And for those traveling to that area for Easter, Arnold shared the key safety tips:
Oscar Arnold, Belize Ambassador to Mexico
"What has been done is that they have deployed 10,000 troops across the entire state and I understand that an additional 6-7,000 will also be deployed between the end of this week and over the weekend, next 2 weeks. But let's come to the point: the road ways to Merida are very safe to travel, the roadways to Cancun if we stay on the beaten path, if we stay on the main highways is very safe to travel. The tourist areas, Merida is one of the safest cities and has always been one of the safest cities in Mexico. And I am very careful when I speak about Merida because I know quite a bit of Belizeans go to Merida for medical treatment for life saving medical treatment and so before we give and advisory to say "no you shouldn't or no you can't" I really try to get a lot of information from the ground from our honorary consul in Merida as well as the police force in Merida."
"We have seen and known of activity in the Cancun, Playa, Tulum, the entire Quintana Roo area and I know that the Mexicans have deployed quite a bit of resources there, for example a highway assistance program that is known as the Green Angels where if you are traveling and you run out of gas, a fan belt is busted or something, they stop by and help you free of cost. The Mexicans have also implemented an app where you can download that app and if you are traveling and it is for tourist purposes, it allows you 2 minor traffic infractions in the event that you are traveling and you are registered on that App you will get 2 warnings as opposed to being ticketed. They have also launched an anonymous hotline 089 and this an important one for Belizeans to have, because this is where you can anonymously report any extortion attempt. I believe in the news about a week and a half ago there was an issue with 3 people who suffered a virtual kidnapping where they were not physically kidnapped, they thought that they were being watched when really the person calling was from a correctional facility in Tamalipas, so there are a bit of advice. I have shared some of the pointers there on an information chart that I hope that the media can circulate as well."
