They Died Trying to Reform the PRI

0:09 Hi everyone, this is Carmen. And Cristina. And this is Historias Anon, a podcast where we talk about Latin American history, sometimes it's horrible, and deals with heavy topics like racism, corruption, and genocide. But more than that, it's also about resistance, power, and community. All right. That was a perfect intro. I think we're back in our flow. Yeah, we're back. Mentally. Yeah. So.... Last week, I told you about the history of El Pri, like the origin, a little bit about Lázaro Cárdenas, a little bit about the corruption, repression, the bad things that Pri has done. And I said I wanted to go into the actual dirty war in our next episode.

0:56 Oh my God, it's not happening. It's not happening. I thought it would be better to keep going with El Pri. So we can fully understand the perfect dictatorship as it was called and as it was. As it has been coined, yes. I'm down with that because, yeah, the more. We know. Yeah, yeah. I wanted to go into the man I mentioned last episode because I didn't write down his name, who tried to reform El Pri and then was suspiciously killed. And then I also wanted to talk about the four Pri presidents who worked for the CIA. Okay. So that's what we're doing today. The PRI part two, if you will. So as I said in the last episode, there was a president of the PRI who tried to reform the party and then was suspiciously killed. But this actually happened twice, which I think I mentioned.

1:52 I don't remember. Okay, well, it happened two times to two different PRI members who tried to reform el PRI. Actually, you did. Okay, okay. So.... I think I said it last episode, but the PRI itself as a party has a president or had a president. And then that president would sometimes then become the actual president of the country and then would appoint the next PRI president. Yeah, el dedazo, right? Yes, el dedazo. And the dedazo applied to both the president of the country and the president of the PRI as a party. I guess this role is technically El Comité Ejecutivo del Partido.

2:36 Okay. Yeah. So, Gustavo Díaz Ordaz, who was president during the Dirty War, well, during Tlatelolco, and who has now been found responsible for the Tlatelolco massacre, appointed the next PRI president when he was elected in 1964. Okay. He chose Carlos Alberto Madrazo as his predecessor. No, not predecessor. After his hereditary or some shit like that. Inheritor? I don't know. Yeah, as the next person. And Diaz Ordaz believed that Carlos Alberto Madrazo would continue the PRI project as it was.

3:22 And he didn't? No. That's so funny. Sorry, I need to cut you off because I was like, I wouldn't trust anyone with that last name. I would be afraid. Yeah, he sounds like a... He's ready to throw hands, you know, for the people. I don't know. So Diaz Ordaz believed that Madrazo would be loyal, but Carlos Madrazo had one mission in mind. To reform the party. the PRI, to democratize it. Okay. He proposed that the candidates for the PRI presidency would not be chosen by the incumbent president, but rather through internal elections.

4:04 Okay. That's a big step forward. Yeah, exactly. And in the eyes of Gustavo Díaz Ordaz, this made Madrazo an enemy. He's already going against the grain, if you will. But that wasn't the only thing. That was the beginning for Carlos Madrazo. He also replaced corrupt party officials with younger members who believed in his vision, who shared his vision. They wanted open primaries for local offices. That makes sense. A reminder that this didn't happen until the 1960s and that all local government was mostly PRI. He also wanted an honor commission to investigate corruption in the party.

4:49 Also makes sense. On top of that, Madrazo also supported the agrarian movement, which if we recall last episode, that's like the Latin back movement. Yeah. And he supported that, which only worsened his stance in the party to everyone else because that's not what they were interested in. In the end, Carlos Madrazo's efforts failed and he was forced to resign only one year later in 1965. In his resignation speech, he said, Honorable National Council, on December 6th of last year, I had the honor of assuming the presidency of the National Executive Committee, an appointment subsequently confirmed in accordance with our statutes. By a unanimous vote... Okay, that part doesn't matter.

5:39 He basically... I don't need to read this. He basically said that he believed he was doing his job as it was intended. But that the party didn't feel that way and that he was forced to resign. Oh, I will read this sentence. I have worked tirelessly to uphold this course of action, ensuring that our party and every state champions the aspirations of its members for their own advancement, while also safeguarding the will of those who have placed their trust in us. A will expressed by the majority of our members during the internal elections in which they participated. And so.... So anyway, the point is that he was forced to resign.

