Mexico Anti-Mining Network To AMLO: 'Country Not For Sale'

Mexico's Network of People Affected by Mining (REMA) have warned President-Elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, known as 'AMLO,' that the country "is not for sale."

RELATED:

AMLO Seeks to Work 'in Agreement' with Mexico's Business Sector

The comment is a response to an earlier remark by AMLO's future chief of staff, Alfonso Romo, who said Mexico must be "a paradise for foreign investment."

In a statement released July 5, REMA said: "We told this to the past government over and over again and now we tell this to you: the country is not for sale."

Asked if the new government would support the Special Economic Zones (SEZs) promoted by the outgoing right-wing government of Enrique Peña Nieto, Romo has said: "Maybe we will enlarge them. Everything: Chiapas, Oaxaca, Guerrero. What would you leave out? You can't leave everything out."

To REMA, Romo's declarations mean the continuation of the neoliberal model that has ransacked Mexico for more than 30 years, an economic model REMA says should be "abrogated."

Mexico currently has four SEZs, including the Salina Cruz port in Oaxaca; Puerto Chiapas in Chiapas, and Lazaro Cardenas port, located between Michoacan and Guerrero. These states are among the nation's poorest and have dense Indigenous populations.

Romo's declarations, coming from a left-wing party, have raised concerns regarding the future government's plans for the economy.

"We won't reach life integrity in the territories that have been robbed by that investment vision that you're now promoting," REMA said.

"Mexico shouldn't be the 'paradise of foreign investment' at all, nor should we suffer the imposition of Special Economic Zones."

The SEZs were created by President Nieto's administration as areas enjoying special economic advantages to 'democratize productivity' and promote industrialization and commerce.

REMA is now demanding the new government respect the program for which it was elected and be more inclusive of people's demands and social struggles.

"One of those inspiring and essential measures necessary for real change is the permanent invitation for the people to participate, give their opinion and exchange experiences about the operation of the current public policies and transform them into future ones, taking into account our own realities, identities, multiculturalism and natural resources," REMA said.

Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and his Morena party's landslide on July 1 earned them the presidency and made them the main political force in both legislative houses. AMLO is due to take office on December 1.