Mexico’s Struggle for Public Security (original) (raw)

Mexico: the security challenge

2006

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Understanding Mexico’s Security Conundrum

Understanding Mexico’s Security Conundrum, 2020

Unlike other analyses which aim to explain the notion of national security in Mexico and at the same time address the security challenges facing the country, this short text describes the distinction between national, internal and public security in Mexico. It is the first book to provide detailed analysis on Mexico's security policy and its long-term consequences. Mexican scholar and practitioner Augustin Maciel-Padilla contends that the absence of a clear understanding of the complexities and sophistication of the concept of national security has the potential to aggravate security conditions in Mexico. Achieving a proper understanding allows for a better guidance in confronting the grave insecurity facing the country, and for addressing other issues such as human rights, democracy and the country's international exposure. Maciel-Padilla reasons that Mexico is required to formulate a comprehensive, long-term, security strategy, and with this book he proposes a contribution towards that long-term goal. Understanding Mexico's Security Conundrum will be essential for scholars, students and policy makers.

The_mexican_path_to_a_reform_of_the_national_public_security_2016.pdf

This paper looks at the complicated situation that mexico has been facing since the beginning of the national public security system reform process in 2006. Th e decision to reform mexican security institutions had been delayed. when the country decided to face up to this challenge, both organized crime and the structural failings of the security agencies forced the government to take on a double challenge: to recover ungovernable territories infiltrated by organized crime – for which the state will need to fall back on the armed forces, and to fully restructure the national public security system. This paper shows that the argument that mexico doesn’t invest enough resources in public security is not in line with reality, but rather that precisely federal and municipal entities have invested the most. This argument that is in stark contrast to the scarce results that are to be seen forces society to take a concerned look at the destination and use of public resources and highlights the importance of the debate on the police «single command» in mexican federal entities.

Mexico's National Security Paradoxes and Threats in a Geopolitical Context

Politics & Policy, 2019

This article examines Mexico's national security paradoxes and threats in a geopolitical context from a politico-historical perspective into a contemporary setting. It argues that, despite Mexico's nascent democratic transition, none of the various elite groups in power have been able to conceive a broad, democratic security doctrine. On the contrary, realpolitik and regime security form the tradition and true nature of the national security permeating the political system. There are serious doubts that Mexico's next president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, will change this historical legacy. Despite the widespread desire for change, corruption and impunity are more prevalent than ever, setting the stage for conflict with the United States-the world's biggest drug consumer and the primary vendor of weaponry to Mexico's criminal organizations. This situation is exacerbated by Mexico's interdependence and shared geopolitics with its northern neighbor. The combination of these internal and external factors places Mexico's future in question.

Mexico's Fight against Transnational Organized Crime

This work examines the security challenges facing Mexico, and analyzes the structures, capabilities and initiatives of the Mexican government to respond, with a focus on the Mexican Army, Navy and National Police.

Mexico's Insecurity in North America

hsaj.org

This paper will argue first that Mexico's incapacity to develop a coherent national and regional security framework has paralleled Mexico's inability to undergo a reformation of the Mexican State, and with it, of national security reform. Second, rather than true democratic ...

The Rise of Mexican DTOs - Militarization of Mexicos Police And Loss of Civil Liberties (2011)

This paper will be divided into three sections. The first will focus on the past and present of Mexico. It will begin with a brief discussion on social contract theory, to give the reader a more nuanced understanding of how a government is democratically formed and operated. It will also illuminate the reasons why it could be permissible to respond to Drug Trafficking Organizations (DTOs) with military force. The history of Mexico is divided into colonial history and post colonial history. Within the post colonial history there are two case studies where civil and military forces reached bloody conflict: the massacres at Tlatelolco and Aguas Blancas. Finally, there will be a discussion of Mexico's somewhat peaceful transition to democracy at the end of the 20th century, and what has happened since the year 2000. This will include a very brief analysis of the impacts of the People's Revolutionary Army (EPR), the Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN), kidnappers, and government corruption.

Caught in the Security Middle: Mexico between the Americas

Over the past two decades, a multitude of solidarity pacts and economic blocs have been created in Latin America aiming to overcome the region's history of socio-political insecurity and address the challenges of globalization, but none have successfully implemented a supranational security framework. Zealously guarding their sovereignty, the governments of Latin American states have preferred temporary and ad hoc solutions for their regional security agenda, including intergovernmental committees, presidential meetings, and protocol-building workshops. 1 The rapid growth of the Pacific Alliance (PA)-which in its first year has already surpassed the economic output of Mercosur and successfully eliminated 90% of tariffs between its member states-raises two spheres of concern for security governance in Latin America. 2 Firstly, there is a growing ideological rift between the socialist-statist countries of Mercosur and ALBA, and the pro-neoliberal countries of the PA. This rift has contributed to political animosity and even sparked military confrontations between members of the two camps-the most recent incident being the Andean diplomatic crisis of 2008. Secondly, through the processes of economic integration and the liberalization of trade, the member states of the PA are increasingly exposed to transnational threats such as drug trafficking, human trafficking, and terrorism, and thereby risk exacerbating their domestic socio-economic problems. These issues must be addressed collectively and multilaterally in order for the PA to realize its vision of a seamless supply chain, and to ensure both the perception and reality of security for its member states' citizens, businesses, and foreign investors.