they’re insufficient to meet demand,” al-Ghais said.

López Obrador said Friday that the OPEC chief “values highly what Mexico is doing in terms of oil policy.”

“… We wish that oil was no longer used, that fossil fuels were no longer used, that the environment was looked after more, but there are processes that have to be carried out in the energy transition,” he said.

Tesla gigafactory rendering for Nuevo Leon, Mexico — There are not very many electric vehicles on Mexico’s roads currently, but that could change in the near future: both BMW and Tesla have imminent plans to manufacture EVs here. (Tesla)

“… Two or three years ago, there was a campaign from experts [saying] that oil was no longer going to be used, that everything was going to be electric. And it was so powerful that even multinational oil companies began to believe this forecast and started to put their refineries up for sale,” López Obrador said.

After noting that Mexico’s state oil company Pemex bought Shell’s stake in the Texas refinery, he said he regretted not buying “three instead of one.”

Nahle said Thursday that 53 million vehicles in Mexico collectively require over 1 million barrels of gasoline per day.

There are relatively few electric vehicles on Mexico’s roads, but that could change as the manufacture of EVs ramps up here. Tesla and BMW both recently announced plans to make EVs in Mexico, with the former set to build a gigafactory near the Nuevo León capital of Monterrey.

With reports from Milenio, Expansión, El Economista and El Universal

Health regulator fights to revoke cannabis permits it issued

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MND Staff

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March 9, 2023

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Cannabis plants — The nation's health regulator Cofepris says it can't be sure that the cannabis-containing products to be sold by the company will be safe. (Isabel Mateos Hinojosa/Cuartoscuro)

Health regulator Cofepris has launched a legal challenge against a court ruling that forced it to issue permits to allow the Mexican subsidiary of a Canadian company to cultivate cannabis and make cannabis products in Mexico.

Xebra Brands announced Thursday that Cofepris had granted its Mexican subsidiary Desart MX (known as Xebra México) “an outright first-mover-advantage in Mexico, by officially issuing corporate cannabis authorizations to — among other permissions — import and acquire cannabis seeds, cultivate and harvest cannabis, process and produce cannabis and sell cannabis products both domestically and through export.”

Xebra Brands CBD wellness products — These are some of the products with cannabis that Xebra Brands appears to be ready to sell in Mexico. (Xebra Brands)

“This represents an important moment for cannabis globally, with the first-ever grant for full cultivation, harvesting, processing and commercial activities to a corporate entity in Mexico,” said CEO Jay Garnett.

The company said in a statement that “there are no restrictions on where in Mexico Xebra can cultivate cannabis, nor on the size of the cultivation facilities, [nor] the volume of processing and manufacturing operations.”

“The authorizations will initially apply specifically to the commercialization of cannabis products with low levels of THC (under 1%),” Xebra Brands said.

THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, is the main psychoactive constituent of marijuana — the substance that gets users high, in other words.

Alejandro Svarch Pérez, head of Mexico's Cofepris health regulator agency — Alejandro Svarch Pérez, head of Cofepris, the agency that has raised concerns. (Presidencia)

Xebra Brands said it would provide an update on its plans for the Mexican cannabis market in the coming weeks. It noted that it announced in December 2021 that “five Supreme Court justices voted unanimously in favor of granting Xebra México an irrevocable injunction to commercialize cannabis products.”

Cofepris, however, believes the authorizations it issued can be revoked.

Without naming Xebra, the regulator acknowledged in a statement that it had issued permits for the “cultivation, processing, production and commercialization of industrial cannabis as well as the importation of seeds, processing of plant material and production of cannabidiol [CBD] oil,” which is used to treat health issues such as stress and anxiety and doesn’t cause a “high.”

Cofepris said it only granted the authorizations because it was “obliged” to do so due to a ruling handed down in a district court.

Jay Garnett is the CEO of Xebra Brands. (Xebra Brands)

“The health authority highlights that it fulfilled its obligations as a public institution, complying with legal orders in the face of threats of fines and dismissals of public servants,” it said.

However, Cofepris added that it “doesn’t have sufficient information to determine that this product [cannabis] is safe for the purposes that the multinational intends to use it.”

“… Due to the serious health risk an authorization of this type represents … appeals have been presented in the Third Collegiate Circuit Court, with which [Cofepris] seeks to reverse and invalidate the authorization in order to protect people’s health,” the regulator said, noting that the Interior Ministry is supporting the legal action.

It was unclear when that court would consider the appeals.