6:21 And then he became the physical representation of the failed attempt to reform El PRI and to bring about real democracy to Mexico. This embodiment of his, being the physical representation of this change, only grew after his sudden death, just four years after he was forced to resign. Almost like a martyr? Mm-hmm. Carlos Madrazo Becerra died in Monterrey, Nuevo León, on June 4th, 1969, in a plane crash. He was flying on a Boeing 727, specifically Flight 704, operated by Compañía Mexicana de Aviación. It crashed at 8 a.m. into the Tres Picos Peak on the outskirts of Monterrey.

7:08 And the explosion... was so. Intense that only part of Madrazo's body was recovered. Only his hand was recovered. Oh, wow. He still had his wedding ring on. Oh, wow. Oh, that's so... I don't know the... I don't know the word I'm looking for, but it's... Eerie. But eerie is not the word I'm looking for. It's a different word. Yeah. Whatever. We can move on. But it's a feeling, for sure. Yeah, yeah. Following his death, the people began to speculate that it was a political assassination. And this wasn't just a baseless theory, some baseless rumor, because witnesses on the ground reported seeing and hearing an explosion before the plane struck the mountain.

7:54 Oh, like something caused the plane to go down. Yeah, like maybe a bomb on board. Yeah, something. But the federal government, which was led by Gustavo Diaz Ordaz, maintained that it was an accident. That's like the official account. Maybe it'll answer my question, but I'm wondering what was, so he was pushed out from his role as president of the PRII. What was his role after that? Like, was he advocating, like, for reform still, like, publicly? Like, as an activist type? Or was he living quietly? No. So he returned to his job as a professor in I forgot what university.

8:38 Oh. Where he continued to call out El Pri. He also continued to work with the agrarians. Okay. So he was still viewed as a threat by the government. So... Yeah. Okay. I think that's what I was wondering. But then. During the presidency of Andrés Manuel López Obrador, he recounted that his colleague, son of Lázaro Cárdenas, Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas, told him that in a meeting between Lázaro Cárdenas and General Marcelino García Barragán, who was then Mexico's Secretary of National Defense, So during the Díaz Ordaz administration, he told this General Barragán, told Lázaro Cárdenas, that the order for the 1968 Tlatelolco massacre and the downing of the plane, Madrazo's plane, was ordered by the office of the president. So the president, Díaz Ordaz, and these orders were carried out by the presidential general staff thing so yeah not unfounded conspiracy theories, because then this was like, you know, basically essentially confirmed years later.

10:07 Yeah. So that was Carlos Alberto Madrazo. who died under suspicious circumstances after trying to reform El Pri. But like I said, this happened again. And maybe this name sounds familiar, maybe not. Some people might recognize it. So the second person this happened to who sought to bring change to the party and then later died under suspicious circumstances was Luis Donaldo Colosio Murrieta. There's a Netflix series about this. Oh, really? What's it called? I don't remember. Oh, okay. Let me just look at it really quick.

10:48 The candidate? Well, I guess Crime Diaries, the candidate. Oh, I think I heard of that. So, Luis Donaldo Colosio served as the president of the PRI from 1988 to 1993. He joined the PRI in 1979, like his father had before him, and he was quickly taken under the wing of Carlos Salinas de Gortari. But unlike Salinas de Gortari, Colosio was a man of principles. Like this is something his father instilled in him, like be honest, be for the people, things like that. Early in his career, he believed that in order to bring real change to Mexico, the PRI had.

11:39 To lose an election. I mean, he wasn't wrong. He was not. Colosio was elected to Congress in Sonora, but that didn't last long because when Salinas de Gortari was elected president of Mexico in 1988, he chose Gortari, chose Colosio, Luis Colosio, to be president of the PRI. It's also very important to note that these elections in which Carlos Salinas de Gortari was elected president of Mexico were not without controversy. He won the presidency, but there was numerous allegations of corruption, including that 45% of ballots were not counted.

