armed forces

With indicators on the reduction of violence and federal crimes in Mexico and recognizing that the Ayotzinapa case is “an unfinished business” in his administration, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador thanked the Armed Forces for their “support to guarantee peace, tranquility and progress in the country.”

GALLERY: AMLO delivers his sixth and final report in front of thousands of citizens

From the Zócalo in the capital, while presenting his sixth and final Government Report, the federal president addressed the heads of the National Defense Secretariat (Sedena) and the Navy Secretariat (Semar) to thank them for their support during the current administration, which ends on September 30.

“I thank all members of the Armed Forces for their support and backing in ensuring peace, tranquility and progress in the country. I am more than satisfied with the loyal, responsible and honest performance of the Secretaries of Defense and the Navy, General Luis Cresencio Sandoval González and Admiral José Rafael Ojeda Durán,” he said.

In terms of security, he began by highlighting that federal crimes have been reduced by 24.8 percent, homicide by 18 percent, robbery by 29.5 percent, femicide by 37.6 percent, vehicle theft by 48.6 percent, and kidnapping by 77 percent.

“During the six-year term, an average of 1,200 arrests of alleged criminals have been maintained daily. 11,297 hectares of marijuana and 66,736 hectares of poppies have been destroyed, as well as 2,570 laboratories for chemical substances produced for drug trafficking. In recent years, the Armed Forces have seized 52,939 weapons that have been smuggled in, mainly from the United States,” he said.

At the same time, he said, campaigns against drug use have been promoted, so that in Mexico the need to keep families united, preserving their traditions and customs, prevails so that young people do not fall into addictions and organized crime, since he said that the problem of drug trafficking such as fentanyl will not be solved just by arresting drug lords.

He also stressed that during his government collusion between authorities and criminals was not allowed, which “allowed them to reduce, to a minimum, crimes by public officials, crimes by politicians, that. Knock on wood, we have not suffered from it.”

He cited that the quarterly survey of Inegi, the perception of insecurity is the best or least bad in the last 10 years, it is 59.4%, 15.5% less than when our government began.

“Unlike what happened under neoliberal governments, now people are not repressed, massacres are not carried out, torture is not carried out, no one disappears, human rights violations are not tolerated and there is no narco-state like the one that was established during the previous six-year term. The National Guard was created, with 135,471 well-trained, disciplined members dedicated to guaranteeing peace and public safety,” he added.

Regarding the National Guard, he said that it already operates throughout the country with 594 facilities and that most of the barracks and housing units were built by military engineers.

“We are making progress in the investigation to find the young people from Ayotzinapa. That is a pending matter, but my term as president has not yet ended and we will continue to search for the young people,” he acknowledged.

He acknowledged that the Security Cabinet, which he heads, meets every day from 6 to 7 in the morning from Monday to Friday with the participation of the Secretaries of the Interior, Public Security, Foreign Relations, Legal Counsel, Defense Secretariat, National Guard, Navy Secretariat, and Intelligence, with the purpose of jointly addressing every day with perseverance and urgency all matters aimed at achieving peace, tranquility, and governability in the country.

“In the fight against organized crime, intelligence is used more than force, and the fatality rate has been reduced,” he emphasized.