This past weekend, the boiling tension between Mexico's federal government and a branch of the country's teachers' union finally exploded into full riot and chaos that left at least six people dead and more than 100 other wounded.
The protests concern controversial educational reform, headed by President Enrique Peña Nieto, which would require mandatory testing for all teachers in an effort to improve the appalling educational system. The National Coordinator of Education Workers (CNTE), a faction of the teachers' union, has posed protest to said 'improvements'. Section 22, the Oaxaca branch of the union called members to block roads, seize oil distribution facilities and burn buildings.
In response, 400 federal police and 200 state police were sent to the scene of a roadblock in Nochixtlan on Sunday morning. What happened next is still unclear and many news agencies report different events. Some report police confronting a mass of protesters while others report that protesters captured five federal police officers and instead a rescue effort began. Regardless, people on both sides were hurt. Leaders of Section 22 recorded the death toll as eight. In addition, 22 people have disappeared and 45 others had gunshot wounds.
The amount of violence that has occurred is not at the fault of a singular group. The teachers in southern Oaxaca must provide shelter and food for their own students, build their own schools and additionally improve test scores and reading comprehension. However, Ruben Nuñez, the secretary general of Section 22, was arrested on June 12th due to money laundering. However, not only is there evidence of corruption within the teachers' union, but teachers and other union members are violent towards their own colleagues.
Less than a month ago, six school principals and supervisors were delivering a list of teachers who had not joined protests when they were taken hostage by a branch of the CNTE in Tuxtla Gutiérrez, Chiapas. Their heads were then shaved as punishment for not participating in the protests and then were forced to walk barefoot carrying a sign saying "traitor".
The teachers' union obviously has its faults, but the federal government is no help either. Peña Nieto's administration has repeatedly ignored the pressing needs of failing schools across the country. They want to test teachers' skills but yet punish those who hail from poor and rural areas that possess a different educational background than the majority of the nation's teachers.
In 2012, Mexico ranked 53rd out of 65 countries as part of an International Student Assessment, despite them spending a greater amount of their GDP than all other countries ranked. In 2015, it was found by the Mexican Federal Auditor’s Office that almost US$700 million of funds for the education sector had been misappropriated. Elba Esther Gordillo is a Mexican politician who was the former leader of the National Education Workers' Union (SNTE) and held incredibly close ties to governments and and Presidents. She was arrested for allegedly embezzling 2 billion pesos from the SNTE. She was caught on camera buying 59 new Hummer vehicles for her aides, spent US$2.1 million at a Neiman Marcus in San Diego and owned a US $1.7 million home in San Diego and a US $4.7 million house in Coronado Cays complete with a dock, a boat and a jet ski.
Police in the state of Mexico have also been given extraordinary rights. In May 2006, the Congress of the state of Mexico approved the use force and that of firearms in order to control and secure the public. However, there is no specific sanction against the excess of such force. As a result, citizens have suffered from excessive beatings and women have have also been the victims of rape at the hands of law enforcement.
Obviously, there are wrongdoings and corruptions on both sides of the protest. If anything good can come out of the violence that has occurred this past weekend is that the nation and others can learn from Mexico and move forward.
The teachers' unions are not saints protecting their students' education and the federal government is not a superhero swooping in to save everybody from disaster either. But, pointing fingers at this point will not do any good for the children who are the real victims. They have suffered from violence, chaos and inconsistent learning that will most likely affect their chances at a higher education and the rest of their life.
