Legionnaires dis-ease

I first wrote about about Marciel Maciel and the odious Legionnaires of Christ in 2006 when Pope Benedict ordered that the Mexican-born “86 year old priest retire to do penance for the rest of his life…” And added that the forced retirement “MAY be only a first step” in what has been 14 years of continuing revelations about the Fascist inspired order, and the perversity and financial shenanigans  of both the founder and of his minions (and they were Legion), coming out even before Maciel’s death in 2008 were horrifying.  Incidentally, my “obituary” earned me more “fuck you” comments from his minions than anything I ever wrote about anything.  Yeah, I’m proud of that.

Although, in 2010, references to Maciel were removed from Legionnaire literature, and the group was “refounded” it has yet to completely come clean.  Admitting, as it has, only in the last month to having “credible evidence” of 175 cases of pedophilia by 33 of its priests (going back to 1941) … and at least 60 instances of sexual abuse (including rape) by Maciel himself, it appears that pedophilia is only one of the Legion’s many sins.

Last Tuesday (7 January), Santiago Nieto Castillo, head of Mexico’s “Unidad de Inteligencia Financiera” (UIF)…  the Treasury Department’s auditors and investigators… announced that the Legionaries of Christ under investigation.  Nieto explained that the investigations are aimed at detecting possible irregularities in the management of public resources, and stressed that the entire organization is under investigation, including links to former lady Martha Sahagún’s, wife of former president Vicente Fox.

Although pedophilia and sexual abuse have grabbed the headlines, it may be that the financial irregularities may be the more damaging…. and not just to the Legion, nor just to the Catholic Church which allowed Maciel free-rein (especially during the papacy of John-Paul II, who favored Maciel as his Mexico adviser), but to the Mexican establishment as well.  Martha Sahgún’s “charity” during her time at Los Pinos, “Vamos México”, was widely derided for its extravagant overhead (infamously spending a fortune on sexy underpants for donors from an anti-abortion group of mostly rich fat guys who no one in their right mind would want to see in tangas), and more mundane financial irregularities.  What brings the UIF into the matter is that public funds were spent to protect Maciel, and the Legionnaries of Christ from scrutiny.

Considering that as “Primera Dama”, Sahugún had no official role in the government, it means officials of the Fox Administration… possibly including the then-President himself, were involved in illegal activities.  That the fallout will hit some of the biggest names (and fortunes) in Mexico is practically a given.