Calls for a Peace Deal with Drug Cartels in Mexico

Key Figures and Statements

• Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, President of Mexico, agrees with calls for a peace deal with drug cartels.
  • Emphasizes the hope for peace and end to violence.
  • His statement was unexpected by many who have been fighting cartels for years.

Background Context

• Activists' Open Letter
  • Led by Delia Quiroa, searching for missing loved ones, victims of cartels.
  • Calls for a peace deal between government and cartels as a radical but necessary solution.
  • Critique: Government has forced families to plead with cartels due to lack of action in searching for missing persons.

Current Situation

• Violence in Lopez Obrador's Administration
  • Over 156,000 murders recorded in four and a half years.
  • More than 40,000 people reported missing.
  • Mexico's crisis of disappeared persons is the worst in Latin America.

Debate on a Peace Deal

• Controversial Idea

  • Debate stirred by the president's support.
  • Some view the peace deal with skepticism, others see it as a potential strategy.

• Security Experts' Perspective

  • Negotiation with cartels equates to negotiation with armed groups.
  • Cartels possess significant firepower, sometimes more than the state.
  • A peace deal could be part of a complex peace-building strategy.

Government Efforts

• Increased resources for searching for missing persons.
• Challenges remain due to the overwhelming number of disappearances.

Conclusion

• Without a solution to the crisis, the search for missing persons is likely to remain indefinite.
• The radical nature of a peace deal with cartels continues to generate debate and speculation on its viability and effectiveness.