Download Mexico Section One: Sovereignty, Authority, and Power LCDs and

MEXICO
Section One: Sovereignty, Authority, and Power
LCDs and NICs
•
•
•
•
•
Mexico early on seen as model for LDC – called it the Mexican Miracle
But crash in 1980s has redefined their role
Is seen as NIC – PPP at $16,495 in 2015
But at least ¼ of population lives on less than $2 a day
Many countries are seen as “developing” but broken into two categories
• Newly Industrializing Countries – NICs
• Characteristics of advanced democracies
• Economic growth
• Compressed modernity
• Mexico
• Less Developed Countries
• Nigeria
Economic Development
• Is basis of free market capitalism with economic liberalization
• Privatization
• Marketization
• Different ways to measure economic development
• GNP
• PPP
• Sectors of Economy
• Primary - Agriculture
• Secondary – Industry
• Tertiary – Services
• Theories of Economic Development – argued LDC face neocolonialism today
due to
• Westernization model
• Dependency Theory
• Economic Policies in LDC world
• Import substitution
• Export-oriented industrialization
Political Development
• Move from procedural democracy to substantive democracy = political
liberalization
• Characteristics are:
• Competitive elections
• Civil liberty
• Rule of law
• Neutrality of the judiciary
• Open civil society
• Civilian control of military
• Most LDCs are hybrid regimes
• Threat is collapse – called failed state
• Somalia is example
• Anarchy and violence are characteristics
Legitimacy
• Sources of legitimacy for Mexico
• Spanish rule – viceroy
• Independence – military generals, unstable
• Modern era – economic growth, modernization
• Overall important source of legitimacy – Revolution of 1910-11
• Legitimized by formation of PRI
• Constitution with three branches of government
Historical Traditions
• Divided into three stages of political development
• Colonialism
• Chaos of 19th and 20th century
• Emphasis on economic development in recent history
• Authoritarian
• Populism
• Power plays and divisions within the elite
• Instability and legitimacy issues
• Political culture
• Importance of religion
• Patron-clientelism – camarillas
• Economic dependency on the USA
Geographic Setting
• One of most diverse countries in the world
• Communications and transportation negatively impacted
• Limited large scale agriculture
• Soil erosion
• Natural resources abundant but struggles to manage them
• 121 million in population
• 60% mestizo
• 30% native American
• 75% urbanized
Section Two: Political and Economic Change
Miguel Hidalgo
Porfirio Diaz
Lazaro Cardenas
Historical Influences
• Colonialism
• Spanish rule 1519 to 1821
• Based on mercantilism
• Several enduring influences
• Cultural heterogeneity
• Catholicism
• Economic dependency
• Independence
• 1810 Miguel Hidalgo called for end to Spanish rule – began war for
independence
• 1833 – 1855 36 presidents in power
• Influences was
• Instability and legitimacy issues
• Rise of the military
• Domination by the United States
• Liberals vs. Conservatives struggling
Historical Influences - Continued
• Porfiriato
• Coup 1876 – served for 34 years
• Allowed foreign interests to buy up Mexico – cause of Revolution of 1910
• Defined by:
• Stability
• Authoritarianism
• Foreign investment and economic growth
• Gap between rich and poor
• 1910 – Present
• Revolution 1910 most formative event in Mexico’s modern history – lasted 10
years – over 1 million died
• Erupted over attempt to end Diaz’s dictatorship
• Madero opposition candidate – jailed – opposition rose and Diaz fled Mexico
• Madero assassinated in coup 1913 – political order collapsed
• Influences from era
• Patron-Client System – two caudillos challenged each other for power
• Mexican Constitution 1917 created
• Conflict with Catholic Church – Cristero Rebellion 1920s
• Establishment of the PRI to restore order – Calles emerged as leader
Historical Influences - Continued
• Five results of the Revolution
• Power of traditional landowners undercut
• Catholic Church’s power curtailed
• Power of foreign investors limited
• New political elite emerged – PRI
• New constitution laid basis for strong central government
• Lazaro Cardenas
• Handpicked by Calles
• Cardenas executed virtual coup of Calles
• Called “Roosevelt of Mexico” – stabilized Mexican politics
• Distributed ejidos – massive agrarian reform; edidatorios enduring base for
PRI
• 1938 nationalized petroleum – PEMEX
• Invested in public works
• Institutionalized patterns of political succession
• Began import substitution industrialization – form of state corporatism –
president determines who represents different groups to the government
Historical Influences - Continued
• Tecnicos and Pendulum Theory
• Aleman rejected Cardenas’ reforms – began economic liberalization
• Next president went back to Cardenas’ reforms – Pendulum begins
• Leaders used interest groups as pawns in exchange for political favors – PRIS
