(Mexico City) Outgoing Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador warned the Supreme Court on Friday against blocking his controversial judicial reform, saying it would be a “flagrant violation” of the Constitution.
The reform, which would see judges – including those of the Supreme Court – and the country’s magistrates elected by “popular vote”, has sparked strong protests from employees of the judicial administration, as well as diplomatic tensions with the United States and concerns in the financial markets.
The judges, some of whom have been on strike for more than two weeks, have asked the Supreme Court to intervene to stop the legislative process. A request that has “no legal basis,” according to Mr. Lopez Obrador.
PHOTO HENRY ROMERO, REUTERS
Elected officials holding up placards reading “Justice” and “Democracy” expressed their disapproval last Wednesday.
The president of the Supreme Court, Norma Piña, decided on Thursday to consult her peers to see if it would be possible to slow down the reform that was adopted on Wednesday by the Chamber of Deputies, where the presidential party and its allies are ultra-majorities, and which must be debated in the Senate next week.
“It would be an aberration and, of course, a flagrant violation of the Constitution to interrupt the process of analysis, discussion and, if necessary, approval of the reform,” the left-wing president said at his daily press conference.
“This would amount to opting for the law of the jungle, clearly showing that (the judges) do not care about democracy or justice,” Lopez Obrador added.
The outgoing president, whose popularity is around 70%, accuses judges and magistrates of promoting corruption and criminal groups, and of being responsible for impunity for more than 90% of crimes committed, according to NGOs.
Mr. Lopez Obrador, who will hand over power to his party’s president-elect Claudia Sheinbaum on March 1,er October, also accuses Supreme Court justices of becoming allies of the opposition, as the top court has obstructed some of the reforms the president has proposed in areas such as energy and security.
Critics of the reform, including the United States and human rights groups, say it will undermine the independence of the judiciary by politicizing it, and that drug traffickers could more easily control judges by interfering in their election.
The reform has sparked concern among investors, leading to a sharp drop in the value of the Mexican currency, the peso, which this week hit its lowest level in two years, at more than 20 pesos to the US dollar.