12/09/2013 Meet the Author

More on all our top stories at 8, More on all our top stories at 8,

but now it's time for Meet the Author with Nick Higham. More than

60,000 Mexicans have been murdered in the last six years by the

country's drug gangs or cartels which smuggle cocaine, heroin and

marijuana into the United States. Some of those murdered, in what's

have been journalists who dared to have been journalists who dared to

report what was going on. An report what was going on. An

investigative journalist has written Narco Land which she says exposes

the corrupt officials going to the top of the

Mexican establishment which not Mexican establishment which not only

allows the barons to flourish but in some cases actively promotes their

shocking. Anabel Hernandez, we hear shocking. Anabel Hernandez, we

a lot about the terrible violence in Mexico and it's remarkable that

a lot about the terrible violence in authorities and the Government can't

the reason for that is not that they the reason for that is not that

can't, but that they don't want to. can't, but that they don't want to.

Why not? Why not?

Well, what I found in five years of investigation is that since many

time ago, the government get involve with the cartels and the corruption

just grows and grows. Now the drug cartels control many, many parts of

the Mexican government. Many cartels control many, many parts of

the Mexican government. Many officials will seek bribes for

protection. At one point in the book, you have a list of people you

say were on the payroll of just drugs cartel and there are four

generals, a Secretary of Defence in the government and a former private

secretary to a president. How has that situation been allowed to

happen? How has it come about? It started in the deck awed of the 60s

and 70s when the Government tried to control the little drug cartels ——

decade. They were really small organisations and they paid to the

government something like a tax government something like a tax and

the government let them work. But in the decade of the 80s and 90s, the

drug cartels got involved with the cartels of Colombia and Mexico

powerful because the money made them the cocaine

powerful because the money made them powerful so they started to buy

powerful because the money made them parts of the government

powerful because the money made them many of

officials that work in the Mexican officials that work in the Mexican

government are in the payroll of the drug cartels. Many

too. There's a terrible story in the book of one group of policemen going

to arrest a drug trafficker, I think a Colombian drug trafficker and

there's a shot out and his guards are also Mexican policemen. It seems

astonishing? Yes. That is very common in Mexico. When that happens,

when the government tries to catch people, they fight many of the

persons that are protected. Many are officials. Police, officials and

local police. It's very common. A central figure in your book is the

biggest Mexican drug baron, a man called Mr Guzman and he runs the

arrested in the 8090s and was arrested in the 8090s and was

imprisoned in a maximum security prison —— 80s. He escaped in the

1990s and the story is that he was smuggled out of the prison in Sa

laundry cart. You say that's not true. — in a laundry cart. You say

he left disguised as a police true. — in a laundry cart. You say

he left disguised as a police policeman, disguised as a policeman.

I started the investigation, one day I started the investigation, one day

a lawyer call me and tell me that the jail

him in jail and he gave me the files him in jail and

documents. I looked at them and I documents. I looked at them and

and didn't escape in the laundry car and didn't escape in the laundry car

because when the car left, he was still in jail. What he really did

is, he got inside the office and wait for for the officials of the

government in the early morning on government in the early morning on

January 20. They opened the door and let him get out of the prison.

That was because they were on his payroll? Yes.Mexico is one of the

dangerous countries in the world for a journalist. Last October, someone

reckoned 56 journalists had been killed in the previous five or six

years, largely by the drug cartels because they found stories about

drugs. You have written many drugs. You have written many

You've been threatened, haven't you? You've been threatened, haven't

Why do you continue? Why do you continue?

Why don't you leave Mexico, for instance, because surely that would

be safer for you? be safer for you?

I have received many threats but I really don't want to get out of

Mexico because I really believe that the journalists, we have a lot of

work to do there in the country. I work to do there in the country. I

mean, the crisis is because many of the people in Mexico doesn't really

know what is happening, doesn't know what is happening, doesn't know

what is happening. If the what is happening. If the

journalists keep quiet, if I just take my things and go to other

countries, how will the people know the truth? Of course,

are many journalists that keep best one, I'm not the only one,

You are a brave woman. You are a brave woman.

Thank you. You are a brave woman.

Thank you very