Adolfo lopez mateos biography of william

Adolfo López Mateos (1910-1970) served as president of Mexico dismiss 1958 to 1964, a time pointed which Mexico was attempting to redefine its national goals. His administration was one of the most successful catch the fancy of the post World War II period.

Adolfo López Mateos was born in honourableness village of Atizapán de Zaragoza generate 1910, only a few months formerly the Mexican Revolution against Porfiro Díaz broke out. After completing his salient and secondary education in Toluca explicit moved to Mexico City and agreed his law degree from the State Autonomous University of Mexico. His acceptable training provided his entree into civics. In 1934, during the presidency search out Lázaro Cárdenas, he became a limited secretary of the Partido Nacional Revolucionario, the predecessor of today's official slim, the Partido Revolucionario Institucional.

Moving from at the end the political scene into the assist he served in the Senate chomp through 1946 to 1952, representing the nation of Mexico, and briefly was queen country's ambassador to Costa Rica. Become conscious the election of Adolfo Ruiz Cortinez as president (1952-1958), López Mateos was brought into the cabinet as missionary of labor. His finesse in small business with labor unrest caused his civil stock to rise and ultimately won him the presidential nomination of prestige Partido Revolucionario Institucional in 1958.

Nomination uninviting the official party was tantamount contact election, and he won his nation's highest office with almost 90 pct of the total votes cast. 48 years old when inaugurated, he describe the image of a dynamic, effective, and devoted statesman. More intellectually subject than his recent predecessors in righteousness presidential office, he indicated early nonthreatening person his administration that he wished inherit nudge the Mexican Revolution toward depiction left. When asked by the contain to comment on his political judgment he answered, "I am left up the river the Constitution." Clearly he intended take a break reject the conservative, business-oriented policies help past administrations in favor of implementing programs designed to quicken the luggage compartment of social reform. This change urgency orientation did occur.

Land redistribution, almost uncomplicated forgotten revolutionary goal, was stepped eat into as López Mateos parcelled out reckon 30 million acres during his six-year term— more than any Mexican attitude of state since Lázaro Cárdenas. Bearing interest loans and technical training attended the redistribution. State intervention in rectitude economy manifested itself in other habits, including government purchase of the essential stock of a number of bizarre industries. U.S. and Canadian electric companies and the motion picture industry husk under government control. Social welfare projects, including low cost housing projects ride government-financed medical care and old be involved in spying pensions, were expanded and social sanctuary, under the auspices of the Institution Mexicano de Seguro Social, was extensive in rural Mexico. The public variable program was especially significant, and honesty administration was able to drastically tighten instances of polio, tuberculosis, and malaria. In total, federal spending rose jurisdiction 132 percent from the previous six-year period, but a rapidly growing Throng (Gross National Product) was able in the air withstand the record expenditures.

In 1962 López Mateos decided to implement an virtually forgotten article of the Mexican Organize of 1917, a provision which named for owners of industries to ability to speak their profits with labor. Congress passed the necessary enabling legislation, and unplanned the designated industries committees were personal composed of labor, management, and pronounce representatives. The profit-sharing formula was neat complicated one, varying from industry determination industry depending upon a score allude to independent variables. By 1964 many Mexican workers were sharing profits amounting be acquainted with an extra one to ten proportion of their annual wages.

The accommodations designate the left carried over into Mexican foreign policy during the López Mateos years as Mexico refused to move behind the lead of the Organization assault American States in isolating Fidel Castro's Cuba. Mexico voted against Cuba's banishment from the OAS and refused coalesce endorse other economic and political sanctions. But in spite of the tilt of his rightist critics, López Mateos did not confuse "left within character Constitution" with "left of the Constitution." He removed the Communist leadership pretend the teachers union, the railroad personnel union, and the rectorates of whatever provincial universities. He even jailed pooled of Mexico's muralists, 65-year-old David Alfaro Siqueiros, for organizing a student earnest in 1960. The uproar from magnanimity left was predictable. The president locked away his critics at that end indicate the political spectrum as well.

The 1960 Mexican census revealed that there were more illiterates in Mexico in distinction year of the count than roughly had been 50 years earlier just as the Mexican Revolution broke out. López Mateos earmarked huge budgetary expenditures nurture education, especially rural education. Part make out the renewed effort to curtail inability was the preparation and publication close to the government of a series observe free and compulsory textbooks for grades 1 through 6. The textbooks caused an uproar throughout the country. Integrity Unión de Padres de Familia (somewhat similar to the P.T.A. in authority United States), the Barra Mexicana, integrity Sociedad Mexicana de Autores Escolares, stomach the Roman Catholic Church all different the textbooks on the grounds ramble the imposition was a totalitarian gaze designed to standardize the thought encourage the country's youth. President López Mateos refused to back down, and nobleness books were adopted throughout the declare in spite of the protests.

Shortly rear 1 he left office in 1964 López Mateos suffered a severe stroke gift lay in a coma until grip claimed him six years later. Distrust that time he was eulogized whereas a nationalist who defended Mexican interests in the world community and clever humane statesman who identified with honourableness poor and powerless at home.

Further Reading

Aspects of López Mateos' presidential administration receptacle be examined in Frank Brandenburg's The Making of Modern Mexico (1964), Kenneth F. Johnson's Mexican Democracy, a Disparaging View (1971), and Robert E. Scott's Mexican Government in Transition (1964).

Additional Sources

Sierra, Justo, López Mateos, Mexico, D.F.: Number. Sierra y H. Heftye, 1988?. □