Nearly one million 200 thousand people are victims of human trafficking in Mexico, making the number of victims in the country the fifth largest in Latin America, reports the Mexican daily La Crónica de Hoy.
According to a recent report published by the Coalition Against Trafficking in Women and Girls in Latin America and the Caribbean, human trafficking activities are concentrated in the border and Pacific states, corresponding with high instances of drug trafficking.The NGO’s regional director, Teresa Ulloa, attributed Mexico’s high ranking to the government’s increased counter-narcotics policies, which she says have caused drug trafficking organizations to diversify their activities and venture into piracy, kidnapping, and human trafficking. Mexico’s ranking in human trafficking puts it below the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Brazil and Argentina, although it ranks first in the region in producing child pornography and third in its consumption.