Fuel theft on the rise again but the loss to Pemex is still a fraction of what it was

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May 24, 2022

Pemex pipeline explosion Nopala, Hidalgo — An explosion in Nopala, Hidalgo, in January caused by fuel theft from a Pemex pipeline.

The federal government has drastically reduced fuel theft since it took office in late 2018, but the crime still cost the state oil company Pemex a significant amount of money over the past three years and is now on the rise again.

Information obtained by the newspaper Milenio via freedom of information requests showed that fuel theft cost Pemex 2.46 billion pesos (US $123.6 million) between 2019 and 2021. The figure represents a loss of just under 2.25 million pesos (almost US $112,000) per day in the three-year period.

While the loss over the past three years is substantial, it is in fact a 98% decrease compared to that incurred by Pemex in the final three years of the government led by former president Enrique Peña Nieto. Pemex said in a 2019 report that fuel theft cost the company 147.2 billion pesos (US $7.4 billion at today’s exchange rate) between 2016 and 2018.

The huge decrease in losses emphasizes the vast size of the fuel theft problem inherited by the current government. While AMLO’s administration has succeeded in reducing its incidence compared to the final years of the Peña Nieto government, data shows that illegal taps on state-owned pipelines increased by 14.6% in the first quarter of this year compared to the same period in 2021.

former president Enrique Peña Nieto — Fuel theft cost Pemex 98% less in losses during AMLO’s administration than in the final three years of former President Enrique Peña Nieto’s. Government of Mexico

Authorities detected 3,199 taps between January and March, an increase of 409 compared to the first quarter of 2021.

Just over 45% of the total – 1,454 – were detected in Hidalgo, where an explosion on a tapped pipeline killed almost 140 people in 2019. Pipeline taps in the state increased 17% annually in the first quarter.

México state and Puebla ranked second and third, respectively, for pipeline taps in the first three months of the year with 477 in the former state and 267 in the latter.

Cuatepec de Hinojosa, a Hidalgo municipality on that state’s border with Puebla, is currently Mexico’s fuel theft capital with more taps detected there than in any other municipality.

Despite the recent increase in taps, Security Minister Rosa Icela Rodríguez said Monday that the government is achieving “encouraging results” in its ongoing fight against fuel theft.

Speaking at President López Obrador’s morning press conference, she highlighted that 72,000 barrels of fuel were stolen every day when the government took office, while the figure for April was 6,700 barrels per day (bpd), a reduction of over 90%. The savings generated by the government’s military-led crackdown on fuel theft between December 2018 and April 2022 are estimated to be just over 206 billion pesos (US $10.4 billion), Rodríguez said.

She presented additional data that showed that the volume of fuel stolen has recently increased. The figure rose to 5,800 bpd in March from 4,500 bpd in February before jumping 15.5% in the space of a month to 6,700 bpd in April.

The International Crisis Group, an NGO, warned earlier this year that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine could make fuel theft more lucrative and prevalent in Mexico, but it was unclear whether the recent spike was related to that conflict.

Mexican soldier guarding gas pipelines in Hidalgo — A soldier in Hidalgo, part of a deployment of soldiers guarding 327 kilometers of pipelines across the state.

National Defense Minister Luis Cresencio Sandoval told López Obrador’s Monday press conference that the military is carrying out operations in rural and urban areas to detect illegal taps on pipelines.

“The deployment has been strengthened with a greater number of elements,” he said, adding that military aircraft support the efforts.

Sandoval also said that the military and the National Guard conduct operations to seize stolen fuel. Security forces check the documentation of tanker trucks traveling on the nation’s highways and carry out “administrative visits” to gas stations, he said.

The army chief explained that soldiers monitor the flow of fuel through the nation’s pipelines from Pemex headquarters in Mexico City to detect illegal taps and highlighted that the military has a coordinating center in Hidalgo.

The overarching aim, he said, is to strengthen the anti-fuel theft strategy in order to reduce the incidence of a crime that has once again begun to grow.

