The War on Drugs in Colombia and Mexico: failed strategies
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Published
Sep 12, 2016
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Abstract
Objectives: to identify and evaluate the experience of the strategies and results of the war on drugs in Colombia and Mexico through initiatives such as Plan Colombia and the Merida Initiative.
Methodology: in order to analyze programs of anti-narcotics cooperation in the Americas, particularly among the United States, Colombia and Mexico a qualitative method was used. The analysis was focused on the production and trafficking of drugs, criminal organizations or drug cartels and violence levels. Furthermore, in order to test the political-institutional and historical context in Mexico and Colombia, as well as the patterns of bilateral and multilateral cooperation a comparative method was used.
Results: the strategies implemented in the war on drugs have failed in objectives such as: to eradicate drug production and trafficking and to annihilate the criminal organizations or drug cartels. Plan Colombia and Mérida Initiative have been a failure considering the achievement of their main objectives.
Conclusions: Mexico did not learn the lessons of Plan Colombia because much of the strategy adopted to fight against the drug cartels was the militarization of the country, which is a counterproductive and failed measure as evidenced by the case of Colombia.
How to Cite
Rosen, J. D., & Zepeda Martínez, R. (2016). The War on Drugs in Colombia and Mexico: failed strategies. ÁNFORA, 21(37), 179–200. https://doi.org/10.30854/anf.v21.n37.2014.30
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Keywords
Organized Crime, Drug Trafficking, Plan Colombia, Mexico, Merida Initiative.
References
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DeShazo, P.; Primiani, T., & McLean, P. (2007), “Back from the brink: Evaluating progress in Colombia”, 1999-2007. Washington, DC: Center for Strategic and International Studies.
Doward, J. (2011), “Colombian President Calls for Global Rethink on Drugs”, The Observer, 12 de Noviembre, disponible en línea: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/nov/13/colombia-juan-santos-call-to-legalise-drugs. (Consultado el 8/22/2012).
El País (2012), "Conozca Cómo Las Bandas Criminales Se ‘reparten’ Zonas De Colombia”, disponible en: "http://www.elpais.com.co/elpais/judicial/noticias/exclusivo-conozca-como-bandas-criminales-reparten-zonas-del-pais (consultado 8/22/2012).
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Ghioni, F. (2011), "Mexican Drug Gangs have 230 'Branches' in U.S. and Canada", Abril 14. Disponible en: http://www.insightcrime.org/investigations/academic-ngos-think-tank/item/421-report-mexico-drug-gangs-operate-more-than-230-branch-offices-in-us-and-canada (consultado el 8/27/2012, 2012).
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Medellin, Colombia”. Washington, D.C.: International Policy Report.
Isacson, A. (2010), “Don’t Call It a Model. On Plan Colombia’s Tenth Anniversary, Claims of ‘Success’ Don’t Stand Up to Scrutiny”, Washington D.C.: Washington Office on Latin America.
Isacson, A. (2013), “Mission Creep: The U.S. Military's Counter-Drug Role in the Americas” en Drug Trafficking, Organized Crime, and Violence in The Americas: Key Trends in The 21st Century, eds., Bruce Bagley y Jonathan D. Rosen, Gainesville, FL: University Press of Florida.
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Youngers, C. A., & Rosin, E. (Eds.). (2005). Drugs and democracy in Latin America: The impact of US policy. Lynne Rienner Publishers, 99-142.
Lendman, S. (2008), “Plan Mexico: Plan Colombia Heads for Mexico”, Canada: Global Research Center.
Martínez, F. (2013), “Se carece de una cifra oficial de muertos en el sexenio de Calderón: Osorio Chong”. La Jornada, 16 de febrero.
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Nadelmann, E. (1992), “Thinking seriously about alternatives to drug prohibition”, Daedalus, 121 (3): 85-132.
Nadelmann, E. (1999), “Uso y Prohibición De Drogas”, Reforma, 2 de noviembre.
