Truckers' and farmers' organizations in Mexico will launch a mega-blockade on Monday, November 24, to protest highway insecurity, extortions, and lack of agricultural support. Blockades will affect key highways in Mexico City, State of Mexico, and other states, with closures starting at 6:00 a.m. The United States has also demanded action on thefts impacting the USMCA.
The national mega-blockade was called by the National Association of Cargo Truckers (ANTAC), the Agricultural Peasant Movement (MAC), and the National Front for the Rescue of the Mexican Countryside (FNRCM), after months without progress in talks with federal authorities. The protest denounces constant robberies, extortions with complicity from authorities like the National Guard, and corruption in highway operations. Truckers demand highway security, such as operations with the National Guard, closure of irregular accesses, specialized prosecutors, and drone use; reduction of toll and fuel costs; and permanent dialogue tables.
Farmers join due to lack of guarantee prices for maize and beans, access to credits, and opposition to reforms like the Water Law. Jeannet Chumacero, ANTAC's vice president, stated: “Unfortunately, corruption and extortion exist by some elements of the National Guard, state public security, and even municipal police”.
Blockades will start at 6:00 a.m. in the State of Mexico and between 7:00 and 8:00 a.m. at Mexico City accesses. Affected roadways include the Mexico-Cuernavaca, Mexico-Puebla, Mexico-Pachuca, Mexico-Toluca, and Mexico-Queretaro highways; in Edomex, Lopez Portillo Highway, Naucalpan-Ecatepec Highway, and Circuito Exterior Mexiquense. In Tamaulipas, seven points like international bridges at Reynosa-Nuevo Laredo and Matamoros-Valle Hermoso, starting at 9:00 a.m. Other impacted states include Chihuahua, Jalisco, Sonora, Zacatecas, Veracruz, and nearly all in the country.
The U.S. National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC) criticized thefts as a critical concern affecting the USMCA, generating costs, supply chain disruptions, and investment risks. They recommended Mexican commitments on border security with U.S. technical assistance. Only ambulances and emergencies will pass during closures, which will last hours and cause vehicular chaos.
