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The '''Mexican Drug War''' is an ongoing conflict between criminal groups that operate within the Mexican drug trade. These groups are commonly referred to as drug cartels or drug trafficking organizations (DTOs).<ref>Seelke, C. R. (2010). Mexico-U.S. Relations: Issues for Congress, Congressional Research Service: 38 </ref> Rival drug cartels fight over control of “areas of influence,”<ref>Ray Walser, P. D. (2008) Mexico, Drug Cartels, and the Merida Initiative: A Fight We Cannot Afford to Lose. Executive Summary, Backgrounder No. 2163, 12</ref> strategic strongholds for the drug business. The majority of these areas are pockets along the 200-mile long Mexican border with the [[United States]]. | |||
==Origins== | |||
The drugs that circulate through [[Mexico]] originate from the south, primarily from the [[South America | South American]] countries of [[Colombia]], [[Venezuela]], and [[Brazil]].<ref name=Seelke> The majority of these drugs travel north into Mexico and then into the United States. The trade of these illicit drugs is part of the global illegal drug trade. Mexico serves as a transit route for South America to [[North America]]. {{Image|Drugroutemap.gif|right|350px|International Drug Routes}} | |||
===Cultural Influence=== | |||
In [[Latin America|Latin American]] culture, the relationship of the extended family is a tight knit unit. Accordingly, Mexican drug cartels act along familial and kinship lines. Feuds between the drug cartels that make up the Mexican drug war have been known to last for months, years, and even decades as a result of the inherent allegiance to family. | |||
Machismo, masculine pride, plays a large role in Mexican culture. In terms of the Mexican Drug War, many killings revolve around personal disputes rather than business conflicts.<ref>Williams, P. (2009). "Illicit markets, weak states and violence: Iraq and Mexico." Crime, Law and Social Change 52(3): 323-336.</ref> Just as cartels are established along familial lines, they fight as familial units against other cartels that threaten their hold on drug routes and markets. | |||
===Gang Consumption of Illicit Drugs=== | |||
== Effects on Mexican Population == | |||
The effects of the Mexican Drug War have increased in scale in recent years. The violence has escalated from affecting innocent civilians to whole towns. Some communities have experienced systematic occupation by drug cartels, whom have taken over such institutions as public offices and police departments.<ref name=Ray> | |||
The escalation of the Mexican Drug War has exposed widespread corruption in Mexico. Numerous police and military officials have been discovered to be working with drug traffickers. The lack of just authority destabilizes these areas of Mexico and perpetuates the Mexican Drug War and its infiltration into everyday life. | |||
== Violence == | |||
The illegal drug trade in Mexico has resulted in violence and chaos. This violence is present in Mexico as well as in the United States. | |||
=== Rationale for Violence === | |||
Drug trafficking is an anarchic system with no overarching authority controlling it. There are no laws or governing principles that determine how to handle disputes. Therefore, although violence is not an inherent part of the drug trafficking system, it has become a consequence of illicit drug trading as a means to settle conflicts. | |||
The violence in Mexico that has ensued as part of the drug trade is a consequence of the culture, geographic location, and history of Mexico. Mexican drug cartels have proven to be indiscriminate in their acts of violence. The only rationale which experts have been able to discern is that these acts of violence aim to make a statement, to inflict collateral damage.<ref name=Williams> | |||
=== Escalation of Violence === | |||
The violence in Mexico has escalated at alarming rates in recent years. Between December 2006 and July 2010 an estimated 28,000 people were killed in drug-trafficking related violence.<ref name=Seelke> | |||
In response to the Mexican government’s attempts at interdiction, drug cartels have enacted more violence. This violence serves to assert the DTOs’ power and express their refusal to accede to laws, regulations, and norms. This has caused major setbacks for the government and its efforts to combat the Mexican Drug War. | |||
== US Involvement in Mexican Drug Trade == | |||
The violence in Mexico has many roots in the United States. These sources include the weapons utilized in the violence, the personnel who make up the criminal organizations, and the practice of money laundering. | |||
=== Arms === | |||
A significant number of weapons used in the conflicts in Mexico originate in the United States.<ref name=Williams> These weapons travel to Mexico through the [[illegal arms trade]]. Illicit arms trafficking from the United States to Mexico has been made easier by the formation of trade blocs between Mexico, the United States, and Canada. One example of this is the 1994 [[North Atlantic Free Trade Agreement]] (NAFTA). | |||
=== Military Personnel === | |||
A great proportion of the men involved in the Mexican drug cartels are experienced in violence and crime. An estimated one in three drug traffickers in Mexico has received military training or has military experience. Many of these men were trained in the United States.<ref name=Williams> | |||
