Topic Abstract JCC: the Mexican Revolution: El Porfiriato, 1910

Topic Abstract JCC: The Mexican Revolution: El Porfiriato, 1910

Historical Crisis | Washington, D.C. | February 11-14, 2021 A Georgetown International Relations Association, Inc. Conference Dear Delegates and Advisors,

Greetings from NAIMUN LVIII! The staff has been working hard to make the conference the most rewarding and educational experience yet, and we are excited to welcome you all to D.C. in February!

This document is the topic abstract for JCC: The Mexican Revolution: El Porfiriato, 1910. It contains three key elements to allow you to prepare well in advance for the committee: topic descriptions, questions to consider, and research avenues. This abstract will give you a better understanding of the committee’s content and procedures, and it can act as a starting point for further research.

We hope to be of assistance to you in your preparation for NAIMUN LVIII. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please feel free to contact the Secretary- General, Director-General, or your Under-Secretaries-General. You may also contact your dais directly at [email protected]. We look forward to welcoming you to the NAIMUN family!

Best, Alexander Chen Sanjna Jain Secretary-General Director-General [email protected] [email protected]

Mags Glass Tasha Januszewicz Under-Secretary-General, Under-Secretary-General, Historical Crisis Historical Crisis [email protected] [email protected]

Topic Abstract | naimun.modelun.org | 2 What is a Crisis Committee? Crisis Committees are markedly different from both GAs and ECOSOCs. They tend to focus on specific issues, geographic areas, and historical periods. For example, the Court of Louis XIV, 1665 simulates the peak years of King Louis XIV in power, tackling issues from the international expansion of the French empire to developing domestic institutions. In essence, crisis committees have a narrower and more specific focus, while GAs and ECOSOCs focus on broad global concepts and issues. Crisis committees also have the distinguishing characteristic of portfolio powers, where delegates have and can use individual powers that are part of their bio in order to shape the “world” they interact in. Crisis committees also include crisis updates, which are unplanned “crises” that delegates must resolve through debate and directives. Last, crisis committees are the smallest of committees, usually with less than 30 delegates per committee. They tend to be faster-paced and more dynamic than assemblies with set topics.

Adapted from “NAIMUN Delegate Training Guide” Topics Overview The primary goal of this committee is to keep Porfirio Díaz and his followers in power, despite the efforts of various revolutionary movements to establish a new democracy in Mexico.

Guiding Questions 1. Who from the Díaz administration and support base is in this committee? What are their roles in Díaz’ power structure? 2. What motive do the Mexican people have to revolt? 3. How will revolutionary movements limit the power of the administration?

The Mexican Revolution: El Porfiriato, 1910| naimun.modelun.org | 3 Topic A: Balancing Reform with Continuity While it is held together by the strength and power of Porfirio Díaz himself, the Porfiriato relies on the support of wealthy owners of haciendas and Científicotechnocrats that follow a conservative liberalism. They use pragmatic scientific methods to address finance, education, and modernization, such as prioritizing efficiency, but they uphold the Díaz regime and are against major democratic principles that may limit their power.1 During the past few decades, the Díaz administration has favored foreign investment and has centralized wealth in the hands of the wealthy. While this has led to strong economic development for the country, it has lead to the exploitation of poor farmers and laborers across Mexico in slavery-like sharecropping systems.2 Thus, many Mexicans have turned to revolutionary movements that plan to improve their living and working conditions. They are also calling for democratic reforms that could remove the Cientificosfrom power.

Given the revolutionary sentiments that have rapidly grown since Díaz changed his mind and decided to rig the Election of 1910, the Díaz administration must introduce some reforms to placate the masses and protect their control of the government while maintaining the support of the wealthy elites of Mexico. An important balance must be struck: do too little, and guarantee revolution, but do too much, and lose the structure that grants Díaz power in the first place.

Questions to Consider for Further Research 1. Which powerful groups support the Porfiriato, and why? 2. What societal issues have led to revolutionary sentiments? 3. How can reform be used to address these issues without losing the support of the wealthy?

