Mexico today is helplessly caught up in an unending cycle of violence and vendetta let loose by the deadly drug mafia which seems to have an unusual reservoir of men, money and material to carry on with their activities, unhindered. They have resolutely continued with these activities despite a relentless war against them by the government of President Felipe Calderon. It is estimated that over 50,000 people have been killed in the last 5 years since Calderon took over as president and began using the armed forces to combat the powerful drug mafia (Tovorov, “Mexico’s Drug War Hurting Tourism” 20 January 2012).
The scale and intensity of the violence unleashed by the ruthless drug barons has already begun affecting Mexico’s reputation as one of best holiday destinations in the Americas. The mafia is never known to be respectful toward the dead, especially those who become their victims. One of the many objectives of the killings they carry out and the way they do it, is to create a stunning and lasting impact on those who are unfortunate enough to witness their macabre handiwork. For well meaning tourists, out to relax in many of the spectacular holiday destinations of Mexico, nothing could be more jarring than to come across a dead body hacked into pieces or hanging from a street light post.
There is no doubt that the criminals running the drug cartels are responsible for the bloodletting that has thrown normal life out of gear in Mexico. However, there are a number of other critical factors that contributed to the worsening situation in this country. Any rational analysis of the situation in Mexico would suggest that with corruption within the government running as deeply as it does, efforts to counter the cartels will continue to be severely compromised till corrective action is taken to clean up the system.
Besides, it is generally accepted that the United States has a very big stake in the evolving situation in Mexico. On the one hand, it is the massive US market for illicit drugs and on the other, it is the easy availability of lethal weapons in the US that the cartels are after. On both counts US society and government is in the midst of a raging debate about the likely policy the country must adopt.
Easy availability of US-made lethal weapons
One of the main reasons that have been attributed to the alarming rise in drug related violence in streets across cities in Mexico is the ease with which the cartels acquire lethal US made weapons. Two factors are found to be mainly responsible for making lethal arms like assault guns, easily available to the drug cartels in Mexico. First, after the federal ban on assault weapons in the US, lapsed in 2004 (Birney, S, “Stop Guns to Stop Violence in Mexico Drug War” 25 May 2012), there was no renewal of the ban thus far. Consequently, these lethal weapons continue to be available across the US as easily as any other gadget. The Mexican drug cartels have taken full advantage of this and acquired the arms in large quantities.
The other factor that has contributed to the easy availability of lethal weapons for the drug cartels in Mexico is the US arms assistance to the Mexican government. This arrangement allows US arms manufacturers to sell weapons to Mexican security forces legally and as easily-sold merchandize over-the-counter. With military corruption running deep in Mexico, over 25% of the arms and ammunitions sold to the Mexican authorities end up with the cartels (Birney, 25 May 2012).
US policy on firearms production, supply and licensing has long been an issue of national importance with increasing sections of the society demanding stricter gun control laws. However, opponents of the ban on the supply and sale of lethal assault weapons still enjoy considerable support which was good enough to thwart any moves to reintroduce the ban. After the Mexican armed forces officially procure these lethal weapons the corrupt elements of the army that are in the payroll of drug cartels, merely have to haul the merchandize over to the other side.
The long recession has changed priorities in the US with the Obama administration setting focus on increasing manufacturing capability to eventually increase exports. As the world’s leading producer and exporter of weapon systems, the defense equipment manufacturers naturally took full advantage of the administration’s policy initiative. The resultant increase in production of lethal assault weapons among other things, with a ready market in Mexico, led to the proliferation of these weapons like never before. The problem in Mexico got complicated when huge quantities of these weapons supplies were smuggled out from the armory of their intended users to the cartels.
Widespread corruption in the military
When President Calderon declared war on the drug cartels, he ordered the army, which is one of the country’s most respected institutions after the Roman Catholic Church, to lead the battle against the drug cartels. However, it wasn’t long before the embattled nation discovered that corruption ran very deep into the heart of their beloved army. There have been instances when sections of the army were found escorting drug consignments and even attacking honest police officers at the forefront of the government’s war against drug cartels.
The other dangerous outcome of influential sections of the military colluding with the cartels has been illegal arms trade and gun running. As per provisions of US-Mexican cooperation in the war against drugs, large consignments of lethal weapons including assault guns are supplied to the Mexican army by the US manufacturers under government supervision. Over a fourth of these lethal weapons ended up with the cartels resulting in most of the deaths caused in this unending cycle of violence (Birney, 25 May 2012).