Nadelmann, E. (2003), “Addicted to Failure.” Foreign Policy, 137 (1): 94-95.
Ottens, N. (2012), "Colombia’s Santos Urges American Engagement”, Abril 16, 2012. Disponible en: http://atlanticsentinel.com/2012/04/colombias-santos-urges-american- engagement/ (consultado el 8/23/2012).
Pastor, M. y C. Wise (2005), "The lost sexenio: Vicente Fox and the new politics of economic reform in Mexico", Latín American Politics and Society, 47 (4): 135-160.
Pizarro, E. & Gaitán, P. (2006), “Plan Colombia and the Andean Regional Initiative: lights and shadows”, en Loveman (Ed.) (2006), Addicted to failure: us security policy in Latin America and the Andean Region, Rowman & Littlefield.
Reuters (2012), “Six in 10 Mexican prisons 'self-governed' by gangs”, The Telegraph, 25 de Septiembre.
Romero, S. (2008), "Coca Sustains War in Rural Colombia", The New York Times, 27 de Julio.
Rosen, J. D. (2012), “Plan Colombia and Beyond: Pastrana to Santos (2000 to 2012)”, Open Access Dissertations. Paper 880.
Rosen, J. D. (2014), “Lecciones y resultados del Plan Colombia (2000-2012)”, Contextualizaciones Latinoamericanas, 6 (10): 1-12.
Seijas, S. (2011), “Los Ninis: Mexico’s Los Generation”, Washington, D.C.: Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.
The Atlantic (2012), "Mexico's Drug War: 50,000 Dead in 6 Years", Mayo 17. Disponible en http://www.theatlantic.com/infocus/2012/05/mexicos-drug-war-50-000-dead-in-6-years/100299/ (consultado el 8/27/2012).
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2012), Colombia: Coca Cultivation Survey 2011, UNODC y Gobierno de Colombia.
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) (2010), The globalization of crime: a transnational organized crime threat assessment. UNODC.
United States Government Accountability Office (US-GAO) (2008), “Plan Colombia: Drug Reduction Goals Were Not Fully Met, but Security Has Improved; US Agencies Need More Detailed Plans for Reducing Assistance”, Report to the Honorable Joseph R. Biden, Jr., Chairman, Committee on Foreign Relations, U.S. Senate. Disponible en línea: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d0971.pdf, Consultado en Noviembre de 2012.
US Embassy in Mexico (2014), “La Iniciativa Mérida – Un Panorama”, disponible en linea: http://www.usembassy-mexico.gov/merida/smerida_factsheet_meridaoverview2.html, consultado en marzo de 2014.
Vélazquez, R. y J. P. Prado (eds.) (2009), La Iniciativa Mérida: ¿Nuevo paradigma decooperación entre México y Estados Unidos en seguridad? México: Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México.
Watt, P. y Zepeda, R. (2012), Drug war Mexico: politics, neoliberalism and violence in the new narcoeconomy, Londres-Nueva York: Zed Books.
Waltz, K. N. (1979), Theory of international politics, New York: McGraw-Hill.
Youngers, C. A., y E. Rosin (2005). “The US War on Drugs: Its Impact in Latin America and the Caribbean.” en Coletta A. Youngers y Eileen Rosin (eds.) Drugs and Democracy in Latin America: The Impact of US Policy, Boulder, Colorado: Lynne Rienner Publishers.
Bagley, B. (2012b). “Tráfico de drogas y crimen organizado en América Latina y el Caribe en el siglo XXI: retos para la democracia”. Conferencia dictada en el marco del Encuentro Internacional Drogas, Usos y Prevenciones, Quito, Ecuador.
Bailey, J. (2011), “Plan Colombia and the Mérida Initiative: Policy Twins or Distant Cousins?” en Isidro Morales (ed.), National Solutions to Trans-Border Problems?: The Governance of Security and Risk in a post-NAFTA North America, Surrey, England: Ashgate Publishing, 149-160.