=== Money Laundering === | |||
== Shared Mexican-US Agenda == | |||
=== Immigration === | |||
=== Border Control === | |||
=== Human Rights === | |||
== Governmental Responses to Mexican Drug War == | |||
=== Felipe Calderón === | |||
Current Mexican President [[Felipe Calderón]] has taken many actions towards curbing the Mexican drug trade. Calderón has implemented prevention programs that emphasize providing treatment and care to drug addicts. He views drug users as victims rather than at fault for the drug trade. He aims to end the drug trade by reducing Mexican citizens’ dependence on illicit drugs, in turn decreasing the demand for illicit drugs.<ref>Boddiger, D. (2010). "Mexico eager to reduce demand for illicit drugs." Lancet 375(9708): 15-16.</ref> | |||
President Calderón has also initiated many education programs aimed at school-age children to combat drug temptation with education. Studies have shown that youth between the ages of twelve and seventeen are the most likely to experiment with drugs. The aim of Calderón’s education programs is to inform this vulnerable population and deter them from subsuming to drugs.<ref name=Boddiger> | |||
=== Bilateral Action by Mexico and the United States === | |||
==== War on Drugs ==== | |||
Former Mexican President Luis Echeverría and American President Richard Nixon in 1972 declared a War on Drugs, a campaign to end drug use and the trade that fuels it. | |||
==== Mérida Initiative ==== | |||
The Mérida Initiative is a bilateral agreement established by American President [[Barack Obama]] and Mexican President Felipe Calderón. The Mérida Initiative encompasses allocation of American funds to Mexico and nearby susceptible areas such as Central America, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic. | |||
Components of the Mérida Initiative include:<ref>"The Mérida Initiative." U.S. Department of State. Web. 08 Oct. 2010. <http://www.state.gov/p/inl/rls/fs/122397.htm>.</ref> | |||
* Equipment for inspection and surveillance | |||
* Canines to “interdict trafficked drugs, arms, cash, and persons” | |||
* Funds to bolster technology aimed to “improve and secure communications systems that collect criminal information” | |||
* US “technical advice and training” in order to strengthen a new police force | |||
* Witness protection programs for Mexico | |||
* Corresponding software and supplemental technologies | |||
* Aircrafts for the purpose of detection and quick response time of law enforcement agencies | |||
* “Equipment, training, and community action programs” to educate and deter gang membership while thwarting current gang actions | |||
=== Significance of the Merida Initiative === | |||
Symbolically, this initiative represents shared responsibility and cooperation between Mexico and the United States, a key factor in progressing towards ending the Mexican Drug War. | |||
==References== | |||
<references/> | |||
Revision as of 22:58, 7 November 2010
The Mexican Drug War is an ongoing conflict between criminal groups that operate within the Mexican drug trade. These groups are commonly referred to as drug cartels or drug trafficking organizations (DTOs).[1] Rival drug cartels fight over control of “areas of influence,”[2] strategic strongholds for the drug business. The majority of these areas are pockets along the 200-mile long Mexican border with the United States.
Origins
The drugs that circulate through Mexico originate from the south, primarily from the South American countries of Colombia, Venezuela, and Brazil.Cite error: Closing </ref> missing for <ref> tag Just as cartels are established along familial lines, they fight as familial units against other cartels that threaten their hold on drug routes and markets.
Gang Consumption of Illicit Drugs
Effects on Mexican Population
The effects of the Mexican Drug War have increased in scale in recent years. The violence has escalated from affecting innocent civilians to whole towns. Some communities have experienced systematic occupation by drug cartels, whom have taken over such institutions as public offices and police departments.Cite error: Closing </ref> missing for <ref> tag
President Calderón has also initiated many education programs aimed at school-age children to combat drug temptation with education. Studies have shown that youth between the ages of twelve and seventeen are the most likely to experiment with drugs. The aim of Calderón’s education programs is to inform this vulnerable population and deter them from subsuming to drugs.Cite error: Closing </ref> missing for <ref> tag
- Equipment for inspection and surveillance
- Canines to “interdict trafficked drugs, arms, cash, and persons”
- Funds to bolster technology aimed to “improve and secure communications systems that collect criminal information”
- US “technical advice and training” in order to strengthen a new police force
- Witness protection programs for Mexico
- Corresponding software and supplemental technologies
- Aircrafts for the purpose of detection and quick response time of law enforcement agencies
- “Equipment, training, and community action programs” to educate and deter gang membership while thwarting current gang actions
Significance of the Merida Initiative
Symbolically, this initiative represents shared responsibility and cooperation between Mexico and the United States, a key factor in progressing towards ending the Mexican Drug War.