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Interior Ministry confirms public access to Las Cocinas, meeting one of the Punta de Mita protesters’ demands

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The Interior Ministry confirmed Tuesday that free public access to Las Cocinas – a secluded beach at the tip of Banderas Bay, adjacent to a luxury development at Punta de Mita, Nayarit,  – will be guaranteed. The announcement followed protests against a mega-tourism project, during which  denouncements were made of alleged attempts to limit or privatize beach access. Nayarit Gov. Miguel Ángel Navarro Quintero, participating in the dialogues over the Punta de Mita beachfront development, reminded all concerned that unfettered free public access to all beaches is Mexican law. (Miguel Ángel Navarro Quintero) In its statement , Segob said that “free access to beaches is a right that must be guaranteed in accordance with the current legal framework, and will therefore be a central focus in decisions related to the project.” Segob stated that along with the Environment Ministry (Semarnat) and the Nayarit state government, direct communication is being maintained with residents...

US charges Sinaloa governor, 9 state officials with drug trafficking

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Prosecutors in the United States have formally accused Sinaloa Governor Rubén Rocha Moya and nine other current and former Mexican officials of drug trafficking and related weapons offenses, alleging that they colluded with the Sinaloa Cartel, one of six Mexican criminal groups designated as foreign terrorist organizations by the U.S. government. The U.S. Department of Justice announced the charges in a statement released on Wednesday. It said the governor has allegedly attended meetings with “the Chapitos” — sons of convicted drug trafficker Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán — and has allowed the Sinaloa Cartel faction they lead to “operate with impunity in Sinaloa.” Rocha, who represents the Morena party, promptly rejected the accusations against him. The Justice Department statement — attributed specifically to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of New York — notes that an indictment unsealed on Wednesday charges the 76-year-old governor and nine other men with traffick...

Judge reopens criminal case against former leader of Mexico’s Luz del Mundo Church

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A federal judge has ordered prosecutors to reopen the Mexican case against convicted child sex offender Naason Joaquín García who is serving a 16-year, eight-month prison sentence in California. Judge Juan José Rodríguez, based in the Puente Grande Prison Courtroom in the state of Jalisco, on Monday revoked the December decision by the Federal Attorney General’s Office (FGR) not to file criminal charges against Joaquín in relation to the case of Sóchil Martín. Faithful followers of Naason Joaquín spelled out the word “innocent” at the international headquarters of Joaquin’s Luz del Mundo (Light of the World) Church in Guadalajara while the then-leader was on trial for child sex-abuse charges in California, on which he was ultimately convicted. (Fernando Carranza García/Cuartoscuro) The FGR must now reopen the case against the former leader of the Luz del Mundo Church, which is headquartered in Guadalajara, western Mexico.  Earlier this month, President Claudia Sheinbaum told...

MND Local: Protests grow as luxury projects expand along Nayarit coast

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A surge of luxury developments along the coast of Nayarit is triggering a growing backlash from residents and environmental defenders, who accuse high-end tourism projects in the town of San Pancho and in the luxury resort peninsula Punta Mita of violating environmental law, damaging fragile ecosystems and eroding public access to federally protected beaches. What had been a largely underreported conflict has escalated sharply in recent weeks, fueled not only by protests and legal complaints but also by violence and a wave of public outrage spreading across social media. Environmental activist shot On March 11, environmental defender Erik Saracho was shot twice at his home in San Pancho by a hooded gunman. The attack came just two days after he met with authorities and representatives linked to proposed coastal developments, including projects associated with residential and hotel development, Litibú Bay Club. Saracho survived. But despite security footage capturing the attack, ...

Mexico lands 11 bars on North America’s 50 Best

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The 2026 ranking of North America’s 50 Best Bars is now live, and Mexican bars occupy one-fifth of the list with a total of 11 mentions, including three in the top 10.    The winners were announced at a ceremony in Vancouver, Canada, where bartenders from Canada, the United States, Mexico and the Caribbean came together to recognize the best bars in the region.    View this post on Instagram   A post shared by TLECĀN (@tlecan) The accolades were selected by a diverse panel of industry experts who voted anonymously for the places where they have had their best experiences in the last 18 months. Overall, the United States boasted the highest number of bars with 28, followed by Mexico with 11, Canada with eight and the Caribbean with three.    Remarkably, Mexico City got the largest number of mentions just after New York, including two bars in the top 5, reinforcing the city’s lively and evolving cocktail sce...

Mexico’s export revenue shot up 27.7% in March

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Mexico’s export revenue surged 27.7% annually in March, driven by a 43.7% increase in the value of non-automotive manufacturing sector exports, according to official data. The national statistics agency INEGI reported on Monday that Mexico’s exports were worth US $70.727 billion in March, easily the largest monthly total in 2026. Mexico’s export earnings have now increased in annual terms in each of the last 10 months. Six double-digit increases in revenue were reported in the period. INEGI also reported that Mexico’s export revenue totaled a record-high $175.586 billion in the first three months of the year, a 17.9% increase compared to the same period of 2025. It was the largest annual increase in export revenue for any first quarter since 2011. Mexico’s export revenue hit a record high in 2025 — despite the United States’ imposition of tariffs on various Mexican goods — and has continued to grow in early 2026. More than 90% of export revenue came from the shipment abroad of...

INEGI: Fewer Mexicans feel unsafe in their cities — but El Mencho’s death sparked sharp spikes in Jalisco

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Perceptions of insecurity in Mexico have fallen to their lowest level since President Claudia Sheinbaum took office, but around six in ten Mexicans still consider their city an unsafe place to live, according to the results of the latest National Survey of Urban Public Security (ENSU). Conducted by the national statistics agency INEGI between Feb. 23 and March 13 with adult residents of 27,300 households in 91 urban areas across Mexico, the first quarter ENSU found that 61.5% of respondents consider their city an unsafe place to live. That figure declined 2.3 percentage points compared to the fourth quarter of 2025 and 0.4 points compared to a year earlier. It is the lowest ENSU result since Sheinbaum took office in October 2024. The incidence of various crimes, including homicides , have declined over the past 18 months. The first quarter ENSU found that 67.2% of women and 54.6% of men consider their city an unsafe place to live. The figure for women declined 2.2 points compared ...