MEXPAZ: MEXICO UPDATE #148 Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit MEXICO UPDATE # 148 November 12, 1997 Produced by Equipo Pueblo __________________________________________________________ This version of the Mexico Update contains three sections: Human Rights/Chiapas; Democracy and Politics; Economy. Comments welcome. e-mail pueblodip@laneta.apc.org Fax in Mexico City (52-5) 672-7453. __________________________________________________________ HUMAN RIGHTS/ CHIAPAS EZLN Condemns Attacks on Bishops Samuel Garcia and Raul Vera The Zapatista National Liberation Army (EZLN) condemned the attack against Bishops Samuel Ruiz and Raul Vera in Chiapas last week by a paramilitary group, allegedly affiliated with the ruling PRI. The EZLN defended the National Mediation Commission, which Samuel Ruiz heads, and said that the government, through its negotiator Pedro Joaquin Coldwell, is trying to "manage and feed the conflict so that it can be presented to the public as a war among indigenous people, an internal division of the EZLN, a dispute between the EZLN and the dioceses or a loss of control or radicalization of the Zapatista leadership". Just two days after the attack on the bishops, in which three peasants were wounded, Bishop Ruiz's sister was attacked by a man with a hammer. Samuel Ruiz has declared that both attacks are "intimately related". The recent attacks reflect the escalating tension in Chiapas, particularily in Chenalho, where paramilitary activity is very strong (see below). According to EZLN Subcommander Marcos and many analysts, this type of attacks is a confirmation that the government is preparing a military solution to the conflict in Chiapas (La Jornada, 10 November). PRI and PC Members Attack Zapatista Followers Members of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) and the Cardenist Party (which is not affiliated with Cuahutemoc Cardenas and the PRD), opened fire on the houses of 18 Zapatista supporters in Yibeljoj, Chiapas. This is only one of the many attacks recently perpetrated in the Tzotzil municipality of San Pedro Chenalho by the same group of people. As a result, more than 2,000 indigenous people have fled their homes and many of them are hiding out in the mountains without shelter. Members of the Autonomous Municipal Council said that the attacks were perpetrated by members of the two parties against those who have refused to contribute money for the purchase of arms for paramilitary groups being formed in the region. The list of recent human rights violations in the municipality is extensive. (La Jornada, 12 November). 5 Nobel Prizes and NGOs Condemn Attacks on Samuel Ruiz Five Nobel Peace Prize recipients (Adolfo Perez Esquivel, Desmond M. Tutu, Oscar Arias-Sancez, Tenzin Gyatso and Rigoberta Menchu) joined hundreds of people and civil, church, social and political organizations from Mexico and abroad, in sending a message to president Zedillo and the governor of Chiapas "energetically" protesting the attack perpetrated on Bishops Samuel Ruiz and Raul Vera and their convoy, and against the Bishop's sister. The message states that "Even though the government tries to minimize the facts, these assassination attempts are not isolated events. They occur within a context of increasing violence, which is tolerated, and in some cases sponsored, by local authorities. The complicity of the federal government is based on its tactic of seeking to postpone a definitive solution to the problems that have caused the war in Chiapas, and the fact that paramilitary groups have operated in open impunity for years" (La Jornada, 12 November). Government Negotiator and Opposition Parties on Chiapas After almost four years since the initiation of the Chiapas conflict, and one year after the suspension of the San Andres Peace Talks, representatives of the main opposition parties (PRD and PAN) commented on the situation in that state. According to Jesus Contreras, secretary general of the PRD, a peaceful solution to the conflict is one of the key issues that the PRD will propose in its dialogue with President Zedillo next Tuesday. On the other hand, Cecilia Romero, the leader of the PAN in the Federal District, assured that the government has sent clear signals that it wants to resume the peace talks in Chiapas, and that (therefore) Sub commander Marcos must stop his "double discourse" and respond. She also criticized the Zapatista demands for indigenous autonomy and defended government negotiator Joaquin Coldwell's concept of autonomy. Coldwell has attempted to position himself more as a mediator than a government negotiator. He stated in a long interview that the indigenous demands for autonomy do not represent the "Balkanization" of the country and that none of the Marcos' demands are a threat to the government. He also blamed the government because "it has not sought to attend to the conflict, because ... it has been minimized and reduced to some regions in Chiapas". However, during his six months as official negotiator, Coldwell has not had any significant advances, and in his declarations against the attacks on Samuel Ruiz and Raul Vera he has not mentioned the culprits. (La Jornada, 8, 10 November). Mexican Ombudsman Accuses Foreign NGOs of Interventionism Mireille Rocatti, president of the National Human Rights Commission (CNDH) responded last week to criticism from Amnesty International that the CNDH is not a legitimate agency and that it covers up human rights violations, saying that some international NGOs hide their ulterior motives behind a mask of human rights defenders. She said that these are "sophisticated instruments of interventionism in countries of the Third World". She criticized AI and the like, asking why have they have never criticized the violation of Mexican citizens' rights in the United States, including the use of the death penalty. She said that care must be taken to ensure that noble human rights causes are not "used as an excuse to go any further". Her response is another