Almost 850 pipeline taps were detected and repaired over the past month while 761,000 liters of stolen fuel were recovered, data shows. In the same period, authorities seized 135 vehicles and six properties used by fuel thieves and detained 31 people.

With reports from Milenio

Health minister says neoliberalism to blame for increase in chronic illnesses

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MND Staff

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May 24, 2022

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Hugo Lopez-Gatell — Hugo López-Gatell at the 75th World Health Assembly's opening event on Sunday. He challenged the thinking that the private sector is more efficient than the public.Photos from Hugo López-Gatell/twitter

Neoliberalism has contributed to an increase in the prevalence of chronic diseases in Mexico and around the world, according to Deputy Health Minister Hugo López-Gatell.

The federal government defines Mexico’s neoliberal period as the 36 years between 1982 and 2018, the year President López Obrador took office.

Speaking at the World Health Organization’s 75th World Health Assembly in Switzerland on Tuesday, López-Gatell said that “another world is possible for health and peace,” but hindering its construction is a “structural barrier” in the form of an “economic system that has concentrated wealth, degraded our ecosystems and protected commercial interests over health interests.”

“Neoliberalism as a doctrine and a system has justified itself with the dogma that the private sector is invariably more efficient than the public sector,” he said.

Hugo Lopez Gatell at World Health Assembly 2022 — Among other social ills, Gatell also blamed neoliberalism for job insecurity, degradation of ecosystems and food insecurity.

“… The negative effects of this model are enormous,” López-Gatell added, citing social inequality, job insecurity, degradation of ecosystems, the dismantling of welfare systems, food insecurity, an increase in violence and erosion of cultural wealth.

“The health of our people has consequently deteriorated,” the deputy minister said.

The government’s coronavirus czar said the COVID-19 pandemic has provided “three fundamental lessons,” the first of which was that the “enormous burden of chronic illnesses … resulting from the individual and collective lifestyles that neoliberalism creates a favorable atmosphere for, is the biggest risk factor associated with serious COVID.”

López-Gatell also said that the pandemic has highlighted the need to “close the enormous gaps of social and economic inequality” in order to have communities that are resistant to future health emergencies. In addition, it has shown that universal health care schemes are essential in order to guarantee social wellbeing, he said.

Hugo Lopez Gatell at WHA 2022 — López-Gatell also participated in a WHA forum on obesity, organized by World Obesity, a global NGO. World Obesity

“Improving health doesn’t depend as much on personal decisions as it does on modifying structural factors. We must generate conditions and capacities to mobilize and empower communities [and] manage natural resources for their benefit,” López-Gatell said.

In a five-minute address, the deputy minister also railed against multinational companies that produce processed food and beverages, which he described as the “driving force” behind chronic diseases. He has previously described sugary drinks as “bottled poison.”

López-Gatell also told the WHO event that “we need to fight resolutely against tobacco and alcohol addiction,” which he claimed is “induced and stimulated by an industry that systematically corrupts the efforts of regulation and control by governments.”

He accused tobacco and alcohol companies of using “tactics to recruit minors through new and emerging products like vaping devices and electronic cigarettes.”

The deputy minister’s attack on neoliberalism is in line with the rhetoric of López Obrador, who blames past neoliberal governments for all manner of problems plaguing Mexico today.

In 2020, the president claimed that the pandemic served as proof that the neoliberal economic model had failed. In a lengthy dispatch entitled Some lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic, he also blamed neoliberal governments for failing to respond over a period of decades to the widespread prevalence of health problems that make many people more susceptible to serious COVID-19 illness.

Later the same year a high-ranking agriculture official blamed neoliberalism for Mexico’s high levels of junk food consumption and resulting high levels of obesity.

“In summary, we can say that the neoliberal model imposed food imperialism, a colonization of our palates,” said Deputy Agriculture Minister Víctor Suárez Carrera.

With reports from El Universal

10 killed, 5 seriously wounded in attack on hotel in Celaya, Guanajuato

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MND Staff

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May 24, 2022

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Emergency personnel at the scene of Monday's attack in Celaya.

At least 10 people were killed in an armed attack on a hotel and two adjoining bars in Celaya, Guanajuato, Monday night.