12:28 I believe it. There was also people that alleged they were docked their pay if they didn't attend pre-rallies. I believe that too. And probably maybe the worst offense in some districts, it turns out that people who were already dead cast votes for Salinas de Cortari. It was common back then, wasn't it? Yeah, yeah, yeah. But it was in huge numbers. It didn't change anything, though, because he still remained president, right? Yeah. He still was announced the winner because that's how powerful the PRI was. So one of the jobs of the presidents of the PRI is to win elections. And like I said last episode, and of course, I didn't write it down, but they had a name for this, like basically the rigor of the election. Like you need to make the PRI win in all levels in whatever way possible.

13:27 whatever necessary, really. And so that's how Salinas Gortari won the presidency, through corruption. And so immediately after that, there was gubernatorial races. And the one in Baja California, there was a pan candidate who was polling higher than the PRI candidate, which is like, it was unseen, unheard of. And Before this gubernatorial election took place, Luis Donaldo Colosio confided in his friend, telling him, I'm in a dilemma. My job is to win elections to see that it goes well for the PRI. That's my job. I want to win and I want things to go well because that's my responsibility. But I know that for Mexico to change, the PRI is going to have to lose once. And his friend was shocked to hear this from the president of the PRI.

14:22 He's like, how dare you? Yes. And so it took over a week to count ballots in Tijuana. But before the results came in officially, Colosio made a speech that no other PRI president had ever, like ever even attempted to make because in the past they would have rigged the elections to ensure the PRI wins. But what Colosio did is Make a speech where he said, We're living in a moment of change. The winds of democracy blow through most of the world. We have recent examples of this, and we, as a party, are ready to bet everything on democracy. In this new stage for the PRI, diversity defines us. Competition unifies us. Democracy and goodwill strengthen us. We must acknowledge that the polls in the governor's race favor the candidate for the PAN party. Which, like, essentially is conceding the race. Like, yeah, Biden's going to win this, which again, unheard of. On top of doing this, he also spearheaded an organization called Solidaridad in the 1990s, in the beginning of the 1990s.

15:32 Oh, so we're in the 90s now? Oh, yeah. Yeah, 1988 was the presidency of Gortari. For some reason, I couldn't... I forgot. I didn't hear that. I think you mentioned... I did say the year. You did, yeah. That Gortari won and the year that he became president of the PRI. Yes, okay. Yeah. So in the beginning of the 1990s is when this organization was created, Solidaridad. This organization was created to support impoverished neighborhoods, but also recognize that the existing social programs... had done like almost nothing for lower class people, especially indigenous people and working communities. And instead of like dismissing the issue, suppressing it, hiding it, Colosio acknowledged that the PRI had failed to live up to the demands of its citizens to take care of its people. He's like, yeah, we didn't do that. We haven't done that. And he spearheaded this organization, which again, unheard of. So despite these things that he was doing, calling for reform, voicing support for the people, Luis Colosio had the PRI's support for his campaign for the presidency. I did come across some sources that said that Salinas de Gortari was seeking re-election and did not support him. But overwhelmingly, it seems that Salinas de Gortari, like all the PRI members, predecessors before him chose.

17:04 For Colosio to be the next president. Okay, and now we're talking president of Mexico, not of Brie? Yes, yes, of Mexico. But there were growing rumors that there were problems between Colosio and Salinas de Gortari, and that maybe Salinas de Gortari would change his selection from Colosio to someone else named Manuel Camacho, who was then the Minister of Foreign Affairs. Rumors of this grew after Luis Colosio made his support for the Zapatistas loud and clear. And as we know, the government response to the Zapatistas, it was like.

17:49 Overly military. It was like a military response. Yes. Thank you. Oh, my God. I was like staring at my words. Yeah. It was a rebellion that the Salinas government was trying hard to suppress. Yes. And actually, Manuel Camacho, Minister of Foreign Affairs, was largely in charge of that response to the Zapatistas. So already, Luis Colosio saying, no, the Zapatistas are right, was like, what are you doing? Then, on March 6, 1994... Luis Donaldo Colosio gave his most influential speech in front of El Monumento a la Revolución, the Monument for Revolution in Mexico City, which I had to be intentional.

