New Plan for Ciudad Juarez

The article A "dying" city protests from The Economist this past week talks about Mexico's war on drugs and what actions the president has taken to improve the situation.

On February 11th president Felipe Calderon went to the crime infested Ciudad Juarez for a public safety meeting. Ciudad Juarez is Mexico's 5th largest city and is " the world's deadliest city outside a war zone." Mr. Calderon did not get a very warm welcome in Juarez because of the continued rate of violence in the city after three years of the president saying he was combating the drug gangs, and because of the lack of efficiency of the troops sent to stop the violence and murders. The president visited the city again on the 17th seeking to "make amends" for calling the 18 teenagers who were recently murdered at a party "gangsters". This second visit is important because, "although polls showed initial skepticism towards his plan and his visit, on his second trip his talks with community groups suggested broad agreement on the new strategy."

The President's new "emergency plan" calls for an increase of police along with social and economic reforms which are necessary to diminish the power of the drug gangs in the community. These reforms include "investment in health, education, child care and sports facilities." The recession has left many people out of work and out of school, they don't have many alternatives to joining the gangs which is a major problem the president is trying to face in his new plan. New schools, more hospitals, more parks and more cultural facilities need to be built to help Ciudad Juarez grow away from the drug gangs.

Ciudad Juarez's police has been seen as corrupt, and police lines were recently tapped, giving the drug gangs dangerous information. Also, the troops that were sent to the city are not liked by the citizens because of the many illegal searches and overall lack of good they have done. Hopefully much of this will change after these new plans are put in place and real reform will be seen in Ciudad Juarez.

This article is important for Comparativists to look at because it shows public policy in Mexico and it will be important to see how these policies are enacted and how effective they are. This is also important because of the large impact this war on drugs has on the lives of people living in Mexico, and these new reforms could mean a more prominent and active civil society in Ciudad Juarez and Northern Mexico.