Mexico - June 2023

On 22 June, Mexico's Supreme Court (SCJN) invalidated the second part of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador's 'Plan B' electoral reform, effectively annulling the entire proposal. This decision followed the court's previous invalidation in May of the first part of the reform. In both rulings, the SCJN focused primarily on the legislative procedure rather than the content and implications. The decree sought to limit the National Electoral Institute’s (INE) ability to organize elections by reducing the number of offices and staff in its headquarters and the country's 300 electoral districts, and to limit INE's supervision and auditing roles. The SCJN declared that the decree’s approval had entailed "serious violations of the legislative process", contravening articles 71 and 72 of the federal constitution, which emphasize the principle of democratic deliberation. The Court further noted that equal participation of all congressional groups was not guaranteed due to the initiatives not being published in time for comprehensive review and being rushed without meeting urgent criteria. Following the SCJN's announcement, Morena (ruling party) leaders confirmed that a 'Plan C' is underway, though its specifics remain unclear.

Sources: Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nación, The New York Times, International IDEA Democracy Tracker, El País, Cámara de Diputados

The increasing violence and insecurity in Mexico are reportedly linked to the enhanced role of the military. On 6 June, video evidence implicated Mexican soldiers in the extrajudicial killing of five men in Nuevo Laredo, raising concerns about the military's use of force. President López Obrador condemned the event and committed to ensuring accountability. Subsequently, sixteen soldiers were charged and detained on 10 June and the local garrison commander replaced. Simultaneously, indigenous leaders and the EZLN (Ejercito Zapatista de Liberación Nacional), considered a guerilla group by the army, held demonstrations in Mexico City on 6 June against increased militarization and escalating violence in Chiapas. Protesters attributed violence to confrontations between paramilitary groups and organized crime, as well as denounced violence from members of the army, The Fray Bartolome de las Casas Human Rights Center (Frayba) reports that Chiapas suffers from rampant organized crime, forced displacements, arbitrary detentions, torture, and assaults on human rights defenders and journalists, worsened by the growing military presence. The group states that these attacks are part of a systematic campaign to appropriate lands owned by indigenous communities for state projects.

Sources: El País, Associated Press, Al Jazeera, Mexico News Daily, France 24