Beittel, J. S. (2013), “Peace Talks in Colombia”, Washington, D.C., Congressional Research Service.
CNN (2000), “Professor Bruce Bagley on the Crisis in Colombia”, Agosto 31, 2000. Disponible en: http://www.cnn.com/chat/transcripts/2000/8/31/bagley/ (consultado el 6/21/2012).
Cook, C. W. (2007) "CRS Report to Congress: Mexico’s Drug Cartels Congressional Research Service." Washington DC, 16 de octubre.
Corcoran, P. (2011), “Counterinsurgency is not the answer for Mexican drug cartels, The Christian Science Monitor, 27 de septiembre, disponible en: http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Americas/Latin-America-Monitor/2011/0927/Counterinsurgency-is-not-the-answer-for-Mexican-drug-cartels, consultado el 15/01/2013.
Craig, R. (1981), "Colombian Narcotics & US-Colombian Relations." Journal of Inter-American Studies and World Affairs, 2: 243-270.
Crandall, R. (2002). Driven by Drugs: U.S. Policy toward Colombia. Boulder, CO: Lynne Publishers.
Crandall, R. (2002). “Clinton, Bush and Plan Colombia”. Survival, 44 (1): 159-172.
DeShazo, P.; Primiani, T., & McLean, P. (2007), “Back from the brink: Evaluating progress in Colombia”, 1999-2007. Washington, DC: Center for Strategic and International Studies.
Doward, J. (2011), “Colombian President Calls for Global Rethink on Drugs”, The Observer, 12 de Noviembre, disponible en línea: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/nov/13/colombia-juan-santos-call-to-legalise-drugs. (Consultado el 8/22/2012).
El País (2012), "Conozca Cómo Las Bandas Criminales Se ‘reparten’ Zonas De Colombia”, disponible en: "http://www.elpais.com.co/elpais/judicial/noticias/exclusivo-conozca-como-bandas-criminales-reparten-zonas-del-pais (consultado 8/22/2012).
Friedman, M. (1998), “There’s no justice in the war on drugs: Can our laws be moral if they have so racist an effect”. New York Times, 11 de enero.
United States General Accounting Office (US-GAO) (1999), “Drug Control: Narcotics Threat from Colombia Continue to Grow”, Washington, D.C.: GAO.
Ghioni, F. (2011), "Mexican Drug Gangs have 230 'Branches' in U.S. and Canada", Abril 14. Disponible en: http://www.insightcrime.org/investigations/academic-ngos-think-tank/item/421-report-mexico-drug-gangs-operate-more-than-230-branch-offices-in-us-and-canada (consultado el 8/27/2012, 2012).
Grimaldi, J. V. y S. Horwitz (2011), “ATF Probe Strategy Is Questioned,” Washington Post, 2 de febrero.
Isacson, A. (2006), “Plan Colombia-Six Years Later: Report of a CIP Staff Visit to Putumayo and
Medellin, Colombia”. Washington, D.C.: International Policy Report.
Isacson, A. (2010), “Don’t Call It a Model. On Plan Colombia’s Tenth Anniversary, Claims of ‘Success’ Don’t Stand Up to Scrutiny”, Washington D.C.: Washington Office on Latin America.
Isacson, A. (2013), “Mission Creep: The U.S. Military's Counter-Drug Role in the Americas” en Drug Trafficking, Organized Crime, and Violence in The Americas: Key Trends in The 21st Century, eds., Bruce Bagley y Jonathan D. Rosen, Gainesville, FL: University Press of Florida.
Ramirez Lemus, M. C.; Stanton, K. & Walsh, J. (2005), “Colombia: a vicious circle of drugs and war”, en
Youngers, C. A., & Rosin, E. (Eds.). (2005). Drugs and democracy in Latin America: The impact of US policy. Lynne Rienner Publishers, 99-142.
Lendman, S. (2008), “Plan Mexico: Plan Colombia Heads for Mexico”, Canada: Global Research Center.
