How do Mexican Cartels have Influence on Government, Society & Culture (Essay Sample)

Student’s Name
Professor’s Name
Course
Date
How do Mexican Drug Cartel have Influence in Mexican government, society and its culture?
Abstract
The Mexican drug cartel menace has been existent for more than three decades now. Since the 1980s, when the US government agencies broke the Caribbean networks that Columbian cartels used to smuggle cocaine, the Mexican cartel has continued to grow. Drug trade rakes in billions of dollars every year, and as such, the cartels have more than enough to bribe federal government officials, the judiciary, and the security forces. The drug cartels have influence in the Mexican government, military, and even the media. Notably, the drug cartel business is characterized by violence, assassinations, and a bandit culture known as narcos culture. The trade is so entrenched that it also has footprints in religion and even the health sector. It is worth noting that the Mexican drug cartel influence is beyond Mexico as they have associates in the US and the Caribbean countries. The article explores the influence of the Mexican drug cartel in various segments of Mexican society and the neighboring countries. Additionally, the article explores ways of dealing with the drug cartel business in Mexico.
Introduction
There has been a protracted war on the drug cartels by the Mexican authorities for decades, but success has been limited. The war has led to the death of politicians, students, and even journalists. The Mexican government declared war on the drug cartels in 2006, and from that time to now, and the country has registered about three hundred thousand homicides (CFR.org Editors). The US government has partnered closely with their Mexican neighbors in this war by donating billions of dollars to help the Mexican government to revolutionize its judicial system and modernize the security forces. According to CFR.org Editors (2021), the US government has also bolstered security along its border with Mexico to stem the flow of drugs into the US. Marijuana, heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamine are major drugs the cartels smuggle into the US from Mexico.
Despite the war on the cartels, they have continued to grow within Mexico by forming new alliances and regularly engaging in bloody territorial wars. According to the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), the Sinaloa cartel, Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Juarez cartel, Gulf cartel, Los Zetas, and Beltran-Leyva Organization are notable cartel organizations in Mexico (CFR.org Editors). The growth of these cartel groups can be blamed on domestic and international forces. The cartels have infiltrated the government and regularly pay off politicians, police officers, and judges to evade justice. Additionally, their growth flourished during the era of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (IRP), where the cartel groups controlled some senior government officials (CFR.org Editors). Internationally, the growth of the cartel network can be traced back to the 1980s when the US government agencies broke the Caribbean networks that Columbian cartels used to smuggle cocaine. This opened a window for Mexican cartels to become wholesalers other than conduits for the Columbian cartels. The Mexican drug cartels have captured the government, making the Mexican society a bandit community where terror is meted upon any perceived enemy or rebel, inculcating a culture of lawlessness and drug addiction.
Cartel influence in government
The rampant corruption in the Mexican government has enabled the drug cartels to flourish unabated. These cartel groups have formed alliances and have known strongholds within Mexico. Still, no notable progress has been made to eliminate these criminal organizations because they have roots right inside all the arms of government, including the legislature, judiciary, and the executive. The agencies mandated with fighting the cartels regularly receive hefty bribes, hence giving the cartels the leeway to conduct criminal activities with impunity. The continued engagement of government officials in corruption has significantly strengthened the position of the drug cartels and weakened the government's war on narcotics. According to Burnett et al. (2010), the drug cartel business would not have thrived without the help of government agencies. This position is also emphasized by Partlow (2017) as he describes how the drug cartel menace is widespread in different cities and towns of Mexico under the watch of government agencies. According to reports, the arrest of cartel members has been skewed as members of the largest cartel organization, Sinaloa, are always spared. In contrast, members of smaller organizations such as the Gulf cartel are usually targeted. According to Burnett et al. (2010), 44% of arrested cartel members were from the Gulf and the Zetas cartel, whereas only 12% of the arrests were from the Sinaloa cartel.
Cartel Influence in Military and Law Enforcement
Traditionally, the Mexican drug cartels maximized their massive earnings by working closely with the Mexico police department and government officials affiliated with the IRP ruling party, which was dominant from 1929-2000 (Grayson 35). Interestingly, the drug cartels employed and put the Federal Judicial Police on payroll to facilitate the growing, storage, and processing of narcotics such as marijuana, cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamines (Grayson 7). In their deal with law enforcement agencies, the cartels were supposed to keep the drugs away from children and civilians (mainly Americans) and possess weapons inferior to those of the armed forces (Grayson 7).
The drug cartel organizations in Mexico are heavily militarized, and oftentimes they manage to outgun security forces. In the early 1990s, the Gulf cartel hired an ex-Gaffe troop which created the cartel's paramilitary enforcement unit known as Los Zetas (Guadalupe 80). According to data from the Mexican military, about 1383 highly trained soldiers deserted the military between 1954 and 2015. These defectors were mainly tasked with guarding Gulf cartel leader Osiel Cardenas whose leadership revolved around the use of violence to maintain control over his territory (Guadalupe 80). He introduced the professionally trained soldiers into drug trafficking, and within a short time, other cartel organizations turned to military servicemen to carry out their operations as well.
Mexican drug Cartel influence in Journalism and Media
Mexico is considered one of the most dangerous countries for journalists to work in. The Mexican press is always under constant threat from drug cartels, and in 2020 alone, there were 692 attacks on media personnel which is a 13.6% increase from the previous year (Corona). According to reports by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), about 129 journalists have been assassinated by the drug cartels from 1994 to date (Corona). It is evident that the cartel use threats, fear-mongering, and assassinations as tools of silencing the media.
It is also believed that the cartels have infiltrated the Mexican media, and as a result, most of their criminal activities do not get broadcast. Even though the drug war continues to claim the lives of several people, only 20% of the news in Mexico talks about drug cartels and their criminal activities. According to IMS (2011), journalists confessed that they could not write drug-related news. The journalists were compelled to meet with the representatives of the drug cartels after every three months to be briefed on what to write. The narcotic cartels have not spared social media either, as they have infiltrated various social media platforms where they identify users reporting against their activities and torture them (IMS).
Mexican Drug Cartel significance to local and International Economies
The drug business is harmful to the economy in many ways. According to the United Nations, distorted resource allocation, unfair competition, corruption, and price falsification in the real estate sector are some of the demerits of the drug trade (Hartmeier 9). Additionally, the money accrued from the illicit drug trade is always reinvested in corrupt businesses to generate high profits for the cartels and help them in money laundering. According to a report by Mexican Peace Index (2018), the violence meted by the drug cartels contributes to the loss of $249 billion annually (Hartmeier 9). Additionally, the same study revealed that the Mexican government spent $24.7 billion on the military, judicial system, and internal security agencies to combat the drug cartels. The drug trade also affects businesses, as it is reported that about 60% of firms in Mexico are affected by the criminal activities of the cartels. The drug cartel business also has negative impacts on the international economy. According to the Associated Press (2022), the Mexican cartel organizations have entered the international financial market as they currently launder money through the internet, Bitcoin, and e-commerce. It is estimated that the drug cartels launder about $25 billion annually in Mexico.
Cartel Influence in Society With Regards To Violence and Deaths
Studies have found that over $1.25 trillion has been used to fight the illicit drug trade. However, this fight continues to be a concern from a humanitarian perspective as violence, deaths, and the increasing levels of drug use have exposed poor economies (Puyana et al. 312). According to Scottsdalerec, 2017 was the bloodiest year in Mexico, where a monthly average of 2,500 drug cartel-related killings was registered. Apart from the murders, the cartels mete other forms of violence on people, such as rape, assaults, theft, and forced disappearances (Scottsdalerec).
The Mexican cartels ha...