Mexico’s president gives power and money to the armed forces
Andrés Manuel López Obrador risks making the army a political player
Democracies that give their armed forces too much power may become less democratic. Under President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, Mexico, which never had a military dictatorship, may be taking that risk. In September Congress voted to transfer control of the National Guard, created in 2019 to replace the federal police, from the security ministry to the defence ministry, which is led by a general. This month Congress’s upper house agreed to extend from 2024 until 2028 the army’s role in enforcing law and order.
This article appeared in the The Americas section of the print edition under the headline “Guns and AMLO”
From the October 15th 2022 edition
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