Security in Sonora/Allegations Against Claudia Pavlovich
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Security in Sonora/Allegations Against Claudia Pavlovich

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Paloma Duran By Paloma Duran | Journalist and Industry Analyst - Fri, 02/11/2022 - 11:20

AMLO: Sonora is going through the fourth transformation. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said that his MORENA government feels highly represented and protected by Sonora Gov. Alfonso Durazo. “We feel very good because Alfonso lightens our workload and responsibility. He is promoting the same project of transformation that we have sought so much. With our ideas, he is promoting Sonora.”

Last year, Durazo won the elections for governor in Sonora, winning approximately 50 percent of votes cast. Among his main proposals were to make the state safer, reduce extreme poverty and make housing more affordable for all. Although he was very popular during the elections, his approval rating has dropped. According to Mitofsky's ranking of governors, Durazo's approval rating fell 1.4 percent from December 2021 to January 2022, going from 52.1 to 50.7. The drop in his approval rating took him from 18th to 21st in the ranking. According to Mitofsky, a decline in approval has also been noted with other governors from the MORENA party, including Sinaloa Gov. Rubén Rocha.

More security elements are needed in Sonora. Durazo emphasized that during the 150 days he has been in office, more criminals have been prosecuted. However, he stressed that it is necessary to improve the certification of police officers so that there is better coverage. “We have managed to reduce some of our most pressing crimes. We can still improve security but we need more police. There is a significant deficit in the state since we only have 866 state police officers who have to monitor almost 180,000km. This makes it difficult for us to address some insecurity issues.”

In 2021, violence increased in the state, especially in Cajeme, one of the most violent municipalities in the country, where crimes increased by 50 percent. As a result, Durazo announced that in 2022, Cajeme's special security plan will be further strengthened and that more than MX$1.4 billion (US$68.7 million) will be invested to double the security elements in the entity. In addition, he committed to increasing the number of police elements to 4.000 before his government ends.

Durazo: Justice was delivered in the case of Aranza Ramos. Durazo said that in the case of Aranza Ramos, an exhaustive investigation was carried out and a suspect in the femicide has been arrested. “This week, the material and intellectual author of this act was arrested. Life cannot be replaced but at least we can say that we did what we had to do to provide justice. Hopefully, her family and friends will soon find peace.”

In June 2021, Ramos, a member of the Madres y Guerreras Buscadoras de Sonora collective who had been searching for her husband, who had disappeared in 2020, was murdered in her home. Her body was found near a field in Ortiz, Guaymas. After a thorough investigation, on Feb. 9, state police arrested four people, including the alleged perpetrator of the femicide, Marco Antonio "El Chamelón," in Guaymas, where five people who had been kidnapped were also found.

AMLO defends appointment of Pavlovich as consul in Barcelona. López Obrador explained that the appointment of former Sonora Gov. Claudia Pavlovich to be consul in Barcelona is because he trusts her and because she supported him when she was governor. “I made this decision because during the time that she was governor and I was visiting Sonora, I had her support. We had no difference and that is why I made that decision. I understand that there are those who do not share this point of view but I trust her.”

Pavlovich's appointment has caused controversy as she has been accused by opposition parties of embezzling money during her government. However, López Obrador stressed that there is no formal complaint against her or evidence, and the government continues to support her. In addition, López Obrador recognized that although it is everyone's right to express themselves freely, no one should be criticized without proof.

Click HERE for full transcript in Spanish

Photo by:   Gobierno de México

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