High demand for drugs in the US
Perhaps the root cause of all the drug related violence in drug producing countries like Mexico as well as other transit countries is the abnormally high demand for illegal drugs in the US. There are over 22 million confirmed drug addicts in the US (Cooper, A. “Study: 22 Million Americans use Drugs” 08 Sep 2011) which is almost one in every ten individuals in that country. Considering the high price of such illegal drugs in the US market, it is just too lucrative for the cartels to not try and get a slice of the pie. As in any contraband supply chain, unscrupulous criminals take over, stopping at nothing to get their share, resulting in the bloodbath that is prevalent in Mexico today.
This has led to demands for legalization of drugs by large sections of US citizenry, which in turn, triggered a major debate on the issue. Right now, US society is divided between those who want the use of such drugs legalized and those who want stricter control to contain the proliferation of these drugs. There are also voices that cite the bloodshed in Mexico as an immediate reason for the war against drugs to be intensified. The US government appreciates the problem and has been assuring concerned citizens that they will do all they can to help. In the meantime the debate on legalization of drug use in the US rages on while the lethal US made guns are used by the cartels to kill scores of innocent people every day in Mexico.
Implications of drug-related violence on the Mexican economy
Although economic growth in Mexico did not get seriously affected by the war against drugs, the cycle of corruption and crime that results from drugs, can prove to be a dangerous precedent for the country. About two-thirds of the municipalities across Mexico are affected by organized crime (Miller, S, Brodzinsky, S, “Halting Drug War Corruption: What Mexico can Learn from Colombia,” 12 Jan. 2010) including drug peddling and smuggling along with a host of other unlawful activities like illegal flesh trade rackets among others.
The sheer volume of money that drug trade generates for the cartels is good enough for them to diversify into other forms of criminal activities. Therefore, drug trade is their ‘flagship business’ supporting all other activities they get involved in. As long as the drug dealers are confined to the shady world of organized crime, it is at least possible for the authorities to identify them on the fringe of society.
The problem arises when the cash surplus with the cartels reaches a level where they seriously begin to consider diversifying into ‘legal’ forms of business such as manufacturing and the services. That was what had happened in Colombia with devastating consequences for the country before a combination of sound strategy, serious policies and courageous counter attack gave the upper hand to the government there.
Can Mexico learn from Colombia’s experience?
In any war against organized crime, especially when the rackets to be dealt with, are sustained by illegal drug trade, the main strategy of the authorities should be to decimate the economic structure the crime syndicates operate in. Mere brute force is unlikely to yield results as it requires a multi-pronged approach to deal with a problem of such magnitude and diversity.
The government in Colombia had realized this and went about systematically destroying the economic structure that sustained organized crime (Miller, S, Brodzinsky, S, Para. 8, 12 Jan. 2010). Thus far, the government of President Calderon in Mexico hasn’t been able to convince observers that it is serious about making policy changes that will help the government win the war against the drug cartels.
Despite the similarities with Colombia, it is understandable that Mexico would most certainly have her own set of difficulties to deal with. Reginaldo Sandoval, leader of the Mexican Labor Party, quotes a popular perception of the comparative situations in his country and Colombia – “in Colombia, drug traffickers want to become politicians; in Mexico, politicians want to become drug traffickers” (Miller, S, Brodzinsky, S, Para. 22, 12 Jan. 2010).
Either way, when law breakers become law makers, organized crime gets embedded into the body politic of a nation. In Mexico, it is still not as widespread as it was in Colombia during the heydays of the cartels there. However, this is no consolation for the government of the day in Mexico and the sooner they get their policies and strategies right, the better off they will be in their war against the drug cartels.
US domestic policy shift on drug use and arms sales will be a critical factor
Not just Mexico, but a number of countries across Latin America, that are affected by drug related organized crime, are eagerly awaiting to see some path-breaking US legislation that will positively impact their efforts at containing the illegal drug business. After a series of indiscriminate shooting sprees in cities across the US along with distressing news of innocent deaths from Mexico next door, the debate has reached a point where US policy makers cannot delay it any longer. The violence could well spread into the US.
An increasingly large number of Americans feel that the best way to deal with illegal drug use is to decriminalize it in the same way the ban on liquor was lifted in the early 20th century (Druglibrary.org). They say that if drug use is legalized under well designed regulations, it would not just bring prices down and take the profits away from the cartels but will also earn the government a substantial amount in tax revenues. When drug prices stabilize far below the level where the cartels find it worthwhile to deal in, the violence surrounding the business will fizzle out. Gun ownership has historically been a very big issue in the US and a very large number of gun owners still don’t think it is more important to control guns than to own them. Their voice is backed by the NRA (National Rifles Association) which has stamped out all talk of stricter gun control till now (Cohen, Tom. 26 Jul 2012).