1 The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Científico.” Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., January 29, 2009. https://www.britannica.com/topic/cientifico. 2 Friedrich Katz. “Labor Conditions on Haciendas in Porfirian Mexico: Some rendsT and Tendencies.” The Hispanic American Historical Review 54, no. 1 (1974): 1-47. Accessed June 4, 2020. doi:10.2307/2512838. Topic Abstract | naimun.modelun.org | 4 Topic B: Government Legitimacy Although Porfirio Díaz had seemed open to greater democratization of Mexican political life after serving as President for thirty three years, the rigged 1910 election endowed the eighty year old with his eighth term, inciting severe doubts among the people about the legitimacy of his rule. Although Díaz and the científicos have sought to expand Mexico’s economy through aggressive foreign investment, many businesspeople and members of the Mexican middle class believe that Díaz has allowed foreigners to control too much of Mexico’s wealth. Despite the fact that over two-thirds of the country is employed in some form of agricultural work, the Díaz regime has had to import many basic food items because of the focus on commercial agriculture for export.3

While these reforms have benefited the rich and literate members of Mexican society, they have begun to incite divisions even among some of Díaz’s most loyal supporters. This, coupled with the lack of a legitimate electoral process to replace Díaz, has caused a political crisis among competing elites. Although many of the reforms central to the Díaz regime are a product of the technocratic policies of the científicos, other traditional bases of power for the Porfirio regime, such as the military and regional landowners, are opposed to these foreign-oriented policies. Called “reyistas,” named for the former governor of Nuevo León General Bernardo Reyes, they seek to end Díaz’s extended hold on power through independent political parties such as “El Partido Independiente” (The Independent Party) or “Los Antirreeleccionistas.4” However, unlike the revolutionaries, they do not wish to impose widespread land reform or broad changes to political power, but rather to uphold the democratic principles of the 1857 Mexican Constitution.5 Overall, international recognition and domestic support are both key to the legitimacy of the Díaz administration.

Questions to Consider for Further Research 1. How can the Díaz cabinet restore political legitimacy, especially among the growing middle class in Mexico? 2. How will members of this cabinet balance supporting their leader while still seeking to uphold constitutional values? 3. What actions are necessary to regain international recognition of the Díaz regime?

3 The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, “Porfiriato,” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., August 9, 2019, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Porfiriato. 4 Elisa Cárdenas Ayala, “Poder y política entre Porfiriato y Revolución. El reyismo,”México: Historia, Ideas, y Cultura Política, no. 11 (2004): 87-106, https://recyt.fecyt.es/index.php/Hyp/article/view/44740. 5 Gordon Willey and Howard F. Cline, “La Reforma,” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., May 29, 2020, https://www.britannica.com/place/Mexico/La-Reforma#ref394388. The Mexican Revolution: El Porfiriato, 1910| naimun.modelun.org | 5 Topic C: Responding to Unrest The political years of Porfirio Diaz brought both economic success and hardship to the people of Mexico. Through imaginative economic policy, Diaz strengthened Mexico’s mining industry, built necessary infrastructure for agriculture and banking, and modernized the country. During his time in office, Diaz introduced almost fifteen thousand miles of railroad track onto Mexican soil, which continued to bring continued prosperity to the country by transporting Mexican made goods over the US border.6 International trade between Mexico and the United States became a dominant factor to Diaz’s economic success, however, as was demonstrated in 1907, it was also a weakness. The “Bank Panic of 1907” in the United States led to reduced spending in America which, due to Mexico’s heavy reliance on the American economy, caused it to collapse.7 Coupled with a low agricultural yield and an already poor rural population, unrest amongst Mexico’s most vulnerable lower class was inevitable. Although these rural communities are not yet mobilized against Diaz, their desolate conditions must be addressed for Diaz to have any chance of leading Mexico again.

