Mexico Drug Violence by Teun Voeten (May 5, 2010) 
(16 votes, average: 3.25 out of 5)
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Introduction by Diederik Meijer
Teun Voeten’s photo essay on what is currently the most dangerous city in the world, Mexico’s Ciudad Juarez is not easy to look at. Voeten has perfectly caught the intense atmosphere of violence in his work, that chills me to the bone. Voeten is known for his ability to get close and not shy away from confronting situations most of us would want to walk away from. Voeten informs and challenges us to take notice of those, whom we must not forget.
About the artist
Teun Voeten studied Cultural Anthropology and Philosophy in the Netherlands. He is an award-winning photojournalist and author who has covered conflicts in the former Yugoslavia, Rwanda, Sudan, Angola, Sierra Leone, Afghanistan, Colombia, Gaza, Liberia, Lebanon and Iraq. His work has been published in Vanity Fair, Newsweek, The New Yorker, National Geographic and other magazines. Voeten is also a contributing photographer for organizations such as the International Red Cross, Doctors without Borders, Human Rights Watch and the United Nations.
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Our poll "A photo essay always needs a great written story" closed. 267 people voted, 28% agrees, 72% disagrees. 233 people answered our follow-up question "Are you a photographer?" 82% indicated they are, 18% said no. Initially, negative answers to question #1 were almost 100% as was the pecentage of photographers among respondants. Then, when the level of non-photographers started to rise, the percentage of people indicating good text is always essential started to rise too. This seems to indicate that non-photographers think that adding good text to your photo essays is essential. In my opinion: if you want non-photographers to dig your work, you know what to do...
The Mexican War on Drugs is at its heights. In December 2006, Mexican President Calderon declared war on the drugs cartels that smuggle Colombian cocaine and locally produced marihuana and crystal meth into the USA. Forty thousand troops have been deployed to suppress the drug violence. Although some drug kingpins and cartel leaders have been arrested, the wave of violence that has been hitting the country has only increased.
Drugs cartels are now fighting two fronts. The first involves the authorities, the second is against other cartels and is about controlling the smuggling routes.
This is an extreme brutal struggle in which twentytwo thousand people have died so far.
Torture, beheadings, mass killings, public executions and drive-by shootings have become normal. Cartels are competing each other in sadism and fierceness and the glorification of extreme violence is penetrating popular culture. Those who can afford it, try to escape the violence by fleeing to the USA.
The authorities appear to be powerless. They have even been accused of being complicit in the violence and drugs trade. There is corruption at all levels of society, from the lowest ranking policeman up to the highest circles in the federal government.
Ciudad Juarez is at the epicenter of the violence. With 2600 people killed in 2009, seven victims daily, this city of 1,2 million people has become the most dangerous city in the world.
Mexico presents a chilling look into the future, where organized crime has successfully taken over the monopoly on violence from the state and has established a near total impunity.
Teun Voeten (1963) lives and works in Brussels, Belgium.
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[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by margootje. margootje said: Today War photographer Teun Voeten on Mexico's drug and gang war violence. http://lnkd.in/VnMmAa [...]
Thank you so much for your work. I hope more people would pay attention to these pictures and this kind of international crisis. The picture of an eighteen year old boy, suspected of being a sicario, is very touching to me at least. He is as old as I am, and it is very gloomy to realize that while I’m sitting in school, learning and playing with my friends, he might be somewhere on the street, struggling for survival. Please continue your work.