12 Sep 2024 | 09:54 PM UTC
Mexico: Nationwide strike, associated protests by federal judiciary workers likely to continue through at least late September /update 4
Nationwide strike by federal judiciary workers likely to persist in Mexico through at least late September. Associated protests likely.
Unionized federal judiciary employees will likely continue their indefinite strike and campaign of protests across Mexico through at least late September. The purpose of the work stoppage, which has been underway since Aug. 19, is to denounce judicial reforms proposed by the national government. As part of the action, striking workers and supporting activists have staged demonstrations and marches outside federal courthouses in several cities, including Mexico City, Guadalajara, and Monterrey. Protesters have become bolder in their tactics; activists breached the Senate building in Mexico City on Sept. 10, briefly prompting lawmakers to halt their activities. On Sept. 11, protesters in Puebla also attempted to breach the state congressional building. Protests will likely escalate as the reforms come closer to passing into law.
The strike will almost certainly continue to prompt significant delays and other disruptions to federal court services. Transport and business disruptions are likely in areas where demonstrations take place. Authorities will probably deploy a heightened security presence to any protest sites. Clashes are possible if security forces try to forcibly disperse the demonstrators; skirmishes are also possible between opposing activists if their demonstrations collide.
Reconfirm all business appointments, including hearing dates and petition statuses, with the federal court system for the duration of the strike. Avoid all protests as a precaution. Allow additional time to reach destinations in the vicinity of any likely demonstration locations, such as federal courthouses. Heed the instructions of local authorities.
On Feb. 5, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador proposed reforms to the federal judiciary. The proposed changes include electing federal and state judges, including justices on the Supreme Court, via public elections. This has garnered significant controversy, with critics arguing that it threatens the courts' independence. Judicial employees launched the strike on Aug. 19 before being joined by judges and magistrates on Aug. 21.
The reforms passed their initial hurdle on Aug. 26, when the constitutional points commission from the lower chamber of Mexico's Congress approved them. On Aug. 31, two federal judges in Chiapas and Morelos issued rulings that sought to temporarily halt the debate on the reforms in Congress and prevent them from being sent to state congresses for approval. On Sept. 2, employees of the Supreme Court joined the nationwide strike. The lower house, nevertheless, debated the reforms and approved them on Sept. 4, sending them to the Senate, where they were approved on Sept. 11.
After the Senate approved the reform on Sept. 11, it sent it to state legislatures for ratification. So far, 19 of the 32 states have approved it, passing the required threshold for a constitutional amendment to become law.
