Rewind: Mexico Surprises Everyone, Signs ACTA

from the hmm dept

Thu, Jul 12th 2012 8:54am — Mike Masnick

Just yesterday we pointed out that reports coming out of Mexico suggested that ACTA was dead there and had no chance of being signed and ratified. And then, just hours later, the news comes out that Mexico's ambassador to Japan signed on to ACTA without anyone knowing about it. Bizarrely, that particular news report claims that in signing this agreement, Mexico joins with others, including the European Union. Yet, of course, as anyone who's been paying attention knows, the EU loudly rejected ACTA just last week.

Also, I'm a bit confused. One of the reasons that Mexico did not sign way back in October when many others signed, was that the legislature had also rejected ACTA, and reports had said that the executive branch had to get the Mexican Senate to ratify the agreement. So, to have a representative just suddenly up and sign ACTA seems... very, very strange. If they could just do that, why didn't they do it back in October with most other signatories?

To be honest, I'm now curious if this sudden surprise signature has anything to do with the US inviting Mexico to join in the TPP negotiations. It may be cynical, but Mexico has wanted in to TPP negotiations for a while and had been kept out. It seems entirely possible that a "deal" was struck, whereby Mexico would sign ACTA in exchange for getting in on TPP.

Of course, if you're the Mexican legislature, or a Mexican citizen who spoke out against ACTA (and there were many), it seems that your government just sold you out completely and signed what is otherwise a dead treaty. Bizarre.

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Filed Under: acta, mexico, tpp

43 Comments

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Anonymous Coward, 12 Jul 2012 @ 9:03am

...has anything to do with the the US...
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Rikuo (profile), 12 Jul 2012 @ 9:13am

I'm curious about this theory of obeying a law.
Here we have Mexico's legislature rejecting it, many Mexican citizens rejecting it and protesting against it, and then out of the blue, a sole Ambassador to Japan (can we get clarification on that please? I thought ambassadors didn't have authority to sign treaties that are binding on their governments, something like that needs a Minister, although I am not an expert on political matters).
So, we have one guy signing a piece of paper. Does that mean the entirety of the Brazilian population is now beholden to this law? A law that none of the common people actually want? Come on, people, I challenge you to come up with a reason why the average Brazilian citizen should obey ACTA!
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Chosen Reject (profile), 12 Jul 2012 @ 9:20am

Re:
So you bring in Brazil. Was that on purpose, like, to demonstrate how ridiculous this Mexican Ambassador is being, or are you "not an expert on [geo]political matters" as well?
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Anonymous Coward, 12 Jul 2012 @ 9:24am

Seems like normal behavior for a modern government, only with transparency and no wimping around with cover-ups, cover stories or plausible deniability. "Yeah, we did it anyway... whadareyagonnadoaboutit?"

I almost admire them for their integrity if that weren't an oxymoron to politics.
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Anonymous Coward, 12 Jul 2012 @ 9:27am

Signed but not ratified. Mexico just had new Presdential elections, but the new President hasn't been sworn in yet, so the ambassador is a holdover from the past President.
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Mason Wheeler, 12 Jul 2012 @ 9:34am

They're just following our example
President Obama illegally signed ACTA too, despite requiring Congressional approval. Mexico's just doing the same thing we did.
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Baldaur Regis (profile), 12 Jul 2012 @ 9:35am

At this point in the game, I'm sure the USTR is giving away a free toaster with each sign-up. Maybe the Mexican ambassador to Japan just wanted some toast.
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Anonymous Coward, 12 Jul 2012 @ 9:56am

perhaps there will be an official explanation of what has happened? on the other hand, as ACTA and TPP are so transparent, perhaps there wont. perhaps no one else in the Mexican govt knew what was going on or what this guy has done, maybe without permission?
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Anonymous Coward, 12 Jul 2012 @ 10:09am

Rumor has it (high probability) is that the strategy is to now plant these ACTA people at WIPO. It is rumored that after the recent hiring of a senior US govt. representative, it will be the turn of a Mexican to arrive at a senior post. Don't be surprised if it happens before the end of the year!
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Jay (profile), 12 Jul 2012 @ 10:10am

Re:
I believe it has to do with Pena Nieto being president. This is the same party that ruled for over 70 years with massive corruption going on. He has essentially bribed people in Mexico with food through grocery stores as well as had a 7 point marginal lead which is being recounted. Further, there's heavy collusion with the media for him to be the president.

So imagine when Biden went down to Mexico during their elections to tell him about the ACTA as well as the TPP to continue the status quo.
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Cory of PC (profile), 12 Jul 2012 @ 10:14am

OK, that made some changes to my fiesta plans. How about this: everybody is invited, except for that SOLE ambassador who signed this.

