Mexican Consulate staff in Miami visit the Alligator Alcatraz

▲ The detention center is in the Everglades, Florida. AFP photo

Arturo Sánchez Jiménez, Emir Olivares and Alma E. Muñoz

La Jornada Newspaper, Friday, July 25, 2025, p. 12

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (SRE) reported yesterday that personnel from the Mexican Consulate General in Miami visited the detention center known as Alcatraz in the Florida Everglades on Wednesday to verify the conditions of the Mexicans held there.

According to Roberto Velasco Álvarez, head of the North American Unit, no overcrowding or isolation was detected during the inspection.

“The @ConsulmexMia Consular Protection team visited the Alcatraz detention center in the Everglades yesterday and interviewed the detained Mexicans. They report that, at the time of the visit, no overcrowding or isolation was detected,” the official wrote on his X account.

Velasco explained that ongoing dialogue is being maintained with U.S. authorities to monitor the cases of the 14 U.S. citizens detained at the center and support them in their legal proceedings. He added that the Foreign Ministry will continue to conduct daily visits to provide consular and legal assistance, as well as to ensure respect for their human rights. He emphasized that these actions respond to a direct instruction from President Claudia Sheinbaum.

"As instructed by President @Claudiashein , the @SRE_mx and the Mexican representations in Florida continue to do the necessary work so that, if they so decide, the Mexicans are repatriated to our country as soon as possible and do not spend any more time in the detention center," he stated.

Meanwhile, in response to reports that the Donald Trump administration had sent intimidating letters to migrant children warning them to leave the United States or face deportation, President Sheinbaum Pardo said the existence of these letters must be confirmed, but if the situation is indeed true, she rejects them.

The information hasn't been confirmed; we'll have to see if it's confirmed. If so, obviously, we disagree. And if they were Mexican, we would establish a full relationship with these minors to be able to support them , he stated during the morning press conference at the National Palace.

Jessica Xantomila and Jared Laureles

La Jornada Newspaper, Friday, July 25, 2025, p. 12

The escalating arbitrary detentions of migrants, raids, abuses, and cruel treatment suffered by Venezuelans, Central Americans, and Mexicans, among others, under the administration of President Donald Trump, were denounced in a public hearing before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR).

More than a dozen U.S. organizations warned that without international intervention , the situation will worsen . They stated that from October of last year to July 22, 14 migrants died in the custody of the Department of Homeland Security.

“This month, the administration signed an unprecedented bill that will create prisons where it can incarcerate families… This will lead to preventable deaths, endanger children, and undermine our democracy,” warned Human Rights First, Hope Border Institute, Immigrant Defenders Law Center, and others.

Therefore, they asked the IACHR to use all available mechanisms to demand transparency and justice , and to urge the State to respect the rules and protect detained children. The level of trauma and terror resulting from the campaign of mass detentions is unprecedented , they emphasized.

In response to the allegations, the IACHR commissioners, including Vice President Andrea Pochak and Roberta Clark, expressed their concern and pointed out to the U.S. government representatives present at the hearing that while the commission is aware of the power that countries have to decide their migration policies, they must respect human rights .

For its part, the U.S. government's legal representatives did not respond to the civil society organizations' complaints, arguing that many of the cases are in active litigation. However, they did question the IACHR's actions:

It has a habit of inserting itself and interfering in public debate through thematic hearings. These are often complex, dynamic issues, ongoing court cases, and diplomatically sensitive, making it difficult for the United States to respond .

He also defended his actions based on his right to control entry and exit from our territory .

Arturo Sánchez Jiménez, Emir Olivares, Alma E. Muñoz and Ángeles Cruz

La Jornada Newspaper, Friday, July 25, 2025, p. 12

The Vatican's Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations, Paul Richard Gallagher, began his visit to Mexico yesterday with an agenda that includes meetings with Catholic leaders, as well as with the Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Juan Ramón de la Fuente, and the Secretary of the Interior, Rosa Icela Rodríguez, in addition to a Mass at the Basilica of Guadalupe this Sunday.

Gallagher will be in the country from July 24 to 29, for the General Assembly of the International Federation of Catholic Universities (IFCU) in Guadalajara, the Vatican Secretariat of State reported on the X platform.

Regarding this visit, President Claudia Sheinbaum said that one of the topics to be discussed with the Vatican envoy is to reiterate the invitation to Pope Leo XIV.

Do you remember that Rosa Icela (Rodríguez, Secretary of the Interior) came to invite him (during her visit to the Vatican a few months ago), on behalf of the Mexican government? It's one of the topics (that the Supreme Pontiff comes) , the president briefly stated in her daily press conference at the National Palace.

This morning, Gallagher held a meeting with the Mexican Episcopal Conference. In a message posted on the social network X, the highest governing body of the Catholic Church, he stated that this space for dialogue strengthens the ties between the Church and the Vatican.

He also met separately and privately with Secretaries De la Fuente and Rodríguez. The Foreign Ministry reported that they discussed the human rights of migrants, multilateralism, higher education, and the cause of peace with the former.

According to the Vatican's agenda, Gallagher will preside over a celebration at the apostolic nunciature today to mark the Feast of the Pope, and a Mass at the Basilica of Guadalupe on Sunday.

On Monday, he will give a lecture on academic diplomacy at the FIUC assembly at the Universidad del Valle de Atemajac, entitled "Catholic Universities as Choreographers of Knowledge ."

