Merida

Merida, the Political and Economic Capital of the State of Yucatan was once the grand Mayan City of T’ho, conquered by the Spanish in 1542. The Spanish occupiers immediately set about tearing down the ancient city, using blocks from Mayan pyramids and Temples to construct their own city and then, just to rub it in, a Cathedral which they then used to “convert” the Maya to the wonders of Christianity and the Inquisition. Other tokens of the Spanish visit were smallpox, syphilis and genocide.

Merida is also a major centre for maquiladoras, “special” zones set up by the Mexican Government many years ago to attract foreign capital. These areas are exempted from normal Mexican laws regulating workplace Health & Safety, minimum wages, hours of work, Union membership and taxes. Foreign enterprises  (mostly American) import parts and export finished products, with Mexico providing only the labour to assemble the goods. These maquiladoras were a major battle many years ago when I was involved with the Canadian Labour Congress and the BC Federation of Labour. It was a battle unfortunately lost and these present day workers are suffering.

There, I got two major peeves off my chest. More positive posts on this beautiful city and surrounding areas will follow as we get out to explore!