Los Cabos, the most dangerous city in the world 2017

Translated by Otis B Fly-Wheel for Borderland Beat from a Milenio article

Subject Matter: Los Cabos, Baja California Sur
Recommendation: No prior subject matter knowledge required

Reporter: EFE
Los Cabos, in Baja California Sur, was registered in 2017 as the most violent city in the world, with Caracas second and Acapulco third, according to information divulged in Mexico.

"With a rate of 111.33 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants, in 2017 Los Cabos was the most violent city in the world, included for the first time in these rankings", indicated the Citizens Council for Public Security and Penal Justice.

In its annual list, was indicated with a slightly lower rate of 111.19 the second placed Caracas, capital of Venezuela, followed by Acapulco with a rate of 106.63. The report indicated that, based on its classification, that it had been determined that there has been a "rapid and pronounced decrease" in homicides in cities of Honduras.




In 2016 in San Pedro Sula, there was a rate of 112.09 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants, but in 2017 it was 51.18 a decrease of 54% in just one year. In this way, the city went from third position in the 2016 list to number 26 in 2017.

"These extraordinary reductions are the result of a commendable effort by the Government of Honduras to systematically eradicate the cells of criminal groups, reduce impunity and act against the crimes, other than homicide, committed by gangs", the NGO said.

On the contrary, there was a substantial increase in violence in the cities of Mexico. In 2015, five Mexican cities were included in the ranking, in 2017 there were 12, the same figure for 2011.

"The Mexican cities were very far from the rate of almost 300 homicides per 100,000 that Ciudad Juarez reached in 2010, but the increase in violence is undeniable", said the text, which attributed the situation to lack of action and impunity.

The 12 cities that appear in the classification are: Los Cabos, Acapulco, Tijuana, La Paz, Victoria, Culiacan, Juarez, Chihuahua, Obregon, Tepic, Reynose and Mazatlan.

Mexico officially registered 25,339 murders in 2017, its blackest year in two decades. In addition, the NGO denounces the growing difficulty of identifying the magnitude of homicidal violence in Venezuela.

"We are facing a new phenomenon that expresses the very serious crisis, the growing inability of Venezuela to count its dead," the NGO added.

Included in the 2016 ranking, six cities came out of the 2017 list, Cuiaba (Brazil), Curitiba (Brazil), Sao Luis (Brazil), Armenia (Colombia), Cumana (Colombia) and Gran Barcelona (Venezuela).

The Mexican cities of Los Cabos  and La Paz entered into the ranking, both for the first time, Tepic re-enters along with San Juan, Puerto Rico, and the Brazilian cities of Porto Alegre and Campina Grande.

Of the 50 cities on the list, 17 are located in Brazil, 12 in Mexico, 5 in Venezuela, 4 in the United States, 3 in Colombia, 3 in South Africa and 2 in Honduras. There is a city in El Salvador, Guatemala, Puerto Rico and Jamaica.

In the 50 localities, the average homicide rate was 59.17 per 100,000 inhabitants. Only the first 16 cities exceeded that average, specified the civil organization.

NOTE:  Los Cabos is NOT Cabos San Lucas.  It is referring to Cabos San Jose which is in an ongoing territorial war.  San Lucas is completely safe and has just added a new military base.