“Hugo Torres had the vision to include women in the municipalization project because we tend to be more sensitive to the need for service,” said businesswoman Norma Gutiérrez Espinoza, reflecting on her decades-long involvement in Rosarito’s fight for autonomy. “We got involved step by step, working as volunteers—there was never a salary or funding—and we went out to convince people it was time to demand change from the government.”

Gutiérrez, a Rosarito resident originally from Mexicali, has owned a business in the city’s downtown area for more than 35 years. She described the difficult conditions women faced in the early 1980s: unpaved and dangerous roads, a lack of basic services like potable water and sewage, and only a single elementary school. Despite Rosarito’s economic contributions as a Tijuana district, the larger city was unwilling to invest or relinquish the tax revenue.

“Rosarito was still a rural area with a very macho culture—women didn’t usually leave their homes,” she recalled. “But Hugo Eduardo Torres was a visionary. He brought in people with time and skills, inviting me to join the Madrugadores group and the Comité Pro Municipio in 1983. That’s when I began to learn what it meant to organize a city.”

She worked closely with María Elena Salazar de Martínez, one of the first women to join the committee. Together, they focused on social advocacy despite resistance from some male counterparts. “It wasn’t easy to be accepted as women,” Gutiérrez said. “But from my own experience, I know the municipalization movement succeeded thanks to women. We brought in more and more housewives, women who learned to speak out, who convinced their families, and helped the movement grow.”

The city’s status as a district of Tijuana, she added, left Rosarito neglected: “We had no hospital, not enough schools, just one road and inadequate public transport. It was a real grassroots struggle—we simply wanted to live better.”

Gutiérrez was able to stay active in the movement thanks to the support of her husband, a former participant in Mexico City’s 1968 student movement, who also joined the campaign for Rosarito’s autonomy. “My kids marched with me; my whole family was involved. That’s how we got others to join.”

She recalled that the municipalization push overlapped with other land-related battles—expropriations, property rights, and regularization efforts—challenges that only fueled their determination.

“Governments from all parties wanted to keep control of Rosarito’s tax revenues and redirect them to other neighborhoods where they held political power,” she said. “They didn’t want to invest in Rosarito because it was a profitable delegation.”

At times, authorities tried to stifle the committee’s political work. Gutiérrez recounted being followed by patrol cars and accused of supporting the PRI party. “Osuna was one of the main opponents of municipalization, and all the local PAN members—Antonio Macías, Silvano Abarca—they were sabotaging our work. And yet, after we achieved municipal status, they were the first to govern, thanks to the legal support of Governor Ruffo Appel. I accepted it with dignity, but the truth is the powers in office didn’t want municipalization.”

Now in her later years, Gutiérrez praised the ongoing work of the Comité Pro Municipio members, who give talks in schools despite their age and limited capacity for public action. “Their work is so important—they help younger generations understand and develop a sense of belonging to their community.”

She concluded with a message for today’s youth: “Respect and care for this city. The fight for municipalization was about creating a model, well-organized municipality. Sadly, the city has grown chaotically. Most officials today lack roots, belonging, and knowledge of Rosarito—that’s why they don’t get involved in its development in a meaningful way.”