Homicides Drop in Mexico but Remain at Intolerable Level

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Intentional homicides in Mexico between October and November of this year fell 9.3 percent, the lowest in the current administration, but they remain at an intolerable level, the government admitted.

President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador dedicated the first part of his morning press conference to this issue, which always comes under scrutiny on the last Friday of each month.

Femicides increased from 79 cases in October to 85 in November, as did domestic violence, which grew by 4.4 percent.

The report was provided by the new Secretary of Citizen Security, Ricardo Mejia, who reported that 52 percent of homicides are concentrated in six of the states, and qualify as the most violent in the country: Guanajuato, Baja California, State of Mexico, Chihuahua, Jalisco and Michoacan.

The figures for Guanajuato dropped slightly in November with 369 murders versus 383 in the previous month. Such events are concentrated in seven municipalities of the more than 2,400 that the country has and, in general, the highest number of intentional homicides are concentrated in 15 of these.

Mejia announced that a specific program is being developed for these municipalities, within a comprehensive strategy to reduce homicides, with the support of municipalities, regularization of illegal commercial activities, rehabilitation centers for drug addicts, increased patrols, combating drug dealing and strengthening of intelligence actions and police training.

The security cabinet will give the program permanent follow-up in those 15 municipalities, which will hold meetings chaired by Lopez Obrador himself.