Will Enrique Pena Nieto's Tourism Plan Protect Natives or Displace Them? MintPress News
go to original August 28, 2013

A photo from Villa del Palmar Loreto, Mexico. In an effort to increase Mexico’s growth and tourism, resorts and other businesses are being expanded over residing culture. (Kirt Edblom/Flickr)

Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto announced an $8.6 billion plan to revive Mexico’s tourist industry last week after years of violence associated with the war on drugs has depressed the national tourist economy. At least 60,000 Mexican citizens have died as a result of cartel violence in the past few years, but such violence is virtually nonexistent inside the well-protected tourist destinations frequented by Americans.

Grisly headlines of kidnappings, rapes and murders have scared off many would-be beachgoers. To make matters worse, the global economic recession in 2008 resulted in a 15 percent decrease in revenue across the industry. The infusion of cash from private companies could create 100,000 jobs associated directly or indirectly with the $12 billion per year industry that relies heavily upon travelers from the U.S., Canada and European countries.

Tourism remains a pillar of the Mexican economy, but a look back at development in recent years reveals a troubling trend for citizens who worry that the tourist industry and corporate development have come at the expense of the environment and communities losing access to lands.

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