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Gálvez: The Outsider Who Could Upset the Status Quo in Mexico’s 2024 Election
Mexico’s opposition coalition has nominated Xóchitl Gálvez, a 60-year-old computer engineer and businesswoman with indigenous roots, as their candidate for the 2024 presidential election.
Gálvez’s nomination raises the prospect of Mexico having a female president for the first time. She is backed by a three-party coalition including the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), which dominated the country’s politics until 2000.
Gálvez was born into poverty in the central state of Hidalgo. Her father was an abusive alcoholic, and she helped her family sell street food to survive. She moved to Mexico City to study computer science, and after graduating, she founded a successful tech company that secured government contracts.
Gálvez is known for her outspokenness and her down-to-earth demeanor. She wears indigenous clothing and uses colloquial language, and she is often seen cycling around Mexico City. She is seen as a popular candidate among working-class and young Mexicans.
However, she faces a tough challenge in the 2024 election. The incumbent president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, is very popular and is expected to run for re-election. Gálvez has repeatedly clashed with López Obrador, and he has accused her of being the candidate of the rich and the “oligarchs.”
The other main contender for the presidency is Claudia Sheinbaum, the current mayor of Mexico City. Sheinbaum is also a member of the opposition coalition, but she is seen as being more closely aligned with López Obrador’s policies.
The 2024 presidential election is shaping up to be a close race, and Gálvez’s nomination has injected a new level of excitement into the campaign. If she is successful, she would make history as Mexico’s first female president.
President Ruto Signs Anti-Money Laundering Bill Into Law
President William Ruto on Friday signed the Anti-Money Laundering and Combating of Terrorism Financing Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2023 into law. The new law aims to address deficiencies in the fight against money laundering and terrorism in Kenya.
The law allows for the surrender of a fugitive criminal who consents to be extradited to a requesting state. It also grants the Financial Reporting Centre operational independence by excluding it from the definition of a state corporation.
The Capital Markets Authority and the Insurance Regulatory Authority have been empowered to enforce the compliance of their licensees with the laws on anti-money laundering and combating terrorism financing. The Central Bank of Kenya will supervise financial institutions and agents of reporting institutions.
The law also includes the laundering of the proceeds of corruption under the definition of “economic crime.”
In a separate development, President Ruto also assented to the Climate Change (Amendment) Bill (National Assembly Bill No. 42 of 2023), which was published in July. The bill amends the Climate Change Act, 2016, to provide for the regulation of carbon markets and to enhance the country’s response to climate change.
The bill states that transactions in carbon trading under the act must reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It also allows the Cabinet Secretary to enter into bilateral or multilateral agreements to trade carbon for emission reductions and removals.
Haiti Gangs Open Fire on Protestors, Killing 7
A gang in Haiti killed at least seven people and wounded several others on Saturday after opening fire on a protest march organized by a church leader.
The march was held in the suburb of Canaan, which is controlled by the gang. The protesters, some of whom were armed with machetes, were demanding that the gang leave the area.
The gang opened fire on the protesters with machine guns, killing at least seven people and wounding several others. Some of the protesters were also kidnapped.
The protest was organized by a pastor named Joel John, who has been outspoken in his criticism of the gang. He has accused the gang of extortion, kidnapping, and murder.
The Haitian government has condemned the attack and vowed to bring the perpetrators to justice. However, the government has been struggling to control the gang violence that has plagued the country in recent years.
In 2023 alone, more than 2,400 people have been killed in gang-related violence. The violence has displaced thousands of people and led to a humanitarian crisis.
The attack on the protest march is a reminder of the challenges facing Haiti in its efforts to restore security and stability.
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