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In Mexico, Drop In Life Expectancy Linked To Drug Cartel Violence

A Mexican soldier is standing before a vehicle in which two men were executed by drug cartel members in Sinaloa, Mexico, 2012.
A Mexican soldier is standing before a vehicle in which two men were executed by drug cartel members in Sinaloa, Mexico, 2012.
Alidad Vassigh

MEXICO CITY — Crime in Mexico related to gangs and drug cartels is believed to have shortened the lifespan of the country's residents, according to a new study.

The National Police report has found that life expectancy fell by one to six months in the five-year period beginning in 2005, as a veritable war began between the government and drug traffickers, Milenio newspaper reported this week. The report also found that life expectancy dropped six months to one year in 10 of the country's 32 states that are most affected by gang-related violence.

Violence in Mexico rose sharply from 2006 after the conservative president Felipe Calderón declared war on the cartels.

Though the report did not clarify whether crime had continued to cut life expectancy in the subsequent 10 years, the World Bank put life expectancy in Mexico at just over 75 years in 2019, confirming a decline from 75.3 years in 2005. The figure was just under 78 for the United States. In Colombia, another country that has grappled with crime, life expectancy rose steadily from 74 to 77 years between 2005 and 2019.

Mexico_explosion_drug

800 kilos of cocaine being incarcerated at a naval base in Yucatan, Mexico, in June 2009. — Photo: David de la Paz/ZUMA

Milenio cited a poll by Inegi, the national statistics office, that found that 40% of all Mexicans could hear "frequent gunfire" in their locality in late 2020, though this hovered around 75% in crime hotspots like the districts of Iztapalapa and Chimalhuacán on the edge of Mexico City. Likewise, while guns were used in only 15% of homicides in 1997, the proportion had risen to 69% in early 2021. The statistics office counted just over 17,000 criminal killings in 2020.

Violence in Mexico rose sharply from 2006 after the conservative president Felipe Calderón declared war on the cartels. His approach was criticized but several changes of strategy have yet to bring crime back down.

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Economy

Soft Power Or Sportwashing? What's Driving The Mega Saudi Image Makeover Play

Saudi Arabia suddenly now leads the world in golf, continues to attract top European soccer stars, and invests in culture and entertainment... Its "soft power" strategy is changing the kingdom's image through what critics bash as blatant "sportwashing."

Footballer Karim Benzema, in his Real Madrid kit

Karim Benzema during a football match at Santiago Bernabeu stadium on June 04, 2023, in Madrid, Spain.

Pierre Haski

-Analysis-

PARIS — A major announcement this week caused quite a stir in the world of professional golf. It wouldn't belong in the politics section were it not for the role played by Saudi Arabia. The three competing world circuits have announced their merger, putting an end to the "civil war" in the world of pro golf.

The Chairman of the new entity is Yassir Al-Rumayan, head of the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund. Add to this the fact that one of the major players in the world of golf is Donald Trump – three of the biggest tournaments are held on golf courses he owns – and it's easy to see what's at stake.

In the same week, we learned that two leading French footballers, Karim Benzema and N'Golo Kanté, were to join Saudi club Al-Ittihad, also owned by the Saudi sovereign wealth fund. The amount of the transfer is not known, but it is sure to be substantial. There, they will join other soccer stars such as Cristiano Ronaldo.

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