Thinking about new technology when your institutional
machinery has just started. Are we prepared? Mexico City Case.
Alejandra Sota Mirafuentes
This essay has the purpose to show two examples
of participatory democracy in a local government, specifically
in Mexico City since the last electoral reform was implemented.
The examples given are based in two different types of issues:
- The intermediate figure between local government and citizens,
which is a person elected in order to represent his or her neighbors,
but without the participation of political parties. This institutional
arrangement was born because of the lack of trust toward political
parties, but that has derived in important conclusions, adverse
to the original purposes. I will attempt to demonstrate, with
the last experience - held in July 4th, 1999 what are the
problems that this particular figure faces: high levels of abstentionism,
low levels of information (not only about the election itself,
but for all the political process involved after the election
occurs), lack of accountability, and other important conclusions.
- The electoral reform that allowed figures of direct democracy
- such as the referendum, plebiscite or popular consulting
to exist in Mexico City, face problems when such figures are
being put in practice. Again, the lack of information is a very
important issue, if we consider that Mexico City is one of the
largest in terms of population in the whole world. This means
that it is required for a lot of actors involved participating
mainly the electronic media- but not much of them really
do. Given the fact that TV is one of the most important channels
between citizens and government, when there is not full coverage
a plebiscite to be applied, abstentionism goes up. The other
aspect this form of direct democracy faces, is the lack of responsibility
within some of the political actors that use these tools without
a methodological strictness. This takes place when a popular
consult such as the EZLN (Zapatista National Liberation Army
Movement) consult for the indians autonomy is being held, and
the questionnaire presents some form of bias that make citizens
respond in a less objective form.
The essay presents a brief introduction that explains the antecedents
of the electoral reform, in order to understand why they were
approved as a form of direct democracy for Mexico City as a way
of solving problems that had to do directly with it.
Therefore, the paper continues explaining how the reforms are
being applied, and which results are now being studied from a
critical lens.
By explaining the most relevant conclusions that both examples
show, the essay tries to explain the next goals to be achieved
by a city that hasn't applied democracy in a traditional way,
but that has suffered from the centralization being held by more
than 70 years in the whole country.
Even if there has been little time since the reforms were applied
for the first time, the comparative perspective can give us important
hints that what may and may not be the best way to apply institutional
arrangements into practice, and this essay tries to contribute
to that goal.
One way to approach the dilemmas or the main problems democracy
faces in the late twentieth century, is the one of local governments
in developing countries.
As time goes, the development of the economy in development
countries take place almost automatically, given the constraints
they face within the international organizations that put requisites
to them.
But the issue of democracy is not the most common demand for
them, at least not when democracy doesn't work institutionally,
even if the constitution work.