Cabinet of Mexico, 1990 MUNUC 32 TABLE OF CONTENTS ______________________________________________________ Letter from the Crisis Director………………………………………………...3 Letter from the Chair…………………………………………………………...4 A Brief History of Mexico……………………………………………………....6 The United Mexican States and its Government………………………….7 Political Parties in Mexico………………………………………………….....9 The Mexican Economy and the National Development Plan………...10 The 1988 Election and Corruption………………………………………….14 Trade…………………………………………………………………………….18 Role of the Catholic Church………………………………………………...19 Insurgency Movements……………………………………………………..20 Note to Delegates…………………………………………………………….21 Character Biographies……………………………………………………....22 Bibliography…………………………………………………………………...41 2 Cabinet of Mexico, 1990 | MUNUC 32 LETTER FROM THE CRISIS DIRECTOR ______________________________________________________ Dear delegates, Bienvenido to Mexico 1988! We are so excited to be creating this committee for you all. Crisis is such a dynamic way to engage with Model UN, and we wanted to give you an experience which touches on the constructive side of crisis. In this time period, Mexico underwent a critical period of growth, and we hope you all are able to understand the economic, political, and cultural sides of this developmental era. Any-a-do, a bit about myself. I am a rising second year here at UChicago and I major in Creative Writing and Economics. In addition, I am a Crisis Director for MUNUC (as you Know) and ChoMUN (the college conference which you all will be going to in one to four years). On top of all that, I am a tour guide for admissions at the University. I love writing and am definitely chaotic evil. So, get ready for a whirlwind of crisis for this weeKend, but also policies. We love policies. Best, Dan 3 Cabinet of Mexico, 1990 | MUNUC 32 LETTER FROM THE CHAIR ______________________________________________________ Hello, Dear Delegates, Welcome! My name is Jack Haynie and I will be serving as your chair this February. This committee is (hopefully) going to be an exciting, unique, and enjoyable experience for everyone involved and Dan and I are looking forward to working with all of you in a few months. By way of introductions, I am a third year in the college pursuing a Political Science major with a History minor. I originally hail from Boston, but I am also kind of from Maine (it’s complicated). This will be my fourth year being involved in MUNUC and I previously have previously served as Chair for the Cabinet of Charles De Gaulle’s cabinet at MUNUC XXXI, Crisis Director for the Arctic Council at MUNUC XXX, and as an Assistant Chair for NATO at MUNUC XXIV. Outside of MUNUC, I am involved in the other Model UN organizations on campus where I compete on the University’s travel team and serve as Director General for ChoMUN, the University’s collegiate Model UN conference. When I am not doing Model UN, I occasionally write articles about the energy industry and maritime law for the Chicago Journal on Foreign Policy and am a member of Greek life on campus. Few periods, nation states, or personalities in recent history possess the dynamism contained in this committee. As members of Mexico’s cabinet you will be charged with the unprecedented task of defining Latin America’s role in a globalizing, post-colonial world. You will be faced with a unique blend of geo-political, social, and economic challenges that will truly define what it means to be a Latin American power in the post-Cold War world. Despite your differing interests, I expect to see debate in-room that’s focused on how best to tackle the era defining challenges facing Mexico and steer it out of whatever crisis Dan and I decide to throw at all of you. This is going to be my last time serving as a committee executive and I could not be more thrilled to be closing it on this topic and in this format. 4 Cabinet of Mexico, 1990 | MUNUC 32 Finally, the crisis director of my first committee, Alex Nye, told all of his staffers and delegates at the outset of committee that the only really genuinely good reason to do this activity is because you enjoy it. With that in mind, I want every delegate on this committee to have a great time while competing and if there’s anything we can do to make this experience even more enjoyable, please send me or Dan a note. Overall, I couldn’t be more excited to meet all of you and to see how this committee unfolds. While preparing for MUNUC XXXII, feel free to contact both Christian or me with any questions you might have at [email protected] . We would love to answer any questions you have about the committee, MUNUC, or the University of Chicago. Best, Jack Haynie 5 Cabinet of Mexico, 1990 | MUNUC 32 A Brief History of Mexico Indigenous groups have inhabited Mexico for thousands of years. Before the arrival of the Spanish, numerous civilizations rose and fell in this territory. The Aztec were the largest