Living alongside Mexico's drug gangs

When she was sworn in as Mexico’s new president, Claudia Sheinbaum pledged to tackle the country’s drug gangs.

In the past couple of months, local civilian groups have reported hundreds of deaths and disappearances due to them.

Hosts Mark Lowen and Krupa Padhy hear from those who just want to go about their lives and jobs in safety, but are being caught in the crossfire and sometimes even targeted.

Rosa is a 15-year-old student and would like to leave it all behind but feels for now she must co-exist with constant fear.

“This is going to sound weird,“ she said. “I have a metal baseball bat here with me in my bed. I know it’s not exactly going to protect me from someone who has a gun, but at least it gives me some sort of sense of safety.”

We also hear from two women in Mexico’s Sinaloa state, whose loved ones are among “the disappeared”. They describe how they continue to wait for news, years after they last saw them. And two journalists share the dangers and threats that go with reporting on organised crime.

A Boffin Media production in partnership with the BBC OS team.

[Photo: María Isabel Cruz Bernal, Credit: María Isabel Cruz Bernal]