Nuevo Laredo
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Coordinates: 27 ° 29 ′ N , 99 ° 30 ′ W Nuevo Laredo on the map of Tamaulipas
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| Basic data | ||
| Country | Mexico | |
| State | Tamaulipas | |
| Municipio | Nuevo Laredo | |
| Residents | 384,033 (2010) | |
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| Detailed data | ||
| height | 188 m | |
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Nuevo Laredo is a city in the far north of the Mexican state of Tamaulipas , on the border with the United States . Nuevo Laredo is located on the south bank of the Rio Grande , known as the Rio Bravo in Mexico , and Laredo (Texas) on the north bank . The city has 384,033 inhabitants (as of 2010) and is 188 m above sea level. Nuevo Laredo is the administrative seat of the Municipio Nuevo Laredo
The border at Laredo / Nuevo Laredo is the starting point of the original Carretera Panamericana , an expressway that leads via Mexico City to Central America and from there (with a break in Darién , Panama) to all the states of South America.
history
Nuevo Laredo was founded when some of the residents of Laredo refused to become Americans after Texas was annexed to the United States in 1845 . After establishing the Río Bravo as the state border, they crossed it and settled on the southern, Mexican side. According to legend, they took the remains of their dead with them to be buried in Mexico. Hence the city's motto, "Siempre con la Patria" (Eng. Always with home ).
Population development
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¹ census result (source: INEGI )
geography
Nuevo Laredo is located at an altitude of about 180 m in the northwest of Tamaulipas on the Rio Grande , which forms the border with the United States north of the city. To the south and west, the municipality borders on the state of Nuevo León and to the east on the city of Guerrero . The municipality is relatively flat. The climate is dry and fluctuates between up to -2 ° C in winter and 40 ° C on hot summer days. The local flora is rather barren and is dominated by pastureland, cacti and bushes. Wild coyotes , red deer , pheasants and pigeons live in the west of the municipality .
economy
Nuevo Laredo's economic life is currently dominated by international trade , as the city is the most important border crossing for goods traffic between Mexico and the USA thanks to the World Trade Bridge . This also makes it the border strip with the highest turnover in Latin America . Besides have maquiladoras , industrial processing plants, is very important.
In recent years, local trade and service industries have expanded significantly, which is why Nuevo Laredo is now one of the cities with the lowest unemployment rate in Mexico. In particular, restaurants on the border with the USA offer very cheap food for Americans, and there is a large open-air market near the border.
A part of Nuevo Laredo that is particularly well-known in the USA is the so-called Boy's Town , also known as La zona de tolerancia ( tolerance zone ). It is an entertainment district separated by a wall, in which there are six streets with brothels , restaurants , bars and shops for tourists. The quarter is mostly frequented by North Americans. It has a police station and a medical post.
Drug trafficking and gun violence
As a border town , Nuevo Laredo is not only a transshipment point for legal international goods traffic, but also for drug trafficking . The border with Laredo (or Highway Interstate 35 from there ) is considered the largest entry point for drugs into the United States. According to reports fighting two drug cartels , the Sinaloa Cartel and the Gulf Cartel , for control of the route through Nuevo Laredo. The Los Zetas , former special forces of the Mexican army and killers of the Gulf cartel, became particularly notorious .
As a result, the murder rate in Nuevo Laredo rose sharply between 2004 and 2005. In June 2005, the new police chief was shot dead on the first day of his inauguration. In February 2007, former mayor and incumbent Congressman Horacio Garza Garza (PRI) was shot and seriously injured on the way to the airport, but later recovered from his injuries (his driver died).
Web links
- http://www.nuevolaredo.gob.mx/ - City Council website
Individual evidence
- ↑ Marc Lacey: In Mexican City, Drug War Ills Slip Into Shadows. In: The New York Times . June 12, 2009, accessed December 6, 2011 .
- ^ Gunmen target Mexican politician. In: BBC News . February 20, 2007, accessed December 6, 2011 .