TABASCO DIGGING OUT FROM LAST YEAR'S FLOOD

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MEXICO 002201

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/14/2018
TAGS: PGOV PREL ECON EAID PHUM MX
SUBJECT: TABASCO DIGGING OUT FROM LAST YEAR'S FLOOD

MEXICO 00002201 001.2 OF 002


Classified By: MinCouns Charles V. Barclay. Reasons: 1.4 (b and d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: Poloff traveled to Villahermosa, Tabasco to
assess recovery efforts from the floods of last October and
the consequent political ramifications. State government
officials, including the Governor Andres Granier (PRI) gave
themselves high marks for coordination of national and
international aid, suggesting these efforts had undercut the
political advantage the PRD -- the second leading political
force in the state -- had sought to gain from the disaster;
the governor sought to focus future recovery efforts on rural
areas he described as prone to political instability. A PAN
Federal Deputy and a representative from a Human Rights
Committee, however, had a different take on the local
government's efforts citing instances of corruption and
repression. State Government officials, including the
Governor, and representatives of civil society appeared
unaware that the USG contributed over $2 million in
assistance through three NGOs in the course of the crisis.
Separately, Poloff learned that the local office of the
Institute for National Migration (INM) is setting up more
control points near the Guatemalan border while the State
Human Rights Commission is setting up small offices in the
same area of the state in an effort to more effectively
monitor human rights respect for migrants. The Secretary of
State Security expressed an interest in USG assistance for
police training and in the creation of a vetted police unit.
END SUMMARY.

Governor Sings His Own Praises
--------------


2. (U) Poloff met with the Governor of the State of Tabasco,
Andres Granier, and his Secretaries and Under Secretaries
from the Ministries of Development, Planning and Health June
30-July 2 to discuss the status of recovery efforts from the
major flood that affected most of the state in October 2007.
The officials stated that, although there were USD 3.6
billion in losses affecting 57 percent of localities in the
state, with over 148,000 homes damaged significantly and over
20,000 homes destroyed, no deaths were reported in Tabasco as
a direct consequence of the flooding. They attributed the
disaster to the failure of dams in Malpaso and Penitas
located in located in the state of Chiapas.


3. (U) State officials -- hailing from the PRI -- praised
the Governor for the leadership he demonstrated in the course
of the crisis working closely with civil society and
coordinating the distribution of massive assistance amounting
to the equivalent of $1,000 per inhabitant. Poloff drew
attention to assistance the USG provided in the form of USD 2
million channeled through three NGOs: Project Concern
International, World Vision, and Samaritan's Purse. The
Governor and his cabinet were not aware of this aid as they
thought the USG only had contributed 300K USD. He said that
he would send a thank you note to the Ambassador for the USG
assistance and requested further aid to support recovery and
reconstruction efforts in rural areas.

Political Opposition and Civil Society Fault Efforts
-------------- --------------


4. (C) Granier, however, has received some criticism for his
handling of the relief effort. Several PAN politicians
accused senior-level state officials including Granier of
widespread corruption and blamed officials for mistakes that
had hampered recovery from the disaster. Jesus Maldonado,
President of the Committee on Human Rights in Tabasco,
complained about the lack of transparency in disbursing
relief. He told Poloff that members of the Citizen Advisory
Committee for Reconstruction had been mandated to distribute
donations without bias but their appointment by the Governor
personally had compromised their objectivity. He said that
over USD 110 million was inexplicably missing from state and
federal funding. Maldonado maintained that government
officials had discriminated against non-PRI members in the
distribution of assistance.

INM and Human Rights Community Expanding Presence
-------------- --------------


5. (U) Separately, the National Institute of Migration (INM)
told poloff that it had recently established more checkpoints
near the border with Guatemala. Genaro Gutierrez, INM's
regional representative, maintained it had improved its that
databases, reached an agreement with a local hospital for
treatment of ailing migrants, and commenced cooperating more
with the Mexican army, PFP, and municipalities for support.
He also said that the office has begun training as needed to
implement the new Anti-Trafficking law but remarked that more

MEXICO 00002201 002.2 OF 002


work needed to be done with customs.


6. (U) The State Human Rights Commission is establishing
new small offices in municipalities near the border and other
areas to attend to human rights complaints by migrants.
Sergio Arturo Avalos Magana, Executive Secretary of the
office, said that the Commission is focused on detecting
vulnerable populations and providing sensitizing the police,
the army, and the civil registry -- which is often reluctant
to provide birth certificates to children of migrants born in
Tabasco -- of their responsibilities and obligations in
dealing with migrants. He said that the Commission also
conducts annual training for high-level and mid-level members
of the army. He commented that the Commission would like to
establish closer ties with diplomatic missions in Mexico,
including the U.S. Embassy, to partner in providing training
and holding seminars on human rights issues.

Police Looking for U.S. Assistance
--------------


7. (U) General Hector Sanchez, Secretary of Public Security
of Tabasco expressed disappointment that the Merida
Initiative did not include funding for state police units.
He registered his desire for USG assistance in the future to
train State police officers as well as for doctors,
psychologists and two or three poligraphers to set up vetted
units.


8. (C) COMMENT. No doubt corruption and political bias were
factors in the provision of assistance in the aftermath of
last year's flood. However, poloff's visit to the regions
most affected by the flood provided much visible evidence of
efforts to put the massive assistance provided by the state
and federal governments along with the international
community to good use. In a helicopter tour, Poloff observed
the construction of housing occurring on a significant level
with funding provided in the form of donations by Mexican
companies including Cemex and civic organizations. Time will
determine if the disaster produces a political fallout but
for at the present moment it appears PRD may not be able to
capitalize on the scale originally expected. END COMMENT.
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GARZA