ARTICLE MORENA and Mexico’s Fourth Historical Transformation by Gerardo Otero | Simon Fraser University | [email protected] On July 1, 2018, Mexico elected a left-of-center root causes that make the ruling class turn to president for the first time since Lázaro Cárdenas repression, said Abel Barrera Hernández, of the was elected in 1934. Andrés Manuel López Obrador Tlachinollán Center for Human Rights in the (AMLO) and his National Regeneration Movement highlands of Guerrero State. He therefore contested (MORENA) won the elections by a landslide, with the proposition that “the struggle for human rights 53.2 percent of the vote and 64.3 percent citizen is the axis of all struggle” because their violation is participation, winning a majority in both chambers merely a symptom. Yet, concrete responses and of Congress. The mandate is therefore quite strong. solutions are needed. The new government must Significantly, both Congress and the cabinet have respect and promote human rights, said Father gender parity, a first for any Latin American country. Miguel Concha, acknowledged as the dean of the Given the importance of these elections, Diálogos human rights struggle. He posited the indivisibility por la Democracia at the National Autonomous of three aspects of human rights. First, transitional University of Mexico (UNAM) organized a three- justice, which should be accessible to all in order day conference in November 2018 to analyze to avoid revictimization. Spaces from the bottom the challenges for the new government, which up should become available. Second, we need a promised a “fourth transformation” for Mexico. paradigm shift in security and to stay away from The first historical transformation was Mexico’s militarization. Third, the neoliberal state must be independence from Spain in 1821; the second disarticulated for one that guarantees human was the liberal reform struggle for a secular rights. Civil society demands the establishment of state, separating church and state in the 1857 a truth commission on human rights at the federal constitution; and the third was the 1910 revolution level. As a start, Barrera Hernández called for the culminating with the 1917 constitution and its immediate derogation of the Interior Security Law progressive agrarian reform and labor legislation. and demilitarization. Political violence was key to producing each of these transformations. If it happens, the fourth Alternation in government by different political transformation would be the first peaceful one. The parties does not guarantee a regime change, odds of achieving something significant enough asserted Alejandro Encinas, a longtime politician to be considered a fourth transformation are huge, on the Left, now undersecretary of Human Rights, but cautious optimism is warranted. I outline Migration and Population. New paradigms for state the main issues and challenges discussed at the reconstruction are required. Human dignity and conference by prominent scholars, politicians and human rights must become the center of attention intellectuals. to recover collective well-being. Mexico has gone through a deep humanitarian crisis due to the Human Rights state’s weakening and the empowerment of other de facto powers such as organized crime. Mexico Mexico arrived to 2018 as a cemetery with about has become a giant clandestine grave, with 26,000 200,000 people having been killed since 2006, unidentified dead people. Migrants, on the other and about 40,000 disappeared. Several speakers hand, will not be criminalized. Those foreigners that addressed this issue from various perspectives. the United States considers aliens and stateless, Exploitation, oppression, and inequality are the the Mexican state will have to make them subjects LASA FORUM 50:2 30 of rights. Furthermore, the new government will are other routes through which convictions or promote union freedom, with secret, direct, and reparations are made for a mere 8 percent of the universal balloting by workers. Workers’ freedom cases. AMLO does not seek vengeance but justice of organization and union democracy are the as the new modus operandi of the state. When new goals. the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) was in power, there were the “diesmos priistas,” 10 percent Human rights for Indigenous peoples have payments that public officials demanded to issue a added requirements: they involve acknowledging permit or some other government concession; then Indigenous rights to autonomy, land, and territory, the “panista moches,” or shares given to public as mandated by Mexico’s endorsement of United workers in the time of the National Action Party Nations conventions. Neil Harvey argued that, while (PAN). During the administration of Enrique Peña the elections demonstrated widespread popular Nieto’s PRI, the modality of phantom enterprises discontent, the new MORENA government runs emerged: they received huge payments from the the risk of repeating past practices with regard to government for no work performed at all. This Indigenous peoples. If we look critically at the post- creates a disloyal competition with legitimate Independence, liberal reform, and revolutionary firms and hinders their development in the private periods, Indigenous peoples participated in each sector: phantom firms will no longer settle for 10 of these transformations, but they were later percent of the share but for 100 percent of public subordinated to new regimes that either stripped resources. The challenge, therefore, includes both them of their lands in the name of progress or political will and institutional changes. There is provided land reform as a means of garnering political will in the new administration and its political support for a centralized and authoritarian challenge is to eliminate the protection of illicit, regime. We must therefore be wary of the phantom “enterprises.” potentially negative impacts of the proclaimed fourth historical transformation under AMLO and It is a human right to live without corruption, said MORENA. Megaprojects such as the Tren Maya Nieto. The state must exercise the penal option on and the creation of new agricultural plantations money laundering and corruption. There should in southern Mexico are of particular concern and be communication and cooperation between have brought criticism from the Zapatistas, the the Secretariat of the Public Function and the National Indigenous Congress, and several local Attorney General now called Fiscalía. To improve organizations. In Harvey’s opinion, they rightly fear the messaging on corruption toward the public, that AMLO may simply be continuing the same the Fiscalía should be autonomous from political rural development policies of his predecessors. An power in public prosecution and execution of the alternative approach would be for AMLO and his law. The constitution is the sum of all of the nation’s advisers to listen and learn from communities that projects; it has neoliberal elements but also social have actively resisted such policies and built more ones. We need to think more in group rights than ecologically sustainable and socially just forms individual rights. The judicial branch of government of development. The extent to which such an needs to realize that this is a system: the law alternative is embraced or rejected will determine must be coordinated. Penal action must become whether or not the fourth historical transformation central also to recover stolen public goods and is a case of déjà vu or not for Indigenous peoples immediately apply financial intelligence. in Mexico. Such struggle requires juridical efficacy. Luz Corruption and Impunity Mijangos, former major accountant of Mexico City’s Ministry of Finance, addressed this issue in fighting Mexico occupies one of the worst ranks regarding corruption and impunity. The context is that de corruption of its penal system in the world. Only facto powers like organized crime are often more 2 percent of crimes reach conviction sentences, powerful than authorities. Efficacy in combatting said Santiago Nieto, now head of the Financial corruption and impunity has never been achieved. Intelligence Unit in the Secretariat of Finance. There Political corruption has been progressing and, LASA FORUM 50:2 31 strategically, it replaces all decisions of political MORENA: From Social Movement to power. There are various holes in the national Political Party anticorruption system, but there is a model with If there is a single factor that best explains the some advancements. There must be synergies 2018 electoral result, it would be MORENA. For and coordination among all those combatting Héctor Díaz Polanco, head of its Honor and corruption, including citizen committees. The Justice Commission, MORENA was a hegemonic bases of proof need considerable strengthening. construction and a powerful structure, the most For instance, in civil society investigations of powerful in Latin America. MORENA had to corruption cases like that of Odebrecht, proof lock the entrance key to party memberships in must be convincing so that the attorney general 2017: it had reached 3 million members out of can build a sound case. To perfect or improve the nearly 90 million registered voters. There was a proofs, there should be direct access to data bases transformation process in which militants and such as notaries. The judicial power must develop a sympathizers became actively involved in the responsible attitude to reach an adequate standard elections. MORENA had eight to ten observers