The Supreme Court ruled in 2019 that prohibition of marijuana is unconstitutional because criminalization violates the right to free development of personality. It has directed Congress to legalize marijuana for recreational purposes, but lawmakers have repeatedly missed deadlines to do so.

Mexico News Daily

Consider Mexico City for your next family vacation

By

Debbie Slobe

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March 9, 2023

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Ballet Folklórico de México de Amalia Hernández in Mexico City — Think that a Mexican traditional dance show will be a snore-fest for the kids? The writers' daughter was mesmerized by a performance by the Ballet Folklórico de México de Amalia Hernández.

Mexico City might not be the first place that comes to mind when you think of a family-friendly travel destination. Beaches, cruises and Disneyland are probably higher up on your list. But Mexico City isn’t just for foodies, hipsters and history buffs.

With its abundance of kid-friendly museums, parks and other attractions, it’s also a fantastic place for families. It has become our family’s go-to vacation destination, especially in the spring when school is out for the Mexican holidays of Semana Santa (Holy Week) and Easter (Pascua — this year from April 3–14). It’s the perfect time to visit when it isn’t as crowded and the jacaranda trees are blooming.

If you decide to visit Mexico City this spring or anytime, here are some recommendations for where to stay and what to do that the whole family will enjoy.

Where to stay

Mexico City is a massive place, and it’s easy to get overwhelmed deciding where to make your home base. For families, I recommend skipping the big hotels in the city center and staying at a smaller hotel or rental apartment within walking distance of one of the city’s beautiful neighborhood parks, such as Parque Mexico and Parque España in the Condesa neighborhood or Parque Lincoln and Parque América in Polanco.

Staying close to a park gives the kids a place to play any time of day. Most have large playgrounds, skating areas, extensive walking and biking paths, gardens, duck ponds and other unique features like the audioramas (spaces for quiet reflection or reading) in Parque México and Parque España and the aviary at Parque Lincoln. All have ice cream shops, bakeries and cafes nearby — perfect for an after-playtime treat.

Angel of Independence in Mexico City — Most Sundays of the year, the capital’s Reforma Avenue — a feast for the senses that’s easy on the pocket and has some of Mexico’s most famous landmarks — is closed to traffic between 8 a.m. and 2 p.m., perfect for strolling sightseeing.

Active Adventures

If your family likes to be outside and active, there are several great options right in or just outside the city center.

Bosque Chapultepec is a massive park complex in the middle of the city, twice the size of New York’s Central Park. The park has nearly everything a kid could want, including playgrounds, bike paths, a house of mirrors, ziplines, a carousel, a lake with rental boats, a zoo, oodles of food carts and stands selling any treat imaginable, plus a museum just for kids — El Papalote. Recently opened is the Centro de Cultura Ambiental (Center for Environmental Culture), a vast exhibition space and gardens that are free to explore. You could spend all day (or several days) at the Bosque and not see everything.
If you happen to be the city on a Sunday, I recommend getting the family down to Avenida Reforma when the street is closed to car traffic from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. (except on the last Sunday of the month and during December) and join the throngs of folks walking, biking, strolling and skating down the avenue. It’s a pedestrian party that passes by several architectural gems such as el Ángel de la Independencia, Mexico’s iconic monument, which is great to see when there are no cars to contend with.
About a 1.5-hour drive north of the city center is the pre-Hispanic architectural complex of Teotihuacán. Here, you can explore what was once one of the most populous and influential cities in Mesoamerica, and marvel at the size of the pyramids of the Sun and the Moon. You can also get a birds-eye view of the site on one of the hot-air balloon rides available.

Museo Jumex in Mexico City — Despite being a museum of contemporary art, the Museo Jumex has lots of quirky, kid-friendly exhibits.

Art & Culture

If you are looking to expose your kids to the arts, here are some must-do experiences:

The Ballet Folklórico de Mexico de Amalia Hernandez is a world-renowned dance company that performs traditional dances from all over Mexico. If you catch their show at either the Palacio de Belles Artes or Castillo de Chapultepec, you will be treated not only to a stunning performance but also experience it in some breathtaking surroundings. We’ve seen the performance in both locations, and our daughter and her friends were simply mesmerized.
You might not think a trip to a modern art museum would be something a kid would enjoy, but the exhibits at the Museo Jumex are out-of-this-world extraordinary and engaging, even for youngsters. Another modern art museum to check out is the Museo del Futuro (MUFO) a funky art “experience” featuring unique exhibits which use light and sound to vibrate your whole body, as well as an immersive digital art hall with flowing and vibrant shapes and patterns.
If you visit this spring, don’t miss “Disney’s Aladdin,” starring Mexican leading man Rodney Ingram, who appeared on the production on Broadway. Even if you don’t understand Spanish, you will appreciate the fantastic music, dancing, costumes and sets, and your kids will thank you a million times over for taking them. Performances run through April 16, 2023.

boat rides at Xochimilco, Mexico City — The boat rides at Xochimilco include food offerings and live mariachi bands that can play on your vessel. The outing was a hit with these discerning travelers.