According to authorities consulted by the newspaper Milenio, five people were seriously wounded in addition to the 10 fatalities.

Several other media outlets have reported 11 fatalities in the attack, which occurred at approximately 10:00 p.m.

Guanajuato authorities haven’t released any information about the violence, which was reportedly perpetrated by a group of 15 armed men.

They entered the Gala Hotel and began shooting for several minutes. They also used Molotov cocktails, according to one report, and the establishment was set on fire. At least some of the victims were women.

Local police and federal security forces attended the scene of the crime, where they found deceased and wounded people. No arrests were reported. Firefighters extinguished the blaze and paramedics transferred the wounded to hospital.

The newspaper El Sol de Bajío reported that the gunmen left a narco-message at the hotel.

It was a bloody day in Celaya Monday with at least 14 homicides, the newspaper El Financiero reported.

Guanajuato was the second most violent state in the first four months of the year with 993 homicides. It has been Mexico’s most violent state in recent years.

Among the criminal groups that operate in Guanajuato are the powerful Jalisco New Generation Cartel and the Santa Rosa de Lima Cartel, which began as a fuel theft gang before diversifying into other crimes.

With reports from Milenio, El Financiero, El Universal and El Sol de Bajío

Sahara dust cloud makes its annual debut

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MND Staff

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May 23, 2022

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Satellite imagery shows how air currents carry dust west from Africa.

The first dust cloud of the year from the Sahara Desert arrived in Mexico on Friday in the annual meteorological event known as the Saharan Air Layer, causing misty, reddish skies especially at sunrise and sunset.

Each year, upwards of 60 million tonnes of dust from arid areas in North Africa – made up of particles of iron, silicon, mercury and phosphorus, among other chemical elements – are dragged by wind currents 7,000 kilometers west to the Americas.

The cloud was expected to remain over the weekend, affecting the Yucatán Peninsula, some parts of the Gulf of Mexico and the northeast as well as parts of the United States.

The clouds are more common in July and August when there is little rain and intense winds in the region, but the mass of dust, which can cover an area similar in size to the United States, arrived early this year.

The National Disaster Prevention Center (Cenapred) said that the natural phenomenon is unlikely to present any health risks, but that people who are sensitive to the thicker air could experience some discomfort.

It added that people with chronic breathing problems, seniors, pregnant women and children should use face masks if dust arrives in large quantities and that people should wash their eyes with clean water if they feel they have been affected.

Conapred also said that if a large amount of dust arrives citizens should cover water sources such as wells and water tanks.

The World Meteorological Organization has previously warned that inhaling the dust can increase the probability of contracting a bacterial infection.

Meanwhile, the natural phenomena is beneficial for the environment: the dust acts as a natural fertilizer and has been found to play a key role in restoring minerals to depleted rain forest soils in South America’s Amazon basin. Studies also suggest that the dry air from the dust stifles the formation of storms and hurricanes.

However, research has shown that it may be harmful to coral reefs if it descends into the ocean before reaching land. One study found that the dust can trigger toxic algae blooms, also known as red tides, that have the capacity to kill large numbers of fish, shellfish, marine mammals and birds.

With reports from El Financiero

Three basic steps Mexico must take to start building an honest police force

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Sarah DeVries

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May 23, 2022

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National Guard publicity photo Mexico — Publicity photo for National Guard's 'On Guard Against Corruption' anti-corruption campaign, encouraging citizens to report abuse of authority by officers. National Guard

Why can’t Mexico seem to punish anyone for crimes they commit?

Maybe because the people in charge of the functioning of the justice system either are criminals or enablers of criminals, which gives way to the same results.

This is the main question I have after reading about the appalling record of the newly formed National Guard — you remember, the federal law enforcement corps that was supposed to wipe corrupt police impunity off the face of the country?

As we can see, that is not what has happened. Most of them aren’t even certified to be in the National Guard (or doing any police work, for that matter) in the first place.

Which begs another question: how did they get in? Why is certification not a prerequisite for a uniform and a job?

