Museo Casa de Allende
Tue–Sun, 9am–4:45pm
37 pesos
Free for students and teachers with ID, elderly with an IMPAM card
Free admission on Sunday
Cuna de Allende & Umarán
152-2499, mayisgonzalez@yahoo.com.mx

Felipe Calderón reopens Museo Casa de Allende
By Jesús Ibarra

Alonso de María y Campos, Matilde González Rulán, Felipe Calderón, Juan Manuel Oliva, Rodolfo Jurado

Security was tight in the historic center on Saturday, April 4: downtown streets were closed and soldiers, along with federal and local police, were everywhere. People who wanted to go traverse the Jardín had to pass through a security system. The uniforms, guns and blockades heralded a rare visit to San Miguel by President Felipe Calderón, in town to reopen the Museo Casa de Allende, located in the family house of the Mexican Independence hero Ignacio Allende. The museum has remained closed for almost two years for remodeling.

The new museum

Matilde González Rulán, director of Museo Casa de Allende, said that the new museum is divided into two floors. The first floor offers information about the Villa of San Miguel el Grande, first founded in 1542 as an indigenous settlement and then reclaimed in 1555 by the Spanish, from which vantage point they protected the route to the interior of the country.

Another room houses an exhibit about the Bourbon reforms that led to the Independence War, and a separate space is dedicated to all the sanmiguelenses who participated in the fight. “The museum includes audio and video displays,” said González Rulán. 

The second floor is a reproduction of Ignacio Allende’s home, including bedrooms, a living room, a chapel and a kitchen. The furniture comes from original collections of other museums such as Franz Meyer, in Mexico City, and Museo Nacional del Virreinato, in Tepotzotlán. There is also a room dedicated to the Independence War and one to Ignacio Allende’s trial.

Documents from the trial remained hidden for many years, and Allende’s testimony and importance to the insurgence movement were almost unknown until relatively recently, overshadowed by other heroes such as Miguel Hidalgo and José María Morelos. 

“Entrance to the museum includes guided tours at no additional cost,” said González Rulán. “I suggest that tour groups and schools make an appointment for their visit; since most of the collections are not behind glass, capacity is reduced.”

The Museo Casa de Allende was remodeled at a cost of 7 million pesos. This included installation of a sewage system, renovation of the electrical system, new security and illumination systems, and restoration of carpentry and walls. The conservation was performed by architects Eduardo López and Carlos Martínez from INAH, and the historical research was headed by historian Guadalupe Jiménez Codinach, with the collaboration of local historian Graciela Cruz. 


President Calderón reopens the museum

According to González Rulán, since restoration began it was the intention that President Calderón come to inaugurate the museum. “He was invited through the General Direction of INAH (National Institute of Anthropology and History).

 We were ordered by INAH to open the museum for Holy Week, and the inauguration by the president was to take place later, but fortunately, on April 2, we were advised that Calderón would come on April 4,” she said. “They considered the importance that the house, as well as the city, has as the first finished project from INAH as part of the bicentennial celebrations in 2010.”

Juan Manuel Oliva, Felipe Calderón, Margarita Zavala, Rodolfo Jurado

During his inaugural speech, President Calderón said that it was a pleasure more than a duty to come to San Miguel de Allende. He congratulated the city and its residents on San Miguel’s new status as a World Heritage site. He said the renovated museum is a “deserved and simple tribute to one of the Independence movement’s greatest heroes, Ignacio Allende”, and that it restores Allende’s importance within the movement. 

“It is very feasible that behind the conspiracy’s organization and operational design there must had been a military talent, and from my point of view, undoubtedly, it was Allende’s,” said Calderón. “With this remodeling of the museum, INAH has returned the building’s beauty and original dimensions, which allows us to show in the best way the origin of this city, as well as life in pre-independence Mexico.”

The Mexican president added that INAH is investing in the rescue of other emblematic buildings of the Independence, such as “La Francia Chiquita” (Little France), Miguel Hidalgo’s house in San Felipe Torresmochas, where he was a parish priest before moving to Dolores. It is called that because Hidalgo collected works by Voltaire and presented plays by Molière in the house, which was prohibited at that time because of the French Revolution. Hidalgo’s house in Dolores Hidalgo and the Museo Regional de Guanajuato, in the granary in Guanjuato, are also being renovated by INAH as part of the bicentennial festivities. 