Furthermore, Diaz and his advisors will need to address the unrest amongst the increasingly educated middle class. Although many middle class Mexicans supported Diaz during his time in office, recent corruption, rigged elections and a decreasingly independent press have caused many members of the middle class to withdraw their support.8 The committee will be tasked with addressing the specific concerns from both lower class rural Mexico and middle class Mexicans without inciting further rebellion. Although violent unrest is currently limited, the committee must decide whether they are willing to use force against their dissenters or whether they will engage in other tactics to quell unrest.

Two other factors that Diaz and his advisors must consider are the strength of their own military and their potential for foreign support. The United States has a long history of holding democracy up, and if Diaz wins his election, while having exiled his opponent Francisco Madero to the United States, it is unknown if the United States will support a potentially illegitimate victory. Furthermore, members of the military question Diaz’s foreign policy and desire power of their own.9 Diaz has recently used his military strength to eliminate opponents and maintain order, but will it be enough if rebellion grows?

6 Jürgen Buchenau, “The Mexican Revolution, 1910–1946,” Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Latin American History, September 3, 2015. https://oxfordre.com/latinamericanhistory/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199366439.001.0001/acrefore-9780199366439-e-21. 7 Kevin J. Cahill. “The U.S. Bank Panic of 1907 and the Mexican Depression of 1908-1909.” The Histo- rian 60, no. 4 (1998): 795-812. Accessed June 5, 2020. www.jstor.org/stable/24452185. 8 Alan Knight. “The Mexican Revolution.” History Today 30 Issue 5 May (1980) Accessed June 5, 2020. https://www.historytoday.com/archive/mexican-revolution. 9 Ayala, “Poder y política.” Topic Abstract | naimun.modelun.org | 6 Resources for Further Research https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/mexican-revolution-and-the-united-states/rise-of-madero. html This online exhibit of the Library of Congress details the timelines, various revolutionary ideologies, and leaders of the Revolution, along with pictures and relics. https://www.jstor.org/stable/2512838?casa_token=-leXyBu8SxkAAAAA%3AFk eLqnWaThE4e7WiBGbtA_VRIQSPDpTrjXESyh87h5n7ZNgE3cmueg4ilEIirjJNM6N- sXab37lBYStL04gwasNtG9_Yte0fMIZwEroQk_sJRsuYHys&seq=38#metadata_info_tab_ contents An in-depth account of the hacienda system and the exploitation of Mexican farmers and laborers. https://www.britannica.com/place/Mexico/The-Mexican-Revolution-and-its- aftermath-1910-40 An overview of Mexican history since “La Reform,” a period in which liberal ideas gained prominence within the country. https://recyt.fecyt.es/index.php/Hyp/article/view/44740 Explains “reyismo” and other political movements that opposed Díaz among middle and upper class citizens. (This article is entirely in Spanish) https://repository.library.georgetown.edu/bitstream/handle/10822/709777/Fernandez_ georgetown_0076D_12473.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y (Pages 119-129, 147-149) Provides an in-depth look into the beginning of “reyismo” and the conflicts between General Reyes and the científicos. https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/mexican-revolution-and-the-united-states/us-involvement- before-1913.html Library of Congress collection of pictures and documents describing US involvement in Mexico before, during and after the Mexican Revolution. https://www.historytoday.com/archive/mexican-revolution Describes the formation and goals of each of the Revolutionary movements in their historical context. https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/mod/1910potosi.asp An English translation of the preamble to the Plan de San Luis Potosi, which outlined Francisco I. Madero’s call for defense against the tyranny of Porfirio Diaz. https://library.brown.edu/create/modernlatinamerica/chapters/chapter-3-mexico/ primary-documents-with-accompanying-discussion-questions/document-6-plan-de-

The Mexican Revolution: El Porfiriato, 1910| naimun.modelun.org | 7 ayala-emilio-zapata-1911/ An English translation of the Plan de Ayala, which outlined Zapatista’s plan for democratic land and labor reform. https://edsitement.neh.gov/closer-readings/mexican-revolution-november-20th-1910 Provides an overview of how art, music, and literature were tied to the Revolution.

Topic Abstract | naimun.modelun.org | 8 A Georgetown International Relations Association, Inc. Conference Topic Abstract | naimun.modelun.org | 9