My guess is that so few people want to do such a dangerous job that they’ll just let anyone in that shows up. And while the salary isn’t terrible at an average of 15,000 MXN plus benefits, it’s certainly not enough that I would want to risk my life to do it.

So to sum up: Guardsmen largely haven’t gone through any kind of proper training, and when they flat-out abuse the public they’re meant to serve and even their own institution – half of the complaints are for extortion, followed by abuse of authority, theft of National Guard assets, and general theft — they face no consequences for it.

With 988 probes launched since July 2019 and February 2022 (half of probes for extortion), a grand total of (drum roll, please…) two faced consequences!

That’s right; two ended in guilty verdicts.

¿Qué?

Our president, López Obrador, has made a big show since his entry into office of having “ended” corruption — and the National Guard, of course, is his darling. “I’m pleased because of the tranquility, the peace that is guaranteed in the capital of the republic” is his most recent comment denying the fact that there is not, in fact, guaranteed peace anywhere.

Indigenous communities especially remain unprotected. My God, people are asking narcos directly for help in finding their loved ones. That’s how little confidence the public has in Mexican security institutions.

What needs to happen for AMLO to recognize that there’s a problem? Recognition is of utmost importance: it’s impossible to find solutions to a non-problem.

To be clear, I’m not blaming the president for not ending violence and corruption in Mexico. What I am saying is that it’s irresponsible and counterproductive to go around crowing about the end of violence in Mexico when it’s clearly not true.

In doing so, he paints himself as either insincere or delusional and opaques the real accomplishments that have been achieved since he took office.

“There’s no more corruption.” The exception, of course, is when it comes from the “other side.” That’s corruption, says AMLO.

What is the other side, you may ask? Well, it seems that if an action is taken that he doesn’t approve of, the perpetrators are automatically “against the fourth transformation.” Convenient, right?

And just like López Obrador dragged scores of old, well-known corrupt politicians from other parties into his own government upon taking power, so have the various police forces around Mexico let in untrained, unvetted members.

What did anyone think would happen? It’s the usual suspects all around.

Might AMLO himself be an honest man in his own dealings? Maybe. Probably. But at this point, I don’t even care. If he can’t oblige government officials and those in charge of running our system of law and order to be honest and law-abiding, it simply doesn’t matter how good a person he is in private.

And constantly bragging about how corruption has been wiped away since he stepped into office is maddening to average citizens and particularly insulting to those who have first-hand, personal evidence that this assertion simply isn’t true.

But back to the National Guard, and police forces in general, who are essentially the first line of defense in terms of proving the president’s claims about violence and corruption.

Here are the problems to address:

Certified officers: I suspect that if these institutions started insisting on the CUP (Certificado Único Policial) for new and current officers, they’d quickly find themselves incredibly short on recruits. I tried researching how to obtain it, and there’s precious little real, helpful information online about how to actually go through the process. Can anything be done online? Do people need to travel to take the courses? Are there prerequisites? How long does training last? Can it be part-time so you can keep doing your current job? How difficult is it?
Answers: absolutely no idea. So making sure all of this is clear and that anyone going into any of the armed forces can easily complete the process will help a lot.
Vetting: an acquaintance of mine had a job with the municipal police a few years ago. It was to interview police candidates and evaluate them psychologically to ensure they were apt for police work.
The stories this acquaintance told were hair-raising: there would be men who admitted (proudly!) to rape and murder who would somehow magically be given a badge even after strong recommendations against their hiring (and for their arrests).
The vetting process has got to be transparent. What is the point of letting actual criminals defend the law that they themselves have no respect for?
Salaries: A $15,000-peso salary isn’t terrible if you’re pushing papers in the safety of an office a few hours a day. But that’s not “please risk your life for your country” money. Higher salaries (like triple to quadruple higher to start) would dignify the job as it should be.

Surely, we can do better.

Sarah DeVries is a writer and translator based in Xalapa, Veracruz. She can be reached through her website, sdevrieswritingandtranslating.com and her Patreon page.