Kids’ Top Picks

Of course, the best recommendations come from kids themselves. Here are some of our daughter’s and her friends’ favorite attractions and treats in Mexico City.

Kidzania is hands-down their favorite attraction. It’s a mini indoor city created just for kids, where they basically have total autonomy to explore and do “jobs” like firefighter, police officer, scientist, engineer, chef and more, and make “money” they can spend on toys and treats. The whole thing is, of course, sponsored by corporations, but it’s really well done. Parents have their own hangout area, and the kids wear bracelets that transmit their location so that you can keep track of their whereabouts while you sit back and chill.
Your kids will love a day out on the colorful boats of Xochimilco — a historic canal system that was the city’s main mode of transport in pre-Hispanic times. You can hire a boat for about 600 pesos per hour and cruise the canals and enjoy a song from one of the floating mariachi bands or lunch from a boat-based taquería. It’s a bit of a party scene on the weekends, so it’s best to go during the week to avoid the crowds and booze-cruisers.
As for where to find the best treats, our kids’ favorites include El Moro for churros and hot chocolate, Bendita Paleta and Gelato for ice cream, Pasteleria Suiza for cakes and chocolates, and daring their dad to eat scorpions at the Mercado San Juan!

Debbie Slobe is a writer and communications strategist based in Chacala, Nayarit. She blogs at Mexpatmama.com and is a senior program director at Resource Media. Find her on Instagram and Facebook.

Thousands across Mexico march for International Women’s Day

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MND Staff

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March 9, 2023

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Veracruz International Women's Day march 2023 — Women march in Xalapa, Veracruz. The woman's sign in the foreground says, "For those who left and never returned." (Cuartoscuro)

“They were taken alive, we want them back alive” and “not one more [femicide]” were among the chants heard across Mexico on Wednesday as women took to the streets to demand an end to gender violence on International Women’s Day.

Marches were held in numerous cities, including Guadalajara, Monterrey, Morelia, Chihuahua, Puebla, Oaxaca, Zacatecas and Mérida.

Marchers at International Women's Day March 2023 in Mexico City — Female drummers marching in Mexico City. Their shirts say, “Silence doesn’t protect.” (Graciela López Herrera/Cuartoscuro)

In Mexico City, some 90,000 women and girls participated in a march that concluded in the Zócalo, the capital’s central square. Silvia Vargas, a 67-year-old woman whose daughter was murdered in 2014, was in the crowd.

“Not everyone gets human rights; governments and institutions determine them,” she told the Reuters news agency. “I’m going home to an absence that has marked me for life.”

Around 10 women are killed every day in Mexico, and other forms of gender violence such as rape and assault are common.

Another concern for many women is the absence of abortion rights in most Mexican states. Abortion is legal in just 10 of Mexico’s 31 states, as well as in Mexico City.

International Women's Day protests in Merida, Mexico — In Mérida, some protesters accosted police assigned to the march, and spraypainted slogans on police shields and the Government Palace. (Martín Zetina/Cuartoscuro)

Demonstrators in the Yucatán capital of Mérida were among those calling for abortion to be legalized in their state. Women across the country wore green to demonstrate their support for abortion rights and/or purple — the color of the feminist movement.

While the Mexico City government said the march in Mexico City was largely peaceful, it also said that “a small group of people with their faces covered used explosive devices, sticks and other dangerous objects to break glass and cause disturbances.”

Police seized a range of items, including hammers, bats, aerosol paint cans and flammable liquids, government officials said.

In Monterrey, small groups of aggressive protesters vandalized buildings in the city center and set fire to the front doors of the Nuevo León government palace. There were also clashes between demonstrators and police.

International Women's Day march 2023 in Mazatán, Sinaloa. — An organizer rallies the crowd at a International Women’s Day march march in Mazatlán, Sinaloa. (Rose Egelhoff)

A “handful” of people “attacked, pushed and insulted” female police officers, Nuevo León Governor Samuel García said on Twitter on Thursday.

