Outgoing Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador is the opposite of a lame-duck: he will finish off his mandate with a month-long overlap with the incoming Congress, in which his Morena party has a supermajority in one chamber and is just a few seats shy of two-thirds in the other. This puts his constitutional reform proposals within grasping reach.
While president-elect Claudia Sheinbaum has voiced support for the reforms — dubbed “Plan C” — she appears to be stalling on the most controversial, which would select judges by popular vote, concurrent with the presidential mandate. Critics say the move endangers rule of law in Mexico, and markets have reacted with jitters at the potential erosion of judicial checks on executive power. (See yesterday’s post.)
A meeting between Sheinbaum’s transition team and Morena party congressional leaders concluded in calls for consultation, reports Animal Político. Sheinbaum’s judicial advisor, former Supreme Court magistrate Arturo Zaldívar suggested reforms will have to be carried out in consultation with experts, judges and lawyers. Sheinbaum suggested, also yesterday, that citizens be consulted regarding the reform. The goal is to delay and calm investor fears, reports El País.
This puts the president-elect on collision path with her mentor: AMLO has said that justice is more important than markets. This morning he said the measure is part of his anti-corruption strategy which has specific benefits for the economy. (Animal Político)
Concretely, Plan C would reduce the number of judges on the Supreme Court, appoint judges by popular vote, and reform the organs of judicial control. (Animal Político) “It must be said clearly: this is not the reform that Mexican justice needs. This must be noted, even if a majority angry with impunity considers it plausible to punish the Mexican judiciary with this reform,” argues Centro Prodh.
Chiquita financed Colombian paramilitary death squad
A U.S. court ordered Chiquita Brands International to pay $38m to the families of eight Colombian men murdered by a paramilitary death squad, after the U.S. banana giant was shown to have financed the AUC terrorist organization from 1997 to 2004. (See yesterday’s briefs.)
Monday’s landmark ruling came after 17 years of legal efforts and is the first time that the fruit multinational has paid out compensation to Colombian victims, opening the way for thousands of others to seek restitution, reports the Guardian.
“The verdict in favor of the victims is a rare instance — in Colombia and elsewhere — in which a private corporation is held accountable to victims for its operation in regions with widespread violence or social unrest, legal experts” told the New York Times.
Regional Relations
Four Russian warships, including the nuclear-powered submarine Kazan and the frigate Admiral Gorshkov, entered Havana Bay this morning. While Russian military exercises were regular in the Caribbean, it is the first time they have taken place since 2019, and the changed geopolitical context puts them in the spotlight. (Guardian)
U.S. officials said the U.S. Navy has deployed warships and aircraft to track a Russian naval flotilla after the Russian vessels sailed less than 30 miles off South Florida’s coast on Tuesday, reports the Miami Herald.
Ecuador
A teenager killed by security forces operating under Ecuador’s state of emergency was an “apparent extrajudicial execution” according to an open letter from Human Rights Watch to President Daniel Noboa, detailing alleged human rights abuses committed by the military. (Al Jazeera)
Regional
“Ecuador is not a cocaine producer – that work is performed almost entirely in three other South American nations: Colombia, Peru and Bolivia. But over the past five years, Ecuador’s bustling Pacific ports have become a crucial shipment point for cocaine-filled containers being smuggled to the U.S. and Europe, turning Ecuador into a ‘cocaine superhighway,’” reports the Guardian.
Tren de Aragua, a transnational criminal gang that originated in a Venezuela prison, has made inroads around the region, including the U.S., reports CNN.
In Chile the gang has brought kidnappings and killings: “While Peru, Ecuador and Colombia have all reported its presence, Chile’s lack of criminal competition and relative wealth have made it an especially desirable target,” reports the Financial Times.
Brazil
Brazil’s federal police chief said three ongoing probes into far-right former President Jair Bolsonaro are expected to conclude by next month, the final step before deciding whether to formally accuse him of crimes, reports Reuters.
Brazil’s Marubo Indigenous people are not addicted to online pornography — the fact that this needs to be stated is a cautionary tale on the dark side of the web, reports the New York Times.
Argentina
“The International Monetary Fund expects China to reschedule payments on part of the $18 billion swap line that it has extended to Argentina, a key step that frees up cash amid President Javier Milei’s deep budget cuts and helps sustain the fund’s massive fiscal support program for the country,” reports Bloomberg.
Milei will participate in the Ukraine peace summit to be held in Switzerland over the weekend, reports Reuters.
Guyana
A constitutional reform initiative in Guyana could help shield the country from political instability, but there is a “widespread view that government leaders will not support significant changes to a political system that has worked in their favor. The long delays and missed deadlines in putting together the Commission have done nothing to dispel that notion,” reports Americas Quarterly.
Critter Corner
“The Humboldt penguin population has dramatically decreased in areas along the central coast of Chile, making them one of the most vulnerable of the world's 18 penguin species and putting them at risk of extinction,” reports Reuters.
In the midst of a heat wave afflicting Mexico, a conservation group has been rescuing axolotls from their volcano homes, where it is too dry for them this year. (Animal Político)