All the shooting sprees across the US, killing scores, have not affected the NRA’s position one bit. Under the circumstances, it is difficult to visualize the kind of understanding the NRA would show with respect to over 50,000 deaths in Mexico where almost 70% of the guns used by the killers were sourced from the US (Ross, Janell. “Mexico Ambassador Arturo Sarukhan Says U.S. Fuel Violence, Denies Mexico is infringing upon Gun Rights” 01 Jun. 2012). One of their arguments is that it is not so much about stricter gun control as it is about preventing these weapons from ending up in the hands of criminals.
1. Tovrov, Daniel. “Mexico’s Drug War Hurting Tourism” International Business Times. 20 Jan. 2012. Web. 07 Nov. 2012. <http://www.ibtimes.com/mexicos-drug-war-hurting-tourism-213786>
2. Birney, Spencer. “Stop Guns to Stop Violence in Mexico Drug War” The News. 25 May 2012. Web. 07 Nov. 2012. < http://thenews.choate.edu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1396:stop-guns-to-stop-violence-in-mexico-drug-war&catid=4:nationworld&Itemid=3>
3. Cooper, Aaron. “Study: 22 Million Americans use Drugs” CNN Health. 08 Sep. 2012. Web. 08 Nov. 2012. < http://thechart.blogs.cnn.com/2011/09/08/study-22-million-americans-use-illegal-drugs-3/>
4. Ross, Janell. “Halting drug war corruption: What Mexico can learn from Colombia” The Christian Science Monitor. 12 Jan. 2010. Web. 08 Nov. 2012. < http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Americas/2010/0112/Halting-drug-war-corruption-What-Mexico-can-learn-from-Colombia>
5. Druglibrary.org. History of Alcohol Prohibition. Web. 10 Nov. 2010. < http://www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/library/studies/nc/nc2a.htm>
6. Cohen, Tom. “Candidates show little appetite for new gun control laws” CNN.com 26 Jul. 2012. Web. 10 Nov. 2012. < http://edition.cnn.com/2012/07/26/politics/gun-control-debate/index.html>
7. Ross, Janell. “Mexico Ambassador Arturo Sarukhan Says U.S. Fuel Violence, Denies Mexico is infringing upon Gun Rights” Huffington Post Latino Voices 01 Jun. 2012. Web. 10 Nov. 2012.< http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/06/01/mexico-guns-arturo-sarukhan-us-weapons-mexico-violence-gun-rights_n_1563250.html>
The scale and intensity of the violence unleashed by the ruthless drug barons has already begun affecting Mexico’s reputation as one of best holiday destinations in the Americas. The mafia is never known to be respectful toward the dead, especially those who become their victims. One of the many objectives of the killings they carry out and the way they do it, is to create a stunning and lasting impact on those who are unfortunate enough to witness their macabre handiwork. For well meaning tourists, out to relax in many of the spectacular holiday destinations of Mexico, nothing could be more jarring than to come across a dead body hacked into pieces or hanging from a street light post.
There is no doubt that the criminals running the drug cartels are responsible for the bloodletting that has thrown normal life out of gear in Mexico. However, there are a number of other critical factors that contributed to the worsening situation in this country. Any rational analysis of the situation in Mexico would suggest that with corruption within the government running as deeply as it does, efforts to counter the cartels will continue to be severely compromised till corrective action is taken to clean up the system.
Besides, it is generally accepted that the United States has a very big stake in the evolving situation in Mexico. On the one hand, it is the massive US market for illicit drugs and on the other, it is the easy availability of lethal weapons in the US that the cartels are after. On both counts US society and government is in the midst of a raging debate about the likely policy the country must adopt.
Easy availability of US-made lethal weapons
One of the main reasons that have been attributed to the alarming rise in drug related violence in streets across cities in Mexico is the ease with which the cartels acquire lethal US made weapons. Two factors are found to be mainly responsible for making lethal arms like assault guns, easily available to the drug cartels in Mexico. First, after the federal ban on assault weapons in the US, lapsed in 2004 (Birney, S, “Stop Guns to Stop Violence in Mexico Drug War” 25 May 2012), there was no renewal of the ban thus far. Consequently, these lethal weapons continue to be available across the US as easily as any other gadget. The Mexican drug cartels have taken full advantage of this and acquired the arms in large quantities.
