MEXICO CITY — Hugo Aguilar’s candidacy for Mexico’s Supreme Court had a straightforward message: he would be the one to at last provide Indigenous Mexicans a voice at one of the highest tiers of government.
Leading up Sunday’s first judicial elections in Mexican history, he remarked, “It’s our turn as Indigenous people… to make decisions in this country.”
According to Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, the 52-year-old Mixtec lawyer from southern Oaxaca state will be the first Indigenous Supreme Court justice in almost 170 years in the Latin American country. He might preside over the top court. Running the court from 1857 to 1858, Mexican hero and former President Benito Juárez was the last Indigenous jurist to do so.
For some of 23 million Indigenous people long on the margins of Mexican society, Aguilar has come to represent optimism. Others, on the other hand, vehemently attack his background and worry that he will instead stand with Morena, the ruling party, that brought him onto the court instead of representing them.
While supporters point to Aguilar’s lengthy history of advocating Indigenous rights, detractors claim that more recently he has supported the agenda of the ruling party, especially huge infrastructure projects undertaken by former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, at the expense of Indigenous people. Aguilar’s staff stated he would not speak until official findings were validated.
Although many contests are still under voting count, the nine Supreme Court justices’ total came first. Most of the justices have close ties to the winning party, so giving Morena possible influence over the high court. Among those names that surfaced on pamphlets advising which candidates to support, election authorities are looking at Aguilar.
More than any other contender, including three Supreme Court members already serving, Aguilar collected up more than 6 million votes. The triumph made Aguilar not only capable of serving on but also of heading the court.
Critics linked his victory to Mexico’s very popular president’s repeated declarations during the run-up to the election that she wanted an Indigenous judge on the Supreme Court. She mentioned on Wednesday that she was happy he was on the court.
“He is a really excellent attorney,” she remarked. “I have the honor of knowing his work generally rather than only on Indigenous concerns. He is a modest and straightforward individual with broad understanding.
Decisions rendered by the Supreme Court, for instance, confirm the right of Indigenous people to be aided by defense lawyers in any judicial process and interpreters who speak their mother tongue. Still, there are major unresolved problems including territorial conflicts with mega-projects.
His mistrust of Aguilar is still fed by the environmental damage the project left behind.
“Who is Hugo going to represent? That is the issue.” According to González Díaz. “Is he going to represent the Indigenous people or the (Morena) party?”