“They even reached the point of shouting, ‘Burn them, for being traitors.’ For me and the rest of Nuevo León, it’s clear that you did your job: to protect and to serve. My admiration and respect again. Thank you,” Garcia wrote.

At his Wednesday morning press conference, President López Obrador — who has been accused of having a “woman problem” — declared that his government supports “women’s fight in defense of their rights” and asserted that a lot of progress has been made on the issue in Mexico.

International Women's Day rally in Veracruz, Mexico — A quiet moment at a rally in Veracruz. (Victoria Razo/Cuartoscuro)

The “fourth transformation is feminist,” he declared at an International Women’s Day event later on Wednesday, using a byword for his government and the change he says it is bringing to Mexico.

With reports from El Financiero, La Jornada and Reuters

AMLO discusses gigafactory plans with Tesla team

By

Cat Rainsford

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March 9, 2023

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AMLO and ministers with Tesla technicians and executives — President López Obrador said "we advanced" on the factory plans after meeting with Tesla executives and technicians.(@LopezObrador Twitter)

President López Obrador met with Tesla executives at the National Palace on Wednesday to discuss the company’s construction of a new electric car gigafactory in Nuevo León.

The meeting was attended by the Economy Minister, Raquel Buenrostro; Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard; Finance Minister Rogelio Ramírez de la O; and Germán Martínez Santoyo, head of the National Water Commission (Conagua).

Mexican ministers and Tesla executives meet to discuss the new plant in Nuevo Leon — President López Obrador and his cabinet met with Tesla executives and technicians to discuss investment and development of Tesla’s new gigafactory in Nuevo León. (Presidencia/Twitter)

“We met with Tesla executives and technicians. We advanced on the project of the automotive plant of Nuevo León and on others. We’re doing well,” AMLO said on Twitter.

Tesla’s huge gigafactory will be constructed in the municipality of Santa Catarina, about 17 kilometers from Monterrey, with an expected investment of US $5 billion. It will have the capacity to produce 1 million cars a year, which may include Tesla’s upcoming “Model 2”.

The factory is expected to employ around 6,000 people and create nearly 30,000 more indirect jobs. It will generate about 250 million pesos (US $13.8 million) in taxes for the municipality.

AMLO was previously skeptical of Tesla’s plans to invest in Nuevo León, citing the state’s historic water shortages. He suggested the southeast of the country as a more suitable location.

Tesla production line — A Tesla gigafactory assembly line, similar to the one that will be built in Nuevo León. (Tesla)

Despite these misgivings, the president announced a deal last week, under which Tesla will first conduct an evaluation of Nuevo León’s water supply to ensure the factory’s usage will not threaten local consumption.

Tesla sent between 30 and 50 people to the northern state this week to start preparing the area for construction. Specialists warn that leveling the ground will be a complicated process, as the area is “very rugged”.

Nevertheless, the governor of Nuevo León, Samuel García, said that construction was expected to start in April or May, and would proceed rapidly. It is hoped that the factory will be fully operational by the end of this year or early 2024.

“Today, work begins between the Tesla team, the state government team and the city team for the critical journey from here to the first stone of the Tesla gigafactory, which we hope will be in a month, maximum two and a half months,” said Jesús Nava, mayor of Santa Catarina.

Tesla also has plans for other investments in Mexico, according to Reforma newspaper, including an electric battery factory.

With reports from Reforma and Forbes

Inflation declines in February

By

MND Staff

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March 9, 2023

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The entrance to the Central Bank of Mexico (Banxico) — The Bank of Mexico announced Thursday that it was ending a nearly 2-year-streak of raising interest rates. (Santiago Castillo Chomel/Shutterstock)

Annual headline and core inflation rates both declined in February compared to the previous month, indicating that record high interest rates are helping to moderate consumer prices.

The national statistics agency INEGI reported Thursday that headline inflation was 7.62% last month, down from 7.91% in January.

A stallholder sells vegetables at a tianguis — The volatile price of food has driven inflation in recent months. (Alejandro Linares Garcia)

The rate – the lowest since last March – was slightly lower than the 7.67% consensus from analysts surveyed by Citibanamex.

The core inflation rate, which strips out some volatile food and energy prices, fell to 8.29% in February from 8.45% in January. That rate is also slightly below the forecast of analysts polled by Citibanmex.

