Chiapas

In the 90's the US government had it easy, they could hunt Pablo Escobar and praise themselves on their war on drugs in Colombia. The only thing to do was to support right wing paramilitary groups wich, ironically, survive themselves by narcotics trafficking. So while the US is subsidizing death squads in their "war against drugs", in reality part of a program to suppress the oldest and largest insurgent group in Latin America, they were creating a flow of coca into the US.

As time goes by and Pablo is forgotten and the Sinaloa, Juarez, Tijuana and Gulf Cartel in Mexico took over. The Columbians made the mistake to pay their Mexican partners with their own product rather than cash. Wich made them bigger and more powerfull than they could have imagened.

Time for another war on drugs.
As the whole Mexican system is corrupt, "plata o plomo", bribe or a bullet, narcotraficantes can do as they please. Or is there change?

On the moment the cartels are in a violent drug war. And Mexico elected Felipe Calderon who wants to make an end to the reign of this organised crime. With the help of the army and a huge police force.

While travelling from Palenque to San Cristobal de las Casas a movement connected to the Zapatistas blokked the road and demanded toll to continue. This happens now and then and people got used to it with the remark that police doesn't do anything because "ellos tienen miedo".
And that is a good thing. The Zapatistas defend the indigenous people in Chiapas that have been tortured, murdered and exploited since the era of the conquistadores. Some of the conquistadores descendants nowadays still think that stealing land from minority people and force them in some kind of slavery is a nice way to earn your living.

No matter from what angle you look at it, there is still a lot of work to be done by Felipe Calderon and his police force.