Domestic Violence / IMF Resources to Pay Mexico's Debt?

Hurricane Grace hits the Caribbean coast of Mexico. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador announced that government agencies are working to ensure the safety of the population of the Caribbean coast after Hurricane Grace hit Quintana Roo in the morning. Head of the National Coordination of Civil Protection Laura Velázquez announced that authorities are already implementing security measures in Veracruz, as Grace is expected to hit the state next week. "We are prepared. We have worked with the population and now we are working with the support of SEMAR and SEDENA," said Velázquez.

This morning, Hurricane Grace struck roughly east of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, causing dangerous storm surges. The Category 1 storm has already affected Haiti, Jamaica and the Cayman Islands. According to the US National Hurricane Center, heavy rains and strong winds will threaten the Mexican population until Grace crosses the peninsula.

UNICEF celebrates Mexico's decision to return to face-to-face classes. Representative of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) in Mexico Fernando Carrera Castro applauded the government's decision to return to schools and announced that the agency will support the authorities to ensure a safe return to schools. Carrera said that resuming face-to-face classes is not only a challenge for Mexico but for all countries, since the pandemic affected the education of children and adolescents around the world. "The government's decision to commit to a safe return is an important event for the world. This gesture that the government is making is of global value and, as a result, it is being celebrated around the world."

According to a survey carried out by INEGI, 5.2 million students did not enroll in the 2020-2021 school year due to causes related to COVID-19. SEGOB said that the confinement, mobility restrictions, suspension of classes and other factors have seriously affected children since there has been an increase in family violence, in the number of unwanted pregnancies and suicides.

Domestic violence against children reaches record highs. Deputy Minister of Human Rights Alejandro Encinas highlighted that domestic violence in Mexico increased 24 percent during the first half of 2021, which is considered a historical maximum level. Encinas explained that girls and adolescents have been the most affected by the increase in domestic violence. “From March to June we registered the highest historical levels of violence against girls and boys. During the first half of 2021, 129,000 cases of domestic violence were opened, an increase of 24 percent compared to the first half of 2020.”

During 1H21, 93 percent of domestic violence cases were perpetrated against girls and adolescents. Of all the reported cases, psychological violence accounted for 38 percent. Next was sexual violence (29.7 percent); physical violence (26.3 percent); abandonment (4.5 percent) and economic violence (1.6 percent).

Citizens and officials will elaborate the electoral reform initiative. López Obrador announced that the electoral reform initiative will be prepared by expert citizens and officials. In addition, he said that it will be presented publicly before being sent to any of the chambers. "I am going to invoke people who have experience, who know why we have not achieved an authentic and full democracy in Mexico.”

López Obrador has repeatedly said that it is necessary to promote an electoral reform in Congress due to what he characterizes as a corruption crisis at the INE and the Electoral Tribunal of the Federal Judicial Power (TEPJF), especially after the change of presidency in the TEPJF.

IMF resources to pay the country's foreign debt? López Obrador thanked Banxico Gov. Alejandro Díaz de León Carrillo for supporting his proposal to use the resources of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to pay the country's foreign debt. “This is very good news for everyone, especially for the people of Mexico. The money should be used to pay debts and not just to save."

IMF announced that it will allocate US$620 billion in Special Drawing Rights (SDR) to member countries, for which Mexico will receive US$12 billion. Díaz said that part of the country’s debt could be paid with the new resources but that the government needs to buy the assets from Banxico. However, Deputy Gov. of Banxico Gerardo Esquivel said that the assets of the IMF are not a currency of exchange but international reserves, so they cannot be used for this purpose.

Click HERE for full transcript in Spanish