MEXICO: Presidential election lost in a labyrinth
Mexican-American delegation to join AMLO at "El Zocalo" on September 16
Hector Carreon
La Voz de Aztlan
Los Angeles, Alta California - August 23, 2006 - (ACN) Mexico is again on the verge of another major revolution primarily as a consequence of fraud that allegedly occurred in the presidential elections of July 2. The state of Oaxaca is presently in full insurrection with buses burning in the streets and major media headquarters under siege by rebels and well organized urban guerrillas. On Monday August 14, major violence broke out in front of the Mexican National Congress at San Lazaro when the federal police assaulted supporters of the PRD presidential candidate Manuel Lopez Obrador when they attempted to encamp on the lawn as they have done at "El Zocalo", the plaza where local and federal buildings are located in the heart of Mexico City.
Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador or AMLO, as he is known in Mexico, came out short a mere .57 percent point out of 42 million votes cast in an election many Mexicans view as fraudulent. AMLO is the candidate of the Partido Revolucionario Democratico (PRD), and Felipe Calderon, the apparent winner accused of electoral fraud, is candidate of the Partido Accion Nacional (PAN). President Vicente Fox is also a member of the PAN, a party that six years ago defeated the Partido Revolucionario Institucional (PRI) after it had been in power continuously for 71 years.
This is the second time that the left-of-center PRD has been defrauded in national presidential elections. There are credible allegations that the party was cheated in the 1988 presidential elections by the then ruling Partido Revulocionario Institucional (PRI). At that time the PRD vowed that it will never happen again. The 1988 PRD candidate Cuauhtemoc Cardenas was leading in the count by a comfortable margin when suddenly the computer vote counting system mysteriously crashed. When the computers came back on line, Carlos Salinas de Gotari of the PRI, suddenly jumped in front of the PRD candidate and declared president. Cuauhtemoc Cardenas is the son of Mexican President Lazaro Cardenas who in 1938 nationalized Mexico's vast oil fields. From then on, the USA has meddled in Mexican presidential politics to assure future cooperative Mexican presidents. Vicente Fox, a former Coca Cola executive, was heavily funded by USA corporate interests in his campaign for president. There are also unproven allegations that vote counting specialists from the state of Florida were consulted by certain PAN Party operatives for the July 2, 2006 Mexican presidential elections.
AMLO has requested a full recount of all ballots cast but a federal electoral tribunal ordered a recount of only 9 percent of the ballot boxes. AMLO responded by calling for massive civil disobedience and encampment at "El Zocalo" until the matter is resolved. The encampment has grown in size daily and has spread to Avenida Reforma, the city's main artery nearby. More and more PRD supporters are arriving from the interior of Mexico. Many are coming from outside the country and a Mexican-American delegation will be traveling from the USA for a big showdown on September 16 which is Mexico's Independence Day. The Mexican-American delegation will be led by Dr. Armando Navarro of the National Alliance for Human Rights (NAHR) and Al Rojas of the Frente Mexicano en el Exterior (FME).
The encampment at "El Zocalo", where Lopez Obrador is making his speeches, is well organized. Each state has its own sub-encampment. There is "Campo Chihuahua", "Campo Jalisco", "Campo Guerrero", "Campo Michoacan", "Campo Chiapas" and the largest is "Campo Oaxaca". When people arrive to "El Zocalo", they join the camp corresponding to their home state. "Campo Oaxaca," is located next to the stage from which Lopez Obrador delivers his speeches. There are also other "campos" reserved for certain sectors of Mexican society such as "labor" and "university students". Students at the Universidad Autonoma de Mexico (UNAM) are leading a nation wide effort to organise students in support of the Convención Nacional Democrática (National Democratic Convention) scheduled at "El Zocalo" on December 16.
The encampment has now taken a life of its own. The participants see the encampment at "El Zocalo" as a significant point in Mexican history and part of a larger struggle to change Mexican society. Its location near Tenochtitlan's "El Templo Mayor" has great symbolic power for Mexicans and has attracted participants from as far away as Aztlan. There is great political energy gathering at "El Zocalo" and many fear what may be sparked on September 15-16.
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| Dead are mounting in Oaxaca insurgency |
There are four critical dates coming up in September worth watching. The first is September 1 when President Vicente Fox is scheduled to make his "State of the Nation" address at San Lazaro. There will be huge demonstrations outside the Mexican Congress by Lopez Obrador's supporters. The second date is September 6 which is the deadline for the federal electoral tribunal to declare the next president. The third is September 15 when Lopez Obrador will be making the traditional independence day "Grito de Dolores" at "El Zocalo" (by tradition done only by the president) . The fourth, and most critical of all, is September 16 when Lopez Obrador and his supporters will be holding a Convención Nacional Democrática (National Democratic Convention) at "El Zocalo", an event that will surely collide with military processions and traditional independence day ceremonies by Felipe Calderon if he is declared president.