Juan Manuel Oliva, Felipe Calderón, Margarita Zavala, Alonso de María y Campo

During the inauguration, Calderón was accompanied by his wife, Margarita Zavala, Governor Juan Manuel Oliva, Mayor Rodolfo Jurado Maycotte, and INAH director Alonso de María y Campos. 

Closed streets bad for business

During Calderón’s visit to San Miguel, the main accesses to downtown were closed to vehicles beginning at 1pm on April 4, and a security system was installed around the Jardín. The flow of people in downtown streets decreased considerably that afternoon, and businesses were almost empty. Rosa Isela Capitán, employed in a boutique in calle San Francisco, said that no clients came into the store that afternoon. “When I crossed the Jardín, I had to pass through the security system and my purse was inspected,” said Rosa Isela. “A small knife was even confiscated from a man who was in front of me.” 

Antonio Navarro, a taxi driver, said that even the small streets that connect the Salida a Querétaro with the historical center were blocked. “I tried to access the city through Atascadero to take a client to her house in Santo Domingo but I couldn’t,” he said. 


Calderón listens to demonstrators 

Despite stringent security, about 150 federal and state government employees gathered in the Jardín a few meters from the entrance of the museum where Calderón was cutting the inaugural ribbon to inform the president about their housing problems. They have been paying for construction of their homes through a federal housing program, FOVISSTE, for eight years; some of them are about to make their final payments. However, building in the neighborhood Misión de la Estación, near the bus station, where the houses are to be located, has stopped, yet their payments are still being deducted from their salaries. 

After the inauguration ceremony ended, Calderón listened to the demonstrators and accepted their documentation, saying he would meet with them the following Monday. 



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New gun wounds five police officers 
By Jesús Ibarra

Five local police officers suffered superficial wounds during a routine patrol on April 10, Good Friday, when one of the new imported .223 caliber firearms accidentally fired. The police were patrolling Cuesta de San José where a known gang was believed to be preparing to fight another gang.

According to city Police Chief Daniel Trujillo, a defective mechanism in the gun caused the shots. “The shots fired rapidly, like a submachine gun. This type of rifle should not fire in that way,” he said. “These new arms, manufactured in Italy, are provided by the state government.”

Trujillo added that another defective weapon was located at the police station. A representative of the manufacturer and state authorities are scheduled to visit to review the situation. 

In response to the incident last year when “narcos” threw grenades into crowds celebrating national independence in Morelia, President Calderón authorized more potent arms for municipal police. “Municipal police officers previously only used revolvers, but now weapons like rifles are authorized. Even submachine guns are permitted,” Trujillo said. “However, there is no need in San Miguel for that type of firearm.”

Trujillo emphasized that police officers did not fire the weapon. “A preventive police officer is only authorized to shoot when his life, that of his partner or the life of a citizen is in danger.

Regarding the risk of organized crime and drug trafficking in San Miguel, Trujillo said that nowadays everybody is at risk, but that San Miguel is still a place where people can safely walk the streets at any time. “It is, however, the job of both the community and authorities to fight against crime.”

He urges people to report all crimes as well as any suspicious behavior. “We must be able to conduct the appropriate investigation,” he added. 



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The most useless legal procedure
By Krishna Villena

In January 2009, 20,000 citizens entered a contest called El trámite más inútil, to denounce the most useless administrative procedure, federal and local, in Mexico. The first prize was for a woman who denounced the long process at the Social Health Security Department.

According to www.portal.funcionpublica.gob.mx  contest winners were: 

Federal level: Cecilia Deyanira Velázquez Tello, for the procedure related to the supply of medicines from the IMSS (Mexican Social Security Institute)

State level: Ana María Calvo Irurita, related to civil procedures for birth certificate corrections in Mexico City. 

Minicipality level: Montserrat Contreras Castañeda, for procedures to certify residence (proof of residence) in the municipality of Toluca in the state of Mexico.

