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Essay / Mexican cartels exploit the U.S.-Mexican immigration dilemma by forcing immigrants to smuggle drugs into the United States as payment for entry into the United States. Many methods have been developed to stop drug trafficking, but none have a lasting effect. The Secretariado Ejecutivo del Sistema Nacional de Seguridad Publica (Executive Secretariat of the National Public Security System) published the deaths recorded in Mexico linked to the drug wars. The number of deaths for 2016 was approximately 21,000 to 23,000 deaths. From 2007 to 2017, 177,000 people were murdered. If Mexico's internal economy improves, people would not need to emigrate to the United States, a stable lifestyle would deter people from interacting with cartels and teach a lesson to cartels in border towns . Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay To begin the essay, a brief overview of how the drug cartel came to Mexico. In the 1970s, the Colombian Medellin drug cartel came to power. His main drug source was cocaine. Pablo Escobar was the head of this organization. In 1993, Pablo Escobar was killed while fleeing the police and the Cali Cartel came to power. In the 1990s, Colombian drug cartels controlled more than 80 percent of drug sales in the United States, but after the fall of the Cali cartel, Mexican cartels rose in rank. The Sinaloa Cartel led by “El Chapo” Joaquín Guzman was considered the largest drug cartel in the world. He remained in power until 2017, when El Chapo was imprisoned. The Gulf Cartel only took control in the 1980s, but it quickly became Sinaloa's main rival. The Zetas are a splinter group of the Gulf Cartel, they are known for their more ruthless tendencies. Mexico is a major producer of opium, the Congressional Research Service said Mexican poppy cultivation was 28,000 hectares in 2015 and 32,000 in 2016 and methamphetamine production continues to be high . Most drugs are smuggled through U.S. ports of entry via vehicles of all kinds. Underground tunnels are also used. In 2016, nine tunnels were discovered by authorities, according to the DEA's 2017 National Drug Threat Assessment: "In October 2016, a drug trafficking tunnel was discovered at an ice manufacturing plant in Tijuana airport, connected to San Diego. Authorities seized 2,371 kilos of marijuana. The use of drones has become a problem; drones drop drugs across the border for waiting hands. Drug trafficking by sea is also common, with coast guards often seizing drugs off the coast of Mexico. The region of Mexico across the Rio Grande Valley is under the control of the Zetas. The Zetas transformed “what was once a relatively informal and somewhat family-run coyote clandestine operation into a highly sophisticated human trafficking ring.” The Zetas are known as the most violent and participate in many other areas, besides drug trafficking, they participate in kidnappings, murders, extortion, prison control and human trafficking. There is no specific drug they are smuggling, it is a mixture of cocaine, methamphetamines, marijuana, heroin and oxycodone. Whatever medication is requested, they will provide it. Immigrants attempting to cross the border must pay the coyote who is essentially the guide. CoyotesTraditional would only take a small number of individuals, but drug cartels now control the coyotes and have the means to transport in larger capacities. Some coyotes offer a lower price to cross, but they have to take drugs, others simply demand that they take the drugs or they will be killed. Rodolfo Luis, an immigrant trying to cross the border, said he was beaten and all his money was stolen, and that if he refused they would kill him. The Border Patrol found him and he was eventually deported after all charges were dropped because he showed the border. patrol where he placed the drops. The Zetas often sometimes sacrifice groups of immigrants to border control, as a charade intended to divert attention from the individuals transporting the drugs. Some arrested immigrants don't want to be sent home because they believe the cartels will kill them. “Kill me here so my family can claim my body, because if you send me back I know the narcos will kill me.” This reaction is common among those arrested because they know that no matter what U.S. authorities do, the cartels will be even worse off. Drug cartels not only use these immigrants as mules, but also for human trafficking and organ trade. Many Central American immigrants transit through Mexico to reach the United States and the cartels take advantage of all these displaced people. Eric Olson, deputy director for Latin America at the Wilson Center, said that “human smugglers targeting the U.S. border can charge up to $10,000 per person. They take money from migrants, then kidnap them, sell them into sex slavery or demand ransom for their release. They assume they will get legitimate work once in the United States, but are forced into prostitution or into labor camps where their livelihoods are controlled so there is no possibility of escape. Cartels extort local businesses for a tax, usually claiming it is for protection purposes. Black market organ sales have been a method used by cartels to make money. They mainly kidnap immigrant children who attempt to cross the border on their own and harvest their organs for black markets. Some children are recruited to join the cartels and offered protection. Another determining factor that facilitates the operation of cartels is the level of corruption within the Mexican police and government. Border patrol, police, and government officials are being bought off by the cartels and looking the other way. “In August 2010, the federal police fired 3,200 agents for corruption and another 140 federal police agents in April 2011.” It is easy to see where immigrants can fall through the cracks of the system if the officials who are supposed to protect their citizens align themselves with cartels that view immigrants as a means to profit. Criminological theories that could deter people from participating in the drug trade would be the general theory of deterrence, which involves using punishment to prevent potential criminals from committing crimes. Cesare Beccaria, a criminologist, said people consider the risks and benefits before breaking the law. When the punishment for committing a crime is considered inconsequential, the criminal will commit the crime, but if the punishment is too high, it will deter the criminal from action. Deterrence theory could be applied to those who participate in traffickingdrugs; perhaps if the punishment for the crime was increased it would deter others. Limited rationality “limited by lack of time, information or ability to determine consequences, by the practical need for rules of thumb in decision-making. These limits of rationality operate behind our backs and can inhibit precise calculation of utility and behavioral choices to achieve it. lack of knowledge, therefore education programs should be put in place for immigrants so that they know the options available to them. The situational theory of crime prevention analyzes the problem to understand all the factors that led to crime. Solutions to the factors are put in place; this should reduce crime by not allowing it to occur. The main goal of situational crime prevention is to remove opportunities to commit crimes rather than harsh punishment. Social bond theory was created by Travis Hirschi in 1960 and states that individuals' personal relationships and experiences with the community taught them the social norms of the community to prevent them from acting in ways that would be considered deviant or criminal. People may have a harder time participating in an activity or becoming a drug mule if the community condemned any involvement in drug cartels, but since it is normal to join cartels or participate in them to some extent, it is difficult to find other solutions. The most effective methods to stop the exploitation of immigrants would be The goal is to improve Mexico's economic situation so that cartels cannot gain a foothold in border cities. If residents have a feasible way to survive, the cartels will have less influence. Additionally, if people have a stable income they can live on, fewer people will attempt to emigrate to the United States, meaning there will be fewer people for cartels to exploit. By finding ways to freeze or seize cartel assets, cartels are businesses and they have a large amount of cash that gives them power; if this can be seized, they will lose some of their control. Controlling drug use in the United States would also impact Mexican cartels. The United States is one of the largest buyers of drugs. If this issue were resolved, the cartel market would be smaller. The Mérida Initiative was created in 2007 when Mexican President Calderon requested U.S. help to combat drugs and violence, with Mexico covering crime and corruption and the U.S. covering drug use at the national level. Mérida had four sections; disrupt organized crime groups, reform laws and protect human rights, create a 21st century border and build strong communities. Although the Mérida Initiative has had some success, it still needs external funding to progress further. The United Nations set up shelters along the route taken by immigrants to the United States. They provide food, water, shelter, medical aid, they inform immigrants about their rights and how to apply for asylum. They also alert the authorities in the event of unaccompanied children. As you can see from the essay, there is no single solution to this problem, but with the multiple programs in place such as UN shelters, the Merida Initiative and the focus on internal problems, perhaps the influence of the cartels will be contained. If the Mexican government succeeds in improving life./
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