Martínez, F. (2013), “Se carece de una cifra oficial de muertos en el sexenio de Calderón: Osorio Chong”. La Jornada, 16 de febrero.
Moloeznik, M. P. (2003). “The Military Dimension of the War on Drugs in Mexico and Colombia”, Crime, law and social change, 40 (1), 107-112.
Nadelmann, E. (1992), “Thinking seriously about alternatives to drug prohibition”, Daedalus, 121 (3): 85-132.
Nadelmann, E. (1999), “Uso y Prohibición De Drogas”, Reforma, 2 de noviembre.
Nadelmann, E. (2003), “Addicted to Failure.” Foreign Policy, 137 (1): 94-95.
Ottens, N. (2012), "Colombia’s Santos Urges American Engagement”, Abril 16, 2012. Disponible en: http://atlanticsentinel.com/2012/04/colombias-santos-urges-american- engagement/ (consultado el 8/23/2012).
Pastor, M. y C. Wise (2005), "The lost sexenio: Vicente Fox and the new politics of economic reform in Mexico", Latín American Politics and Society, 47 (4): 135-160.
Pizarro, E. & Gaitán, P. (2006), “Plan Colombia and the Andean Regional Initiative: lights and shadows”, en Loveman (Ed.) (2006), Addicted to failure: us security policy in Latin America and the Andean Region, Rowman & Littlefield.
Reuters (2012), “Six in 10 Mexican prisons 'self-governed' by gangs”, The Telegraph, 25 de Septiembre.
Romero, S. (2008), "Coca Sustains War in Rural Colombia", The New York Times, 27 de Julio.
Rosen, J. D. (2012), “Plan Colombia and Beyond: Pastrana to Santos (2000 to 2012)”, Open Access Dissertations. Paper 880.
Rosen, J. D. (2014), “Lecciones y resultados del Plan Colombia (2000-2012)”, Contextualizaciones Latinoamericanas, 6 (10): 1-12.
Seijas, S. (2011), “Los Ninis: Mexico’s Los Generation”, Washington, D.C.: Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.
The Atlantic (2012), "Mexico's Drug War: 50,000 Dead in 6 Years", Mayo 17. Disponible en http://www.theatlantic.com/infocus/2012/05/mexicos-drug-war-50-000-dead-in-6-years/100299/ (consultado el 8/27/2012).
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2012), Colombia: Coca Cultivation Survey 2011, UNODC y Gobierno de Colombia.
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) (2010), The globalization of crime: a transnational organized crime threat assessment. UNODC.
United States Government Accountability Office (US-GAO) (2008), “Plan Colombia: Drug Reduction Goals Were Not Fully Met, but Security Has Improved; US Agencies Need More Detailed Plans for Reducing Assistance”, Report to the Honorable Joseph R. Biden, Jr., Chairman, Committee on Foreign Relations, U.S. Senate. Disponible en línea: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d0971.pdf, Consultado en Noviembre de 2012.
US Embassy in Mexico (2014), “La Iniciativa Mérida – Un Panorama”, disponible en linea: http://www.usembassy-mexico.gov/merida/smerida_factsheet_meridaoverview2.html, consultado en marzo de 2014.
Vélazquez, R. y J. P. Prado (eds.) (2009), La Iniciativa Mérida: ¿Nuevo paradigma decooperación entre México y Estados Unidos en seguridad? México: Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México.
Watt, P. y Zepeda, R. (2012), Drug war Mexico: politics, neoliberalism and violence in the new narcoeconomy, Londres-Nueva York: Zed Books.
Waltz, K. N. (1979), Theory of international politics, New York: McGraw-Hill.
Youngers, C. A., y E. Rosin (2005). “The US War on Drugs: Its Impact in Latin America and the Caribbean.” en Coletta A. Youngers y Eileen Rosin (eds.) Drugs and Democracy in Latin America: The Impact of US Policy, Boulder, Colorado: Lynne Rienner Publishers.
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