Last week we witnessed an unfortunate situation. The Attorney General’s Office (FGR) requested the arrest warrant for 31 academics and former public officials. They are being held in a maximum security prison and immediately arrested. The FGR, with the support of the National Council of Science and Technology (Conacyt), accuses them of allegedly using resources of illicit origin, embezzlement, and organized crime. Yes, as you read, organized crime!
However, two judges refused to issue the arrest warrant due to inconsistencies in the complaints submitted by the Prosecutor’s Office. Despite the fact that the request was rejected on two occasions, the FGR declared that it will ask for the apprehension of the academics for the third time.
Behind the context of this complaint, which has already attracted the attention of international media, there are a series of worrying situations. On the one hand, there is the public questioning of the FGR’s performance on various issues. For example, civil organizations denounce that the Prosecutor’s Office has breached the law by ignoring citizen participation processes, proposed eliminating the crime of femicide, and contracted programs for the massive spying of mobile phones.
In March, the Collective vs. Impéricamia indicated that of his 34 legal obligations the Attorney General only complied with two. In other words, the Prosecutor has covered only 6% of his total obligations. In addition, the FGR promoted the approval of the Law of the Attorney General of the Republic. Law passed by Congress that turns its back on victims of violence and insecurity in Mexico. In a country with more than 90,000 missing persons, the law allows the FGR to evade its responsibilities in search efforts.
On the other hand, there is the wrong vision of Conacyt. In the name of fiscal austerity, important funding was eliminated to study key issues, and the solution to the deteriorating working conditions of most of the academic union is ignored. False rhetoric is promoted against the academic community that criticizes government policies, accusing them of being corrupt and opponents. It is a vision that rejects the plurality of ideas.
Dr. Gabriela Dutrénit is one of the academics accused by the FGR. She is one of the best researchers in the economics of innovation in the world. He has worked so that science, technology and innovation (STI) become the central axis of the country’s development. To date, the best industrial policy bill introduced in Congress is inspired by its quality scientific work.
For Dutrénit, these accusations represent a crusade against science. “Representatives of a board of directors in which are all the main institutions of this country are being attacked.”
The government must stop this persecution. In general, you must eliminate the environment of grievances towards the academic and scientific community. To achieve a better country, it is important to listen to different voices. It is necessary to support this sector with all the necessary resources. This will allow generating more knowledge and innovations for the benefit of Mexico.
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source https://pledgetimes.com/stop-the-persecution-of-academics/
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