Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said that the take-over of the Zocalo could go on for years and he will continue with his protest till the “ultimate consequences” (whatever that means…) However he announced four immediate steps:
1. Protesters will be there the day and place when Felipe Calderón is declared President of México.
2. - There will be protest on September 1st when President Fox gives the “State of the Union”. (This action was of course expected… The President may have to send-in his report of the state of the nation to Congress and not do his annual speech in front of the Congress.)
3. - On September 15th they will celebrate their own “Grito” at the Zocalo. (Which means the traditional patriotic festivities in which the President or the Mayor of México City gives the traditional “scream” cannot take place. This is an interesting dilemma for Fox since the symbolism of not controlling Mexico City is important. However, in the past, the President traditionally would give the last “Grito” in Dolores Hidalgo, allowing the Mayor of Mexico City to do the Grito at the Zocalo. Therefore the problem may now be the current Mayor, Alejandro Encinas´ problem. Will he let AMLO take over “his grito” I believe Encinas´ has no choice… He never really was the Mayor of Mexico City.
4. - On the 16th of September, AMLO called for a National Democratic Convention, with representatives of all the “pueblos” (I am not sure if this means indigenous groups, or political groups or what) to discuss and define what is the role this movement will play in the in the future. (This day of course is when the traditional military parade takes place, starting off from the Zocalo where they present the flag and military honors to the President. Encinas insist that this parade can take place even thought the Zocalo is taken over. Unless the parade takes place somewhere else, Encinas is hallucinating. And it is extremely dangerous to have a large contingency of soldiers marching among protesters. It is a recipe for disaster.)
Final comment: These steps definitely show that Andres Manuel is recognizing that the Tribunal will probably anoint Felipe Calderón as Mexico’s next President.)
6 comments:
It used to be said that international conflicts were of three kinds: 1) When there was a war between two small countries, UNO didn´t pay them any attention. 2) When a small country faced a big one, UNO didn´t pay them any attention, either. 3) When two big countries fought each other. In this case, THEY didn´t pay any attention to UNO.
Something like this happens within México with legal controversies. Poor people would rather have nothing to do with them. A legal fight between a poor person and a rich one, is like a small fish battling a shark.
Pri used to stage some interesting social conflicts. A real popular uprising against the Pri system was ruthlessly supressed, but sometimes what appeared to be one toppled, say, a governor.
The truth was, of course, that the king was throwing out a viceroy, and manipulating the local people to that end. But the people thought that they were getting something. That was the way politics seemed to work, and apparently it didn´t work badly.
But now the king is gone. The president was king not because he was president, but because he was the Big Cacique. And now that the Royal Puppeteer is no longer, what of popular insurgency?
People keep practising politics that way because it seemed to work. They don´t know that it just seemed to work, that the Puppeteer had decided everything beforehand, and that now politics has to be really that, and not a comedy staged form beginning to end from Los Pinos.
When the president tries to act as a president, clowns of several parties mock him: We know that you aren´t the King. They don´t realize that without the king they will have to work at a politics that is truly a building of the Common Good, with laws that are applied and authorities that are obeyed, or else Mob Politics will sweep everything away, even the clowns and the caciques...
What is your personal opinion about todays violence in the Congress? Do you belive it is going to spread?... Greetings!
Yes, I believe there is more to come...
As a former security advicer, what would your advice be?
Ana Maria, Ceci Conolly of the WPost posted a link to your blog today. I have some comments there, some of them are actually fun to read.
On Sunday Lopez gave a concession speech, in his own bitterly defiant fashion. The local media didn't pick up on it but IT IS the major news story since July 2. He publicly acknowledged before his dwindling followers that Calderon will be certifyed president-elect by TEPJF.
The antics that will follow will be something to watch in wonderment.
Ceci's blog:
http://blog.washingtonpost.com/mexicovotes/2006/08/what_to_do_but_wait.html
AMLO is going to stand tall on those critical days in Sept. AMLO and his movment represent true democracy, not this fraud called FECAL who is trying to be imposed on Mexico. This dictator of the right, will never be allowed, and by any means necesary will he and his supporters be stopped.
We have no other choice but to save democracy and freedom in Mexico. ¡Viva AMLO!
¡Solucion O Revolucion!
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