MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Mexico’s foreign minister on Friday criticized the work of the head of the Organization of American States, adding to its earlier rebuke that the group should not intervene in Bolivia’s internal affairs.
Mexico in March called out the Washington-based association of governments for “unilateral pronouncements” criticizing Bolivia for jailing a former president of the country on charges of fomenting a coup against longtime leader Evo Morales.
Morales in 2019 resigned under pressure from Bolivia’s armed forces after a presidential election that the Organization of American States said was rigged in his favor.
Mexico had backed Morales, including granting asylum to him and his allies.
The OAS, led by Secretary-General Luis Almagro, did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
“The performance of the current OAS secretary-general, Mr. Almagro, has been one of the worst in history,” Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard told a regular news conference.
“He has acted, repeatedly, without consulting the member states. … He acts as if he were autonomous.”
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has said his country’s foreign policy is guided by the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries. Critics argue he has departed from that position when dealing with fellow Latin American leftists like Morales.
(Reporting by Adriana Barrera; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