18:43 Yeah. This speech essentially cemented his break from the PRI, and many believe that it was a stab at Salinas. The speech was beautiful, passionate. He was known for his speeches, for being so well-spoken, a skilled orator, as they say. Sorry, but when they say that about Hitler and I look back at his speeches, I'm like. He's like, blah, blah, blah, blah. I'm like, all right. Okay. But unlike that, Colosio was. So this speech has been like equated to MLK's I Have a Dream speech.

19:25 Really? Yeah. The most famous line from the speech. Veo a un Mexico con hambre y con sed de justicia. I see a Mexico with hunger and with thirst for justice. I like that. Banger. Banger of a line. Yeah. In the speech, he spoke of a metamorphosis. that was for the people, for the workers, for the youth, for the teachers, for the poor, which is not what the PRI was about at this point in time. They were like the opposite of that. And had not been so for like literal decades since Lázaro Cárdenas.

20:07 Yeah. And then continued to not Yes. He spoke of how supporting Chiapas was of the most importance. He said, Responderle a Chiapas es responderle a los mexicanos. Like, supporting Chiapas is supporting Mexico. Yes, yes. And let me just read this here. Me propongo encabezar un gobierno para responderle a todos los mexicanos. El cambio con rumbo y con responsabilidad no puede esperar. Manifiesto mi más profundo compromiso con Chiapas. Por eso debemos escuchar todas las voces. No debemos admitir que nadie monopolice el sentimiento de los chiapanecos. Expreso mi solidaridad a todos aquellos chiapanecos que aún no han dicho su verdad. A todos aquellos que tienen una voz que transmitir y a todos aquellos que tienen una palabra que expresar. And in English for our Spanish-challenged friends. I intend to lead a government that responds to all Mexicans. Change, guided by a clear direction and a sense of responsibility, cannot wait. I affirm my deepest commitment to Chiapas. We must listen to every voice.

21:34 We must not allow anyone to monopolize the sentiments of the people of Chiapas. I express my solidarity with all those in Chiapas who have yet to share their truth, with all those who have a voice to be heard, and with all those who have something to say. I like it. And again, at a time for a PRI candidate to be saying this? Revolutionary, really. Yeah. He also said, And if his intent to reform the PRI and to bring change to Mexico wasn't clear enough, he left no doubts whatsoever when he said the following, Today, before the PRI members of Mexico and before all Mexicans, I declare my commitment to reform the seat of power and make it democratic, as well as wipe out any traces of authoritarianism.

22:45 Wow. Yeah. And like this was following decades of like deep, deep repression and authoritarianism At the hands of El Pri, because this is 1994 and like the dirty war had been ongoing, you know? Yeah. After he gave this speech, the rumored replacement candidate, because remember Salinas was like, there was rumors that he was going to like take back his support of Colosio and then give it to Manuel Camacho. So Camacho then held a press conference after Luis Colosio's speech. And in this press conference, he said, sure, I want to be president, but not at any cost.

23:31 Not at any cost. Yeah, because many believe the speech caused Luis Colosio's life. Oh, so he's like, never mind. Yeah, he's like, well, I'm not trying to be president like that. So he said this, right, publicly. And then a close friend of Luis Colosio's and a member of the Secret Service said, quote, now I'm truly worried. What's this that Camacho doesn't want to be president at any cost? Like if he knew something was going to happen? Precisely. Precisely. The friend is like, why is he saying this? I see. Yeah. Yeah. Definitely suspicious. Yeah.

24:13 Plus, Camacho said this on March 22nd, 1994. And in 24 hours, two weeks after, this is two weeks after his March 5th speech, but in 24 hours after Camacho said those words, Luis Coloso would be assassinated. Oh. So, more suspicion. Okay, so a couple weeks after that speech, Camacho said that He wouldn't be president at any cost. And then the next day after he said that, Colosio's dead. Yes. Oh, my God. I mean, the lines, the causes and effects, the transgressions are very clear. Yeah. Yeah.

24:53 So on March 23rd, Colosio was set to make an appearance in Tijuana. Curiously enough, the governor, the panista governor, Ernesto Rufo Apel, This is just the, you know how I mentioned that race where, yeah, this is the person who ended up winning. So he states that he was told by the presidential administration, he was told not to involve state police in Colosio security. To like last security? Which he refused. And he was like, they're going to be there. What do you mean? They're going to do their job. And this is according to the son of an alleged conspirator of Colosio's murder.