The other factor that has contributed to the easy availability of lethal weapons for the drug cartels in Mexico is the US arms assistance to the Mexican government. This arrangement allows US arms manufacturers to sell weapons to Mexican security forces legally and as easily-sold merchandize over-the-counter. With military corruption running deep in Mexico, over 25% of the arms and ammunitions sold to the Mexican authorities end up with the cartels (Birney, 25 May 2012).
US policy on firearms production, supply and licensing has long been an issue of national importance with increasing sections of the society demanding stricter gun control laws. However, opponents of the ban on the supply and sale of lethal assault weapons still enjoy considerable support which was good enough to thwart any moves to reintroduce the ban. After the Mexican armed forces officially procure these lethal weapons the corrupt elements of the army that are in the payroll of drug cartels, merely have to haul the merchandize over to the other side.
The long recession has changed priorities in the US with the Obama administration setting focus on increasing manufacturing capability to eventually increase exports. As the world’s leading producer and exporter of weapon systems, the defense equipment manufacturers naturally took full advantage of the administration’s policy initiative. The resultant increase in production of lethal assault weapons among other things, with a ready market in Mexico, led to the proliferation of these weapons like never before. The problem in Mexico got complicated when huge quantities of these weapons supplies were smuggled out from the armory of their intended users to the cartels.
Widespread corruption in the military
When President Calderon declared war on the drug cartels, he ordered the army, which is one of the country’s most respected institutions after the Roman Catholic Church, to lead the battle against the drug cartels. However, it wasn’t long before the embattled nation discovered that corruption ran very deep into the heart of their beloved army. There have been instances when sections of the army were found escorting drug consignments and even attacking honest police officers at the forefront of the government’s war against drug cartels.
The other dangerous outcome of influential sections of the military colluding with the cartels has been illegal arms trade and gun running. As per provisions of US-Mexican cooperation in the war against drugs, large consignments of lethal weapons including assault guns are supplied to the Mexican army by the US manufacturers under government supervision. Over a fourth of these lethal weapons ended up with the cartels resulting in most of the deaths caused in this unending cycle of violence (Birney, 25 May 2012).
High demand for drugs in the US
Perhaps the root cause of all the drug related violence in drug producing countries like Mexico as well as other transit countries is the abnormally high demand for illegal drugs in the US. There are over 22 million confirmed drug addicts in the US (Cooper, A. “Study: 22 Million Americans use Drugs” 08 Sep 2011) which is almost one in every ten individuals in that country. Considering the high price of such illegal drugs in the US market, it is just too lucrative for the cartels to not try and get a slice of the pie. As in any contraband supply chain, unscrupulous criminals take over, stopping at nothing to get their share, resulting in the bloodbath that is prevalent in Mexico today.
This has led to demands for legalization of drugs by large sections of US citizenry, which in turn, triggered a major debate on the issue. Right now, US society is divided between those who want the use of such drugs legalized and those who want stricter control to contain the proliferation of these drugs. There are also voices that cite the bloodshed in Mexico as an immediate reason for the war against drugs to be intensified. The US government appreciates the problem and has been assuring concerned citizens that they will do all they can to help. In the meantime the debate on legalization of drug use in the US rages on while the lethal US made guns are used by the cartels to kill scores of innocent people every day in Mexico.
Implications of drug-related violence on the Mexican economy
Although economic growth in Mexico did not get seriously affected by the war against drugs, the cycle of corruption and crime that results from drugs, can prove to be a dangerous precedent for the country. About two-thirds of the municipalities across Mexico are affected by organized crime (Miller, S, Brodzinsky, S, “Halting Drug War Corruption: What Mexico can Learn from Colombia,” 12 Jan. 2010) including drug peddling and smuggling along with a host of other unlawful activities like illegal flesh trade rackets among others.
The sheer volume of money that drug trade generates for the cartels is good enough for them to diversify into other forms of criminal activities. Therefore, drug trade is their ‘flagship business’ supporting all other activities they get involved in. As long as the drug dealers are confined to the shady world of organized crime, it is at least possible for the authorities to identify them on the fringe of society.
The problem arises when the cash surplus with the cartels reaches a level where they seriously begin to consider diversifying into ‘legal’ forms of business such as manufacturing and the services. That was what had happened in Colombia with devastating consequences for the country before a combination of sound strategy, serious policies and courageous counter attack gave the upper hand to the government there.
Can Mexico learn from Colombia’s experience?
In any war against organized crime, especially when the rackets to be dealt with, are sustained by illegal drug trade, the main strategy of the authorities should be to decimate the economic structure the crime syndicates operate in. Mere brute force is unlikely to yield results as it requires a multi-pronged approach to deal with a problem of such magnitude and diversity.
