Readers' Forum, Aug 25, 2006

Mexico's voiceless poor need Washington's attention
By Sam Oglesby 

Describing his country's dilemma nearly 100 years ago, Mexican President Porfirio Diaz said that Mexico was "tan lejos de Dios y tan cerca de los Estados Unidos"-too far from God and too close to the United States.

Today, as Mexico grapples with the challenges of economic growth and the spread of democracy, the influence of its big neighbor to the north is more important than ever.

On the green-stoned streets of Diaz's hometown, Oaxaca, a political drama is unfolding that will affect the future of Mexico's nascent democracy. These events also offer the US a golden opportunity to influence political decision-makers in Mexico to make democracy a reality and not just an empty catch-phrase.

Over the past six weeks, Ulises Ruiz Ortiz, the governor of Oaxaca state, has painted himself into a political corner from which there appears to be no acceptable exit short of resignation. Since taking office, he has steadily alienated the majority of his constituents with displays of corrupt cronyism, wasting government money on sweetheart business deals and spearheading an urban "renewal" program that threatens the historical integrity and aesthetic traditions of this beautiful town.

Funded by the city and executed by his connections in the construction industry, his "beautification" program is ripping out the "cantera," the luminous green stones that are Oaxaca's trademark, from its streets and plazas and replacing them with concrete slabs.

The Oaxaqueños are proud of their culture and traditions. Now, Governor Ulises has put a high price tag on entrance to the heretofore free annual Guelaguetza performing arts festival, beloved by the masses of people, so that most of the population cannot afford to attend. Their heart and soul is being denied them.

Most recently, on June 14, his brutal suppression, with weapons and helicopters, of a peaceful teachers' strike for higher wages and benefits has established him as an anti-democratic villain whose continuation in office would be incompatible with Mexico's march toward real democracy. The populace of Oaxaca have made it clear that this time they will not be cowed by brute force. Demonstrators have occupied the zocalo, Oaxaca's main plaza in the center of town, and refuse to leave until the governor has resigned. They have also blocked the main route into town, and tension is building. Protestors torched a house where people who fatally shot a demonstrator were believed to be hiding. While protests have thus far remained relatively peaceful, there is the possibility that things could spin out of control. 

The Fox government is keeping its hands off of the situation in Oaxaca, but it is not clear how this confrontation will resolve itself without federal leadership. Opposition politicians who have been contesting the results of the recent presidential election are now getting involved in the Oaxaca strike, and the two protests may be merging into what could be a major assault on the government.

Just as President Vicente Fox has recently entered into the arena of domestic politics in the US with his pro-immigration advocacy, it is now time for Washington, D.C. to lean on Mexico to encourage good government and electoral transparency in its struggle to resolve the disputed results of its July 2 election and to navigate its way out of the gubernatorial chaos of Oaxaca. The Bush administration has pledged to push democracy-building around the world and has quadrupled aid for pro-democracy programs with a current budget estimated at more than US$2 billion a year. These programs have as their goal the promotion of political stability and more open economies friendly to the forces of globalization. For the most part, they target traditional civil society organizations and elite technocrats, often trained in the US.

But a new political dynamic is emerging in Latin American society, and heretofore voiceless groups-urban poor and indigenous people-are now asserting themselves with full-throated grievances against traditional ruling elites and the maldistribution of society's benefits that their policies have engendered. In the case of Mexico and other developing Latino democracies, the US would be well-advised to chart a new course with bold initiatives aimed at the grassroots of those societies, sending a clear message: Being close to the United States does not mean being far from God.

Sam Oglesby is a retired United Nations senior officer and writer who is currently visiting Mexico. His email address is: ogl39@aol.com 





Letters, Aug 25, 2006



Send your letters to the editor to letters@atencionsanmiguel.org  Atención will not publish offensive or defamatory material.



Editor,

My husband and I visited your beautiful city while chaperoning a group of Rotary International Interact students in early July. The students were involved with helping at the Casita Linda housing project as well as visiting orphanages and a daycare center. One evening, when we and some of the students were taking a taxi back to our host family's house, we inadvertently left our digital camera in the cab. The next morning, when we noticed it missing, we pretty much gave up on ever seeing it again. However, when we were out the next day, the taxi driver came back looking for us and left information with the neighbor and then tracked down the students in Centro and returned the camera. I believe there are very few cities in the world where this would happen, and we would like to express our sincere thanks to that cab driver. San Miguel is definitely a place we will visit again.

Jill and Leigh Harrison

Editor,

I read the article on the new museum of contemporary art that will be located in the building that once housed la presidencia, opposite the Jardín. I am delighted it will be for this use and not the originally designated museum of history. A city with San Miguel's "art" reputation needed this important addition to its only industry: tourism.

I would like to make a few suggestions. After WWII, San Miguel became a Mecca for American GIs studying art and Spanish, thanks to the GI Bill allowing them to travel to Mexico for an affordable art education. The wonderful climate and light made San Miguel ideal. Such expats as the American Stirling Dickinson and the Spaniard Carmen Masip were vital and instrumental in opening art schools, academies, libraries and bookstores. 

Soon, others from North and South America followed. Today, San Miguel has a well-earned reputation as an important art colony with artists from all over the world taking up residence and creating their wonders.

Therefore, a museum of contemporary art is of all importance to this city, but why a permanent collection of Mexican art only? Shouldn't the art be international? Why can't Stirling Dickinson's superb woodcuts, Leonard Brooks's wonderful collages or Reva Brooks's superb photography on Mexico be part of that collection? Artists from all over the world are now living throughout the Republic. I admire the original committee for their foresight in creating the museum, but surely it would be convenient to create a professional museum board consisting of 6 to 8 members made up of professionals in the art world: curators, organizers, managers as well as wealthy art patrons well connected with the world of art and industry, seeing as private monies will have to be raised to create and upkeep the museum. 

Hopefully, the director of this new museum will have more of a managerial business background. You can always hire curators for the art, but in today's world, someone with a good managerial business background is a must to run a museum. Last, but not least, I want to mention the termite of nepotism that undermines many small, provincial museums. Museum directors often have their hands tied and find themselves obliged to accept questionable exhibitions. Your mother-in-law may paint pretty violets, but do they belong in a museum?

Margaret Failoni

Editor,

What happened to the San Miguel rapist? The last I heard from Atención was that he had been identified via DNA and detained. Was he tried? And, if so, was he convicted? Perhaps I missed your follow-up.

Given the terror this individual generated here in town, and the importance of this issue to our community, I would have thought your follow-up would have required more ink than I have seen.

Bill Munro

Editor's Note:

What's legal and what's not!

Living in Mexico requires much adaptation on a cultural level and in legal terms. To help you better understand Mexican laws, Atención will publish a lift-out supplement in the edition of September 15. If you have questions or a specific issue you wish to see covered, please send an email to edit@atencionsanmiguel.org  noting "legal supplement" in the subject line, by September 1.