MEXICO
The War on Drugs in Mexico is one of the most costly in the world when it comes to money spent and lives lost. Once Colombia’s drug networks had been mostly dismantled in the late 1980’s, Mexican organizations quickly took control and rose to the powerful status they are at now. Drugs have been entering the U.S. from Mexico since the 1950’s, but the drug war has escalated to an all time high from the year 2006 to present day. With Mexico’s increasingly corrupt government agencies it has been difficult for them to combat the violence instilled by the drug cartels. New policies and strategies put in place have often caused civilian uproar due to accusations of serious human rights abuse, as well as an overall increase in crime and deaths. Two different presidential administrations (Felipe Calderon and Enrique Nieto) in Mexico have addressed the drug war head on and have caused more violence while only making a small positive impact.
Since the War on Drugs started, approximately $51 billion is spent each year fighting the war and around $1 trillion has been spent in total over the last 40 years. The majority of the money each year goes to Mexico to help fund a joint effort of U.S. and Mexican organizations attempting to make an impact on this deadly and costly war. Mexican drug cartels bring in an estimated $30-$40 billion each year with its number one consumer being the U.S. With the cartels making so much money each year, they have the most complex and successful drug hub in the world.
With the U.S. and Mexico sharing a border that extends 1,933 miles, there are many areas the cartels can smuggle drugs into America. The majority of drugs brought into the U.S. travel by land, but it also enters via air and sea. Many drug organization fighting for the routes to smuggle drugs across has resulted terrible violence and countless deaths. With corruption being so bad in Mexico it is easy to understand why the cartels are having the success they have. The cartels have a benefit over the police when it comes to money. Since the average police officer makes around $9,000-$10,000 a year, it is not hard for the cartels to pay off the police and other officials to simply look the other way which allows the drug business to keep running. During the Calderon administration, which lasted from 2006-2012, a large effort was made to halt police corruption and address the drug cartel violence in Mexico. Calderon made the decision to increase the military presence in the areas most affected by the cartels. Although many arrests and killings of high profile cartel leaders were made, it came at the expense of around 60-80 new drug gangs fighting to be a part of the drug trade. During Calderon’s term the homicide rate skyrocketed and a dramatic increase in kidnappings occurred. After the Calderon’s term as president, Enrique Nieto followed and his administration approached the drug war in a different way. The new administration focused more on reducing crimes of homicide, extortion, and kidnapping. With the added pressure of the government on the cartel, more threats have been made towards military personnel, their families, and other government officials.
Since Felipe Calderon took office in 2006 as Mexico’s President, violence has increased significantly in relation to the drug trade. The increase in violence can be attributed to the fact that Calderon’s administration took a head on approach to fight the drug cartels in Mexico and started a total war.
-In 2005, before the drug war started in Mexico, around 1,300 people died in relation to drug violence.
-An estimated 7,000 people died in 2009 as a result of the drug war. Which is large increase from previous years.
-In addition to the approximately 7,000 killed in 2009, around 1,200 kidnappings took place in that year.
Around the same time that Calderon took office, there was a booming prison population. This drastic rise of incarceration can be directly attributed to the drug trade.
-More than 60% of those in prison are there due to drug trafficking, sales, and
possession of large amounts.
-Drug crimes are the reason 80% of the women are in jail in Mexico.
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http://www.businessinsider.com/mexican-drug-war-statistics-2012-6#!IpEMT
disappearances.” Chron. Hearst Newspapers, LLC. 24 October 2013. 30 April 2014.
http://blog.chron.com/bakerblog/2013/10/is-drug-related-violence-in-mexico-on-the-decline/
Fantz, Ashely. “The Mexico drug war: Bodies for billions.” CNN World. Turner Broadcasting
System Inc. 20 January 2012. 30 April 2014. http://www.cnn.com/2012/01/15/world/mexico-drug-war-essay/
Karlin, Mark. “The U.S. War on Drug Cartels in Mexico Is a Deadly Failure.” Truthout. 8 April
2012. 30 April 2014. http://truth-out.org/news/item/8371-the-us-war-on-drug-cartels-in-mexico-is-a-deadly-failure
Kelley, Michael. “By The Numbers: Why the Mexican Drug War Should Keep You Awake At
Night.” Business Insider. 18 June 2012. 30 April 2014.
http://www.businessinsider.com/mexican-drug-war-statistics-2012-6#!IpEMT