The U.S. Department of State toughened its travel alert for Acapulco, a port in the Mexican Pacific coast state of Guerrero which the agency said has been Mexico's most violent city for the past three years.
The new warning, which was issued Friday and replaces the one from January 19, 2016, prohibits U.S. Government personnel from traveling to the state of Guerrero, including Acapulco, a major tourist destination.
The only exception to the new travel rule for Guerrero is Ixtapa/Zihuatanejo, a tourist resort 152 miles northwest of Acapulco, where American diplomats nevertheless are advised to exercise caution and remain in tourist areas.
While the travel warning for parts of Guerrero, one of Mexico's poorest states, has been in effect for several years, this is the first time Acapulco—not long ago a favorite destination for celebrities, foreign leaders and American honeymooners--has been included in the ban.
In a statement Friday, Mexico’s Foreign Ministry acknowledged the legal requirements of the U.S. and other countries to issue travel warnings. In 2015, a total of 20 million Americans visited Mexico via all forms of transport, of this 8.4 million American tourists traveled to Mexico by plane, a 17% increase over 2014, the Foreign Ministry said.
While some tourists are steering clear of places afflicted with gang and drug-related violence like Acapulco, places like Cancún and Puerto Vallarta continue to be popular.
Guerrero's governor, Héctor Astudillo, played down the U.S. warning, claiming that "Acapulco hasn't had American tourism for a long time --it's minimal," Mexican media reported.
Mass kidnappings, the discovery of mass graves and the 2014 disappearance of 43 rural students believed to have been murdered in Guerrero, have tarnished Acapulco's international image.
The beach resort where Elizabeth Taylor once got married and where in the 1950s John and Jackie Kennedy spent their honeymoon is now known less for its idyllic beaches than for its bloody turf wars and daily homicides.
Less then 48 hours after the Department of State banned Acapulco from its diplomats' travel plans, 10 people were killed in Acapulco alone. According to the Mexican government, the murder rate in Acapulco is 57 per 100,000 residents. Other sources put Acapulco's murder rate at 104 per 100,000.
Acapulco and several other top beach resort cities are the core of the tourism industry, Mexico’s third source of foreign exchange income after oil and remittances.
The State Department makes references to the millions of Americans who safely visit Mexico each year for study, tourism, and business, including 150,000 who cross the U.S.-Mexico border every day. Mexico’s beaches and historic sites are popular tourist destinations for Americans.
Yet U.S. citizens have been the victims of violent crimes, such as homicide, kidnapping, carjacking and robbery by organized criminal groups in various Mexican states, the agency says. "Crime and violence are serious problems and can occur anywhere,” it warns. In 2015, 103 Americans were reported murdered in Mexico.
Mexico has 31 states and one federal district, Mexico City. The new warning advises not to travel to seven of the states, the same as in the previous alert.
Americans are asked to defer all non-essential travel to large parts of the following states: Coahuila, Michoacán, Nayarit, Sinaloa, Tamaulipas and Colima, where violent and powerful drug groups control parts of the territory and often engage in battles with rival gangs and government forces.
The warning asks Americans to exercise caution in parts of Aguascalientes, Baja California (North and South); Chihuahua, Durango, the State of Mexico, Jalisco, Morelos, Nuevo Leon, San Luis Potosí, Sonora and Zacatecas.
There is no advisory for the remaining 12 states, plus Mexico City, the nation’s capital.
While there is no evidence that organized crime has targeted Americans based on their nationality, Americans face the possibility of being caught in the cross-fire if they visit places identified in the warning.
Twitter: @DoliaEstevez
