Celebrations, protests, and questions
How much will a revolutionary heritage count when adapting to a global economy?Mexico marks oil nationalization anniversary with country divided over reforms
"Mexico marked the 70th anniversary of its oil industry's nationalization Tuesday amid a heated debate between those who oppose private investment in the state oil monopoly and those who consider it necessary to boost sagging production."Speaking to oil workers in the oil-rich Gulf coast state of Tabasco, President Felipe Calderón announced plans for a new refinery to reduce the country's dependence on imported petroleum products, including gasoline.
"'The challenge for all Mexicans is to transform Pemex so it becomes a more efficient and stronger company that is less dependent on foreign imports,' he said.
"Calderón is pushing an energy reform proposal that would allow private companies to form partnerships with state-owned oil company Petroleos Mexicanos, or Pemex, to explore deep-water oil fields and boost sagging production... [T]he very idea of loosening the government's grip on the energy sector is a sensitive subject, as many politicians and much of the public revere the state-run oil monopoly with nationalistic pride.
"In Mexico City, former Democratic Revolution Party presidential candidate Andres Manuel López Obrador has said that opening Pemex to private investment would threaten national sovereignty...
"Thousands of López Obrador supporters gathered Tuesday in the capital's central square to “defend” the nation's oil...
"Mexico nationalized its oil industry on March 18, 1938, a day commemorated each year with patriotic fanfare. Its constitution bans most private and foreign involvement in the sector, but in practice, the government has eased the restrictions slightly in the past 15 years, allowing Pemex to subcontract some work to private company."
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Labels: economics, Mexico, political culture, politics
posted by Ken Wedding @ 10:28 AM
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