MEXICO CITY — Hundreds of federal police blocked highways in and around the Mexican capital Wednesday in open revolt against plans to absorb the officers into the newly formed National Guard, a move that the police fear could upend their jobs.
The protests came as the government officially began deploying the National Guard to try to seal the country’s porous southern border and control immigration and crime. The demonstrations threatened to complicate the formation of the new force, which President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has bet Mexico’s future security on.
Uniformed officers blocked a major capital highway in front of federal police offices, and another contingent blocked the highway between the national capital and a state capital, Pachuca. Federal police at a Mexico City command center demanded a meeting with the security secretary.
The president has been dismissive of the federal police, characterizing them as a failed security force. He gave military officers the bulk of the responsibility for the National Guard, which is also seeking new recruits.