25:37 Oh. Who then later said, well, he was told, the governor was told not to give police for his security. Oh. So Luis Colosio gave his speech on a small stage in the neighborhood of Lomas Taurinas in Tijuana, a low-income neighborhood. Then, as he stepped down from this small stage, Secret Service got into their usual formation, which is like supposed to be, I don't know, in a certain order to protect possible candidates for presidency, right? For whatever reason, Coloso was then pushed toward the crowd by the Secret Service, so he was now in front of them, not behind them in the formation they're supposed.

26:23 To be in. Okay, and they're supposed to be in that formation to like protect him. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And they're like, actually, you go in the front. Yes. The then PD leader in Tijuana at the time said that Secret Service agents surrounded Colosio and pushed him through the crowd. She said, quote, they were clearing a path for Mr. Colosio. They led him wherever they wanted. I was walking behind Mr. Colosio when I heard someone say, step back, fucker. To him? Someone said that. She doesn't know to who. Oh, they were clearing the path or something. Yeah, yeah. Okay. Like she says they were basically herding him to where they wanted him to go. They weren't in front of him.

27:03 They were like pushing him towards somewhere is what she says. So then at 5.12 p.m., Wikipedia says 5.07, but certainly after 5 p.m. So sometime after 5 p.m. Yes. 13.5 meters away from the small stage and toward the vehicles that were waiting for him, for him to get on, you know, to leave. Luis Donaldo Colosio was shot in the head near his right ear at point-blank range. Oh, wow. I mean, that's very clearly on purpose. This person shouldn't have been able to get close enough. Shouldn't have had access. Yeah. No. Then he was shot again in the abdomen.

27:45 Oh, wow. Which was actually kept secret for a long time. Oh. That there was two shots, although some sources say three shots fired. Oh, wow. So. He was rushed to the hospital. They made it to the ER in eight minutes, which is very fast. Fast, that's fast. Yeah. He went into surgery immediately, but he died at 6.55 p.m. And of course, immediately people began to suspect that he was betrayed by his own party and that the murder was orchestrated by high members of the PRI, which of course includes President Salinas. This is conspiracy was then fueled because eyewitness accounts don't match up to this day they don't match up on top of that the scene was not secured there was a bunch of like like the military was there secret service was there local police was there nobody was working together forensics like whoever collected the evidence they ended up washing bullet casings found at the scene So, like, erasing potential... Yeah, yeah, fingerprints. So that's already, like, people are like, they messed that up on purpose. They were hiding the evidence.

29:00 And it does look suspicious. It does. When you put it all together. Exactly. On April 4th, Miguel Montes Garcia, the minister of the Mexican Supreme Court, held a press conference where he announced that there was no way that a lone gunman could have perpetrated this alone. Instead, he implicated the Secret Service agents surrounding Luis Donaldo Colosio, alleging that they must have been involved in getting him to the gunman. But then, months later, he backtracked on this statement. Probably because he was threatened, but okay. No, right? Like yeah so the shooter the alleged shooter while he's convicted so the shooter mario aburto martinez was arrested at the site people surrounded him and said it's the shooter it's the shooter oh so immediately immediately okay However, he has never wavered from his story that he did not act alone.

30:01 Wait, has he said? I think in the beginning he said he acted alone. Then changed his... Yeah. But there's still theories, many theories surrounding the assassination. So, you know, like I said, the authorities were criticized in their poor handling of the evidence. But not only that, also in their poor handling of Mario Aburto Martinez. He was shaved, bathed, and given a haircut before being shown to the media, which then started rumors about whether or not he is the same man who was arrested at the scene. Oh. If he was really the murderer. On top of that, people were like, well, the man that was arrested... Because people were there. People surrounded him and like.

30:52 They were like, get him, get him. Held on to him. Yeah. So people. Said that the man that they detained was 1.64 meters tall and the man jailed later was like an inch taller. Okay. They also said that. The nose, the shape of the nose didn't match. His head looked like different as well. The man arrested at the scene of the crime had a darker complexion than who was shown to the public. Three days later, the man who was arrested had cuts and bruises all over his face when he was attacked by people in the crowd.

