Mexico came out at the bottom of the pack on the 2012 Global Peace Index (GPI), released yesterday, garnering slot 135 out of a group of 158 countries. The GPI ranks nations on a scale of 1-5 based on 23 indicators associated with the absence of violence, with 5 being the least peaceful. Mexico garnered fives in "violent crime" and "deaths from internal conflict". Other critical areas include fours in "political terror", "homicides", "access to weapons" and "perception of criminality".
The world, and Latin America in particular, rose overall in peacefulness during the last year. Mexico is the notable exception, dropping from 105 out of 148 in 2010.
Mexico´s ranking comes as no surprise to people here. Most of the other countries in the lowest 15% are experiencing open conflict, with Somalia as the most violent country, followed by Afghanistan and Sudan. Mexico's ranking reflects the degree to which its internal conflict cause by the war on drugs has risen in impact.
The report concludes with this statement on the economic cost of violence:
The world, and Latin America in particular, rose overall in peacefulness during the last year. Mexico is the notable exception, dropping from 105 out of 148 in 2010.
Mexico´s ranking comes as no surprise to people here. Most of the other countries in the lowest 15% are experiencing open conflict, with Somalia as the most violent country, followed by Afghanistan and Sudan. Mexico's ranking reflects the degree to which its internal conflict cause by the war on drugs has risen in impact.
The report concludes with this statement on the economic cost of violence:
If the world was completely peaceful in 2011, the additional economic impact would have been an estimated US$9 trillion (equal to the size of the German and Japanese economies combined). While a total elimination of violence may not be possible an achievable 25% reduction in violence could reap a peace dividend of at least US$2.25 trillion. This amount would easily cover the European Financial Stability Facility’s $1 trillion allocation to deal with the European sovereign debt crisis while also covering the yearly cost of achieving the Millennium Development Goals.
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