AMLO Criticizes US Senators/Electrical Reform Could Have Changes

Investigation Developments in journalist´s homicides . Minister of Security Rosa Icela reported that there is progress in the investigations of six of the eight journalist murdered so far in 2022. Icela reported so far there have been 21 detainees. “These investigations are not closed yet, since we are investigating all cases. There are suspects that we have already identified and we are after them.”

Currently, Mexico is one of the most dangerous countries for journalists, since more than 90 percent of crimes remain unsolved. According to the NGO Article 19, since President Andrés Manuel López Obrador took office in 2018, violence against journalists has increased by 85 percent. According to the report, during his government there have been 33 journalists killed, two disappearances and 945 attacks. Additionally, two out of five attacks against journalists were linked to Mexican authorities. So far, there have been eight journalists killed in Mexico in 2022.

MORENA open to make changes in the electrical reform. López Obrador assured that MORENA is willing to make changes to the electrical reform. However, the proposals need to be reasonable said the president. In addition, López Obrador stressed that changes have already been made so that the opposition does not panic with issues of expropriation and investment certainty. “Yes, we are open to hearing and implementing the proposals of opposition groups, as long as they make sense. We need to implement a reform without laws that benefits private companies over Mexicans.”

López Obrador’s statement came after the “Va Por México” coalition announced it will reject the electrical reform, which seeks to guarantee the country's energy security and control costs by handing over 56 percent of the country's energy market to the CFE. The coalition said the reform is destructive, regressive and pollutes the environment. However, López Obrador assured that not all legislators from the opposition are against the new constitutional energy reform, so it could still be approved in Congress. Currently, MORENA needs 57 votes for the reform to pass from Parliament to Senate, with the former vote likely occurring next week.

Citizens marched in favor of the electrical reform. After a rally was held yesterday to demand the approval of the electrical reform, López Obrador said that he is in favor of Mexicans defending their rights and interests. “Our plan is to strengthen the CFE, a company that will benefit the people and not the interest of foreign companies."

Yesterday, MORENA held a rally in Mexico City to demonstrate the support of Mexicans for the electrical reform. At the rally, the opposition was accused of making false statements, saying that the reform is anti-environmental and increases investment uncertainty. However, industry experts stressed that the reform is a setback in energy matters, and also goes against free competition in the market and international agreements. Today, the Supreme Court of Justice of the Mexican Nation (SCJN) will determine if the Electricity Industry Law, which was the basis of the electricity reform, is constitutional or unconstitutional. Experts say that the vote on the Electricity Law will show the possible outcome of the reform, which is expected to be voted soon.

US senators accuse AMLO of using the FGR against opponents. López Obrador accused the US senators of lying and stressed that he is not using the Attorney General's Office (FGR) to open proceedings against opponents. “They are uninformed. I have no connection with the prosecutor Gertz Manero. My government is not one of those where the president gives instructions to the judiciary. Mexico has a true rule of law, not a manipulative state.”

Yesterday, four US Senators, Robert Menendez, Patrick Leahy, Jeffrey A. Merkley, and Benjamin L. Cardin, sent a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Attorney General Merrick B. Garland, where they express their concern that López Obrador uses the FGR to investigate his opponents. In the letter, the senators stressed that Mexico is one of the most important partners of the US, so maintaining an independent justice system in the country must become a priority for the US. In addition, the senators expressed their concern that other democratic institutions could also fall and be used for the president’s personal matters.