Redefining Mexican "Security": Society, State, and Region Under NAFTA 9781685858209

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Redefining Mexican "Security"

Redefining Mexican "Security" Society, State & Region Under NAFTA

James F. Rochlin

LYN NE RIENNER PUBLISHERS

B O U L D E R L O N D O N

Published in the United States of America in 1997 by Lynne Rienner Publishers, Inc. 1800 30th Street, Boulder, Colorado 80301 and in the United Kingdom by Lynne Rienner Publishers, Inc. 3 Henrietta Street, Covent Garden, London WC2E 8LU © 1997 by Lynne Rienner Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Rochlin, James Francis, 1956Redefining Mexican "security": society, state, and region under NAFTA / by James F. Rochlin. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 1-55587-569-6 (hardcover : alk. paper) 1. Political stability—Mexico. 2. Mexico—Politics and government—1988- 3. National security—Mexico. 4. Security, International. I. Title. JL1281.R6 1997 972.08'36—dc21 British Cataloguing in Publication Data A Cataloguing in Publication record for this book is available from the British Library. Typeset by Letra Libre Printed and bound in the United States of America The paper used in this publication meets the requirements (oo) of the American National Standard for Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials Z39.48-1984. 5

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97-13585 CIP

This book the memories and to those the "security

is dedicated to of Alan and James, struggling to beat racket" in Mexico.

Contents Acknowledgments

ix

Map of Mexico

x

1

A Conceptual Introduction

2

Dimensions of Mexican Economic Security: Neoliberalism, Ecocide, and Migration

21

The Indigenous and Mexican Security: Chiapas and Southern Mexico

57

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The Illicit Economy and Security: The Discourse on Narcotrafficking

99

5

Democracy, Human Rights, and Mexican Security

125

6

The Mexican Armed Forces, the State, and Civil Society

153

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An Analytical Conclusion

177

List of Acronyms

191

Bibliography

193

Index

211

About the Book

217

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Acknowledgments A number of people and organizations have made this project possible. The Centro de Investigaciones Sobre America del Norte (CISAN) at Mexico City's Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México hosted a portion of my sabbatical in 1994-1995. The many excellent people at the Center provided intellectual support and facilitated a good portion of the research for this book. I am grateful to Ricardo Grinspun, the director of the Centre for Research on Latin America and the Caribbean (CERLAC) at Toronto's York University, for providing me with many fascinating contacts. I am especially grateful to a number of Mexican academics who have made various suggestions regarding the project: Sergio Aguayo Quezada, John Saxe-Fernández, Jorge Chabat, Lilia Bermúdez Torres, Raúl Benítez Manaut, and Walda Barrios Ruiz. Thanks also to Claudia Vega, and to my friend Karl Koth, who was helpful in so many ways. Absolutely superb research assistance came by way of Laura Ritchie during a long and crucial phase of the project. Robert James and Mila Rosales were excellent assistants during the final phase of the book. I am grateful to the library staff at Okanagan University College: Anne Cossentine, Garth Homer, Faith Peyton, and Gwen Zilm. Carla Lundy and Tena McKenzie provided valuable technical assistance. By far the biggest and most diverse support for the project came from my wife, Ruth. Friends and family supplied refreshing diversions. I deeply appreciate the help of James Ahearn. I would also like to thank the anonymous reviewers for their comments, and am especially grateful to Lynne Rienner for her suggestions and encouragement. Finally, the research for this project was made possible by generous funding from the Cooperative Security Competition Program, Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs; the Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada; and Grants-in-Aid, Okanagan University College. — J . R .

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