AMLO's Eleventh Hour Judicial Revolution
Morena raises a hammer to Mexico's judges
Mexico’s Supreme Court sits in the capital’s historic center just off the Zocalo central square and a two-minute walk from the National Palace, the official residence of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador. As “AMLO” counts down to leave the palace on Oct. 1 and hand it to his protege Claudia Sheinbaum, he has got into a rising conflict with the court around the corner; he is pushing for a radical judicial reform that would fire all federal and later state judges and put their jobs up for popular elections. It could be the most significant battle of his presidency, taking place in his eleventh hour in office.
Passions are high. Employees at the Supreme Court went on strike last week, protesting in corridors and blocking entrances to protest the reform. On Sunday, tens of thousands of law students and judicial workers marched up Reforma avenue with slogans such “This Is Now A Dictatorship” and “Without Justice There Is No Future.”
But AMLO, who could be described as a “populist left-wing nationalist,” is finishing his presidency with an approval rating of over 70 percent. He gave his last state of the union address on Sunday to a packed Zocalo in the blazing sun.
“Put your hands up if you think it’s better that the people elect the judges,” AMLO said, and the crowd raised their arms and cheered. His supporters have stuck up posters showing the faces of the current Supreme Court judges pasted onto an image of cartel sicarios.
The issue cuts deep. Many Mexicans see the justice system as corrupt and dysfunctional and have personally had terrible experiences. Rigoberto Gutiérrez is a teacher from Sinaloa who had his pension denied over a dispute with bosses. He took his case to the Supreme Court but they failed to rule so he is camped outside. “The judges work for the criminals,” Gutiérrez said. “When they arrest a criminal, they put him before a judge and three days later he walks free.”
AMLO claims to be giving the people the power to change this. But critics say elections will be a farce and AMLO’s party Morena will stack the courts with its cronies and break the separation of powers.
“This is eminently political. It’s a revenge of the executive against the judicial power,” said Tito Sandoval, a judicial clerk who joined marchers on Sunday to dress in white. He was referring to how the Supreme Court blocked other reforms by AMLO, including an attempted change to the electoral agency. “The president wants to manage power as a totalitarian,” he said.
The timing of the showdown stems from the quirks of Mexico’s political system. Presidents are allowed to serve for a single six-year term, which AMLO respected, and he leaves power on Oct. 1. His successor Sheinbaum won in a landslide in June, which reflects the popularity of AMLO and how he doubled the minimum wage and gave out pensions and scholarships.
Mexicans also voted massively for Morena candidates for the new Congress, and followed by some debated rulings and horse trading, Morena is now one vote shy of a two-thirds majority in both houses. This would give it the power to change the Constitution.
The new Congress took power on Sunday so it has a month overlap with AMLO’s presidency. AMLO has proposed a package of 20 constitutional reforms. While many are non-controversial, such as increasing protection of animals, the judicial bill is the most explosive.
Adding oil to the fire, the United States has waded into the debate. Ambassador Ken Salazar, who was considered a friend to AMLO, issued a statement of criticism. “Based on my lifelong experience supporting the rule of law, I believe popular direct election of judges is a major risk to the functioning of Mexico’s democracy,” Salazar said. In response, AMLO called him “interventionist” and said he was pausing the relationship with the embassy.
When I asked pro-AMLO protesters outside the Supreme Court about the ambassador, it was like showing a red rag to a bull.
“What Señor Ken said is very bad. Here the Mexicans…