Homicides declined but extortion spiked in first four months of the year

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MND Staff

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May 23, 2022

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Security Minister Rosa Icela Rodríguez. — Security Minister Rosa Icela Rodríguez shared a security update on Monday.

Homicides declined 12.3% in the first four months of the year but extortion increased 22.6%, official data shows.

There were 9,895 homicides between January and April, 1,392 fewer than in the same period of 2021, according to information presented Monday by Security Minister Rosa Icela Rodríguez.

It was the lowest murder count for the first four months of the year since President López Obrador took office.

Homicides declined 3.9% to 2,547 in April compared to 2,651 the previous month.

Michoacán, where the Jalisco New Generation Cartel is engaged in a fierce turf war with the Cárteles Unidos, was the most violent state in the first four months with 1,000 homicides.

Guanajuato was the second most violent with 993 murders followed by México state with 830; Baja California with 805; Jalisco with 642; and Sonora with 580. Almost half of all homicides in the first four months of the year occurred in the six most violent states.

Yucatán was the least violent state with 12 homicides between January and April. Campeche and Aguascalientes recorded 17 each while there were 19 murders in Baja California Sur.

Rodríguez also presented data that showed there were 3,555 reported cases of extortion between January and April, an increase of 655 compared to the same period of last year. There were 1,142 reports of that crime last month, a 21.2% increase compared to March.

México state recorded the highest number in the first four months with 1,391, or 39% of the total. A fruit and juice vendor in the municipality of Tlalnepantla was murdered earlier this month when he refused to make an extortion payment.

Veracruz recorded the second highest number of extortion cases with 264 followed by Nuevo León with 246; Guanajuato with 231; and Jalisco with 202.

Data also showed that offenses committed with firearms were up but drug trafficking, financial crimes, vehicle theft and home burglaries all declined.

With reports from Reforma and El Financiero

June fairs and festivals: classical concerts, fireflies and a crazy parade

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MND Staff

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May 23, 2022

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A ride at a previous version of the San Juan del Río fair, one of many events taking place next month.

Stargazers were treated to a bright orange, extremely large, super blood flower moon earlier this month. For some North American peoples the event is known as the full corn planting moon, signalling warmer temperatures and marking time to sow the fields.

Even for those that won’t be working the fields, there’s every reason to get out in June with a host of concerts, festivals and culinary events to visit.

• The National Festival of Cheese and Wine, Tequisquiapan, Querétaro (Now–June 5)

There are still two weekends to enjoy a few glasses of wine and a selection of cheeses. The 42nd edition of the annual event is on in the magical town of Tequisquiapan and art and fashion exhibitions and concerts accompany the culinary offering.

Tickets to the event for a day are available for 250 pesos (US $12.50). This year Spain is invited to showcase the quality of its cheese and wine.

• Expo Festival Guadalupe, Nuevo León (Now–June 12)

A festival in Nuevo León’s second biggest municipality with over 70 years of tradition, Expo Feria Guadalupe can entertain the kids at the fairground and at a children’s rodeo. A cattle exhibition, commercial area and beer garden are among other attractions.

• International Wine Festival, San Luis Potosí city (June 3-4)

This international wine festival returns to San Luis Potosí city’s Arts Center for its 10th edition. Tickets for June 3 start at 800 pesos (US $40) and for June 4 at 1,000 pesos (US $50), which include concerts and art exhibitions, wine tasting, access to the Beer Fest, and a welcome kit with a wine glass and souvenir bag.

VIP packages for 10 people are available for 15,000 pesos, but are only available for June 3. Those offer access to an exclusive area, table service and “gastronomic experiences.”

• Guanajuato Artisanal Beer Expo, Guanajuato city (June 3-5)

There’s booze aplenty in June: Guanajuato city will be popping bottles and pulling pints for its seventh annual beer expo. More than 40 beer producers and 200 styles of beer will be on offer at the free event. There will also be live music, stand up comedy, a gastronomic offering and a prize for the best beer.

The expo will be open from 12-10 p.m. in the Plaza de las Ranas, one of the main entrance points to the historic center.