... I'm really confused about this. Really I am. Can anyone explain why is this happening? Who is this man and how can we contact him? Someone give us answers!
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Cerberus (profile), 12 Jul 2012 @ 10:19am

Re: Re:
Are you referring to Palin?
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Haywood (profile), 12 Jul 2012 @ 10:22am

I hope it is a dualit
I just love a dualit toaster, I might even sign for one of those, it has to be a 4 slice though.
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Anonymous Coward, 12 Jul 2012 @ 10:30am

Re: Re:
I read and had no problem understanding the context. Reading Rainbow?
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mikey4001, 12 Jul 2012 @ 10:37am

If the last few years worth of headlines can be believed, I would think Mexico had much bigger problems than IP enforcement. Or is it the DVD pirates and purveyors of fake Gucci bags that are littering the countryside with headless and mutilated corpses?

Be warned, Mexico: If you illegally download copyrighted footage of chainsaw decapitations, they'll send the law after you.
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Anonymous Coward, 12 Jul 2012 @ 10:38am

had no idea a mere ambassador has that kind of binding authority
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Rikuo (profile), 12 Jul 2012 @ 10:43am

Re: Re:
Damn! Meant to say "Mexican population". Sorry, my mistake.
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Pickle Monger (profile), 12 Jul 2012 @ 10:43am

El Presidente nuevo
Probably has something to do with the new president whose wife is a telenovela actress. And I'm sure he loves her enough (unless it's true that he also uses her as a punching bag) to arrange to have ACTA signed by using previous presidential appointee as the trigger man.
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Juan Alberto Ledesma, 12 Jul 2012 @ 10:46am

Re: Re:
But the issue is that in the congress the PRI is not majority, maybe they only want to said "look Mexico also sign the ACTA", I still think will not going to be approved.
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Anonymous Coward, 12 Jul 2012 @ 10:56am

Re:
Unfortunately for the copyright-industry, it is not the drug-gangs enforcing ACTA.
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Anonymous Coward, 12 Jul 2012 @ 11:05am

Wait a minute, with all the confusion going around, it may just be that the representative may have acted on his own.
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Violated (profile), 12 Jul 2012 @ 11:13am

Re: They're just following our example
Yes but it shows great disrespect to the whole Democratic process, and the will of the people, to just sign up without putting it through the US Congress and Mexican Senate.

The only good point in all this is that no country including the United States have yet tried to ratify ACTA. They are simply waiting to see how this one goes and how many of their cities break out in riots or better yet peaceful protest.

This is all like a game of chess where each side make their move and counter-move. You can rest assured that even if Mexico did sign up to ACTA today that there will be many people in Mexico today who are deeply unhappy. I can only ask... What are you going to do about it?

Well I am someone who usually likes Mexican food but today that seems quite unappetizing.
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Violated (profile), 12 Jul 2012 @ 11:20am

Re:
You may well be right there when this ambassador may well receive a letter by the morning reading "You are fired!"
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TtfnJohn (profile), 12 Jul 2012 @ 11:21am

If signing ACTA was a price for Mexico to join Canada sitting in the TPP peanut gallery probably getting less information about what's going in than the US Congress gets it sounds like a rotten deal to me.
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PRMan, 12 Jul 2012 @ 11:50am

Re: Re: Re:
That signature has about as much authority over Brazil's population as it does over Mexico's.
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TDR, 12 Jul 2012 @ 12:03pm

Re:
"Did somebody say they wanted toast? Howdy doodly-doo! I'm Talkie, Talkie Toaster! Talkie's the name, toasting's the game. Would anybody like any toast?"
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gorehound (profile), 12 Jul 2012 @ 12:11pm

Re: They're just following our example
Just like the Toilet Paper Pact being pushed.
I have no intention of ever allowing the Big Content Industry a way into my wallet.They are truly Censored from what income I have.
And as far as Obama goes he won't be getting my Vote and neither will Romney.I hate both the main Parties and will "Waste" my Vote on some other person who will not stand a chance.
I really dislike both the Current Time Democrats and Republicans.
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Hephaestus (profile), 12 Jul 2012 @ 12:15pm

Re: Re:
To funny, I had a flash back to a 1950's sitcom. Then realized the way things are going, even toaster are going to be computerized in a few years.
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Androgynous Cowherd, 12 Jul 2012 @ 12:24pm

Something in the water in Japan?
Wasn't there also some European country a while back whose ambassador to Japan signed ACTA? That country's Prime Minister then apologized, or something.
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Anonymous Coward, 12 Jul 2012 @ 12:33pm

Lame Duck
He's Working for an outgoing administration and knows he's going to be replaced soon...Probably offered some cushy job by the Japanese if he signed.

