Another 'victory' for the drug warriors
Businessweek: "Former General Otto Perez Molina is likely to win Guatemala’s presidency on a pledge to wield an “iron fist” against drug cartels, a policy that may escalate Mexican-style violence in the Central American nation. Polls show Perez leading Congressman Manuel Baldizon by about 10 percentage points before the Nov. 6 runoff vote, with more than 80 percent supporting a hard-line stance on crime. Perez won the first round on Sept. 11 with 36 percent of the vote, while Baldizon had 23 percent.
Mexico’s drug-fueled violence is flooding south with two of its most deadly gangs, the Zetas and Sinaloa, now holding sway over entire jungle townships in Guatemala, according to U.S. officials. With drug violence escalating and foreign investment stagnating, Perez’s pledge to step up the role of the army has garnered support, just 15 years after the end of military rule and a civil war that left 200,000 dead." read more
The MexicoBlog of the Americas Program, a fiscally sponsored program of the Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR), is written by Laura Carlsen. I monitor and analyze international press on Mexico, with a focus on security, immigration, human rights and social movements for peace and justice, from a feminist perspective. And sometimes I simply muse.
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