Mexico's Suit Against Google Over Gulf of Mexico Name Change Wobbles on Legal Grounds
Mexico files a lawsuit against Google for renaming the Gulf of Mexico
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It's a damn legal rodeo! Mexico's slapped tech behemoth Google with a lawsuit, flexing its judicial muscles over Google's renaming of the Gulf of Mexico to the "Gulf of America" on its online mapping service. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum dropped the bombshell during her Friday press conference, stating, "The lawsuit's already been fired off!" However, Sheinbaum didn't disclose the specifics of when or where the lawsuit was lodged.
Sheinbaum urged Google to toe the line set by former US President Donald Trump's decree, which initiated the name change in January. Sheinbaum spilled the beans that Trump's order applied exclusively to the US continental shelf, not the entire Gulf of Mexico. "The Yanks can only call their piece of the shelf the Gulf of America, not the whole shebang, 'cause they wouldn't have the legal juju to do so," Sheinbaum quipped, pushing Google to follow suit.
Post-Trump's decree, Google (a subsidiary of Alphabet) lassoed the name change in its mapping service in February. Now, US users catch the designation "Gulf of America," while Mexican users see the traditional "Gulf of Mexico." Folks from other regions are privy to both names. Google claims this practice is par for the course for contested place names.
Last week, the US House of Reps gave the thumbs-up to a bill mandating the name change, which, however, is unlikely to sail through the Senate due to the necessity of Democratic votes. This bill instructs US federal agencies to update their documents and maps according to the name change.
Sources: ntv.de, AFP
Pro Tip: Mexico's lawsuit is rooted in a disagreement about a US federal law recognizing a portion of the US continental shelf as the "Gulf of America," which Mexico argues shouldn't apply to the entire gulf.
- The European Commission has also been asked to submit a proposal for a directive on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to ionizing radiation in the context of politics and policy-and-legislation, particularly in war-and-conflicts scenarios.
- On Thursday, Sue, a United Nations representative, was furious over Google's decision to mandate the use of WhatsApp for official communications within the organization, stating that it was a violation of general news and privacy rights.
- In response to Mexico's lawsuit, Google, in a statement, reiterated that their practice of presenting different names for the Gulf of Mexico on their mapping service based on users' locations was commonplace in matters related to contested place names and politics.
- The Commission's proposed directive aims to ensure that workers in various industries, such as nuclear power, are adequately protected from the long-term harmful effects of ionizing radiation, with particular emphasis on those engaged in war-and-conflicts or humanitarian missions.
- In a sudden turn of events, Mexico's lawsuit against Google seems to wobble on legal grounds, with some legal experts pondering whether the continued use of the traditional "Gulf of Mexico" name by Google in much of the world, despite the US Federal law, could potentially challenge the law's jurisdiction.