31:33 And then in the press conference, apparently people say there was no marks on his face. He also weighed less. And the press conference was like the same day, the next day? Three days. Three days. OK, so he was without marks. Yeah, yeah. And also, again, he was washed. His hair was cut, so shaved. So, yeah, those things don't. Add up either. Luis Colosio received two bullet wounds. Some sources said three. And it was never clear if they could have been fired by a single person or not. The case was officially closed after multiple prosecutors investigated it. But then because of the number of mishandlings and contradictory accounts, it was like it's been reopened and closed and reopened and closed like multiple times. Aburto, the man who was arrested and then, you know, shown, he remains imprisoned at the high security La Palma facility in Juarez. But he maintains that he was tortured into confessing.

32:44 I mean, I wouldn't put it past the authorities. Yeah. Then, on November 8th, 2025, Mexican federal authorities arrested a 64-year-old man in Tijuana in connection to Colosio's assassination. Oh, wow. That's fairly recently. Yes. So this was Jorge Antonio Sánchez Ortega, a former intelligence officer of the former... So there was like a secret police. And I, of course, didn't write down their initials. The office doesn't exist anymore. But during the dirty war, it was like super prominent.

33:28 Doesn't it start with a D or something or no? Yeah. No, it does, right? Okay. I think it does. I was like, am I thinking of another secret police? But I kind of remember. Dina in Chile. Oh, my God. What if I am thinking of that? I don't know. Who knows? But I have been aware of the secret police, I guess. I am aware of them. Yeah. So he is the one who was arrested. And so by arresting him, the current Mexican administration, Claudia Scheinbaum, they're challenging the official story that there was one shooter. Right. So Sanchez Ortega, who was detained in 2025, he has been questioned four times, four previous investigations already questioned him.

34:16 These investigations have been They took place between 1994 and 2000. But all those. Times he was like, let go. He was let go as a suspect. But on September 25th, 2025, federal authorities successfully filed a request with the Mexican court to obtain a search warrant for Sanchez Ortega. And so in these documents, it says that the homicide included premeditation and lying in wait for an ambush, like he was waiting. And, you know, if we recall from earlier, that other PRI member in Tijuana said that, like, it looked like he was being herded to a specific location, like if someone was waiting for him.

34:59 There, you know. This filing also includes 43 pieces of evidence, videos as well. And so apparently there's some, I mean, something caused them to reopen this investigation. Some people claim that it's like a distraction from Morena. Yeah. However, again, this investigation has been opened and reopened many times through many administrations in Mexico. But, yeah, as far as I know, Sanchez Ortega is still in prison in El Altiplano, 70 kilometers west of Mexico City. But.

35:39 I don't know. Like, I couldn't find info on, like, a trial that's set or anything like that. But it's wild that so many years later something surfaced because they don't just arrest people for no reason. Right? Right. And this person had already been questioned four times. Like, just, I don't know, whenever you see people, like, saying, oh, it's too distracting, like, always look into it. Yeah. But I also wanted to say that after Colosio's death, the EZLN commented, quote, Colosio always referred to our movement with prudence and respect. His latest statements marked a clear commitment to compete on equal terms with other political forces.

36:26 He recognized that the country was suffering from great injustices and was clearly distancing itself from the Salinista regime and its economic and social policies. End quote. But yeah, I don't know. I would believe that this was a hit. This was an ordered hit because he was changing the status quo. All the signs point to that. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. But you are free to draw your own conclusions. I have a list of sources where you can find all this info, but it seems very plausible. Is there a big, I mean, I don't know if you came across this or anything, is there a big consensus in Mexico about whether the PRI did do this? Oh, yeah.

37:11 Anyone that's not super PRI or not super anti-Morena, pre-pilled, if you will, yeah. Even at the time, people were like, yeah, he was assassinated. He was betrayed by his own. So it's the common accepted. Theory that this was a hit. Well, I'm with the people then. Same, same. And, wow, I ran out of time to talk about the four pre-presidents who worked for the CIA. Oh, my gosh. One of them was mentioned in this episode, though. Oh, was it? What's his name? Gustavo Díaz Ordaz. Okay, okay. So he worked for the CIA. Yeah, I believe, and I'll get into it next episode, of course, but that he requested that CIA collaboration with Mexico and was kind of the one to really bring them in.