created huge patronage machine
• 1950s – 1980s – welcomed foreign investment
• Began migration to cities – struggled to keep up with demand
• 1970s tecnicos took control – oil discovered which fueled rapid economic
growth yet urban poor grew
• Informal sector created, peasant farmers left behind – ejido land couldn’t be
sold or rented so couldn’t act as collateral
• Class divide and population growth stimulated guerrilla movements/student
protests
• Industrialization made Mexico more, not less, dependent on the USA
• Early 1970s in economic trouble so: devalued peso, discouraged imports,
signed stabilization agreement with IMF, increased taxes BUT oil discovered
greatest impact
• By 1980s practicing neoliberalism – Mexican Miracle began
Historical Influences - Continued
• Portillo began “sow the oil” initiatives and “administer the abundance”
• Oil bust of 1980s sank economy – oil was 77% of their exports
• Wealthy Mexicans sent money out of the country, international creditors
demanded repayment of loans – 1982 couldn’t pay interest on debt
• Important implications
• Faith in import substitution destroyed
• Power of interest groups declined
• Unions lost power
• Political empowerment at local level began – esp. in response to 1985
earthquake
• PRI’s power challenged – divide between politicos and tecnicos
• De la Madrid and Salinas began globalization of Mexico – free markets
created
• 1993 signed NAFTA but didn’t prevent economic crisis of 1994
• Zedillo implemented severe austerity program
• 1994 assassination of Luis Colosio opened rift in PRI party
Historical Influences - Continued
• Since 9/11
• 2000 election of PAN’s Vicente Fox – lacked experience,
party support
• Developed close relationship with Bush – tried to work on
immigration reform but 9/11 ended this – focus shifted to
Middle East
• 2002 began term on UN Security Council – due to pressure at
home rejected US plans in Iraq – caused strain in US/Mexico
relationship
• PAN’s Calderon ran 2006 – Obrador of PRD also had a lot of
support
• July 2, 2006 very close election – Obrador lost by ½% point –
IFE investigated vote and decided to look at 9% of votes –
called election for Calderone
• Obrador called fraud and refused to concede election – led
to fights on the floor of the Chamber of Deputies
• Still overall showed Mexico had a fragile democracy that did
work
Society and Economy
• Economic development had impact on social conditions of the country
• Since 1940s standard of living has risen
• Some heath and education services have expanded
• Large middle class developed
• Has advanced but not as fast as some other Latin American nations
• Rapid industrialization has caused environmental concerns
• Widening gap between rich and poor
• Poverty is regional – south worse off
Mexico in the Global Economy
•
•
•
•
Since 1982 Mexico’s international economic policies have altered
Have attempted to encourage private sector to produce goods for export
1986 joined GATT – today WTO
89% of exports go to USA due to NAFTA, 74% of imports from USA – concerns:
• Domestic firms/farmers worry about US competition
• Seen as loss of sovereignty
• Economy more vulnerable to ebb and flow of economy in the USA
• Worry due to cultural imperialism
• Faces international scrutiny
Section Three: Citizens, Society, and the State
Cleavages
• Most are crosscutting but in recent years, have become more coinciding
• Urban vs. Rural
• 75% urban
• Literacy rate 85%
• Urban – does not usually support PRI
• Social Class
• High economic inequity
• Middle class is growing
• More likely to support PAN
• Mestizo v. Amerindian
• Main ethnic cleavage
• 10% speak indigenous language, 30% identify as Amerindian
• Live in rural areas and in poverty usually
• North v. South
• North more market based
• South see government as repressive
Political Participation
• Characterized by revolution and protest
• Patron-Client System
• Traditional ways to participate
• Keeps control in hands of elite
• Rooted in warlordism and loyalty to 19th century caudillos
• Each group forms camarilla – hierarchical network
• Until 2000 dominated by PRI
• Still deep distrust of government officials and institutions within Mexico
• Protests
• Government usually accomdates and co-opts demands of citizens
• 1968 student protest in Tlatelolco Plaza
• 1994 Chiapas rebellion – Zapatistas – EZLN
• 2005 Sixth Declaration of the Lacandon Jungle
• 2006 Oaxaca teachers’ strike
• Gay rights/abortion
Political Participation - Continued
• Voter Behavior
• Very high rates due to patron-client system
• Corruption high – “tacos” often exist
• Factors do impact voter behavior
• Region of nation you live in
• Poverty rate
• Civil Society
• Practices state corporatism
• Interest groups dived into labor, peasants, middle class
• PRI lost total control of country starting with businessmen – civil society
group
• Questions about what Mexico will continue forward with: state corporatism?
neocorporatism? pluralism?
