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Mexico is #1

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/americas/08/03/mex.kidnap.ap/index.html

Mexico world's kidnapping king

Wednesday, August 3, 2005; Posted: 1:55 p.m. EDT (17:55 GMT)

MEXICO CITY, Mexico (AP) -- Mexico has overtaken Colombia and Brazil to become the world leader in reported kidnappings, a leading, private anti-crime group said Wednesday.

Investigators across the country reported 194 kidnappings from January through June, compared to 172 abductions registered during the same period by Colombian Defense Secretary officials and 169 reported kidnappings in Brazil, according to Jose Antonio Ortega, president of the Citizen Council for Public Safety.

"This is nothing to be proud of, it's an embarrassment," Ortega said at a news conference. "It's an embarrassment for authorities who have tried to convince us crime statistics are falling."

The vast majority of kidnappings in Mexico go unreported because of fears about police corruption and incompetence, and the possible involvement of authorities in many abductions. Often, family members of kidnapping victims fail to ask even presumably more-trustworthy federal authorities to investigate because of worries their loved ones could be killed during botched rescue attempts.

The reported number of kidnappings likely do not reflect the actual number of abductions in Colombia or Brazil either, as both countries have long struggled with corruption and mistrust of authorities similar to those in Mexico.

In a case so brazen that it shocked many in this crime-wary nation, a group of gunmen last month forced Argentina-born Ruben Omar Romano, the coach of the Mexican League's Cruz Azul soccer squad, from his BMW as he left the team's practice facility in southern Mexico City.

Romano's abduction has become indicative of how most kidnappings here go, however, with authorities in the capital pledging not to become directly involved because the coach's family has not sought their help.

Ortega's group obtained the tallies it released Wednesday by searching databases for kidnappings reported by police in Mexico City and each of the country's 31 states. To a total of 155 cases nationwide, officials added an extra 39 kidnappings that federal agents have said they were investigating.

Contacted Wednesday, Mexico's attorney general's office, which investigates kidnappings involving organized crime, offered no immediate comment on the independent report.

So far this year, federal prosecutors have received reports of 87 kidnappings, arrested 72 alleged kidnappers and fully dismantled 11 kidnapping organizations.

The Citizen Council for Public Safety, which organized a massive "march of silence" through the streets of Mexico City last summer to call attention to skyrocketing crime rates, said 76 reported kidnappings so far this year in the nation's capital mean that abductions per capita here outranked those reported in Bogota or Sao Paulo, the Colombian and Brazilian capitals.

It reported that 10 kidnap victims have died after being abducted in Mexico City since January, compared to 24 over the same period in Bogota, according to available statistics.

"To me it seems that Colombia has begun to get a handle on the situation because, in Colombia, crime is going down, kidnappings are going down, violence is going down, despite the fact they are at war," Ortega said.

A civil war pitting large guerrilla groups -- some financed by the cocaine trade -- against government forces has raged for 40 years in Colombia.

Ortega said that instead of working to put kidnappers behind bars and weed out the corrupt police officers and officials who protect them, Mexican officials preferred to point to incomplete statistics and insist that the crime rate has gone down.

"Things are very grave," he said. "The country is breaking down and there's no one in charge."

By Hawaii-73 on Aug 3, 2005, 12:51 in Friendly Talkzone.

morphus says on Aug 3, 2005, 12:57:

but Colombia is #1 in having the reputation as the kidnapping capital of the world. that will never change.

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ColombianoX says on Aug 3, 2005, 13:01:

"but Colombia is #1 in having the reputation as the kidnapping capital of the world. that will never change."

morphus,

And what makes you so sure that will never change? Are you clairvoyant?

ColombianoX

'Defensor de la Colombianidad'

ColombianoX 'Defensor de la Colombianidad'

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Sr Tertius says on Aug 3, 2005, 13:59:

Absolute numbers are not very meaningful Divide them by each countries population to get the per capita numbers. Yep, we still rule.

"El que a hierro mata..."

"When the finger points to the moon, the fool looks at the finger" (Chinese proverb)

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Peter Miami says on Aug 3, 2005, 14:15:

Who ever reads in this website is going to think Mexico is number 1 at all the back things in the world and Colombia is the best at everything. This is a pure unbias website. :-)

Peter Miami

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Gomezman5 says on Aug 3, 2005, 15:23:

Interesting.....and a sad statement about President Fox It is actually worse than it seems. Look what else the article says:

"The vast majority of kidnappings in Mexico go unreported because of fears about police corruption and incompetence, and the possible involvement of authorities in many abductions."

What this means is that the true number is actually higher than the number on record. Mexico, you have a huge probelm and as much as Uribe has been a blessing for Colombia, Fox has proven himself to be one of Mexico's worst presidents in recent history.

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utopiacowboy says on Aug 3, 2005, 16:57:

You're right, G'man. Mexico is frigging disintegrating. I would be more worried going to Mexico at this point than Colombia. In the border towns it's total chaos as the gangs fight out their drug war. Many of the cops and soldiers are in on it - whole army units have deserted en masse and gone over to the drug lords.

Disclaimer: any comment I make is inane and is not to be taken seriously, and is so patently ridiculous that no one should take it seriously, even as an insult.

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microllo says on Sep 28, 2005, 03:41:

who gives a fuck ??????????????????????????

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Lostgringo says on Sep 28, 2005, 05:49:

statistics IMHO it is difficult to believe any of this either from Colombian or Mexican authorities. There is no valid way of determining the difference because of the number of unreported crimes in both countries. I would imagine there are many unreported kidnappings in Colombia also. Colombia is terrible when it comes to reporting crimes of every nature. Maybe the same with Mexico also. I personally would not put any weight on this statement in terms of trying to compare criminal statitics with these two countries.

On the other side, it would be nice to believe that Colombia is getting safer. I will not get into my opinion of the safety here in Bogota for gringos. I just go on about my life here and take one day at a time. I have lived in Bogota now for almost 2 months.

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aztec says on Sep 28, 2005, 08:32:

microllo... ...because they are leaving Mexico and moving to the U.S.!

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cosmos says on Sep 28, 2005, 13:43:

what kind of people thay kidnapping? rich people or students, or doesn't matter?

thnx
c

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