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2 years ago

Why are some states safer?

2 years ago
Hola a todos, haha.
We are in Colombia, looking to relocate to Mexico. We are looking for a safe place in the country where there is cooler weather (maybe at altitude), and lots of rain. We would vastly prefer to buy maybe 20-30 hectares out in the country, but *only* if it is safe. This brings up a lot of questions.

For longtime residents, does it seem like the cities are safer than the countryside? Like maybe the police provide some limited protection in the cities (*cough!*), but in the countryside there is really not much protection?

I am looking at a map of homicides by Mexican state, and it seems that there is a big difference in the homicide rate between some of the high-homicide states (especially the Pacific states, such as Michoacan, and some of the other states, such as Chiapas). Does anyone know why this is?

https://elcri.men/en/state-crime/

We see some cool high ground in Chiapas that seems to be cooler, and still rainy, so I thought that there would be no gang activity... but then I researched it, and it says there are six cartels and two gangs that are fighting for control of Chiapas... so why would it be less violent? (I don't get it...)

https://www.eluniversal.com.mx/english/six-mexican-drug-cartels-and-two-gangs-operate-chiapas

I'm just confused, and I'm trying to understand what the dynamic is behind the country. Why are there cartels and gangs operating in every state, but some states are more violent than others? Is it a function of population density (i.e., fewer people, fewer homicides per capita)?

We are not really city people, and we stay away from trouble as best we can, and we try to get along with and do good to all of our neighbors. Only, it is kind of hard to keep a low profile in Latin America when you are 6'8", and blonde, and we don't want any trouble.

It seems like it is safer in the cities, but we are happiest out in the sticks. We just don't want to be extorted, or get kidnapped, or get human trafficked, or whatever.

So does anyone know what the rates of human trafficking, cartel and gang extortion, etc., are if you live on some hectares in one of the higher elevations in Chiapas? Or can anyone help me to understand why the homicide rate is so much lower in Chiapas, when there are six cartels and two gangs fighting for control over it? Thanks.

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