President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador raised eyebrows last week, appearing to excuse the Mexican Army for its role in the October 2, 1968 Tlatelolco massacre that took place just days before the opening of the Summer Olympics in Mexico City.
On that fateful day, Mexican soldiers and police surrounded a plaza in the capital and opened fire on the students demonstrating against the authoritarian government of President Gustavo Díaz Ordaz, resulting in the deaths of an unknown number of people, with estimates ranging from several dozen to hundreds.
Lopez Obrador said the soldiers simply followed the orders of the Estado Mayor Presidencial, the (now defunct) Presidential General Staff that was part of the armed forces and charged with protecting and safeguarding the president. The soldiers cannot not be blamed for the deaths, he insisted.
Throughout his five years in office, AMLO has been a staunch champion of Mexico’s armed forces, giving them more and more responsibilities, including roles running customs operations, airports, and the new Mayan Train line.
The president said today’s armed forces are “loyal to the people” and not the president, as was the case in 1968.
The Tlatelolco massacre was a dark chapter in Mexico’s history, however, and many Mexicans will be less forgiving. It was a significant moment in the country’s struggle for democracy and human rights and is rightly remembered each year.