Throughout the covid-19 pandemic, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has been a source of disinformation about the virus. Despite Mexico having one of the highest recorded Covid-19 death tolls in the world, the president refuses to wear a mask and has continued holding public events around the country, where he even hugs and kisses some supporters.
Will López Obrador continue playing with Mexicans’ health?
President López Obrador’s approach to the virus has put Mexicans in danger. (Leer este articulo en español)
Por:
José Miguel Vivanco
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador stands next to the Mexican flag before his daily press conference at the Palacio Nacional in Mexico City on December 8, 2020.
Imagen Alfredo Estrella/AFP via Getty Images
On January 23, during one such trip, López Obrador reportedly began to experience flu-like symptoms and took a Covid-19 test, according to media reports. He continued his planned schedule, meeting with government and military officials, holding an indoor dinner with business leaders, and attending four public events in two states—all without wearing a mask or following social distancing guidelines—as if life had returned to normal. He also took three commercial flights, potentially exposing hundreds of people to the virus.
The following day, upon returning to Mexico City, the president said in a tweet that his test had come back positive, and he was receiving medical treatment for “light symptoms.”
As my mom worked and parented, all in one breath, she instilled in us the values that I carry with me today: “por la familia, todo.” Lee este contenido en <a href="https://www.univision.com/noticias/opinion/por-la-familia-todo-ruben-gallego-sobre-su-candidatura-para-ser-el-primer-senador-latino-de-arizona" target="_blank" link-data="{"cms.site.owner":{"_ref":"00000147-f3a5-d4ea-a95f-fbb7f52b0000","_type":"ae3387cc-b875-31b7-b82d-63fd8d758c20"},"cms.content.publishDate":1726508089253,"cms.content.publishUser":{"_ref":"0000017b-d1c8-de50-affb-f1df3e1d0000","_type":"6aa69ae1-35be-30dc-87e9-410da9e1cdcc"},"cms.content.updateDate":1726508089253,"cms.content.updateUser":{"_ref":"0000017b-d1c8-de50-affb-f1df3e1d0000","_type":"6aa69ae1-35be-30dc-87e9-410da9e1cdcc"},"link":{"target":"NEW","attributes":[],"url":"https://www.univision.com/noticias/opinion/por-la-familia-todo-ruben-gallego-sobre-su-candidatura-para-ser-el-primer-senador-latino-de-arizona","_id":"00000191-fbe6-d0b9-a3df-ffee82b60000","_type":"ff658216-e70f-39d0-b660-bdfe57a5599a"},"linkText":"español","_id":"00000191-fbe6-d0b9-a3df-ffee82b10000","_type":"809caec9-30e2-3666-8b71-b32ddbffc288"}">español</a>.
"What a sad reflection that the Republican Party has moved from Abraham Lincoln, who <a href="https://www.lincolncottage.org/lincoln-and-immigration/" target="_blank" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.lincolncottage.org/lincoln-and-immigration/&source=gmail&ust=1722615259799000&usg=AOvVaw1h4-6RbvpglrZVIbOjgpuE" style="color: rgb(17, 85, 204);">said </a>immigration was a ‘source of national wealth and strength’ and Ronald Reagan, who <a href="https://www.reaganlibrary.gov/archives/speech/farewell-address-nation" target="_blank" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.reaganlibrary.gov/archives/speech/farewell-address-nation&source=gmail&ust=1722615259799000&usg=AOvVaw3smYQcjpnK2Yg75NSEOBUf" style="color: rgb(17, 85, 204);">called </a>for his ‘city on the hill’ to be ‘open to anyone with the will and the heart to get here,’ to Donald Trump, who <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-election/trump-says-immigrants-are-poisoning-blood-country-biden-campaign-liken-rcna130141" target="_blank" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-election/trump-says-immigrants-are-poisoning-blood-country-biden-campaign-liken-rcna130141&source=gmail&ust=1722615259799000&usg=AOvVaw1u4LrDvU2tKeNxJCdbz96i" style="color: rgb(17, 85, 204);">says </a>immigrants are ‘poisoning the blood of our country".
"Our current immigration laws include so many hurdles that can keep families in limbo, and even being married to a U.S. citizen isn’t always enough to allow someone to get a green card".
"For those of us whose livelihoods depend on it, President Biden’s actions to protect and preserve DACA show a striking contrast with those of Trump and MAGA Republicans. Trump has a record of trying to end DACA and will try again if he wins another term".
"While immigrants by now are accustomed to being the tip of the spear in the GOP’s arsenal of attacks, let's be clear-eyed that the threat now is beyond harming immigrant communities or calling attention to the border. This is about using this issue as a tool to further Trump’s political ambitions, even if that means suppressing the right to vote, undermining our election results, or stoking more political violence".
"This month comes at a special moment in our nation’s history. For the first time, we have more Latinos serving in Congress than ever before. In the Senate, the Democratic Majority has confirmed a historic number of Latino judicial nominees and recently confirmed the first Latina to serve on the Federal Reserve in the Board’s 109-year history".
"This is the clean energy boom unleashed by President Biden: good-paying jobs in a fast-growing industry and lower bills for working families — all while addressing the climate crisis affecting our lives".
Putting presidents, former presidents and coup plotters on trial is an honorable and necessary practice to maintain a healthy democracy. Failure to put on trial presidents or former presidents who broke the law or committed crimes has had devastating consequences in Latin America.
Mexico's migrant policy bears responsibility for the deaths of 39 migrants in the fire at a detention center in Ciudad Juarez. They were in the custody of the Mexican government, in a federal facility.
Following the announcement, other government officials took Covid-19 tests and decided to isolate themselves. The president, meanwhile, is being treated by a team of specialists at the National Palace. These are services to which few in Mexico have access—in part because of the president’s own inadequate response to the pandemic.
The government has intentionally limited free Covid-19 testing, calling it a “ waste of time... [and] resources,” making it extremely difficult for many to get tested. And in the worst-hit regions of the country it can be nearly impossible to find available hospital beds or even to fill oxygen tanks for those attempting to treat their loved ones at home.
As a result, experts estimate that many of those who fall ill or die from Covid-19 in Mexico never receive intensive care, are admitted to a hospital, or even take a Covid-19 test.
President López Obrador’s approach to the virus has put Mexicans in danger. He has contradicted public health advice, telling Mexicans to ignore stay-at-home orders and insisting that masks are “ not essential.” And his government was caught hiding the true number of Covid-19 deaths and fudging figures to avoid lockdown rules.
In November, the head of the World Health Organization said that Mexico was “ in bad shape” because of the rising number of Covid-19 cases and deaths, and called on President López Obrador “to be very serious.” Now that he is experiencing the illness firsthand, he should finally do so and stop playing with the lives and health of Mexicans.
José Miguel Vivanco, is director of Human Rights Watch's Americas division.
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