Drug Trafficking In Latin America
One of the major issues facing Latin America is the production and distribution of illegal drugs, which include cocaine, marijuana, heroin and more recently methamphetamine. This geographic area is crucial to the illegal drug industry because it is the world’s only source region for coca, which is used to produce cocaine (this is harvested in Colombia, Peru and Bolivia). Also, Central America, Mexico and the Caribbean are the main corridors for transporting drugs to the United States and Europe. The United States is the primary consumer of these products, but around 25 to 30 percent of global cocaine production travels from Latin America to Europe, typically via West Africa. The major drug traffickers and trafficking organizations usually take in about a total of $18 to $39 billion dollars on drug wholesales per year.
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In these countries, murder, corruption and other violent crime rates have been increasing rapidly. In fact, a study by the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime has found that this area is the most dangerous region in the world, with an overall murder rate of 32.6 per 100,000 of population, compared to less than 6 per 100,000 in the United States. As these countries use resources and funds to fight drug trafficking, this puts a huge strain on their economy. For instance, Mexico, which is in the midst of a huge war on drugs, has a poverty rate of 46 percent. Lastly, weak governments combined with powerful drug cartels create a vicious cycle where the drug traffickers become even more powerful when they take advantage of local governments (either by bribing or using violence), and this in turn makes the government less trusted and thus makes the government even more
In these countries, murder, corruption and other violent crime rates have been increasing rapidly. In fact, a study by the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime has found that this area is the most dangerous region in the world, with an overall murder rate of 32.6 per 100,000 of population, compared to less than 6 per 100,000 in the United States. As these countries use resources and funds to fight drug trafficking, this puts a huge strain on their economy. For instance, Mexico, which is in the midst of a huge war on drugs, has a poverty rate of 46 percent. Lastly, weak governments combined with powerful drug cartels create a vicious cycle where the drug traffickers become even more powerful when they take advantage of local governments (either by bribing or using violence), and this in turn makes the government less trusted and thus makes the government even more