Opposition Parties Vow to Reverse Mexico's Energy Reform

One year ago, Mexico's President Enrique Peña Nieto announced one of the country's most controversial structural reforms: an initiative to amend the Constitution and open the energy sector to domestic and foreign private investment.

One year later, the energy reform is now law and has made a 180-degree turn from 76 years of nationalized energy.

"This new legislation represents a historic shift that will accelerate economic growth and development in Mexico...The foundations are set, take advantage of this historic new platform," Peña Nieto said in the signing ceremony at the National Palace, attended by party leaders, legislators, presidential cabinet members and governors.

However, a day after the signing, leadership of the opposition left party, Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD) announced a 10-point action plan to reverse the reform.

One of the points consists of calling on citizens to participate in civil protests.

There is nothing to celebrate.

PRD Senator Miguel Barbosa read the position of the party: "There is nothing to celebrate. August 11, 2014 will be the date when, to applause and laughter, the federal government and the National Action Party (PAN) handed to private capital the most valuable resources of the Mexican nation."

He reiterated that this is a package of reforms that are contrary to the interests of the people, because they will increase the prices of gas and electricity, and jobs will be lost.

"This reform privatizes our natural resources, it hands over oil revenues to private companies, legalizes dismantling Petroleos Mexicanos [PEMEX] and the Federal Electricity Commission [CFE], affecting thousands of workers," denounced the legislator.

Nationwide protests have been called for September 16 – Mexico’s Independence Day – in public spaces, schools, main streets, police and military installations, and petroleum sites. 

The PRD and members of Regeneration Movement (Morena) are also collecting signatures to hold a national referendum to throw out the reform. They will need at least 1.67 million signatures, which corresponds to at least 2 percent of the voting population, to hold the vote.

The PRD has announced that it will submit more than two million signatures at the beginning of September.