Mexican Judge Overturns Ex-Union Boss’s Conviction : Latin America: Move follows wife’s visit to interior minister and raises questions about judicial independence.

Mexican judicial independence appeared to have suffered a setback Friday when it was learned that a judge had overturned the murder conviction of an ailing former union leader the day after his wife met with the interior minister to plead for him.

Joaquin Hernandez Galicia, known as “La Quina” in the decades when he headed Mexico’s powerful oil workers’ union, could be released from jail as early as next week, his attorney told reporters.

He was jailed on murder and illegal arms possession charges after a spectacular shootout more than six years ago, shortly after former President Carlos Salinas de Gortari took office.

He was sentenced to 35 years in prison.

The 72-year-old Hernandez Galicia had gone on a hunger strike last month, which he ended Monday after Interior Minister Esteban Moctezuma Barragan agreed to see his wife, Carmen, about his case. Moctezuma spoke with her Tuesday, his spokesman confirmed.

The next day, an appeals court judge overturned the convictions--for premeditated murder in the death of a rival union leader and illegal arms possession.

He let stand a manslaughter conviction involving the death of one of the federal agents killed in the shootout, but the time Hernandez Galicia has already served could be enough to permit his release, according to his attorney.

“This shows that the judicial system is a sham, still light-years away from the development of a system of rule of law,” political analyst Denise Dresser said.

Judicial reform and independence have been cornerstones of President Ernesto Zedillo’s administration.

As recently as Tuesday, he emphasized that commitment while announcing the National Development Plan, the blueprint for his six-year administration

“We Mexicans want to live in a country where everyone is equal under the law, where no one is above [the law], where corruption is fought and where there is no place for impunity,” Zedillo said. “We will assure that all Mexicans have access to justice in the courts; we shall guarantee that lawsuits and legal procedures will be handled honestly, in compliance with the law and in an expeditious manner.”

The judge’s decision in the Hernandez Galicia case comes shortly after another judge released Jorge Hank Rhon, son of a former agriculture minister and one of Mexico’s most influential political bosses, on charges that he attempted to smuggle $46,000 worth of merchandise into Mexico without paying import tariffs.

“Despite the fact that Zedillo has made numerous promises,” said Dresser, “judicial decisions are still based on bargaining among members of the ruling class.”