The government in Colombia had realized this and went about systematically destroying the economic structure that sustained organized crime (Miller, S, Brodzinsky, S, Para. 8, 12 Jan. 2010). Thus far, the government of President Calderon in Mexico hasn’t been able to convince observers that it is serious about making policy changes that will help the government win the war against the drug cartels.
Despite the similarities with Colombia, it is understandable that Mexico would most certainly have her own set of difficulties to deal with. Reginaldo Sandoval, leader of the Mexican Labor Party, quotes a popular perception of the comparative situations in his country and Colombia – “in Colombia, drug traffickers want to become politicians; in Mexico, politicians want to become drug traffickers” (Miller, S, Brodzinsky, S, Para. 22, 12 Jan. 2010).
Either way, when law breakers become law makers, organized crime gets embedded into the body politic of a nation. In Mexico, it is still not as widespread as it was in Colombia during the heydays of the cartels there. However, this is no consolation for the government of the day in Mexico and the sooner they get their policies and strategies right, the better off they will be in their war against the drug cartels.
US domestic policy shift on drug use and arms sales will be a critical factor
Not just Mexico, but a number of countries across Latin America, that are affected by drug related organized crime, are eagerly awaiting to see some path-breaking US legislation that will positively impact their efforts at containing the illegal drug business. After a series of indiscriminate shooting sprees in cities across the US along with distressing news of innocent deaths from Mexico next door, the debate has reached a point where US policy makers cannot delay it any longer. The violence could well spread into the US.
An increasingly large number of Americans feel that the best way to deal with illegal drug use is to decriminalize it in the same way the ban on liquor was lifted in the early 20th century (Druglibrary.org). They say that if drug use is legalized under well designed regulations, it would not just bring prices down and take the profits away from the cartels but will also earn the government a substantial amount in tax revenues. When drug prices stabilize far below the level where the cartels find it worthwhile to deal in, the violence surrounding the business will fizzle out. Gun ownership has historically been a very big issue in the US and a very large number of gun owners still don’t think it is more important to control guns than to own them. Their voice is backed by the NRA (National Rifles Association) which has stamped out all talk of stricter gun control till now (Cohen, Tom. 26 Jul 2012).
All the shooting sprees across the US, killing scores, have not affected the NRA’s position one bit. Under the circumstances, it is difficult to visualize the kind of understanding the NRA would show with respect to over 50,000 deaths in Mexico where almost 70% of the guns used by the killers were sourced from the US (Ross, Janell. “Mexico Ambassador Arturo Sarukhan Says U.S. Fuel Violence, Denies Mexico is infringing upon Gun Rights” 01 Jun. 2012). One of their arguments is that it is not so much about stricter gun control as it is about preventing these weapons from ending up in the hands of criminals.
References
1. Tovrov, Daniel. “Mexico’s Drug War Hurting Tourism” International Business Times. 20 Jan. 2012. Web. 07 Nov. 2012. <http://www.ibtimes.com/mexicos-drug-war-hurting-tourism-213786>
2. Birney, Spencer. “Stop Guns to Stop Violence in Mexico Drug War” The News. 25 May 2012. Web. 07 Nov. 2012. < http://thenews.choate.edu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1396:stop-guns-to-stop-violence-in-mexico-drug-war&catid=4:nationworld&Itemid=3>
3. Cooper, Aaron. “Study: 22 Million Americans use Drugs” CNN Health. 08 Sep. 2012. Web. 08 Nov. 2012. < http://thechart.blogs.cnn.com/2011/09/08/study-22-million-americans-use-illegal-drugs-3/>
4. Ross, Janell. “Halting drug war corruption: What Mexico can learn from Colombia” The Christian Science Monitor. 12 Jan. 2010. Web. 08 Nov. 2012. < http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Americas/2010/0112/Halting-drug-war-corruption-What-Mexico-can-learn-from-Colombia>
5. Druglibrary.org. History of Alcohol Prohibition. Web. 10 Nov. 2010. < http://www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/library/studies/nc/nc2a.htm>
6. Cohen, Tom. “Candidates show little appetite for new gun control laws” CNN.com 26 Jul. 2012. Web. 10 Nov. 2012. < http://edition.cnn.com/2012/07/26/politics/gun-control-debate/index.html>
7. Ross, Janell. “Mexico Ambassador Arturo Sarukhan Says U.S. Fuel Violence, Denies Mexico is infringing upon Gun Rights” Huffington Post Latino Voices 01 Jun. 2012. Web. 10 Nov. 2012.< http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/06/01/mexico-guns-arturo-sarukhan-us-weapons-mexico-violence-gun-rights_n_1563250.html>
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