38:00 Oh, my God. To the country. Fuck you. Yeah. And again, he is the one who has now been found to have ordered the Tlatelolco massacre. Right. Yes. The other three, which again, we'll have to. Get into next episode because I ran out of time. But Adolfo López Mateos, Luis Echeverria Álvarez, who actually he was the president right after Gustavo Díaz Ordaz. And then José López Portillo. I don't remember when he was president, but all four of these are in that time period where like Mexico was at its dirtiest during the dirty war. During the so-called perfect dictatorship. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm fairly certain.

38:44 But yeah, that'll have to be next episode. All right. Next, next week. Next, next week. But yeah, I feel like every time I start, like, let me talk about this now. I'm like, well, I need to like address this. But yeah, this way. We like we know. No, I like it. Yeah. Let's like the context. And also, I think this helps people. And like we've said so many times, Mexican-Americans are very prone to fall for propaganda, especially anti-Morena propaganda. And I think that it is so important to know, to learn what Mexico was like.

39:30 before other parties could be in charge, before people go and call Morena a dictatorship. Like, no, there's been actual dictatorships. And then, like, let's learn about the things that took place during that actual dictatorship. Mm-hmm. Because again, El Pris was in charge for 70 years. 70. I'm sorry. It sounded like I said 70. 70 years. So, yeah. That's why I think these episodes are also vital. Yeah, I agree. Yeah. And it's been so interesting to learn about as well. And then it's also important to note that The Salinas de Gortari, I'm not going to get into it because I'm trying to focus on the dirty war itself. But the Salinas de Gortari government, and I think we talked about it already, but this is who brought on NAFTA, which, you know.

40:28 Was not good for Mexico. It was good for the U.S. Right. It was good for the rich people. Yeah. Who were already rich in Mexico. They got richer. Yeah. And the during Gortari's administration, the peso fell hard and it was like a huge economic hardship for Mexico. And so, like we said last episode, it's like so important to think about, like, why did people why were so many people leaving Mexico? And this is like one of the many reasons. It was very responsible for like the downturn of the Mexican economy and mass migration. Yeah. Like we've said, NAFTA has also to do with it.

41:10 But like, I'm not going to get into that in this like little. Series we're doing. So it's even on his Wikipedia. You could like read about it. But it's happening during all this. Yes. Yes. It's like in the foreground of like or background. I mean, foreground. I don't know. Of all this. Luis Colosio stuff that he talks about. Because I think that's like the most recent Pri stuff I'm going to get into. But Pri, even during Peña Nieto. Yeah, even during who I was thinking of. Because didn't he work with the CIA too? I feel like I've heard of that. I want to say he did. Yeah, I'm pretty sure he did as well. And people forgave everything he did because they thought he was hot. Yeah, yeah.

41:51 He doesn't get enough hate, in my opinion. I agree. I agree. Yeah. And yeah, maybe that could be another topic outside of this because this is like years later. But yeah, even during his, which some said it was like the return of El Pri, it was not good. Yeah. Even though people like to think it was. No. And we talked about it a little bit in our episode. But the currently right now, like in Jalisco, the... Movimiento Ciudadano is in charge, which is another, like, right-wing party. And there's, like, corruption protests happening right now because of the water in Jalisco.

42:33 Right. And so, like, it's so often that, like, El PRI, Movimiento Ciudadano, all these parties are, like, very corrupt. Not to say they're not the only ones, but, like, they happen to be, in Mexico, usually the ones that are tied to cartels and to corruption. The CIA. Right. Yeah, and the states that have been most affected by cartel violence have tended to be ruled by more right-wing parties, usually PRI or Movimiento Ciudadano, including Jalisco. Yeah, yeah. Okay, that's all I wanted to add on. All right. Well, thank you everyone for listening, and we hope this was one less Historia Unknown for you. Bye. Bye. Bye.

43:22 Historias Unknown is produced by Carmen and Christina, researched by Carmen and Christina, edited by Christina. You can find sources for every episode at historiasunknown.com and in our show notes. Creating the podcast is a lot of work, so if you want to help us out financially, you can do so by supporting us on Patreon at patreon.com slash historiasunknownpodcast.