Isla Mujeres Mayor Faces Backlash Over Press Crackdown

Isla Mujeres, Quintana Roo — The anger of Isla Mujeres Mayor Atenea Gómez Ricalde has sent tremors through the community, drawing comparisons to Campeche’s Morenista Governor Layda Sansores for her aggressive tactics against critics. Gómez, like Sansores, has threatened to silence press criticism and jail those she deems inconvenient, using gender-based violence allegations as a shield.

A Controversial Approach to Criticism

Women who have fought for equality and respect in Mexico would be “turning in their graves,” observers say, at the sight of figures like Sansores and now Gómez, whose actions have sparked outrage among women—particularly the over 70% of Mexican women who have experienced real violence or harassment.

Gómez, a former PAN member now dubbed the “Layda of the Island,” has a history of legal battles aimed at silencing detractors. Currently, an investigation is underway by the Specialized Prosecutor’s Office for Electoral Crimes against a news outlet. The mayor claims her actions target harassment, not journalism, and defends herself with the well-worn argument that women in power are accused of censorship when they defend themselves.

Critics argue that Gómez, far from being a defender of women’s rights, is simply intolerant of criticism—a politician more concerned with her image than improving public services on an island where insecurity is rising.

Selective Enforcement?

As both a journalist and a woman, the author raises pointed questions: Why pursue legal action against inconvenient press but not against the arrogant businessman who allegedly shouted at Gómez during a meeting at an exclusive Cancún hotel, demanding she fulfill agreements? Was it because the incident went unnoticed, or because she cannot intimidate those who match or surpass her influence?

The conclusion, critics say, is clear: the former PAN-affiliated mayor only targets those she perceives as weaker.