BY RUTH NEBBIA
MEXICO CITY - Washington's procedure of "certifying" Mexico for being sufficiently "cooperative" in the so-called war on drugs has provoked much debate in this country. The discussion particularly heated up after the February 6 arrest of the top Mexican drug enforcement official, Gen. Jesús Gutiérrez Rebollo, over alleged ties to drug traffickers.

The debate had many aspects, including the question of national sovereignty and the hypocrisy of the U.S. government deciding which other countries pass muster. The Clinton administration announced February 28 it would certify Mexico, but once again "decertify" Colombia.

A week later a congressional committee voted to override the president's decision and present legislation in the House of Representatives that would decertify Mexico, but give Clinton the power to waive economic sanctions. This occurs in the context of a deepening economic crisis, deteriorating social conditions, and rising resistance by working people in Mexico.

Many people here reacted to the arrogance of U.S. officials' statements toward Mexico and the certification process. "I'm convinced that our children will be better off if we work with them [the Mexicans]," declared Barry McCaffrey in a statement to the U.S. Congress February 27. McCaffrey is the Clinton's director of the office of National Drug Control Policy.

In announcing the White House decision the next day, U.S. secretary of state Madeleine Albright stated, "Our certification process is not meant to measure the depth of Mexico's shortcomings, but the extent of its cooperation with us in overcoming them. The point, in other words, is not to keep score but to change the score in our favor."

"In light of the imperialist arrogance the indignant reaction of diverse sectors of public opinion in Mexico is understandable," wrote Victor Flores Olea in an op-ed piece for El Universal March 1. "What right does the world's largest consumer of drugs have to assign itself the duty to certify the conduct of any country, be it in matters of human rights or drug trade?"

Many ruling-class spokespeople in Mexico also chaffed at Washington's conditions for certification. In an interview with the daily El Universal, former Mexican foreign minister Bernardo Sepúlveda, who served during Miguel de la Madrid's administration in 1983, expressed concern over the demand that U.S. members of bilateral intelligence units be granted the right the right to carry arms and have diplomatic immunity.

The proposed U.S.-Mexican units would operate in northern Mexico in the regions of Tijuana; Ciudad Juarez-El Paso, Texas; Matamoros-Brownsville, Texas; and Monterrey. Each of the four elite units would consist of 6 U.S. agents, 20 Mexican police, and an interpreter.

Washington's `certification' conditions
Whether or not Mexico should accept the certification process was prominent in the major news dailies here. La Jornada compiled and publicized a list of Washington's demands for certification. They included:

Creating the joint border forces, with immunity for DEA, FBI, and U.S. Customs agents operating in Mexico.

Requiring more background checks on antidrug agents in Mexico, including lie detector and drug tests.

Increasing the number of U.S. agents in Mexico.

Extradition of accused individuals, including Mexican nationals, to the United States. The Clinton administration has 150 pending requests for extradition from Mexico of people it claims Washington can "convict and keep in jail better."

Allowing the U.S. Coast Guard to patrol Mexican territorial waters to hunt alleged drug traffickers both by water and in Mexican airspace.

Implementation of new laws against money laundering by the Mexican government.

" `End the attacks against Mexico'; Barrio Terrazas demands to certify the US s well," was the headline in the February 25 El Universal, quoting Francisco Barrio Terrazas, the state governor of Chihuahua.

"It would be a slap in the face to not certify," Secretary of Foreign Relations José Angel Gurría told La Jornada the next day. Gurría said Washington's unilateral action ignores the great demand for drugs and the corruption that exist in the United States.

Nevertheless, the Mexican government agreed to the demands, and also promised to allow the installation of U.S. radar systems in southern Mexico, allegedly to track suspected drug flights.

An editorial in the daily Excelsior February 26 pointed to one of the reasons Washington decided to "approve" Mexico but not Colombia. "A `decertification' would have as a consequence the cancellation or denial of credits to our country, and imposition of commercial sanctions," said the editorial. "But between Mexico and the United States there is a bilateral exchange of US $140 billion that would be gravely compromised. Millions of people on both sides of the border live from this commerce, and the industry that backs it."

Prior to the certification decision, the Washington Post cited one White House official as saying, "Whatever you do to Mexico, the next day when you wake up, there is still going to be 1,900 miles of border, immigration issues and the fact that they are a major trading partner."

The uncertainty of certification had financial repercussions. On February 27, the day before Clinton's announcement, the peso fell 2.2 percent against the U.S. dollar, the largest one-day drop since the country's financial crisis at the end of 1995. The Mexican stock market also tumbled more than 1 percent that day. This exacerbates the already strained economic problems facing Mexico.

Figures from the economics department at the Autonomous University of Mexico show that a basic daily food basket costs 78 pesos, three times the minimum wage of 23 pesos a day.

Two thirds of the workforce earns less than 40 pesos a day, half the population is not covered by any form of social security, and 20 percent of Mexicans suffer from malnutrition, according to a study by the employers association Comparmex.

Last September, El Financero reported that Mexico's foreign debt had grown 64 percent in the previous 10 years, and now stands at 56 percent of the Gross Domestic Product.

In January, the Mexican government paid the entire $12.5 billion it borrowed from Washington, plus interest. The loan was made in the wake of the collapse of the peso in December 1994. U.S. treasury secretary Robert Rubin bragged that Washington made an extra $580 million profit from the deal, by charging premium interest rates.

Resistance to austerity
Resistance to austerity measures that the government has imposed since 1994 is evident throughout the country.

About 2,000 teachers, members of the National Union of Education Workers (SNTE), confronted soldiers February 25 as they tried to march to government offices demanding higher wages and an end to attempts to privatize education. Two other SNTE locals meanwhile rejected being paid with debit cards, as well as protesting the massive layoffs of school personnel.

With inflation reaching 29 percent in 1996, real wages have eroded. Telephone workers at TEL-MEX are demanding a 47 percent pay raise and vowed to strike after April 25 if their demands are not met. The 45,000-member Mexican Union of Electricians also decided to strike for a 55 percent wage increase beginning March 16. Some of those present for the vote explained that this was not a question of better salaries but of a response to the drastic economic situation which is an "enemy of the workers and the people."

Street vendors marched through the streets of Mexico City February 24 demanding lower vendors fees. They participated in a vendors forum taking place the same day, and protested the reassignment of streets where they are allowed to sell, since their income has been affected by lower sales.

Meanwhile, pilots at Aerolitoral went on strike March 1, after rejecting the offer made by Servicios Aereos Litoral. The company offered pilots a 20 percent raise. The pilots, who demanded 40 percent, say they are willing to negotiate but will not go as low as 20 percent, because they lose buying power.

In the last 15 months, over 300 textile shops have closed in Chiautempan, Tlaxcala, due to financial problems. More than 1,000 workers have lost their jobs due to the inability of the small shop owners to pay them, explained Erasmo González Apan, president of the Chiautempan weavers union.

Ruth Nebbia, a member of the United Transportation Union in New York, participated in the Mexico City Book Fair February 22 - March 2.  
 
 
Front page (for this issue) | Home | Text-version home