• SCORE Baja 500 off-road racing, Ensenada, Baja California (June 4-5)

Cars, motorcycles, quad bikes and other four-wheelers line up to race through the desert terrain of Baja California. In the second of four race weekends, competitors will look to complete the 800-kilometer circuit fastest, with separate contests for different types of vehicles. The races are on June 4 and awards are presented on June 5.

• Corpus Christi Festival, Papantla, Veracruz (June 11-19)

The Catholic feast day of Corpus Christi and coinciding festival return to the magical town of Papantla, after two years of cancellations. The free celebration includes a light show, where some 300 indigenous dancers pay tribute to both Catholic and Totonac cultures.

• San Juan del Río Fair, San Juan del Río, Querétaro (June 16-July 3)

A local festival with traditional events including cockfighting, bull fighting, equestrian shows and fairground rides, but also a modern cultural offering with documentary screenings, music of varied genres: ska, reggae, rock, rap and others, and folkloric dances. Free concerts include pop star María José on Friday night and ballad hit maker Edith Marquez on the final night.

Tickets for concerts in the palenque stadium start at 400 pesos (US $20). Artists include banda outfit Los Tucanes de Tijuana, Mexican-American singer Marisela and pop singer Napoleón, who found fame in the 1970s.

Each day has a different theme, including youth, disability, environment, water, business, sport, farming, health and family, children, seniors, Women’s Day, and a day for the arts. General entrance costs 60 pesos (US $3) before 6 p.m. and 100 pesos (US $5) thereafter.

• Viewing of the Fireflies, Nanacamilpa, Tlaxcala (June 17 – August 14)

For those looking to connect with the natural world, the spectacle of fireflies lighting up the nighttime forest for mating season will return to the Firefly Sanctuary in the town which has become famous for its luminescent insects.

• Parade of the Crazy People, San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato (June 19)

The famous Desfile de los Locos (parade of the crazy people) returns to the artistic hub San Miguel de Allende. Wild colors and extravagant fancy dress are guaranteed at the parade where comedy takes center stage.

The story goes that the parade began with horticulturalists who dressed up to give thanks for the harvest, and gave out fruit to passersby. The event is free and clowning around is highly encouraged.

• Tangamanga Marathon, San Luis Potosí city (June 26)

More than 3,000 spectators, 7,000 runners and 1,500 volunteers are expected this year at the marathon starting in Tangamanga park, a huge green space in the southwest of the city.

There are races at distances of 5, 10, 21 and 42 kilometers.

Runners can sign up here and should arrive at least 30 minutes before their event.

• GNP Paax Festival Classical Music Festival, near Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo (June 29-July 3)

A new classical music festival conceived by renowned Mexican conductor Alondra de la Parra will feature over 100 international artists at the Hotel Xcaret Arte near Playa del Carmen from June 29 to July 3.

Events include two concerts every night at 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. as well as presentations of books, chamber music and talks with the creators. Tickets for a single concert start at US $50 (Coral Pass) while a package for five nights at the festival and hotel accommodation starts at US $2,240 (Manta Ray Experience), but shorter packages are also available.

De la Parra said the name “paax” comes from the word for music in Mayan and is phonetically the word for peace in Latin.

Mexico News Daily

AMLO maintains strong approval rating but insecurity is a worry for many

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MND Staff

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May 23, 2022

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President Lopez Obrador at an event in Veracruz earlier this month. Presidencia

A strong majority of Mexicans continue to approve of President López Obrador’s performance but many are worried about insecurity, a new poll indicates.

A national survey conducted for the newspaper El Universal by the polling firm Buendía & Márquez found a 63% approval rating for AMLO, who has now been in office for 3 1/2 years.

In El Universal polls carried out every three months since early 2019, the president’s approval rating has only dipped below 60% twice: once in May 2020 when Mexico was in a loose lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic and again three months later. It peaked at 85% three months after López Obrador took office.

His current approval rating —as Mexico’s faces high inflation, high interest rates and ongoing security issues — is 2% lower than it was in February. One-third of 1,000 respondents said they disapproved of the president’s performance.