President Felipe Calderón said this bid/contest was planned in order to make people denounce the worst administrative procedure, through the Secretary of the Public Function. One of the objectives was “to create consciousness about what the three government levels are doing to waste people’s time, money and development opportunities,” said Calderón. He added, “This contest is a big risk for us. In public administration, all these complaints expose the government’s vulnerability and obviously there’s a huge resistance to show the weak spots, the negative points or the mistakes.”

About the winner, Calderón said “Deyanira’s testimony is very touching to me, because she is a mother who has to work and has a son who is ill. As a father, I know I would give anything for the health and the life of my children. Deyanira’s son had to bear all this tangle of bureaucracy in order to obtain the medicines; it’s obvious the government can’t remain insensible to those testimonies.”

“I don’t know the steps to participate in this call; we will have to review that. I hope in the next year’s we have more participants and more innovative proposals in order to convince ourselves it’s possible to improve,” said Calderón. 

According to www.lajornada.unam.mx,  government branches cited most often for useless procedures are Compañía Luz y Fuerza del Centro (energy company) with 648 observations, the Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores (Foreign Affairs Secretariat) with 582 observations, the Secretaría de Educación Pública (Secretariat of Public Education) with 560 observations, the Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional (Secretariat of National Defense) with 237 observations and the Infonavit (Institute of National Housing Fund for Workers) with 209.

Calderón mentioned that of the 20,000 observations, 18,500 were about government procedures. “An interesting result is that 1,500 observations were about social and private organizations that also have their own bureaucratic and decision-making structure.”

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News from the Presidencia
By Krishna Villena

Improved seed for rural communities The local government delivered more than 46 tons of Semilla Mejorada (“improved seed”) to 210 farmers in 63 rural communities, including corn, oats and sorghum, among others.

The seeds produce plants technologically adapted to the area’s weather in order to improve productivity. 

The investment was made by the local government through the Social and Human Development Office, which contributed 70 percent of the total amount. Farmers contributed 30 percent.

According to www.lajornada.unam.mx, Mexico is the world’s largest consumer of corn, more than 31.5 million tons per year, which represents more than 500 grams per day per person (including tortillas and 600 other corn-based foods). The Economic Studies Center of the Private Sector, CEESP, emphasized that Mexico needs to produce 40 million tons per year in the next five years in order to satisfy the demand for corn for livestock feed and fuel. The CEESP recommended using the improved seeds to increase productivity without expanding the amount of farmland. 

Nueva Vida Center (New Life Center) for addictions 

Rodolfo Jurado Maycotte, San Miguel’s interim mayor, and Marta Martínez Castro, president of the state DIF (Department of Family Integration), inaugurated the Centro Nueva Vida for addictions at San Miguel’s General Hospital on April 2. The staff of doctors, psychologists and social workers expect an average of 43,000 patients per year (approximately 3,500 per month). 

Jurado said that the investment for the new treatment center was 3.5 million pesos and personnel will provide various types of services such as psychological evaluation, individual and group treatment, and support groups. 

New tomography scanner

The staff of five technicians and one radiologist at the General Hospital perform more than 50 computed tomography (CT) scans per day. The hospital’s new diagnostic tool, used to create cross-sectional images of organs or the body, cost 9.5 million pesos.

Jorge Armando Aguirre, the state secretary of health, said that with the new device more than 68,000 families who have Seguro Popular (community medical insurance) and 24,000 who are part of the program Oportunidades could benefit. 

Gerontology Center The Centro Gerontológico de San Miguel (Gerontology Center) was opened at the local DIF offices. It provides services to more than a thousand seniors participating in the Atención Integral para Adultos Mayores (Integral Attention for Seniors) program.

The center includes patios and a multi-use hall for lectures, dance and exercise. There are 32 such centers in the state of Guanajuato. 

Marta Martínez Castro, state DIF president, said that the objective of these centers is to provide a space to enhance seniors’ development and productivity. She announced the donation of a kitchen and a bus to transport seniors to the center. Yoga, dance, handicrafts and basic literacy are some of the classes provided in the center.

