• RECORD: The total number of murders in Mexico during 2018 was 36,685 exceeding official calculations from early this year and proving it to be the most violent year in contemporary history, according to adjusted figures released Monday by Mexico’s national statistics agency (INEGI).
• MURDER RATE: Given the new numbers, Mexico’s murder rate in 2018 was 29.3 per 100,000 (similar to that in Memphis, TN). In reality, murder rate in Mexico varies widely: with the Pacific Coastal state of Colima at 98.5 per 100,000 and the Caribbean state of Yucatán at 2.7 per 100,000.
• UNABATED: Even with a new López Obrador Administration arriving to power last December, the pace of homicides in 2019 continues unabated -with more than 29,600 through September according to Mexico’s Public Security System- and with experts predicting it will top the record set in 2018.
• REBUILDING: “It is now up to López Obrador to lay the foundations for a gradual rebuilding of state capacities. In the meantime, short-term law enforcement measures are important to arrest the trend toward broader, deeper conflict in Mexico”, said the International Crisis Group in an October report.