A robber caught on camera threatening passengers on a bus in Hidalgo. Only 46% of poll respondents gave López Obrador high marks for combatting insecurity. Internet

Among those who approved of AMLO’s performance, the most commonly cited reason for that position was his efforts to combat poverty, including through the government’s social programs. The second most commonly cited reason was simply that he does good work and gets results.

Only a very small number of respondents cited his personal attributes, large-scale infrastructure projects such as the Maya Train, Felipe Ángeles International Airport and the Dos Bocas refinery, the economy and efforts to combat corruption.

Among those who disapproved of AMLO’s performance, the most commonly cited reason was that he does poor work and doesn’t get results. The economy and the president’s personal attributes ranked in second place as negatives ahead of insecurity/violence and the withdrawal of government support or the provision of government support for those who don’t need it.

Almost six in 10 respondents — 57% — said that it is now reasonable to demand results from the government given the period of time it’s been in power, while 39% said it’s still too soon.

poverty in Iztapalapa — Children living in poverty in Mexico City’s borough of Iztapalapa. File photo

The 1,000 participants were presented with four challenges faced by the government and asked to nominate which was the most pressing. Almost four in 10 respondents — 36% — choose reducing insecurity; 28% nominated improving the country’s economic situation; 25% opted for reducing corruption in government; and 9% selected protecting Mexicans from COVID.

Only 46% of those polled said that López Obrador has done a good or very good job in combatting insecurity — which remains a major problem in many parts of the country — while 51% said the opposite. In contrast, 60% said he has done a good job in combatting corruption and 61% indicated the same with regard to his management of the economy.

Over 60% of respondents complimented the president for living modestly, being honest and representing a change in Mexican politics, but 49% said he has old-fashioned ideas and 44% said he has a tendency to conceal the truth.

Over half of the participants — 53% — said the government’s foreign policy priority should be maintaining close ties with the United States while 34% said it was more important to have close relations with other Latin American countries. An additional 7% said that relations with the United States and Latin America were equally as important.

López Obrador has indicated he won’t attend next month’s Summit of the Americas in the United States if Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua are not invited, a stance for which he has faced significant criticism.

Asked whether Mexico is on a good path under AMLO’s leadership, 53% of poll respondents said it was while 38% said it wasn’t. The president has almost universal recognition, with just 2% saying they didn’t know who Andrés Manuel López Obrador was.

A poll published last week found that the ruling Morena party, which the president founded, is easily Mexico’s most popular political party.

With reports from El Universal

Mexican Caribbean destinations absent from Airbnb’s top-10 list this summer

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MND Staff

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May 23, 2022

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A 'bubble-glamping' dome is an Airbnb listing in Mazamitla, one of the top-10 destinations in Mexico this summer.

Destinations in the Mexican Caribbean are well known as popular destinations but they didn’t make an Airbnb list of the top-10 most popular destinations in the country this summer.

The Quintana Roo cities of Cancún, Playa del Carmen and Tulum have long been major draws for domestic and international tourists. Tripadvisor recently named an Isla Mujeres beach as the best in the country and 19th best in the world.

However, the Mexican Pacific and the Gulf of California have proven more popular with Airbnb users looking for a summer getaway. Mazatlán, Sinaloa, was at the top of the list followed by La Crucecita in Bahías de Huatulco, Oaxaca. Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca; San Carlos and Bahía Kino in Sonora; Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur; Mexicali, Baja California; and Mazamitla, Jalisco, all featured on the list.

One unlikely tourist destination in central Mexico was León, Guanajuato. The only destination on the Yucatán Peninsula, the region which encompasses the Mexican Caribbean, was Sisal, Yucatán.

Airbnb said “unique,” or unconventional properties within Mexico accounted for more than half of nights reserved in the first three months of the year, an increase on similar reservations over the same period in 2019.

On the whole, Mexico has kept its appeal among U.S. travelers. An Airbnb list of international destinations most sought by U.S. tourists includes Puerto Escondido; La Paz, Baja California Sur; and Mérida, Yucatán.

According to a survey by Airbnb, nine out of 10 users are considering traveling this summer, most with their families. The survey found that the same proportion of users are seeking adventure when they travel.