200 families benefit from housing subsidy in San Miguel de Allende

The federal government and DIF gave 100 subsidies from the program Ahorro y Subsidio para la Vivienda to the government of San Miguel de Allende. The construction and improvement of houses benefited 200 families from the communities of Corral de Piedras Abajo, San Antonio de las Cruces, La Esquina and Moral Puerto de Nieto, among others. 

The local government, with the support of SEDESOL (Social Development Secretary), projects for 2009 the construction of 100 rural houses through the federal program Tu Casa (Your House). Each of these houses costs 45,505 pesos.

The funds were officially submitted by Ericka López Gutiérrez, president of the local DIF, Rodolfo Jurado Maycotte, mayor, and Guillermo Aguirre Fonseca, representing SEDESOL.


Federal program supports San Miguel development 

In March, SEDESOL (Social Development Secretary) delivered the first part of the economic resources from the federal programs Hábitat (Habitat) and the Programa de Rescate de Espacios Públicos, PREP (Public Spaces Rescue Program) to 17 municipalities. Rodolfo Maycotte, interim mayor of San Miguel, received a check for more than one million pesos.

According to www.sedesol.gob.mx, Hábitat is a SEDESOL program to improve the basic infrastructure and equipment for marginalized urban areas as well as to promote community development and support for services. It is composed of two branches, the general branch, which supports cities with more than 15,000 inhabitants, and the historical sites branch, which protects, preserves and revitalizes the historical sites on UNESCO’s World Heritage list (in Campeche, Mexico City and Xochimilco, Guanajuato, Morelia, Oaxaca, Puebla, Querétaro, Tlacotalpan and Zacatecas).

The Rescue of Public Spaces Program protects, preserves and promotes the use of public areas such as community sports centers, plazas, green areas, parks and cultural areas, among others. It operates throughout the country in cities with more than 50,000 inhabitants. Preference is given to those localities reporting high levels of poverty and violence and lack of public security. Thirty-five areas in Guanajuato are expected to receive support. SEDESOL plans to increase the number to 81 spaces based on requests from the municipalities. 

The resources delivered by both programs will be used to pave the streets Camino Viejo a la Estación and Las Flores in the San Martín neighborhood as well as to cover the expenses for sports and cultural workshops at the Centro de Desarrollo Comunitario (Community Development Center of San Miguel). The municipality will contribute 30 percent of the total amount to enhance the city’s image according to UNESCO recommendations, including improving plazas in the historic center, accommodating on street parking, paving calles Cuadrante and Pila Seca and revitalizing 96 blocks of and surrounding the historic center.

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New gun wounds five police officers 
By Jesús Ibarra

Five local police officers suffered superficial wounds during a routine patrol on April 10, Good Friday, when one of the new imported .223 caliber firearms accidentally fired. The police were patrolling Cuesta de San José where a known gang was believed to be preparing to fight another gang.

According to city Police Chief Daniel Trujillo, a defective mechanism in the gun caused the shots. “The shots fired rapidly, like a submachine gun. This type of rifle should not fire in that way,” he said. “These new arms, manufactured in Italy, are provided by the state government.”

Trujillo added that another defective weapon was located at the police station. A representative of the manufacturer and state authorities are scheduled to visit to review the situation. 

In response to the incident last year when “narcos” threw grenades into crowds celebrating national independence in Morelia, President Calderón authorized more potent arms for municipal police. “Municipal police officers previously only used revolvers, but now weapons like rifles are authorized. Even submachine guns are permitted,” Trujillo said. “However, there is no need in San Miguel for that type of firearm.”

Trujillo emphasized that police officers did not fire the weapon. “A preventive police officer is only authorized to shoot when his life, that of his partner or the life of a citizen is in danger.

Regarding the risk of organized crime and drug trafficking in San Miguel, Trujillo said that nowadays everybody is at risk, but that San Miguel is still a place where people can safely walk the streets at any time. “It is, however, the job of both the community and authorities to fight against crime.”

He urges people to report all crimes as well as any suspicious behavior. “We must be able to conduct the appropriate investigation,” he added. 



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