Mexico is as corrupt as other governments if not more so,
I wouldn't give any more thought to this. It's a non-event.
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Anonymous Coward, 12 Jul 2012 @ 12:50pm

Just how much money is the MPAA paying anybody who signs these agreements?
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mikey4001, 12 Jul 2012 @ 1:24pm

Re: Re: Re:
Toasters won't just be computerized, they'll have proprietary software that can't be fixed by anyone without a proprietary toaster fixin' license, and anyone who sells coathangers and Sterno in the same shop will get sued for patent infringement. Which reminds me, how many times can I say "toaster" before I get sued by the makers of Battlestar galactica?
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Jason, 12 Jul 2012 @ 1:44pm

Access
Well, at least with this action Mexico can get more access to the TPP negotiations than members of the US Congress.
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An actual Mexican, 12 Jul 2012 @ 2:41pm

It is as Jay said up there in the comments. I was happy that the Senate had rejected ACTA. However, given the large rejection of Pe�a Nieto's "triumph" on the elections (with more and more proof that there was vote-buying, corruption of electoral judges/institutions, results that don't pass any statistical test, etc. A way to distract the attention from all that stuff affecting both the current president and the "winner" from the elections is to distract the people. Here we only get news about Bird Flu, and none of all the great outcry and gatherings of people who don't want Pe�a Nieto as a president and have evidence of fraud. And yes, Mexico has a lot of problems more important than counterfeits or online piracy. we don't have a democracy, and if ACTA is ratified by the new senate next year, we will never have it
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Anonymous Coward, 12 Jul 2012 @ 6:18pm

Re:
PRI is the party that have most of the control in Mexico, if ACTA is pased, we are going to lost Internet because most of could breack ACTA laws, then we will lost the Information freedom in Internet, this means that PRi can buy television and will TOTALLY control the country's media, will be like a Dictadure. and we will back to the 20 Century
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Anonymous Coward, 12 Jul 2012 @ 7:15pm

Mexico is not the only country passing some more censor laws Russia too.

http://www.zeropaid.com/news/101574/russia-passes-internet-censorship-laws/
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Haggie, 13 Jul 2012 @ 10:51am

Because telenovelas, Sabado Gigante, and Mexican polka music make up a majority of the pirated content on The Pirate Bay...
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Anonymous Coward, 13 Jul 2012 @ 3:15pm

I think the timing of the signing is sneaky. Mexico is in somewhat of a turmoil because the next president cheated at the election and there have been mass protests.
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Javier Delgado (profile), 13 Jul 2012 @ 10:37pm

Bizarro y loco
Ya agree this is very birraze.

No only the senate rejected acta, it was rejected almost unanimously, and by the three parties: PAN, PRD and PRI.

Not even President Calderon Party Supported and the senate forbid Calderon to continue any negotiations.

So this was signed against the senate by direct order from the president to the ambassador.

Elections are over, and a new Senate has been elected, so the old one can not act against a outgoing president.

But there is no chance the new senate approves the treaty, since it has already been rejected, and the new senators had already announced they will reject ACTA.

So this is an empty gesture, maybe after ACTA was rejected by the EU, they needed someone to sign it and somehow (�$$$?)put pressure on President Calderon...

I have no other explanation.
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Mexican, 13 Jul 2012 @ 11:13pm

Re: Re: They're just following our example
"I can only ask... What are you going to do about it?"

We're going to do what we can, which to a first approximation is the same you guys can do up there.

(If you want to cry, welcome to the club. The kleenex are on the table over there.)
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Alex, 14 Jul 2012 @ 12:13am

Re: Bizarro y loco
are you really sure the new senate said they seriously would reject ACTA? PRI could have the majority and they can ratify it, we stop the fraud.
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Javier Delgado (profile), 14 Jul 2012 @ 1:20am

Re: Re: Bizarro y loco
First, no the PRI has no majority, currently none of the parties has majority, a second senate�s from PRI also reject it.

ACTA was supported only by some members of PAN, and by the IMPI. But currently PAN rejects it.

As strange as it seems, the only issue where PRI, PAN and PRD seem to agree is that they reject ACTA.

That is why is so weird that President Calderon ordered to sign it.

Currently there is only way to aprove it.

The mexican law of treaties from 1992, says that all international Treaties must be ratified by the congress. But treaties by institutions, do not need congress ratifications.

So Calderon has to argue this is not an international treaty, but in that case, the congress has no obligations to create o modify laws in order to implement it, so it would be usseles.

http://www.adnpolitico.com/2012/2012/07/12/senadores-del-pan-pri-y-prd-se- suman-contra-firma-de-acta
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Vanctiod (profile), 24 Sep 2012 @ 9:31pm

Not Surprised
I'm certainly not surprised at all, Mexico is a country very influencend by de govermente of the USA. Their president Calderon as far as i know, have been supporting united states law all the time, so why this would become the exception?
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