With reports from Palco Quintanarroense

Counting whales, one blow at a time

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MND Staff

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May 23, 2022

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gray whale in El Vizcaino whale sanctuary — The gray whales that migrate here are born in Mexico and reproduce here.

Counting whales is a science in a Baja California Sur whale sanctuary, where almost 300 gray whale calves were born during the 2021–2022 birthing and mating season, according to the National Commission for Natural Protected Areas (Conanp).

Rangers conduct nine censuses in the El Vizcaíno Whale Sanctuary every season, counting the mammals as they observe them breaching and expelling air through their blowholes.

Conanp’s highest estimate of the number of gray whales in the sanctuary this season was that made in February when its rangers counted 948, including 290 females and an equal number of calves.

Other whales migrated more than 9,000 kilometers from the Bering Sea near Alaska and Russia to mate in the sanctuary, part of the UNESCO-protected El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve, which is located off the western coast of northern Baja California Sur.

Everardo Mariano Melendez, director of the reserve, described the gray whales that arrive every year as “Mexican whales.”

“They’re born in Mexico and they reproduce in Mexico,” he told a Milenio newspaper journalist who recently accompanied rangers as they conducted a census.

After spending a few months off the coast of the Baja peninsula, they return to northern feeding grounds, Melendez said.

Noé López Paz, a biologist and Conanp ranger, said the whales begin their return migration after the new mothers teach their offspring an essential life skill.

“The censuses and monitoring trips show that mom interacts with her calf and shows it how to breathe for two or three months, and then they migrate north,” he said.

López told Milenio that climate change is one of the greatest threats to gray whales. Fifteen whales, including calves, were found dead by rangers this year. CNN said in a recent report that many thousands of Pacific gray whales have likely died in recent years.

“While [the] underlying cause remains elusive, many researchers point to the conditions in and around a rapidly changing Arctic Ocean. The retreating ice sheet, warming waters and a shifting ecosystem may be decimating gray whales,” the report said.

So far this season, Mexico’s rangers have found 15 dead whales. Some experts estimate that thousands of Pacific gray whales have died in recent years. File photo

In making their whale number estimates, Conanp park rangers count whales’ air expulsions, or “blows,” one by one as they travel around the sanctuary on boats. A single census is conducted over a period of five hours.

Gabriel Zaragoza Aguilar, a Conanp ranger who has participated in whale counts for 25 years, told Milenio that there are two observers, a data recorder and a skipper in each of the two boats that simultaneously conduct a census.

Rangers identify a mother and calf either by seeing them directly or observing “one large blow and one small one“ from a greater distance, he said.

With the use of binoculars, “we can observe their behavior from far away,” Zaragoza said. “… When they’re asleep, they float on the surface,” he explained.

The ranger said the peak mating season is January and early February. “You see three, four whales circling around, and sometimes they expose their parts,” he said.

José Buelna Grado, another Conanp ranger, said the highest number of whales counted in a single census was 2,721 in the 2011—2012 season, or almost triple the 2021–2022 high.

López said that over 1,000 calves have been born during some seasons in the Ojo de Liebre lagoon, which is part of the El Vizcaíno sanctuary. Environmental officials estimated in 2019 that more than 25,000 gray whales had been born in the lagoons of Baja California Sur in the past 30 years.

The whales attract tourists to the sanctuary for sighting trips every year. According to Conanp, some 2,650 people — including tour operators, hoteliers and restaurateurs — benefit from the tourism activity, which annually injects approximately US $3 million into the local economy.

According to Conanp, the gray whales’ presence injects US $3 million in tourism-related revenues annually into the local economy.

The gray whales are considered friendly given that they breach in close proximity to vessels and appear to play with or put on a show for onlookers. However, they can also be dangerous: a Canadian tourist died in 2015 after a gray whale struck a tour boat off the coast of Cabo San Lucas in Baja California Sur.

Gray whales are the eighth largest whale species. According to National Geographic, they grow up to 50 feet or 15 meters and weigh 30 to 40 tonnes.

With reports from Milenio