Section Four: Political Institutions
Regime Type
• Political system offers channels for representation and participation –
compromise among elites
• Usually interact with government through informal means
• Have truly competitive elections today
• Hard to categorize its regime type
• Traditionally – state corporatist structure
• Today – politically and economically liberalizing
• Economy is measured by
• GNP
• PPP
• HDI
• Economic dependency and inequality
• All measures put economy in the “middle” – it is developing
Transitional Democracy
• Between authoritarian and democratic
• Measured by:
• political accountability
• Political competition
• Political freedom
• Political equality
• Has some democratic characteristics, but also has vestiges of authoritarianism
• 2012 listed as flawed democracy
Linkage Institutions
• Political Parties
• Even under PRI many parties have existed – by mid-1980s gaining support
• Reforms under Portillo, de la Madrid, Salinas, Zedillo made opposition stronger
• 1990 IFE – electoral commission created – by 1996 fully independent of the
government
• 2008 electoral reform passed
PRI
• Coalition of political elites
• In power for 70 years
• Based on corporatism until 1990s: each
group had its own council to represent
them
• Strong support from countryside with
ejidatarios – patron-client system kept
resources distributed
• When austerity measures passed, PRI
blamed – fewer sources of revenue meant
fewer resources to distribute for
kickbacks
• Began to restructure in the 1990s due to
opposition
• Still one of the most important political
parties in Mexico
PAN – opposition to the right
• Founded 1939 – represents business
interests, opposes centralization and
anticlericalism
• Strongest in the North, urban party
of the middle class and private
sector
• Wants strong rapport with Catholic
Church, less government
intervention, greater regional
autonomy, less regulation of business
• Won presidency in 2000 and 2006
• As of 2012 has control of Senate
PRD – opposition to the left
• Populists, nationalists
• 1988 and 1994 ran Cuauhtemoc Cardenas – without fraud in 1988 election, he
probably would have won the presidency
• Since 1996 Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador is head of party
• 2000 Obrador elected mayor of Mexico City
• 2012 100 members in Chamber of Deputies
Other Parties
• Must have at least 2.5% of the vote to compete in elections
• Are some smaller parties with seats in the Chamber of Deputies and Senate due
to proportional representation
• Form alliances with major parties
• Most appear opportunistic in their shifting alliances
Elections
• Directly elect: executive and legislative branch candidates
• PRI voter
• Rural area/small town
• Less education
• Older/poorer
• PAN voter
• From the north
• Urban and middle class
• Educated
• PRD voter
• Young
• Political activist
• Small town/urban area
• Central states
• Reforms since 1988 have allowed opposition parties to win seats in legislature
• Is a federal republic but local government has few resources
• Has multiparty competitive elctions
Elections - Continued
• 2006
• Calderon vs. Obrador
• Hotly contested – IFE had to decide
• PRI lost heavily in both houses
• 2009 mid-terms
• PAN and PRD lost seats
• PRI made major comebacks – “proven experience, new attitude”
• 2012
• Enrique Pena Nieto – PRI president – won 38% of vote
• But PRI lost seats in Chamber
• Gridlock emerged – new phenomena in Mexico
• Affirmed Mexico has competitive multi-party electoral system
Electoral System
• President
• First pas the post (plurality)
• No run off
• Legislature
• Dual system of first past the post and proportional representation
• 31 states – 3 senators elected: 2 by plurality, 3rd by party with 2nd highest
number of votes
• 32 Senate seats determined through proportional representation
• Chamber of Deputies – 300 seats by plurality, 200 seats by proportional
representation
Interest Groups and Popular Movements
• Respond pragmatically to interest groups through co-potation
• Businesses are showing neo-corporatism but no evidence they control government
• Nieto has worked to control the unions
Media
•
•
•
•
Under PRI little power to criticize as salaries subsidized by PRI
As politics/elections more open and competitive have become more important
Since 1980s has major TV networks and access to global media like CNN
Proof that media is more free and has fair access
• Toallagate
• Fox’s treatment of Castro
• Yo Soy 132
Organization of the State
• Resembles the USA – 3 branches, checks and balances – but in practice very
different from the USA
• 128 Senators, 500 Deputies
• President/governors/senators – 6 year term
• Deputies/municipal officials – 3 year term
• Federal republic with strong executive branch
• Constitution long and easily amended, more centralized system, very strong
executive
The Executive
• President and His Cabinet
• Central to governance and policymaking
• Until 1990s always picked successor
• Until 1970s above criticism
