Over 61K Canadians in Mexico register as situation becomes ‘more stable’

The number of Canadians in Mexico registered with Global Affairs Canada has skyrocketed since Sunday as the flare-up of cartel violence is becoming “more stable,” Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand said Tuesday.

“The situation in Mexico is becoming more stable. Flights have resumed. In other words, Canadian airlines have announced, as of last night and this morning, that they are resuming some of their flights,” Anand told reporters ahead of a cabinet meeting on Tuesday.

As of Monday morning, more than 26,000 Canadians had voluntarily registered with GAC. On Tuesday, Anand said that number had jumped to more than 55,000 Canadians registered with the government.

In a Tuesday evening update, Global Affairs Canada said the number has climbed again to over 61,000, including more than 16,600 Canadians in Jalisco state where the cartel violence is centralized.

Since registration with Global Affairs Canada is voluntary, the actual number of Canadians in Mexico may be higher.

2:34 Violence in Mexico after cartel leader killed

“The situation needs to be closely monitored as we are doing with our consular officials on the ground in Mexico, and we are advising Canadians to follow the advice of the government,” Anand said.

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Canadians in Puerto Vallarta were asked to “shelter in place” after violence erupted in the seaside Mexican town over the killing of cartel leader and drug lord Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, better known as “El Mencho,” in a military raid on Sunday.

The shelter in place order remains in place for Jalisco and Nayarit states, Global Affairs Canada said Tuesday evening.

Within hours of the killing of Oseguera Cervantes, gunmen suspected to be his supporters blocked highways across several states and set cars and businesses ablaze.

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The flare-up of violence was likely a “message” from the cartel to exert influence over its territory, said Alejandro Garcia Magos, political science professor at the University of Toronto.

While there might be some violence in the days to come, Magos said he expects the situation to improve soon.

“There’s going to be violence. There’s going to be a reorganization of the cartel. But this is a major blow for this criminal organization. It will fracture. It will be demoralized. And eventually it will become less of a public threat,” he said.

The government’s push to take the notorious drug lord out has dealt a major blow to the cartel, he said.

—With files from Global’s Sean Boynton