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The Mexican Human Rights Commission released a report this week  claiming that thousands of people have disappeared in Mexico since 2006,  the year President Felipe Calderon declared war on his country's drug gangs.

The commission has reported that well over 5,000 people have  been missing since 2006.  The missing are not included in the  staggering 35,300 killed in the drug war since 2006.

However, a United Nations study suggests Mexico's security forces  may have played a part in the disappearance of some of those declared missing,
especially those who entered Mexico illegally from  Central American countries.

In addition to federal (Federales) and local police agencies, the  Calderon administration deployed more than 45,000 military troops to  combat the powerful and deadly drug cartels.

The Mexican human rights commission recently gathered and  analyzed data on people reported missing or absent. The data  was obtained from the relatives of missing persons and  from state authorities.

Of the 5,397 people, the commission's report revealed that 3,457  of those who disappeared are men while 1,885 are women.  There are 55 cases where the gender of the missing person is unknown.

Mexican officials said they are investigating the reasons  behind the disappearances, and stated that the figure included those kidnapped for ransom and economic migrants from within Mexico and Central America whose whereabouts were unknown.

Mexico's statistics were released after the United Nations said it had received complaints alleging abductions carried out by Mexican  soldiers. U.N.officials advised the Mexican government to stop using  the army in anti-drug operations. But the U.N. had no recommendations  as to how Calderon's administration would be able to stop the brutal and deadly drug gangs when they are renowned for targeting and murdering police officers,  police commanders, prosecutors and judges.

Many of Mexico's military, especially officers and non-commissioned officers, have studied tactics and strategy in the United States or were trained by military advisors.

Unfortunately, due to low-pay and minimal benefits, there are a number of Mexican soldiers and police officers who work on both sides of the law. In fact,  one of the most terrifying drug cartels -- Los Zetas -- started out as a band of  former military personnel who worked as protection for the drug cartels such as  the Mexican Mafia. Now Los Zetas is an independent cartel that is killing and  dismantling its competitors.

Many of the founders behind Los Zetas were former special forces members in the Mexican army, and they formed the outlaw paramilitary organization in the  1990s to provide protection for the Gulf cartel.  Los Zetas recently struck out on its own in search of greater drug profits, and it  has been engaged in a deadly battle with the Gulf cartel for control over  smuggling routes into the United States.

However, unlike other drug cartels, Los Zetas further has morphed into a full-fledged organized crime enterprise with extortion, kidnapping and  other rackets in multiple regions throughout Mexico



Jim Kouri, CPP, formerly Fifth Vice-President, is currently a  Board Member of the National Association of Chiefs of Police, an editor for
ConservativeBase.com, and he's a columnist for Examiner.com.  In addition, he's a blogger for the Cheyenne, Wyoming Fox News Radio affiliate KGAB (www.kgab.com).
Kouri also serves as political advisor for Emmy and Golden Globe  winning actor Michael Moriarty.

He's former chief at a New York  City housing project in Washington Heights nicknamed "Crack City" by reporters  covering the drug war in the 1980s. In addition, he served as director of public safety at a New Jersey university and director of security for several major organizations.