Crime Agreements

For the past couple of days, Mexican leaders have been gathered in Boca del Río, Veracruz, to debate strategies, make pronouncements, announce programs (like the web site introduced by Margarita Zavala yesterday), and, finally, sign an agreement binding media outlets, citizen groups, and government officials at every level to certain commitments to crowd out narco-culture and support the rule of law.

I'm not sure exactly what this agreement is supposed to cover that last year's national security agreement missed. Both agreements sought commitments for crime-fighting improvements from various levels of government with NGOs and media outlets playing watchdog. There's nothing wrong with that, but despite the fanfare, both pacts failed to tie Mexican leaders of all political stripes to a long-term, sustainable anti-crime posture. Which means that as soon as the agreement fades from memory (which, if last year's agreement is any barometer, should be in a few months), we are back at square one.