International
Mexican classrooms reopen amid Covid third wave
AFP
Millions of Mexican schoolchildren began returning to classrooms on Monday after more than a year of distance learning, despite another wave of Covid-19 infections sweeping the country.
The government said that the return would be “voluntary and safe,” but some parents and opponents of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador worry that it is too soon.
Anna Alvarez, one of an estimated 25 million students who were expected to go back to classrooms, said she was “nervous and excited” after 17 months of studying at home.
“I was happy because I was with my family, but sad because I missed my friends,” the eight-year-old said.
The children in her school in Mexico City wore face masks and teachers checked their temperatures and gave out antibacterial gel at the entrance.
Inside the classrooms, which had a maximum of six students at a time, the desks were surrounded by plastic covers and spaced further apart than usual.
The government ruled out forcing children to return to classrooms and said it would adopt a hybrid model with both face-to-face and distance learning.
“It’s the mothers, the fathers and the children who have to make the decision. School is irreplaceable,” Lopez Obrador said at his daily news conference.
Israel Garcia, 45, who brought his 11-year-old daughter Regina to school, said he was “a bit uncertain and afraid of how this scheme is going to work.”
Mexico has an official coronavirus death toll of more than 258,000 — one of the highest in the world — and the country of 126 million is facing a third wave of infections.
It is the first time since the pandemic began that classrooms are reopening on a nationwide basis, although the return was delayed in a handful of Mexico’s 32 states due to a tropical storm and rising coronavirus infections.
An earlier attempt to reopen classrooms in some regions in June was foiled by a number of outbreaks of Covid-19.
Mexican classrooms closed in March 2020 at the start of the pandemic, and more than 30 million students were sent home to take classes via television, the internet and radio.
That posed a challenge to teachers as well as disadvantaged families with no TV or internet.
“Working remotely has made us change the way we teach,” said head teacher Lorena Reyna.
“It’s been very complicated,” she said.
International
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem claimed that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has deported “more than half a million” migrants due to pressure from former President Donald Trump.
During a cabinet meeting highlighting the “achievements” of Trump’s administration in its first 100 days, Noem asserted that under the Republican leader’s influence, “Mexico has finally come to the table” to negotiate on migration and fentanyl trafficking.
“The president of Mexico told me she has returned just over half a million people before they reached our border,” Noem stated, criticizing media reports that suggest the Biden administration deported more migrants than Trump’s.
“I wish those deportations were counted,” Noem added, “because those people never made it to our border—she sent them back because you made her.” She went on to thank Trump: “They never made it here because they got the message—because you were so aggressive.”
Noem has made controversial claims about Sheinbaum in the past, prompting the Mexican leader to refute them.
On April 1, Sheinbaum responded to one such statement by declaring, “The president answers to only one authority, and that is the people of Mexico,” after Noem said on Fox News that she gave Sheinbaum “a list of things Trump would like to see” and that Mexico’s actions would determine whether Trump granted tariff relief.
International
Vatican releases special “Sede Vacante” stamps ahead of papal transition
he Vatican’s post offices and select collector shops began selling special edition stamps this week to mark the period between the death of Pope Francis and the election of his successor.
Known as “Sede Vacante” stamps, they feature an image used on official Vatican documents during the interregnum between popes — two crossed keys without the papal tiara. These stamps went on sale Monday and will remain valid for postal use only until the new pontiff appears at the window overlooking St. Peter’s Square.
Until then, they can be used to send letters, postcards, and parcels. “Once the new pope is elected, the stamps lose their postal validity, but their collectible value rises,” said Francesco Santarossa, who runs a collectors’ shop across from St. Peter’s Square.
The Vatican has issued the stamps in four denominations: €1.25, €1.30, €2.45, and €3.20. Each is inscribed with “Città del Vaticano” and “Sede Vacante MMXXV” — Latin for “Vacant See 2025.”
International
Conclave to choose pope Francis’ successor could begin in early may
The conclave, which in the coming weeks must choose the successor to Pope Francis, will strictly follow a precise protocol refined over centuries.
The 135 cardinal electors, all under the age of 80, will cast their votes four times a day — except on the first day — until one candidate secures a two-thirds majority. The result will be announced to the world through the burning of the ballots with a chemical that produces the eagerly awaited white smoke, accompanied by the traditional cry of “Habemus Papam.”
The start date for the conclave could be announced today, as the cardinals are set to hold their fifth meeting since the pope’s passing. Luxembourg Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich suggested it could begin on May 5 or 6, following the traditional nine days of mourning. According to German Cardinal Reinhard Marx, the conclave could last only “a few days.”
Although the late Argentine pontiff appointed the majority of the cardinal electors, this does not necessarily ensure the selection of a like-minded successor. Francis’ leadership style differed significantly from that of his predecessor, Benedict XVI, a German theologian who was less fond of large public gatherings. It also marked a contrast with the popular Polish pope, John Paul II.
The Argentine Jesuit’s reformist papacy drew strong criticism from more conservative sectors of the Church, who are hoping for a doctrinally focused shift. His tenure was marked by efforts to combat clerical sexual abuse, elevate the role of women and laypeople, and advocate for the poor and migrants, among other causes.
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
Vatican releases special “Sede Vacante” stamps ahead of papal transition
Conclave to choose pope Francis’ successor could begin in early may
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