The publication of the latest inflation data comes exactly one month after the Bank of México (Banxico) lifted its benchmark interest rate by 50 basis points to a new record high of 11%.

The central bank’s board will hold its next monetary policy meeting on March 30. Inflation remains well above Banxico’s target of 3% plus or minus one percentage point.

The bank said last month that it expects inflation to converge to its target in the final quarter of 2024, but noted that the projection is subject to a range of risks including “pressures on energy prices or on agricultural and livestock product prices” and “exchange rate depreciation.”

Banxico also said that its next upward adjustment to its interest rate “could be of lower magnitude” compared to the 50-basis-point hike it announced Feb. 9.

INEGI data shows that prices for processed food, beverages and tobacco rose 13.7% over the past 12 months, the highest increase among the different categories monitored.

Inflation for goods in general was 10.65% while meat prices rose 10.22%. Fruit and vegetables were 8.12% more expensive in February than a year earlier, the cost of services increased 5.55% and energy prices, including those for fuel and electricity, rose 2.77%.

Banorte said Thursday that both headline and core inflation “will likely show a clearer decline for the rest of the year due to favorable base effects stemming from the distortions after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in late February 2022.”

“Another positive factor is the accumulated appreciation of the Mexican peso in annual terms, with the latter reaching its strongest level since 2017,” the bank said in a statement.

However, “companies’ hesitancy to cut and/or reduce the pace of recent price increases as the economy remains resilient and cost pressures abound” and “the possibility of a harsh drought season in coming months” could affect the pace at which inflation declines, Banorte said.

With reports from El Financiero, El Economista and El Universal

The Healing Words Project: Empowering women through art

By

Ann Marie Jackson

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March 8, 2023

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Kate Van Doren Healing Words Project — Alaina and Scarlet (From Kate Van Doren's Healing Words Project)

“Words are powerful. Every March, I put the rest of my work on hold and do this project because it’s that important to me.” —Kate Van Doren, artist

Artist and art therapist Kate Van Doren invites participation in her Healing Words Project in San Miguel de Allende again this year. The project draws particular attention each March around International Women’s Day (Mar. 8), when women are photographed with empowering words of their choosing inscribed on their bodies.

The Healing Words Project was born in the lead-up to the 2020 national women’s strike, Un día sin mujeres (“A day without women”), a protest against the epidemic of violence and femicide (defined as the murder of a woman on account of her gender) in Mexico.

Van Doren noticed women’s posts on social media encouraging each other to temporarily “disappear” on Mar. 9, by staying home from work and refraining from participating in the country’s economy for one day.

During this time, Van Doren also attended the Zona Maco international art fair in Mexico City, where she was impacted by the visceral work of a feminist artist who sewed words of protest into the clothing of women and children.

“I almost dropped to my knees and couldn’t move from the spot,” Van Doren told me. “When we’re exposed to art, it impacts us on multiple levels, subconsciously as well as consciously. The messages I took in affected me deeply.”

International Women's Day flash mob in San Miguel de Allende — Ser Mujer flash mob. (Kate Van Doren)

The experience provided inspiration, and the upcoming women’s strike imbued Van Doren with a sense of urgency. “That’s when I felt compelled to act. I had a dream that women would write on their own bodies instead of on clothing.”

After the first few photos were seen, increasing numbers of women asked Van Doren for a photo of their own to post on social media as a signal to other women that they planned to participate in the upcoming strike. The project went viral.

Ser Mujer, a San Miguel women’s activist group, took notice. Ser Mujer had a flash mob in the works for International Women’s Day, and through a government contact, the group obtained a list of women murdered in the state of Guanajuato in the previous year. “We wrote the names and ages of murdered women on dancers’ arms,” Van Doren explained, “along with words of reclamation and empowerment.”

Van Doren photographed hundreds of women on the day of the flash mob, and hundreds more in the weeks that followed. “I felt such a calling, I was stopping people on the street.” The photographs were displayed at a well-attended exhibition at a gallery in San Miguel’s historic Fábrica La Aurora art and design space.

Healing Words Project by Kate Van Doren — Gillian and Eileen. (Kate Van Doren)

After a 2021 COVID hiatus, Van Doren updated the exhibition in 2022. The state government would no longer release a list of the year’s murdered women, but members of Ser Mujer received many names through support groups for families of the disappeared.

The lack of complete information about femicides is a widespread problem. “In my investigations,” noted Van Doren, “I found no reliable tracking system. I also learned that rates of femicide among Indigenous women in the U.S. and Canada are particularly horrifying. That inspired me to open up the project beyond Mexico. This is global.”