empire existing at the time of Hernan Cortez’s 1519 landing at Veracruz. The Spanish brutally conquered and colonized the region, enslaving and Killing most of the population. Under Spanish rule, what is now Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, and the Southwestern United States, was all united under “Nueva España” or “New Spain.” Around this time, Catholic missionaries also entered the Americas.1 The Spanish ruled New Spain with an iron fist until Napoleon occupied Spain in 1808. At that point, Spain had been so badly weakened that many of its colonies had begun plotting their independence. Mexico officially declared independence on September 16, 1810. However, it wasn’t until 1821 that Spain finally negotiated with the rebels and helped the country draft its own constitution.2 Texas declared independence from Mexico in 1835, and due to American support, Mexico lost this region. The United States continued to act in line with its philosophy of Manifest Destiny, which described American expansion across North America as inevitable and necessary. This led to the USA declaring war on Mexico in 1846, and after an American victory, Mexico ceded modern-day California, Arizona, Utah, Colorado, Nevada, and New Mexico to the United States.3 The constitution in place from independence until the early 1900s lent itself to an authoritarian government. From 1876 to 1909, Porfírio Díaz ruled as an authoritarian leader. The people grew tired 1 “Timeline Mexico 1970-1997.” Accessed May 26, 2019. https://timelines.ws/countries/MEXICO_B.HTML. 2 Ibid 3 Editors, History com. “Mexico Timeline.” HISTORY. Accessed May 26, 2019. https://www.history.com/topics/mexico/mexico-timeline. 6 Cabinet of Mexico, 1990 | MUNUC 32 of his regime and launched the Mexican Revolution - a ten year civil war with over two million casualties. The result was a constitutional republic which implemented many of the social reforms supported by the revolutionary groups: primarily, land reform and limiting the role of the Catholic Church.4 The constitution sought to put property in the hands of the people, avoiding exploitation at the hands of foreigners and the elite class. In addition, the Catholic Church was reduced from a dominating system–which had at times been even more influential than the government –to a heavily regulated social club. Since the constitution’s emergence, the country’s economy and population have grown tremendously. Mexico has remained relatively unaligned throughout the Cold War, therefore maKing it a part of the “Third World.” This term does not mean that Mexico is an impoverished nation, but rather that it does not overtly ally with the Western Powers and NATO (the First World) and the Communist Powers and Warsaw Pact (the Second World). Up until the 1970s, the country was in a constant state of growth. However, in 1981, Mexico was hit with its greatest recession since the Great Depression. Despite macroeconomic policies intended to cut bacK on spending and increase exports, throughout the 1980s, the country had an annual growth rate of about .1% and an inflation rate of about 100%, meaning that their currency lost half of its value every year.5 By the time of Carlos Salinas’s presidency, the inflation rate stabilized, but the country struggled to gain foreign investment and reduce its debts. The United Mexican States and its Government According to Mexico’s 1917 constitution, the federal government, which oversees the 31 states, is composed of an executive, legislative, and judicial branch, much liKe that of the United States of America. The branches are also called “The Powers of the Union” (Poderes de la Unión). 6 4 Agren, David. “Separation of Catholics and State: Mexico’s Divisive Religious History.” The Guardian, February 12, 2016, sec. World news. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/feb/12/mexico-catholicism-politics-religious-history- pope-francis. 5 Reding, Andrew. “Mexico at a Crossroads: The 1988 Election and Beyond.” World Policy Journal 5, no. 4 (1988): 615–49. 6 “Ley Orgánica de La Administración Pública Federal,” August 26, 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20110826002207/http://www.funcionpublica.gob.mx/leyes/loapf2000.htm. 7 Cabinet of Mexico, 1990 | MUNUC 32 The executive branch of Mexico is led by a president who is also the supreme commander of the armed forces. A presidential term is a six-year period called a sexenio and is a position which can be held only once. The constitution bans reelection to this position. This role is extremely similar to the American presidency because the Mexican constitution was largely based off of the American one. Thus, the Mexican president helps enact the laws passed by Congress, can veto parts of passed laws, and appoints people to certain judiciary and bureaucratic positions.7 The legislative branch is called the “Congress of the Union” (Congreso de la Unión).