As the education conflict enters its third month, representatives of business owners met with Interior Secretary Miguel Ángel Osorio Chong Tuesday to ask him to “reinstate the rule of law” in states where they say it has been violated by the National Coordinator of Education Workers (CNTE).
Gustavo de Hoyos Walther, president of the Employers Federation of Mexico (Coparmex), a large chamber of commerce, said that he will demand that Osorio Chong immediately end blockades on highways and railroads.
“To the extent that ending the blockades through dialogue is possible, we would like that,” said de Hoyos Walther. “But in extreme cases, when it is necessary to apply the law, the use of force should not be taken off the table.”
According to de Hoyos Walther, businesses are not asking for gifts or economic support from the government.
“The business sector has started a dialogue with the various secretariats, including the Economy Secretariat, to find ways to create incentives for the reactivation of the economy,” he said. “We’re not asking for gifts. We’re trying to look for ways to finance the economic reactivation, like working with development banks and the Treasury. The situation right now is similar to a situation right after a natural disaster.”
The Coparmex president said that the economy of Oaxaca has been hit hardest by the education conflict; 85 percent of businesses in that state have been closed. He added that Guerrero, Chiapas, Michoacan and Mexico City have also been negatively affected.