According to recent World Bank data, Mexico is among the countries with the highest levels of femicide worldwide, along with El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Venezuela, Central African Republic, South Africa, Jamaica, and Guyana. While falling below the aforementioned countries, the rate is also appalling in the United States. Three women are murdered every day by current or former partners in the U.S., per U.N. data. Around the world, one out of every three women experience physical or sexual violence during their lifetimes. Someone you personally know carries that trauma.

This year, Van Doren found that changing the name of her project from Un día sin mujeres — an homage to the 2020 women’s strike — to the Healing Words Project (Proyecto Palabras Curativas) made people even more receptive to participating. “Words are powerful. People use these words to reclaim what was taken from them. To reclaim themselves.”

Moreover, she noted, participants are creative. One woman this year chose the Ho Oponopono prayer, the Hawaiian prayer of forgiveness toward an aggressor, one of the hardest things a person can do.

Healing Words Art Project Kate Van Doren — Camila Sánchez Bolaño. (Kate Van Doren)

As an art therapist, Van Doren believes in process over product. Although everyone wants a beautiful photo in the end, the process is a big part of what’s so powerful about this project. “It’s really about healing. Women need a place to put their trauma.”

In addition, many women brought their young kids and teens to their photo shoots, so conversations about the project began to happen organically with the children. “We had to talk about why we were thinking of empowering words to write on our arms, so we started talking about our basic human need for security and where we can go if we’re scared, who we can talk to,” said Van Doren. “It started becoming an early intervention project around basic human rights, not always about women or men but about what everyone deserves as a human being.”

“Different cultures have different values and different family scripting,” Van Doren continued. “I’ve always been very careful to not say right or wrong but just to listen actively and hold space—and then to ask, ‘Ok, now that we’ve talked about this, what do you want to say?’ And that’s the best part. I see it as pulling the apple from the tree and then taking a bite and consuming it. The person gets to manifest this really powerful part of themselves.”

Kate Van Doren and subjects — Kate Van Doren with subjects Isabel Castrejón and Gina (Tuti) Acosta. (Sean Reagan Photography)

Van Doren prefers to shoot only one to three people at a time now. It takes longer, but she finds the process more satisfying with more time to get to know the subject.

“We talk about what they’re reclaiming for themselves. And that’s the meat. That’s where the healing happens.”

I encourage residents and visitors to San Miguel de Allende who would like to participate in the Healing Words Project to contact the artist through her website. Participants receive digital images for free, and prints can be ordered from the website.

Based in San Miguel de Allende, Ann Marie Jackson is a writer and NGO leader who previously worked for the U.S. Department of State. Her novel The Broken Hummingbird will be out in October. Ann Marie can be reached through her website, annmariejacksonauthor.com

Ovidio Guzmán denies he’s the son of ‘El Chapo’

By

MND Staff

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March 8, 2023

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Ovidio Guzmán – an alleged Sinaloa Cartel leader arrested in January — claimed on Tuesday that he is not the son of imprisoned drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán Loera.

The presumed leader of the “Los Chapitos” faction of the cartel made the surprising claim at a court hearing at which he was formally notified of the United States request for his extradition.

Guzmán is wanted in the U.S. on a total of 11 drug trafficking, firearm possession and money laundering charges and could be imprisoned for life if convicted.

Appearing at the hearing via video link from the Altiplano maximum-security prison in México state, the 32-year-old suspect asserted that his arrest was a case of mistaken identity.

“I’m not the person they believe I am, that the United States is asking for,” he said.

Despite that assertion, the suspect identified himself as Ovidio Guzmán López and, in an offhanded remark, acknowledged that “El Chapo” was his father.

A lawyer for Guzmán, Alberto Díaz Mendieta, also told the judge that his client was not the son of Guzmán Loera, who was sentenced to life in prison in the United States in 2019.

Prosecutors countered that he matched the physical description included in the United States’ extradition request.

Díaz also claimed that the extradition request submitted by the United States to Mexico’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs didn’t comply with conditions set out in the extradition treaty between the two countries. He said he would file a request for an injunction against his client’s extradition.

Judge Rogelio Díaz Villarreal ruled that Guzmán must remain in prison while the extradition request remains unresolved.

The accused was first arrested in Culiacán in 2019 but released a short time later due to the violent response of Sinaloa Cartel members and fears that a bloodbath could ensue.

