{"id":34076,"date":"2011-08-31T14:00:42","date_gmt":"2011-08-31T19:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/2011\/08\/31\/crime-and-drug-cartels-top-concerns-in-mexico\/"},"modified":"2024-04-14T03:57:05","modified_gmt":"2024-04-14T08:57:05","slug":"crime-and-drug-cartels-top-concerns-in-mexico","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/global\/2011\/08\/31\/crime-and-drug-cartels-top-concerns-in-mexico\/","title":{"rendered":"Crime and Drug Cartels Top Concerns in Mexico"},"content":{"rendered":"

Survey Report<\/h2>\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n

As the death toll continues to rise in Mexico\u2019s drug war, now claiming more than 35,000 lives since President Felipe Calder\u00f3n took office in December 2006, fewer than half (45%) of Mexicans say their government is making progress in its campaign against drug cartels; 29% say the government is losing ground and 25% say things are about the same as they have been in the past.<\/p>\n\n

Still, an overwhelming majority (83%) continues to endorse the use of the Mexican army to fight drug traffickers, virtually unchanged in recent years. Moreover, many welcome U.S. help in training Mexican police and military personnel (74%) and providing money and weapons to Mexican police and military forces (64%).<\/p>\n\n

And while Mexicans broadly oppose the deployment of U.S. troops to combat drug traffickers in Mexico (38% support and 57% oppose), more now support this strategy than did so in 2010, when only about a quarter (26%) favored the deployment of U.S. troops in their country and two-thirds opposed it.<\/p>\n\n

The survey of Mexico conducted by the Pew Research Center\u2019s Global Attitudes Project between March 22 and April 7 also finds that illegal drugs and cartel-related violence rank among the top national problems facing Mexico; 71% say illegal drugs are a very<\/em> big problem in their country and even more (77%) see the violence associated with drug cartels as a major challenge.<\/p>\n\n

Concerns about illegal drugs and cartel-related violence are especially widespread in the North, where Mexico\u2019s cartels have been especially active. Nearly nine-in-ten (87%) in North Mexico say illegal drugs are a very big problem in their country, compared with 69% in the South and in the Greater Mexico City area and 63% in Central Mexico. Similarly, 94% in the North see the violence associated with drug cartels as a very big problem; 75% in Mexico City, 73% in the South and 69% in Central Mexico share this concern.<\/p>\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n

When asked who is most to blame for the drug violence in their country, more now say both Mexico and the U.S. are to blame than did so in recent surveys. About six-in-ten (61%) Mexicans blame both nations; 51% held this view in 2009 and 2010. Currently, 18% say the U.S. is mostly to blame and about the same percentage (16%) blame Mexico; a year ago, nearly twice as many said the U.S. was mostly to blame as named Mexico (27% vs. 14%).<\/p>\n\n

U.S. Image Positive<\/h3>\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n

The image of the U.S. has rebounded somewhat since the passage of Arizona\u2019s controversial immigration bill in April 2010, but it remains far more negative than it was prior to the law\u2019s enactment. Currently, a slim majority (52%) of Mexicans hold a favorable view of the U.S., while 41% express a negative opinion.<\/p>\n\n

A year ago, 56% had a favorable view of the U.S., but those who were interviewed before Gov. Jan Brewer signed the Arizona measure into law on April 23, 2010, offered far more positive opinions than those interviewed following the law\u2019s enactment; 62% of those interviewed April 14-20, 2010 rated the U.S. favorably, compared with just 44% of those interviewed May 1-6, 2010. In 2009, nearly seven-in-ten Mexicans (69%) expressed a positive attitude toward the U.S.<\/p>\n\n

Fewer See a Better Life in U.S.<\/h3>\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n

Mexicans are less likely than they were two years ago to say that people from their country who move to the U.S. have a better life than those who stay in Mexico. Fewer than half (44%) now say this is the case; 22% say life is worse in the U.S. and 29% say it is neither better nor worse. In 2009, nearly six-in-ten (57%) said people who moved to the U.S. from Mexico enjoyed a better life in the host country, while 14% believe life was worse for those who moved to the U.S. and 22% said it was neither better nor worse.<\/p>\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n

As was the case in 2009, most Mexicans (61%) say they would not move to the U.S. if they had the means and opportunity to do so. Among the sizeable minority (38%) who would move to the U.S. if they could, 53% (or, 20% of the total population) say they would be inclined to do so without authorization. (For a more detailed analysis of Mexican immigration patterns, see \u201cThe Mexican American Boom: Births Overtake Immigration,\u201d<\/a> Pew Hispanic Center, released July 14, 2011.)<\/em><\/p>\n\n

Younger respondents are more likely than older ones to say they would move to the U.S. Slightly more than half (52%) of those younger than age 30 say they would move if they had the means and opportunity to do so, including 28% who say they would be inclined to work and live in the U.S. without authorization. In contrast, just 36% of those ages 30 to 49 and 27% of those 50 and older say they would move to the U.S. (20% and 11%, respectively, say they would do so without authorization).<\/p>\n\n

Most Unhappy With Country\u2019s Direction<\/h3>\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n

After shrinking in 2009, during the global recession, Mexico\u2019s economy rebounded impressively in 2010 \u2013 growing at its fastest rate in a decade. Still, an overwhelming majority of Mexicans remain dissatisfied with economic conditions and with their nation\u2019s direction overall. Roughly three-quarters (76%) say they are unhappy with the way things are going in their country, little changed from assessments in 2009 and 2010. Dissatisfaction with the country\u2019s direction is common across the different regions of Mexico and cuts across income and educational levels.<\/p>\n\n

Discontent with current economic conditions is similarly widespread with about two-thirds (68%) describing the economy as poor, down slightly from 75% in 2010; just 30% say the economic situation in Mexico is good.<\/p>\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n

Looking ahead, Mexicans are no more optimistic than they were a year ago about their country\u2019s economic prospects. Roughly half (48%) believe the economy will improve over the next 12 months, while 29% think it will remain the same and 22% say it will worsen, virtually unchanged from 2010. In 2009, however, as the effects of the global recession and the faltering U.S. economy were beginning to be felt, Mexicans were actually more optimistic, with 61% saying economic conditions would improve in the coming year.<\/p>\n\n