Mexico’s Supreme Court has invalidated a presidential decree that declared two major transport projects a matter of national security, reducing civilian oversight and making future legal challenges more difficult. The projects, the Mayan Train and the Inter-Oceanic Corridor, aim to link tourist spots in the Yucatan Peninsula and connect Mexico’s Pacific and Gulf coasts respectively.
President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has argued the decree is needed to protect the “strategic” nature of the projects, citing the government’s role in ensuring secure transport of goods and people. Critics, however, have derided the decree as part of a growing militarization of public works.
The Supreme Court’s ruling marks the second time the jurists have struck down Lopez Obrador’s bid to put the projects under national security protections. The president has said his government is willing to pay compensation – if necessary – and reach an agreement with the transport unit of mining and rail conglomerate Grupo Mexico, which holds the rights to tracks on the Inter-Oceanic Corridor.
The Inter-Oceanic Corridor aims to modernize freight cargo transport between the Pacific and Gulf coasts through the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, Mexico’s narrowest point, to create a trade route that could eventually rival the Panama Canal. Shares of Grupo Mexico’s transport unit closed down more than 4% on Monday, although services on the line have continued normally.