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Mexico Continues to Struggle with Violence

13:25 H | Topics: Mexico

In another attempt to deal with the ever increasing drug related violence in Mexico, Mexican president Felipe Calderon, is campaigning to create a "department to monitor and tackle corruption among Mexican police."

Along with this news comes the startling statistic that:

President Calderon launched a nationwide battle to take back territory controlled by some of the world's most powerful drug gangs almost two years ago.

But the cartels have responded with unprecedented violence - including kidnappings and killings that have sparked public outrage and huge street protests.

The country has overtaken Colombia and Iraq for the number of kidnappings.

I am not from Mexico, so I won't claim to know what is best for Mexico or how to solve this problem. But I will say that corruption in Mexico is nothing new--corruption has a way of stemming out of colonial states in which there are weak governments coupled with weaker constitutions such that the "home" country can continue it's control over the colonial country.

Which says to me what's needed is something far more drastic and all encompassing than a 'department' to deal with corruption. This problem of unchecked unaccountable power will have to be dealt with. As subcomandante Marcos said recently about the left in Mexico:

“In Mexico, no. There is still talk of that expectation; that it’s possible if the left comes into power then they will not abandon being left.” Yet all the countries of the world notice that it’s the opposite, said Marcos. “Those on the left who are not necessarily radical leave their ideology once they get into power. The speed and the depth which they do so vary, but they ultimately transform themselves. That is the ‘stomach effect’ of power either it digests you or turns you into shit.”

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