Calderón ignores Senate, signs ACTA

Just a few days ago, the European Union rejected the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (Acta): Its parliament voted a massive 478-39 against what is being presented as an anti-piracy initiative but that risks seriously stifling freedom on the Web.

In Mexico, president Calderón made no indications at all he intended to sign ACTA, and the Mexican Senate in any case unanimously advised him against it and to consult it, especially given the massive rejection in the European Union, as it arguably goes against Mexico's constitution

But no: Calderón decided to sign the agreement anyway. The Senate is very upset, and rightly so: The president has from the beginning kept Congress in the dark, not even bothering to inform it that he had started the ACTA negotiations in the first place. He just happened to as well keep mum of his intentions to do so until after the election, given the unpopularity of the legislation.

Beyond being classically Calderón - an absolute tone-deafness to any criticism and utter unwillingness to accept any mistake - a larger question is: With all of Mexico's current woes, is really promoting anti-pirate legislation pushed by U.S. media companies truly the best way to spend the last months of a truly mediocre presidency?

Source:
Ola de críticas contra Calderón por suscribir en lo oscurito el ACTA. La Jornada, July 13, 2012
Es un ataque a la libertad de expresión y un freno a la movilización social. La Jornada, July 13, 2012

NYT profiles Alejandro Solalinde

Kudos to The New York Times and Elisabeth Malkin for this profile of Oaxaca migrant defender Alejandro Solalinde:

He returned this week to his beloved state of Oaxaca, where he runs a shelter in Ciudad Ixtepec, a sweltering railroad town where migrants wait to scramble atop cargo trains that will take them on the next leg of their wearying trip to the United States.More migrants will be arriving, he said, pushed by poverty and violence at home. A long-suspended train service directly from the Guatemalan border is being renewed. “That means the merchandise is coming, the captive customers,” Father Solalinde said.He expected the threats to continue as well. For the criminals, he said, “there is a problem: Father Solalinde is in the way; he won’t let us do our work comfortably so we have to pressure him, threaten him, kill him so he won’t disturb us.”

Source:
A Priest Stands Up for the Migrants Who Run Mexico’s Gantlet. The New York Times, July 13, 2012.