• Have powers in legislation, foreign policy, government agencies, public policy –
manage vast patronage machine
• But must abide by sexanio
• Since 1970s impressive educational credentials, postgraduate training in the
USA
• 2012 cabinet mix of business oriented technocrats and veteran PRI insiders
• Bureaucracy
• 1.5 million workers – most in Mexico City
• At lower level protected by unions
• At upper level are “confidence employees”
• Under PRI para-statal sector was huge – best example is PEMEX
The Legislature
• Under PRI opposition to present initiatives unheard of – today have more power
• Bicameral legislature – Congress
• Senate
• Chamber of Deputies
• Since 1980s greater number of parties represented
• 2002 law requires parties to sponsor women in at least 30% of seats – PRI runs
50%
• Has moved from rubber stamp institution to one president must negotiate with
The Judiciary
• Does not have independent judiciary or judicial review – follows code law
• Based on Constitution of 1917
• Has federal and state courts but most laws are federal – highest court is
Supreme Court – appointed for life but resign each sexanio
• District courts are where all cases begin, do have appeals courts
• Law is very explicit, no punitive damages are allowed, can ask for amparo
• Have specialized federal courts: labor, military, electoral
• 1994 began emphasizing rule of law, major overhaul in 2008
The Military/Police
• Has successfully marginalized the military
from the center of political power – rotates
military commands so generals can not build
up power
• Has been used to deal with domestic unrest
• Recently used to combat drug trafficking but
rumors of deals between military officials and
drug barons – confirmed with arrest of head
of antidrug task force
• 2009 Calderon created new police force that
formed part of Mexico’s first national crime
information system – works with military to
store fingerprints of those arrested
• Federal police force has greater confidence
than local forces
• Pena Nieto developed 5,000 new federal
policemen to protect key industries from drug
cartels
Subnational Government
•
•
•
•
•
Each state has own constitution and three branches of government
Municipalities governed by elected mayors and councils
Most are poor and dependent on central government
Until 1988 all were members of PRI, but other parties are winning seats
PRI has tried to be more responsive to local needs to combat this trend
Section Five: Policies and Issues
Policy Making Process
• Is very dependent on quality of its leadership and presidential understanding of
how economic and social policies affect the development of the country
• Single six year term important for policymaking
• Limited experience of PAN made Congress more important in policymaking
• President is still the focal point of policymaking
Challenges Faced
• The Economy
• Disagreement about how to respond to economic challenges – centers on how
to integrate Mexico into international economy
• The Mexican Miracle
• Gap between rich and poor
• Rapid and unplanned urbanization
• Heavy borrowing built up debt
• Too much focus on oil
• Austerity in 1982: government cuts in spending, debt reduction,
privatization, diversification of the economy
• Energy Reform/Economic Crisis of 2008
• 2006 oil production fell off
• PEMEX inefficient para-statal that provide for 40% of the budget – Fox tried
and failed to privatize it – Calderon gave it more budgetary autonomy and
strengthened regulation
• Close relationship with USA caused economy to shrink in 2009
Challenges Faced - Continued
• Telecommunications
• 2013 trying to create competition
• Created Ifetel to regulate industry
• Foreign Policy
• Maquiladoras
• Trade agreements
• NAFTA
• GATT/WTO
• Immigration
San Diego
Tijuana
• NAFTA does not allow free flow of labor
• Reforms fell through with 9/11 attacks
• Economy of Mexico pushes people north
• Sense of national identification affected by international migration
Challenges Faced - Continued
• Drug Trafficking
• Major problem, spurred corruption
• 2005 raided own prison to regain control
• Huge wave of drug-related violence
• Armed patrols of military on streets – citizens claim brutality
• USA president/secretary of state has tried to help but USA Congress
refuses funds
• 2011 USA sent CIA to help – 2010 murder rate up 2/3 from 2007
• Some improvement seen since 2012
• Ethnic Rebellions
• Zapatistas
• Democracy and Electoral Reform
• Developed competitive elections – has had series of reforms since 1990s
• IFE created, campaign finance restrictions, critical media coverage,
international watch teams, election monitoring by opposition parties
• 2000 displaced 71 year rule of PRI
• 2012 Pact for Mexico
• Central government has begun to decentralize power
Challenges Faced - Continued
• The Para-Statal Sector
• Semiautonomous or autonomous government agencies that produce goods and
services
• Have been trimmed by economic policy reforms since the 1980s but still exist