Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador celebrated on Wednesday that the Chamber of Deputies approved in general and particular terms the controversial judicial reform project that he proposed earlier this year.
“I congratulate the legislators who are seeking to clean up corruption in the judiciary,” said the president at a press conference in which he stressed the importance of the people electing judges, magistrates and ministers in the same way as they do with the deputies, senators, governorships and the presidency of the country.
He also explained that the protests that took place around Congress to reject the initiative are part of the opposition’s resistance.
“It is part of a process of transformation, of change, which always generates dissatisfaction, reactions, that is where the term reactionary comes from, because when there is a transformative action there is a reaction,” he said.
“There is a group that opposes the reform of the Judicial Branch and they have no moral, legal or political basis,” he insisted, considering that the majority of Mexicans already know that corruption prevails among judges, magistrates and ministers and that, with “honorable exceptions,” they actually represent the mafias of economic power and organized crime.
Furthermore, he said, those who reject judicial reform also do so for ideological reasons. “Because of conservatism, because they don’t like me or they don’t like the plebeians, because conservatives are also very classist, and racist, it’s understandable but they are not right,” he said.
Provocations
The president criticized the judges who ordered the suspension of the parliamentary debate on judicial reform; the ministers of the Supreme Court of Justice who on Tuesday joined the strike that workers and judges began two weeks ago; and the demonstrators who protested against the reform the day before.
“They are planning to hinder the public life of the country, to provoke instability. Nothing is happening because the people of Mexico are very conscious, very politicized. Yesterday very few people demonstrated, and it’s good that they are demonstrating, that they are demonstrating again today, and tomorrow, and the day after,” he said.
López Obrador denounced that the members of the Judiciary who went on strike “are making fools of themselves” and “degrading” the institution they represent. “I hope they take a deep breath and calm down,” he said, insisting that the position of the majority of Mexicans who support the reform will not change.
Regarding the protests, he regretted that traditional media had not shown the student marches in support of the legislative project that took place in several states.
On the other hand, the president refused to respond to the US ambassador, Ken Salazar, who the day before again questioned the judicial reform despite the fact that his previous statements unleashed diplomatic tension between both countries.
“No comments. One is also the owner of one’s silences, and sometimes a hostage of what one says. We already spoke at the time. It is already very clear. It is already understood,” said López Obrador, reiterating that Mexico is an independent, sovereign country and that foreign investments will not be affected by the reform, as detractors claim.
Debate
This morning, the deputies approved the judicial reform with 359 votes in favor and 135 against, in the midst of a day of protests and an unprecedented strike by workers, judges, magistrates and ministers of the Supreme Court.
After more than 11 hours of session, the ruling majority of the National Regeneration Movement (Morena) and its allies managed to approve a law that aims to completely modify the justice model in Mexico and that has unleashed strong tension between the Executive, Legislative and Judicial powers.
The initiative will be sent to the Senate, which has already agreed to conduct an express parliamentary process.
The reform is the latest major legislative project of the López Obrador government, who on October 1 will hand over the presidential sash to his successor, Claudia Sheinbaum.