element in the series of mutual accusations between AI and the Mexican government since the former accused the latter of refusing to grant them a meeting with President Zedillo (La Jornada, 8 November). DEMOCRACY/ POLITICS PRI Recovers Political Presence in Jalisco With 80% of the votes counted in the Jalisco state elections (which took place on Sunday, November 9), the PRI has a chance of taking the PAN's majority of the state Congress away. The huge municipality of Zapopan is crucial in deciding whether the PAN can retain his hold on Congress. The PRI won many important municipalities (Tonala, Lagos de Moreno, Magdalena, Poncitlan, Autlan, Tlajomulco, El Salto and Ameca, amog others), although three out of four municipal presidencies in the metropolitan area of the state capital (Guadalajara) will be retained by the PAN, which also controls the governor's office. The PAN leader in Jalisco assures that his party will continue governing 70% of the population of that state. (Reforma, 11, 12 November). ECONOMY Government to Broaden Tax Base Within the "miscellaneous" line item in the federal tax revenues in 1998, the executive branch has proposed the creation of a category of "small (fiscal) contributors", in order to incorporate a majority of street vendors and informal sector workers into the tax base. The executive's plan does not include opposition proposals to reduce the value added tax (IVA) and adjust income taxes. However, public sector representatives announced that certain tax mechanisms that support small and medium sized businesses will be proposed to Congress. (El Financiero, 10 November). SPECIAL : 1998 BUDGET Secretary Ortiz Presents 1998 Budget to Congress : No Tax Reduction. Secretary of Finance, Guillermo Ortiz, presented the Revenue Bill and the Budget Proposal to the Mexican Congress on November 11. He said that it is not infallible, and called on the legislators to reflect and to offer proposals, arguing that political diversity should not be a reason for disagreements that undermine economic stability. The budget proposal includes many opposition party demands, like increasing social spending and strengthening federalism, but does not include the key demand of reducing the IVA and restructuring other tax mechanisms. Ortiz said this is because the high rate of tax evasion and dependence on oil revenues require a "conservative position". Economic Forecast for 1998 The budget presented yesterday forecasts 5.2% GDP growth, 12% inflation, and a public deficit of less than 1.25% GDP in 1998. (The PAN is even more conservative suggesting a public deficit of less than 1%, while the PRD suggests 2%). The exchange rate is expected to average 8.74 pesos per dollar. According to the government, the current account deficit will increase to about 2.49% of GDP ($10.8 billion, compared to $6 billion dollars in 1997). Exports of goods and services are expected to grow 11.6%, reaching 30% of GDP. Private investment will grow 16.5% and private consumption 4.32%. Meanwhile, the public sector will pay up to $11.07 billion dollars in foreign debt ($2.27 billion less than in 1997). (La Jornada, 12 November). Privatization In 1998, the government will continue its "structural change" policies, transferring more public entities to the private sector. Also, four port authorities (Guaymas, Mazatlan, Topolobampo and Tuxpan), 35 airports, 49% of the capital of seven petro-chemical plants and the Southwest Railway will be privatized. Concessions will be granted to the private sector for 14 electricity generation projects and the distribution of gas in four regions (Queretaro, Bajio, Puebla y La Laguna). (La Jornada, 12 November). Public spending Finance Secretary Guillermo Ortiz explained that the government's proposed public spending focuses on five key areas : The first "and maybe the most important" is social spending, which the administration proposes increasing by 10%. The second is anti-poverty programs, which would see a 25% increase, according to the proposed budget. The third is strengthening federalism in Mexico, which would entail the transfer of approximately 110 billion pesos to local entities and municipalities for basic education, health services and social infrastructure. The fourth includes a 70% reduction in the president's "secret" discretional spending account, and the transfer of these funds to other government agencies. Finally, the administration proposes a 30% increase in public sector investments in strategic sectors, including transport and hydraulic infrastructure. Favorable Reactions and Dissent During Ortiz's Presentation Most deputies from the PRD and PAN reacted favorably to the budget proposal. This could bode well for avoiding a budgetary crisis during December. Porfirio Munoz Ledo, leader of the PRD legislative fraction, said that the tone of the official discourse had changed and that the administration showed respect for the independence of the legislative branch. He added that for the first time "they accept that they are not infallible". Francisco Jose Paoli, the PAN's legislative coordinator, said that Ortiz had put "a little star in the forehead (of the opposition); for the PAN because (it accepted) its proposal to promote federalism and for the PRD with its acceptance of increased social spending". However, Ortiz's appearance before Congress was not free of protest ; about thirty teachers from the state of Baja California, led by PRD deputy German Rufino, blocked Ortiz on his way out of the legislative building and demanded that Zedillo fulfill his promise to adjust teachers' salaries on a zone by zone basis. (La Jornada, 12 November). ================================================================= NY Transfer News Collective * A Service of Blythe Systems Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us 339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012 http://www.blythe.org e-mail: nyt@blythe.org ================================================================= nytcamer-11.15.97-03:59:15-30890