His second arrest on the morning of Jan. 5 preceded a day of violent chaos, with 10 soldiers and 19 alleged criminals killed in clashes, according to the Defense Ministry.

With reports from El Economista, Reforma and El Universal

Over 300 migrants found in abandoned trailer in Veracruz

By

MND Staff

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March 8, 2023

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migrants left in a trailer on the side of the road in Veracruz, Mexico — 103 unaccompanied minors were among the migrants found in a trailer left beside the Cosamaloapan-La Tinaja highway in Veracruz. (INM)

Over 100 unaccompanied children were among more than 300 migrants found Sunday night in an abandoned tractor-trailer in Veracruz.

The National Immigration Institute (INM) said that its agents located 343 migrants in a trailer left beside the Cosamaloapan-La Tinaja highway in the Gulf coast state.

There were 103 unaccompanied minors among the migrants, most of whom are Guatemalan, the INM said.

The remainder were adults and a small number of children traveling with their families. They are from Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Ecuador, the INM said.

The institute said that the trailer in which they were found had fans and vents in its roof, features that likely prevented illness or even deaths among the migrants.

The INM also said that the migrants — who presumably paid people smugglers to be transported through Mexico — were wearing “colored bracelets as a means of identification.”

Mother of two migrants who died in tractor trailer abandoned in Texas — Tractor-trailers are often used by smugglers of migrants, often with fatal consequences. This Veracruz woman’s two children (who were 16 and 19 at the time) died in June in a group of 50 migrants suffocated inside a tractor-trailer found in San Antonio, Texas. (Yerania Rolón Rolón/Cuartoscuro)

The minors — as well as “several families” consisting of a total of 28 people — were placed in the care of the DIF family services agency while 212 adults traveling without children “will begin the administrative process to define their legal situation” in Mexico,” the INM said.

They are likely being held in an INM detention center.

Migrants are frequently detected traveling through Mexico in tractor-trailers, a risky journey that can have fatal consequences.

At least 55 migrants were killed in December 2021 when the semi in which they were traveling crashed in Chiapas, while more than 50 others died last June after being trapped in stifling conditions in a tractor-trailer found abandoned in San Antonio, Texas.

Among the measures Mexico has taken to stem the flow of migrants through the country is the deployment of the National Guard and National Immigration Institute agents.

The federal government has also extended its “Youth Building the Future” apprenticeship scheme and the the “Sowing Life” reforestation/employment program to Central American countries as part of efforts to deter northward migration.

But with ongoing problems such as poverty and crime in Central America as well as push factors in some South American and Caribbean countries, migrants have continued to illegally cross the Mexico-United States border in large numbers.

U.S. border officials apprehended migrants a record 2.2 million times in U.S. fiscal year 2022, which ended in September, while over 700,000 encounters were recorded in the first three months of FY 2023.

Mexico News Daily

US-style barbecue in Mexico City — a story of integration?

By

Leigh Thelmadatter

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March 8, 2023

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U.S-style barbecued chicken at La Obrera Grill in Mexico City — Chicken barbecued to perfection at La Obrera Grill, just south of the historic center. (La Obrera Grill)

You can certainly find ethnic (non-Mexican) restaurants in Mexico City, but it is not accurate to compare them with the food scenes of places like New York, Sydney or London.

Mexico’s relationship with immigration and new foods is different. Perhaps the story of U.S.-style barbecue can shed some light on this.

Smoked brisket time at Pinche Gringo BBQ in Mexico City. (PGBBQ)

Its adoption should be a no-brainer. Robb Walsh, author on various books about Texas cuisine, notes that “Barbecue has always rambled back and forth across the Rio Grande with little regard for borders.”

Even the English word “barbecue” is related to the Spanish barbacoa.

Interestingly, the most active scene right now for barbecue is not in northern Mexico but rather Mexico City.

Although there were earlier introductions, Mexico City’s barbecue story really begins in 2013, with the opening of Pinche Gringo BBQ (PGBBQ), started by Dan Defossey and Roberto Luna as a couple of food trucks parked in the remains of a building in Colonia Navarte.

Neither of them had experience in barbecue, nor did they do any serious marketing studies.

“For the first month that we started, I was literally standing on the corner, offering brisket samples to people that were walking down the street,” Defossey says.

However, the name was controversial, and the ensuing fight with city authorities gained the new business promotion, drawing crowds.

Since then, the business has grown into a more upscale dining experience in two locations.

