As much of Latin America and the Caribbean continue to experience elevated levels of gun violence linked to weapons brought in illegally from the United States, Mexico says it is going full steam ahead–backed by Trinidad and Tobago–with its US$10 billion lawsuit against seven US major gun manufacturers and one gun wholesaler and distributor.
T&T, Bahamas, Antigua and Barbuda, Belize, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and the Latin American and Caribbean Network for Human Security (SEHLAC) are also defendants in the suit filed in the US Court of Appeal.
The civil lawsuit seeks compensation for the costs that Mexico and the other defendants incurred in their attempts to prevent gun violence, as well as the funds allocated to combat illicit gun trafficking instead of sending those resources to health, education, infrastructure and other potential development projects.
Deputy Legal Adviser at the Secretariat of Foreign Relations of Mexico Miguel Reyes told the Sunday Guardian in an interview during the regional crime symposium last week that he had a long and productive conversation with Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley yesterday.
“And first of all, he shared some information that I was not aware of, the magnitude of the problems here in Trinidad and Tobago. I was really surprised about the levels of illicit trafficking that you have experienced in the previous years and increased pretty much like Mexico and the other countries of the region. Secondly, he was really enthusiastic about what Mexico is doing and he declared that he is a natural ally for Mexico in this fight,” Reyes said.
“The narrative on drugs ... it’s closely related to the trafficking of firearms. I mean you can see that criminal organisations have a really high level of power and that high level of power enables them to continue their illicit activities regarding drug trafficking. So there is a really close relationship between drug trafficking, drug violence and perhaps undocumented immigration because people flee from violence.”
Last September, a US judge dismissed the initial lawsuit (Mexico vs Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc et al) filed in Boston in August 2021, but Mexico appealed the decision last March in the first circuit court.
Another matter was filed by the Mexican Government in Arizona in October 2022 –Mexico vs Diamond Back Shooting Sports et al.
“The support that we have from Trinidad, we are really honoured to have that. Trinidad and Tobago and four other countries requested from an American judge that the lawsuit filed by Mexico needs to move forward. And why does it need to move forward? Because the illicit trafficking of firearms does not only affect Mexico but the whole region of Latin America and the Caribbean,” Reyes said
“So it was really shocking and impressive because the information that the Caribbean countries sent to the American judge were statistics on the impact of gun violence in the region. So we expect that the judge or the panel of three judges that are going to decide whether the case of Mexico moves forward or not, be really sensitive to the situation that occurs outside US borders.”
The Mexican Government’s representative at the crime symposium said they were expecting that the outcome of the appeal will be decided by mid-2024.
Reyes said the lawsuits are part of a really much bigger strategy to come.
Mexico is requesting that the gun companies implement safety measures to their products, he said. They fund programmes, studies, and academic studies particularly, in order to prevent gun trafficking and gun violence. And Mexico is also requesting that the industry self-regulates, self-disciplines and monitors.
“Several prime ministers would have mentioned in this symposium that over the years America tried to push members of the region to fight in the global war on drugs. And now they’re saying that it’s time to embrace the fight against guns, the war on guns,” he said.
Reyes said according to the Mexican Government’s intelligence and research, the guns entering their country are coming from all over the United States, but many of the guns were designed and produced in Massachusetts.
Their intel found that many traffickers were purchasing gun stores a few miles away from the Mexican border in Arizona, California, Texas and New Mexico and trafficking them across the border into Mexico.
"I could see that the weapons that reach the Caribbean region come mainly from the Gulf States of the United States, as you have already mentioned, Florida, which is the natural neighbour, the natural border with the Caribbean. In the case of Mexico, as I just mentioned, we have identified some weapons coming from Florida, but the main influx comes from the states that are much closer to Mexico.
"I will give you an example. A person who goes to a store located in the state of Arizona, which is bordered by the state of Sonora in Mexico. He arrives on Monday and he purchases, for example, three AR-15-style weapons. Then the following day, he purchases two 50-calibre weapons that can shoot a helicopter down. And the following day he purchases perhaps 15 pistols and everything is paid in cash. And then he quietly puts them in concealed compartments in their vehicles and then crosses into Mexico," Reyes said.
"But, of course, criminal organisations always get creative ways in order to continue their illicit businesses. So we have identified, for example, not in our country, but in the border of the United States and Canada, the weapons are being trafficked with drones."
Reyes said while it was hard to know illegal cost of guns from black market activities, it is estimated that the weapons are sold for three or four times the price traffickers paid for the guns in the US.