Ivan Evair Saldaña

La Jornada Newspaper, Friday, July 25, 2025, p. 13

The Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (SCJN) is working against the clock to complete, before August 14, the backlog of hundreds of engroses (the final and official version of rulings), some of which have been pending for more than three years.

Without the additions, the rulings cannot have full legal effect or be published in the Judicial Weekly of the Federation or the Official Gazette of the Federation ( DOF ).

Sources at the Supreme Court reported that, as of the latest report this month, the full court was missing 24 of 90 expansions, while the First Chamber had 218 pending out of 740, and a similar number is estimated for the Second Chamber.

The commitment of the outgoing ministers, assumed on March 10 in General Agreement 3/2025, was to leave no gap unresolved so that on August 31, the current composition of the Court concludes the exercise of its functions in the appropriate conditions, in such a way that the new members of this High Court fully develop their powers from September 1 of that same year .

To achieve this goal, the ministers even reduced the Court's sessions since last April: the full court went from three sessions per week to just one, and the chambers went from one per week to one every two weeks.

This accelerated the closing of cases that had been pending for years, such as the ruling on direct amparo under review 1211/2020, which made a difference regarding the right to legal counsel for victims and the accused.

This expansion was published this month in the Judicial Weekly , although it was resolved by a majority of three votes since March 30, 2022, by the first chamber.

Another relevant case was the direct amparo appeal 4306/2020, decided on January 25, 2023, in which the First Chamber established a mandatory criterion according to which a private insurance company may be liable for moral damages when it breaches the contract and violates the insured's right to privacy. Its summary was published this month, more than a year after the ruling.

Regarding amparo proceedings, the revised resolution on complaint 3/2023 was also recently released. It established that a damages claim cannot be dismissed due to suspension solely because the claim is for an amount greater than the established guarantee. This ruling, approved on July 5, 2023, garnered several concurring votes, and its revision was delayed for a year.

On the other hand, there are cases in which the expansion was not long in coming, such as the ruling on direct amparo review 4788/2024, in which on March 26, the First Chamber unanimously determined that the five-year prison sentence for the crime of military insubordination does not violate the principle of proportionality.

Jared Laureles and Jessica Xantomila

La Jornada Newspaper, Friday, July 25, 2025, p. 13

In response to reports of a possible operation to remove machinery from the Altos Hornos de México (AHMSA) facilities, workers warned that they will reinforce guards at the main access points to the plant and prevent its removal until they can verify that it is not part of the steelmaker's assets, located in Monclova, Coahuila.

Julián Torres Ávalos, president of the AHMSA Workers' Labor Defense Group, said the maneuvers are planned for August 6, with the goal of companies such as Madisa and a foreign firm removing industrial tools and around 300 railroad gondolas.

This action, he indicated, is intended to be carried out based on an alleged authorization from the bankruptcy judge, but we are unsure whether she signed any document. Therefore, he insisted, if third parties do not prove legal ownership of the machinery, they will oppose the theft, as they fear another possible fraud to the detriment of the workers.

One aspect that caught the workers' attention was the planned removal of 300 railroad cars from the steelworks, which they rejected for leasing, and we have no doubt that they belong to AHMSA , he stated.

We don't agree that those shelves don't belong to AHMSA; it's a potential opportunity for yet another fraud by Alonso Ancira (former owner of AHMSA), and now they want to sell them off using front men, as if they belonged to other companies , he emphasized.

Torres Ávalos, representing a group of former employees owed severance pay, requested in a letter to the Senate Special Commission, headed by Morena member Luis Fernando Salazar, that it intervene and investigate the legality of this process and ensure its transparency.

AHMSA workers have maintained constant surveillance at the plant's entrances in precarious conditions for more than two years, during which time they have not received wages. Starting August 6, four entrances will be reinforced, including points zero and nine , which have been the main maneuvering areas for the entry and exit of heavy machinery and other materials, he explained.

Mentioning that this decision was made during the weekly meeting, he clarified that they will allow access to the personnel who maintain the steelworks equipment. He also noted that there is a risk of a possible confrontation with municipal or state police, as authorities have warned that they will use public force.

The agreement we reached is not to allow any equipment to leave. At the appropriate time, companies that own machinery will be able to remove it if they first prove ownership, but our position is that nothing will be removed until the process is complete and the workers have been paid , he emphasized.

Alexia Villaseñor

La Jornada Newspaper, Friday, July 25, 2025, p. 13

After a little over three months of strike, students from the Juan de Dios Bátiz Center for Scientific and Technological Studies (Cecyt) 9 of the National Polytechnic Institute (IPN) handed over the school's facilities this Monday after reaching a five-point agreement, including the virtual application of ordinary and extraordinary proficiency certificate evaluations to accredit subjects for the 2025-2 semester.

The document, a copy of which is available to La Jornada , indicates as its first point the monitoring of the management of the principal, Dorina Ortega, by the Directorate of Upper Secondary Education (DEMS) in all academic and administrative processes of the school. It specifies that a change in attitude and an active willingness to resolve the problems facing the student community must be observed.

Within six months, the director's performance will be evaluated, including a monthly supervisory report from the authorities. If the Department of Social Security determines her performance was deficient, Ortega Sánchez agrees not to oppose the decision and will submit her resignation , the agreement states.

Another important point for students who are not regular students, that is, those who did not pass the subjects during the course, is the guarantee without exceptions of the proficiency assessments (ETS), both ordinary and extraordinary. These assessments will be conducted virtually from August 19 to 22. To do so, students must update their email address in the School Administration System.