PGBBQ’s success quickly led to competitors, the largest of which is Porco Rosso, founded in 2015 by chef Bobby Graig and the Rigoletti Group.

Porco Rosso’s barbecue style is based on that of Kansas City. Today, it has six locations in Mexico City, with also one each in Puebla and in Pachuca.

Despite its humble origins, barbecue is not poor man’s food in Mexico City. Heavy on expensive pork and beef, sandwiches start at 200 pesos and full meals at 300. But most important is the recreation of a U.S. dining experience.

Defossy describes going to PGBBQ “… like you’re stepping into Texas or Tennessee…” with rustic brick walls and wood furniture — absolute musts in all Mexico City barbecue joints.

Pinche Gringo BBQ — Pinche Gringo’s Polanco location in a former warehouse in Mexico City’s affluent Anzures neighborhood — just north of the also affluent Polanco neighborhood. (PGBBQ)

Ribs are the main (and most expensive) attraction, followed by brisket. Traditional sides are usually available, including sweet corn, mac and cheese and pinto beans with U.S. beers and even root beer and cream soda (still rare in Mexico City).

Most barbecue restaurants host specials for U.S. holidays such as Thanksgiving, Fourth of July and the biggest, Super Bowl Sunday. Defossey is particularly proud of his Thanksgiving menu, noting that he can offer “…Mexicans who would never be able in their life … to experience a real Thanksgiving…”

Interestingly, most barbecue restaurant customers are not Americans or even foreigners but upper-class Mexicans who have either experienced it north of the border or have seen it in the media.

Defossy estimates that 60%–70% of his customers are Mexican, and the restaurant Smokes BBQ House in Mexico City’s Del Valle neighborhood — a strip of Insurgentes Avenue that’s known for its upscale and chain restaurants — estimates that Mexicans make up a whopping 95% of their clientele. This is true even for Super Bowl Sunday.

Pinche Gringo and Porco Rosso remain the favorites. Smaller joints have opened since then, but not all have made it. Almost all are located in upper-class neighborhoods.

Smokes owner Jorge Carlos’ connection to barbecue comes through his work with American football, and he uses this sport’s popularity with the same Mexican demographic to attract customers through specials related to U.S. football games (like playoffs) and football-themed decorations.

Barbecue’s popularity has led other restaurants like Galo Cervecero — a sports bar in the Condesa neighborhood — to put sandwiches and ribs on their menus. Some have opened restaurants outside of the upper-class neighborhoods but have a tougher time, both because of cost and because most ethnic food/new tastes find more acceptance among Mexicans with international experience.

Also, the foreigners who might appreciate the cuisine don’t know how to find them.

For example, foreign resident Peter Boone Schwethelm calls Tini’s BBQ restaurant “f*cking legit” south Texas style, but since they are located in Naucalpan, Mexico state, foreigners do not go there.

A little more central is La Obrera Grill, located just south of Mexico City’s historic center. It is run by a local Mexican family with long grilling experience who actually learned about U.S. barbecue from other restaurants in the city.

Some restaurants make it by offering a wide menu only tangentially related to barbecue. Ahumados Pelican is located in the gentrifying Santa María la Ribera neighborhood, but it offers Korean barbecue and more.

Even those who have success as a U.S. barbecue joint need to walk a fine line between authenticity and innovation because of the market they serve. U.S. smokers are proudly on display. Pinche Gringo’s location in Polanco features large windows onto the area where the cooking is done.

One thing the restaurant Smokes BBQ House in Mexico City’s Del Valle neighborhood certainly gets right is the U.S’s tendency toward ridiculously large portion sizes. (Smokes through FB)

But there is pressure to make changes.

“While there are places in Texas that have been making their barbecue exactly the same way for 80 years … the market here is different,” Carlos says. “[We] don’t understand barbecue the same way. I get requests to add things to the menu or to make new versions of our staples, often adding condiments like sauces, although they are not used widely in authentic Texas barbecue.”

Porco Rosso has played extensively with its menu, even introducing a vegan burger in 2021.

This may not be absolutely inauthentic.

“… Texas barbecue may be catching on in [Mexico City], the hot new trend in Houston is Tex-Mex barbecue with fusion dishes like brisket tacos…”

However, those looking for exactly what they could get in the States may be disappointed. Ethnic restaurants here in Mexico City mostly cater to a certain socioeconomic demographic rather than to recent immigrants and a culture accustomed to new flavors. This is true even for U.S. cuisine, despite the fact that plenty of Americans live here.

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.