Mexico's high expectations of peace
Despite a reputation as a violence-racked country, Mexico has seen the level of homicides and organized crime drop by more than a quarter since 2011. The decline shows that the effort to break up big drug cartels is working. Good news, si? Then why are Mexicans still so worried about violent crime?
A new study that looks at the 鈥渄ynamics of peace鈥� in Mexico 鈥� rather than focusing merely on violence 鈥� provides a clue.
Conducted by the Institute for Economics and Peace, the study used 24 indicators, such as what people expect of government, to rank Mexico in its potential to bring about 鈥減ositive peace.鈥� It turns out Mexico has a high 鈥減eace surplus鈥� compared with countries such as South Africa, Colombia, and Israel.
鈥淢exico can become more peaceful based on the strength and quality of its institutions, which are ranked much higher than Mexico鈥檚 actual level of peace,鈥� finds the study. 鈥淢exico continues to make the international headlines for its violence. However, there is reason for hope.鈥�
In other words, Mexicans are still concerned about crime levels because they also have high expectations that their institutions can improve the peace. This may be caused in part because they perceive the drug wars as temporary and driven by foreign demand for drugs.
The study鈥檚 approach to measuring peace as a positive force, rather than as the mere absence of violence, is relatively new. Yet it can help governments see law enforcement less as a means of merely preventing crime and more as the expression of values such as honest governance, acceptance of the rights of others, and free flow of information .
Mexico can certainly benefit from this approach. The study estimates that violence still reduces its economic output by 17 percent. While homicides and drug-fueled violence are down, economic crimes such as kidnapping and extortion are up. Last year鈥檚 disappearance of 43 students in Iguala in southern Mexico has led to outrage against President Enrique Pe帽a Nieto鈥檚 government.
The study supports work by others that forecast less violence in Mexico as recent political reforms kick in, such as changes to the state oil company and in labor laws. Violence levels are now returning to the levels seen before the war on drug cartels began a decade ago. Mexicans expect more of their leaders, and the results are starting to show.
