Mexican immigration detention centre fire claims at least 39 lives
Shocking video shows guards abandoning the burning cell block in Ciudad Juárez
Editor’s note: this edition of the newsletter offers an English-language roundup of the most important stories making news in Mexico.
“Sixty-eight migrants from Guatemala, El Salvador, Venezuela, Honduras, Ecuador and Colombia were being held Monday by Mexico's National Migration Institute when a group of them allegedly set fire to foam mattresses, filling the center with smoke.
“A video circulated on Tuesday showing Mexican immigration officials and a private security officer walking by without attempting to open the cell door as smoke billowed. A migrant can be seen kicking at the door.”
“The complaint filed by lawyer Jorge Vázquez Campbell said retired Navy Rear Adm. Salvador González Guerrero, the Chihuahua state delegate for the National Immigration Institute, ‘gave the order by way of a phone call that under no circumstances should the migrants housed inside the place where the fire started be released.’”
“The attorney claimed that INM agents and high-level officials are selling an extended exit permit for $500 USD. The permit gives the migrants 30 days to leave Mexico after being released in border cities like Ciudad Juarez. The payment for those permits is done by having relatives of the detained migrants make a deposit to a U.S. bank account. Those permits are sold to migrants who have been apprehended in Ciudad Juarez and surrounding areas.”
“The Mexican leader’s barbs have left the Biden administration in an awkward place. U.S. lawmakers are clamoring for more pressure on López Obrador over trade disputes, drug trafficking and democratic backsliding. But the Biden administration has made López Obrador a bulwark of its strategy to curb illegal border crossings, depending on him to take back tens of thousands of migrants every month from nations that don’t accept U.S. deportees.”
“López Obrador has angrily rejected comments last week by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken that the Mexican government has lost control over parts of the country. Blinken said ‘I think it’s fair to say yes’ when asked at a Senate hearing whether drug cartels control parts of Mexico.”
“Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today joined Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) in introducing the Ending the Notorious, Aggressive and Remorseless Criminal Organizations and Syndicates (NARCOS) Act of 2023 to designate Mexican drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations.”
“The high court said late Friday that it agreed to hear a legal challenge by the National Electoral Institute, or INE, against more than 200 provisions recently passed by legislators of Mr. López Obrador’s ruling party. The INE has said that the overhaul imposed deep staff and budget cuts that risk crippling its ability to organize reliable elections.”
“A U.S. official acknowledged growing frustration with the lack of progress in the discussions. ‘We want to see clear progress on this issue and address the concerns that have been raised by our negotiating teams,’ said the official, who declined to be named because the discussions were private.”
“During a visit to Mexico last week President Biden’s climate envoy, John Kerry, heaped praise on President Andrés Manuel López Obrador. ‘I see wisdom in his leadership that wants to undo some of the mistakes of the past and help to promote the interests of the people,’ Mr. Kerry said of the 69-year-old career politician who sat nearby whispering to his team and grinning.”
“In over 200 municipalities in Mexico, the number of transfers was greater than the total of households estimated to exist in the area, suggesting an improbable 100% of them are receiving money from abroad, the report says.”
“El Chapo's sons have disputed Caborca [Sonora] and the surrounding region with Caborca Cartel since at least 2020. They increased their attacks in July 2022 following Caro Quintero's arrest, with clashes leading to 28 deaths in the state between July 15 and July 19.
“The town has been important for several generations of Mexican organized crime due to its geographic location. It has long been home to drug trafficking routes that formerly carried marijuana and heroin toward the United States from cultivation zones further south in Mexico. Now the same roads carry methamphetamine and fentanyl.”
“Mercado Pago operates as a payment facilitator, similar to Square, so users have to dispute transactions with their card issuer or bank — and proof of theft often involves a police report, something victims are hesitant to obtain. Another person told Rest of World their bank statement displayed the name of the officer to whom they had paid a bribe. But the person, who asked to remain anonymous, didn’t report it to the authorities.”
“The unauthorized release, which became public in January, has already had an impact: setting off a series of responses that could set the rules for future study of geoengineering, especially by private companies, in Mexico and around the world.
“The Mexican government told Reuters it is now actively drafting ‘new regulations and standards’ to prohibit solar geoengineering inside the country. Mexico also plans to rally other countries to ban the climate strategy, a senior government official told Reuters.”