Ecab Amor Vázquez

It feels like a lifetime has gone by in the span of two weeks. Today we are taking a small break from the discussion of the reform of the judiciary to touch on yet another Constitutional Reform: that of the National Guard. I now understand why Billie Joe Armstrong asked to be woken up at the end of September, because, thus far, things are looking like a nightmare.

Just yesterday (the 25th of September 2024) the Mexican Senate approved, with a supermajority of 86 votes in favor and 42 votes against, a constitutional reform which transfers the control of the National Guard to the Secretariat of defense (SEDENA). I will not make the mistake again of going too deep into it before the official text is published in the DOF; but I think that it is important to highlight two important points (at this rate I think I’ll need to hire people to help me write about this because it’s getting somewhat difficult to keep up :| ).

It’s been a couple of days since we last spoke and, I have to say, I could not feel more grateful for the outpouring of support I have received. I never imagined that people would be interested in my rambles, nor that I would have already had the opportunity to discuss the reform with a couple of people who, likewise, are attempting to study this situation from every angle.

Now, that said, I think I need to recognize one very important thing. The first blog was written in the lead up to Independence Day, that is, prior to the official publication of the text of reform in the DOF (Diario Official de la Federación). This is to say that much of the analysis contained therein was based, on the one hand, on the proposal for the reform published on February 12, 2024, and, on the other, on the two recent documents published by the Mexican Supreme court analyzing the proposal (named “Reforma Integral al Sistema de Justicia en México: Desafíos Y Propuestas” and “La Reforma Al Poder Judicial En Voz De La Judicatura”). In other words, I spoke around the reform and not necessarily about the reform.

Now, however, much to the chagrin of the District Judge of Colima who gave an Amparo to block the reform’s publication two Fridays ago, the reform of the judiciary is on the books, meaning that we are now able to see it in all its, uhm, glory (?). The judicial reform is now a reality, which, as of September 16th, 2024, forces Mexican society to reckon with the transformations it will bring about.

But what exactly does the reform foresee? Let’s go bit by bit; and, as a matter of fact, let’s start at the end.