The Mexican government reported an average of six kidnappings a day in the second half of 2011, up more than 23 percent compared to the same period in 2010.
As Excelsior reports, from July to December Mexico registered 1,239 reported kidnappings, though the rate dropped ten percent in the last three months, according to officials. While five states were able to reduce the number of kidnappings, there were nine states in which abductions increased.
Of the 32 states, only 18 have met the objective of creating specialized units to combat kidnapping, according to the article.
InSight Crime Analysis
The official kidnapping figures are contested by NGO the Council for Law and Human Rights (CLDH), which claims Mexico experienced 49 daily abductions in 2011. This was an increase of 32 percent compared to last year, according to the NGO’s count. Neither the government nor the CLDH figures include express kidnappings, which may occur hundreds of times a day. The organization also reports that in 2011 only ten percent of kidnappings were reported.
Mexico has seen a sharp rise in kidnapping recently, by as much 317 percent in the last five years, pointing to how criminal organizations are increasingly diversifying their activities outside of trafficking drugs. The practice has also seen new variations, in the forms of express kidnapping, virtual kidnapping, and mass kidnapping.