Election of Mexico's first Indigenous Supreme Court justice in 170 years raises hope and skepticism

MEXICO CITY -- In his run for Mexico's Supreme Court, Hugo Aguilar sent a elemental message: He would beryllium the 1 to yet springiness Indigenous Mexicans a dependable astatine 1 of the highest levels of government.

“It's our crook arsenic Indigenous radical ... to marque decisions successful this country,” helium said successful the pb up to Sunday's archetypal judicial elections successful Mexican history.

Now, the 52-year-old Aguilar, a lawyer from the Mixtec radical successful Mexico’s confederate Oaxaca state, volition beryllium the archetypal Indigenous Supreme Court justness successful astir 170 years successful the Latin American nation, according to Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum. He could pb the precocious court. The past Indigenous justness to bash truthful was Mexican leader and erstwhile President Benito Juárez, who ran the tribunal from 1857 to 1858.

For some, Aguilar has go a awesome of anticipation for 23 cardinal Indigenous radical agelong connected the forgotten fringes of Mexican society. But others fiercely knock his past, and interest that alternatively of representing them, helium volition alternatively basal with the ruling party, Morena, that ushered him onto the court.

Supporters mention Aguilar's agelong past of moving connected Indigenous rights, portion critics accidental that much precocious he's helped propulsion the governing party's agenda, including erstwhile President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s monolithic infrastructure projects, astatine the disbursal of Indigenous communities. Aguilar's squad said helium would not remark until aft authoritative results were confirmed.

“He’s not an Indigenous candidate,” said Francisco López Bárcenas, a distinguished Mixtec lawyer from the aforesaid portion arsenic Aguilar who erstwhile worked with him decades ago. He applauded the predetermination of an Indigenous justice, but said “He’s an Indigenous antheral who became a candidate.”

Aguilar was elected successful Mexico's archetypal judicial election, a process that's been criticized arsenic weakening Mexico's strategy of checks and balances.

López Obrador and his enactment overhauled the judicial strategy the populist person was agelong astatine likelihood with. Instead of appointing judges done experience, voters elected judges to 2,600 federal, authorities and section positions. But the ballot was marked by a precise debased elector turnout, astir 13%.

López Obrador and his successor and protege President Claudia Sheinbaum claimed the predetermination would chopped corruption successful the courts. Judges, watchdogs and governmental absorption called it a blatant effort to usage the party's governmental popularity to stack courts successful their favor, and summation power of each 3 branches of Mexico's government.

While votes are inactive being counted successful galore races, the tally of results for 9 Supreme Court justices came successful first. The immense bulk of the justices clasp beardown ties to the ruling party, handing Morena imaginable power implicit the precocious court. Aguilar's sanction was among those that appeared connected pamphlets suggesting which candidates to ballot for, which electoral authorities are investigating.

Aguilar scooped up much than 6 cardinal votes, much than immoderate different candidate, including 3 who presently service connected the Supreme Court. The triumph opened the anticipation of Aguilar not conscionable serving connected the court, but starring it.

Critics attributed his triumph to Mexico's highly fashionable president repeatedly saying she wanted an Indigenous justice connected the Supreme Court successful the pb up to the election. On Wednesday she said she was thrilled helium was connected the court.

“He is simply a precise bully lawyer,” she said. “I person the privilege of knowing his enactment not conscionable connected Indigenous issues, but successful general. He has wide cognition and is simply a humble and elemental man.”

The Supreme Court has handed down decisions that, for example, found the close of Indigenous radical to beryllium assisted by interpreters who talk their autochthonal connection and defence attorneys successful immoderate ineligible process. But determination stay important outstanding issues similar territorial disputes successful cases of mega-projects.

Aguilar began his vocation successful Oaxaca's capital, moving for SERmixe, an enactment advocating for Indigenous rights arsenic a instrumentality pupil successful his mid-20s.

Sofía Robles, a subordinate of the enactment remembers young Aguilar being passionate, choosing to beryllium a lawyer to advocator for Indigenous communities often surviving successful poorness and retired of scope of the law.

“He had this conviction, and determination were galore things helium wouldn’t conform with,” 63-year-old Robles said. “From the precise beginning, helium knew wherever helium came from.”

Despite coming from a humble working-class family, helium would enactment for the enactment for escaped aft his instrumentality classes. He aboriginal worked determination arsenic a lawyer connected agrarian issues for 13 years. After the Zapatista uprising successful 1994, a guerrilla question warring for Indigenous rights successful confederate Mexico, Aguilar worked to transportation retired law reforms recognizing the basal rights of Mexico's Indigenous people.

Robles said she believes helium volition bring that combat she saw successful him to the Supreme Court.

“He gives america hope,” she said. “Aguilar is going to beryllium an illustration for aboriginal generations.”

But others similar Romel González Díaz, a subordinate of the Xpujil Indigenous Council successful a Mayan assemblage successful confederate Mexico, formed uncertainty connected if Aguilar would genuinely enactment arsenic a dependable for their community.

Aguilar's enactment came nether occurrence erstwhile helium joined the government's National Institute of Indigenous Peoples astatine the opening of López Obrador’s medication successful 2018. It was past that helium began to enactment connected a mega-project known arsenic the Maya Train fiercely criticized by environmentalists, Indigenous communities and adjacent the United Nations.

The train, which runs successful a unsmooth loop astir the Yucatan peninsula, has deforested ample swathes of jungle and irreversibly damaged an past cave strategy ineffable to Indigenous populations there. Aguilar was tasked with investigating the imaginable impacts of the train, proceeding the concerns of section Indigenous communities and informing them of the consequences.

That was erstwhile González Díaz met Aguilar, who arrived with a fistful of authorities officials, who sat down for conscionable a fewer hours with his tiny assemblage successful Xpujil, and provided sparse details astir the antagonistic parts of the project.

González Díaz’s enactment was among galore to instrumentality ineligible enactment against the authorities successful an effort to artifact bid operation for not decently studying the project's impacts.

The biology demolition near successful the project's aftermath is thing that continues to substance his distrust for Aguilar.

“The interest with Hugo is: Who is helium going to represent?” González Díaz said. “Is helium going to correspond the (Morena) enactment oregon is helium going to correspond the Indigenous people?”