President Of Mexico Protects Women's Rights

Mexico City, October 3, 2024 — The Constitutional President of the United Mexican States, Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo, presented the Constitutional Reforms—which will be sent to the Senate of the Republic this Thursday—to protect and expand women's rights. These reforms will modify six articles of the Political Constitution: Articles 4, 21, 41, 73, 116, and 123, in addition to seven secondary laws, to realize substantive equality, gender perspective, and the right to a life free from violence.

"As the first female President of Mexico, our obligation is to protect women and ensure that the Republic’s Constitution establishes: One, substantive equality (...). And also the right to a life free from violence, not only for women but also for adolescents and children. Additionally, there should be no wage gap between men and women: for equal work, equal pay. From this, a series of modifications to laws related to the protection of Mexican women also arise," she explained during the morning conference “The People's Mornings.”

She detailed that "Article 4 will incorporate the right to substantive equality, which refers not only to equality between men and women before the law but also that all laws and provisions in our country must consider women's particularities and their human rights. That is what equality means."

Meanwhile, Articles 21 and 116 of the Constitution will require that state security and justice institutions adjust their actions to reflect a gender perspective.

As for Article 41, "gender parity in the Federal and State Public Administration will be mandatory, meaning there will be equal representation in government cabinets, which will be established in the Constitution."

To ensure women have access to a life free from violence, Articles 4, 21, 73 (Section XXI), and 116 will be amended to mandate targeted actions addressing the specific needs of women in situations involving gender-based harm.

"It also establishes a life free from violence and what is called reinforced duties toward women, meaning that not only the law is applied but that specific measures must be taken to address discrimination and violence experienced by women, as well as girls and boys. Additionally, the Prosecutor's Offices must have—this is mandated by the Constitution—specialized areas for gender-based crimes, something that did not exist in the Constitution before, and our goal is to enshrine this in the Magna Carta," she emphasized.

President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo also highlighted the creation of a “Women’s Rights Handbook,” which will be drafted by a group of experts, including Ángela Guerrero Alcántara, a public policy specialist; Karla Michel Salas Ramírez, a feminist lawyer; Friné Salguero, an activist; and Frida Hyadi Díaz González, an artisan woman, with the aim of ensuring that everyone knows the full rights that women are entitled to.

"We want to distribute a 'Women’s Rights Handbook' to all Mexican women. In fact, it should also go to men because both men and women need to know women’s rights, women's human rights. Sadly, sometimes a woman experiencing violence may not know she is being violated, or a woman who earns less than a man for doing the same job may not know that her right is to receive equal pay," she explained.

"Our goal is for every Mexican woman to have her handbook stating: 'These are my rights, and if they are not being met, where should I go to ensure they are?' Additionally, we will create a network of women, which we call ‘Guardians of the Nation,’ to protect each other,” explained the President.

The head of the Ministry of Women, Citlalli Hernández, explained that the reforms aim to establish a system that guarantees women the full exercise of their rights.

“This is a series of reforms that, for us, form a Women's Protection System, in terms of rights and access to justice.”

Likewise, Ernestina Godoy Ramos, Legal Advisor to the Federal Executive, explained the secondary laws that will be modified: the General Law for Substantive Equality between Women and Men; the Federal Labor Laws and the Law for State Workers; the National Code of Criminal Procedure; the General Law of the National Public Security System; the General Law on Women's Access to a Life Free from Violence, and the Organic Law of the Federal Public Administration to coordinate the National Registry of Protection Measures.

“We are making a series of adjustments to ensure that women have all the legal tools to defend and enforce our rights,” she elaborated.

Finally, as part of the mission to create a government for all women, Ariadna Montiel, Minister of Welfare, announced the characteristics of the “Welfare Pension for Elderly Women,” which will provide a bimonthly payment of 3,000 pesos. Registration for the pension will begin on Monday, October 7, and run through November 30 in 2,600 modules nationwide, which can be located on the website: https://www.gob.mx/bienestar.

“The President has committed to working for the well-being of all women, especially the elderly. The ‘Welfare Pension for Elderly Women’ is financial support for women aged 60 to 64 in recognition of a lifetime of work, their efforts in raising families, and their contributions to the nation. Through this program, we aim to empower women by guaranteeing them a basic income for economic autonomy and overall well-being.”

“This pension will start in 2025 for women aged 63 and 64 universally, meaning all women in this age group can register. To address inequality gaps with indigenous communities, the pension will also begin, in this case, universally for women aged 60 to 64 in municipalities with the largest indigenous populations, ensuring our indigenous sisters can access this benefit from the outset,” she emphasized.

The registration for elderly women will follow the initial letter of their last name and specific days: Monday: A, B, C; Tuesday: D, F, G, H; Wednesday: I, J, K, L, M; Thursday: N, Ñ, O, P, Q, R; Friday: S, T, U, V, W, Y, Z; and Saturday: all letters.

Additionally, the morning conference “The People's Mornings” introduced the section “Women in History” to highlight women’s contributions to Mexico's public life, starting with the story of the “Rebels of Miahuatlán.”