Page 11 - atoday
P. 11
WORLD NEWS A11
Thursday 7 January 2016
Venezuela President Study:
Maduro is expected
to reshuffle cabinet Mexico violence caused drop in male life expectancy
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) MARK STEVENSON Mourners carry the coffin of slain mayor of Temixco, Gisela between March 2003 and
— Venezuela’s President Associated Press Mota, to the cemetery in Pueblo Viejo, Mexico. A new study November 2006.”
Nicolas Maduro is expect- MEXICO CITY (AP) — A new suggests that Mexico’s drug violence was so bad that it caused By 2010, two-thirds of Mexi-
ed to make economic an- study suggests that Mexi- the nation’s male life expectancy to drop. can states had lower life
nouncements and reshuf- co’s drug violence was so expectancies than they
fle his cabinet Wednesday bad at its peak that it ap- (AP Photo/Tony Rivera) did in 2000, despite im-
after declaring that the parently caused the na- provements in some health
country faces a new politi- tion’s male life expectancy by about six-tenths of a — men lost an average care programs. The de-
cal reality now that the op- to drop by several months. year from 2000-2010. of one year of life expec- cline largely occurred from
position has taken control Experts say the violence Men lived an average of 71 tancy between 2005 and 2005-2010. Mexico’s offen-
of congress for the first time from 2005-2010 partly re- years in 2010, a figure that 2010, while in the border sive against drug cartels
in more than a decade. versed decades of steady edged up to around 72 state of Chihuahua alone, started in 2006. The study
Maduro said Tuesday night gains, noting that homi- years by 2014. Figures pub- the loss added up to a star- found men were ten times
that he would make cabi- cide rates increased from lished by Mexico’s National tling three years. more likely than women to
net appointments to help 9.5 homicides per 100,000 Statistics Institute showed “The mortality rate for be killed in the violence,
protect the revolution in a people in 2005 to more a life expectancy of 70.9 males ages 20-39 in Chi- which was dominated by
new political era. than 22 in 2010. That has years in 2000. huahua in the period 2005- executions, shootouts and
The socialist president since declined to about 16 The study found that in 10 reached unprecedent- turf battles carried out by
asked his top ministers to per 100,000 in 2014. five of Mexico’s violence- ed levels,” the study noted. Mexican drug cartels.
resign after the party suf- The study published Tues- plagued states — Chihua- “It was about 3.1 times Juan Eugenio Hernandez,
fered crushing losses in day in the American jour- hua, Sinaloa, Durango, higher than the mortal- an epidemiologist at Mexi-
Dec. 6 legislative elections. nal Health Affairs says “the Guerrero, and Nayarit ity rate of US troops in Iraq co’s Center for Information
Venezuela’s opposition increase in homicides is at on Public Health Decisions,
took control of the National the heart” of the phenom- noted it was the first time
Assembly on Tuesday and enon, though deaths due life expectancy in Mexico
top leaders have promised to diabetes may have also had declined since the
to remove Maduro from of- played a role. country’s 1910-1917 revolu-
fice within six months. “The unprecedented rise in tion. Hernandez, who was
Maduro has juggled his homicides after 2005 led to not involved in the Health
cabinet several times since a reversal in life expectan- Affairs study, wrote that
taking office in 2013, as cy increases among males “indeed, violence has had
the economy has dete- and a slowdown among a big impact on life ex-
riorated. Venezuela is now females in most states,” pectancy ... mainly in the
grappling with triple-digit according to the study, male population in several
inflation and the world’s published by Jose Manuel northern Mexico states and
worst recession, in addition Aburto of the European in Michoacan,” a state lo-
to chronic shortages that Doctoral School of De- cated in western Mexico.
compel people to spend mography, UCLA’s Hiram He said researchers had
their days waiting in food Beltran-Sanchez and two warned the violence would
lines. All eyes will be on other authors. impact longevity rates,
the military’s future par- The study’s authors found which he said “haven’t
ticipation in the cabinet that life expectancy for diminished since the Mexi-
amid speculation that the males in Mexico dropped can Revolution.” q
armed forces, where low-
er-ranked officers are also US issues alert for Bahamas after sexual assaults
suffering through the eco-
nomic crisis, may try to soft- NASSAU, Bahamas (AP) — Force said a 26-year-old tion. It recommended U.S. vetting” by police but add-
en its strident support for A crime warning issued this man was taken into custo- citizens not use them either. ed that “despite our efforts,
the government and curry week by the U.S. Embassy dy as a suspect in the Jan. The Bahamas Ministry of challenges do remain.”
favor with the strengthen- in the Bahamas has singled 2 attack. Transport said in response Ministry officials planned to
ing opposition. out operators of personal The embassy said there to the warning that the sus- discuss the issue with oper-
Officers have taken a more watercraft or jet skis. had been five sexual as- pect in the most recent in- ators and business owners
active role in civil institu- The embassy issued the saults of U.S. citizens by cident was not a licensed Wednesday.
tions during the socialist alert following the sexual jet-ski operators in Nassau commercial operator and The embassy expressed
revolution initiated by late assault of a U.S. citizen by a since July. The embassy not involved in the rental similar concerns last year
President Hugo Chavez. man on one of the water- banned its staff from using industry. It noted in a state- about jet-ski operators as
Current and retired mili- craft on Cabbage Beach. jet-ski rental companies be- ment that all jet ski opera- well as rising crime in gen-
tary officers control about The Royal Bahamas Police cause of insufficient regula- tors are subjected to “full eral in the Bahamas.q
a third of the country’s top
ministries. q
