Friday, June 17, 2011

A bullet in the head in Oaxaca

What a terribly sad story: In Oaxaca, the head of the state's secondary education institute Efrén Montes López, died by his own hand, using his .38 special to commit suicide, in a desperate protest over the corruption in Oaxaca's public education sector.

In Oaxaca, following a 1992 deal, the powerful yet very destructive and strike-happy teacher union SNTE Sección 22, has gained for itself the power to name the heads of all levels of the Oaxaca state educational system.

Montes López, a member of Sección 22, was named head only this April, after his predecessor Sigifredo García Martínez, also of 22, was kicked out, accused of corruption.

Within Oaxaca's public education sector, corruption charges abound - hiring teachers without credentials, fraud with hours of work clocked, and much, much more.

One can only speculate what Montes López might have found, and desperately sought to change.